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Thread: Rod Building

  1. #16
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Williamsburg,Va.
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    12,402
    You need to get some Tonkin Cane,and temper it in an oven at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Tonkin Cane is the best bamboo for rod making,and was carefully hoarded during the Vietnam war as it was not available during those years.

  2. #17
    Quote Originally Posted by Dick Latshaw View Post
    Sorry to correct you, Mike. As a former resident, I know for sure that there are only two: Winter and August.
    Yep, a southerner asked a Minnesotan what they did there in the summer. The Minnesotan thought a bit and then replied, "We usually have a picnic that day."

    Mike
    Go into the world and do well. But more importantly, go into the world and do good.

  3. #18
    Quote Originally Posted by Wes Mitchell View Post
    Spring may arrive here in MN in the next couple of months (emphasis on MAY ARRIVE) and I'm debating trying my hand at building my own fishing rod. It doesn't look like there is much savings to be had by making your own rods, but it does seem like something I'd enjoy. I'd like to find a place that sells inexpensive components to see if I enjoy it before spending the money on higher end stuff. Anyone have any experience and sources for custom rod building? I'm looking at freshwater casting or spinning rods.

    It looks like mudhole has a ton of stuff, but their blanks are pretty spendy. I'm not a huge fan of Ebay, but they did seem to have quite a few items.
    There are many reasons to justify building your own rod. There are probably more reasons to justify not building your own rod. Forget about any cost savings. If you enjoy building things and using things that you've built, by all means go right ahead. If you want a rod built the way you want it and not subject to fads and trends, that's another good reason. If none of these applies to you, don't bother.

    Over the years I've built about 50-60 rods for myself and my wife. It was the right thing for me, but for most people it's not. Some of the suppliers I've used are Angler's Workshop, Netcraft, Cabela's, and Hook & Hackle. Good luck!
    Last edited by Rob Matarazzo; 03-29-2014 at 3:03 PM.

  4. #19
    Quote Originally Posted by george wilson View Post
    You need to get some Tonkin Cane,and temper it in an oven at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Tonkin Cane is the best bamboo for rod making,and was carefully hoarded during the Vietnam war as it was not available during those years.
    There are a few types of cane still available for bamboo rod making, I use to get mine from Charles Demarest, as far as I know he is still the, and probably, only source for Tonkin. Tonkin, while a traditional choice, is not always the best choice especially for light weight rods. Mandake cane has greater strength in its outer edges from the concentration of fiber strands, it is much smoother in comparison. Tempering often takes place after binding the rod sections together, making the rod stiffer and driving out additional moisture before final tapering and glue up.
    Last edited by James Conrad; 03-29-2014 at 3:54 PM.
    "The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes." - Proust

  5. #20
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Western Nebraska
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    4,680
    Are you guys talking about natural or synthetic rods?

  6. #21
    My post about cane rods is about real bamboo. Hexagraph is a company that makes a "synthetic" bamboo fly rod.
    "The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes." - Proust

  7. #22
    Thanks for all of the info everyone. Looks like I will go with Angler's Workshop, they seem to have some good prices. I'm hoping to get an order going soon, and when/if I ever get anything built I'll be sure to post it.

    Mud hole has a great series of videos on youtube, there was a lot of info in their 10 video series. Sounds like the big advantage of building your own rod is in getting the spine/spline correct.

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