What happened to rod building?

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

When I grew up in Sacramento in the 1960s we went to the iconic Edwoldt's Rod & Reel Repair on Del Paso Blvd in North Sacramento.

Mike and his parents, Lee and Wanda Edwoldt, taught us teenagers how to build fiberglass fishing rods of all types.

They helped us pick a blank and all the hardware then they professionally installed the cork and reel seats for us.

At first all we did was wrap on the guides and fishing the wraps.


Seemed like we had blanks, all the hardware and rod building supplies in our fly shop for years.

I think the Lifetime warranty and good casting inexpensive imported fly rods killed rod building in the fly shops?


Maybe 20 years ago the rod building seemed to go to catalog sales then online sales with extreme specialty companies?



Nobody would build a fly rod today to save money when you can buy an imported fly rod with a Lifetime warranty for $100?


Rod building was very popular in the rural areas up north of here, especially in the winter.


It is fun to build your own rod and tie your own flies and tie up your own leaders........I did it all.


Are you building rods today?

[FISHEYE]

I used to build rods but no longer. If I broke a custom rod all I got back was a new rod section and then I had to wrap everything again and it was a pain to match everything perfectly. Now I buy factory rods and I spend my free time tying flies, fishing or working out.

[DLJeff]

I built every rod I own except for the bamboo ones. Started in high school rewrapping guides that had come loose or busted from the trolling rods we used in the Chagres River and Bay of Panama. My Dad taught me how to use a loop to pull the end of the thread back underneath the wrapping.

Built the first full rod when I was in college because it was way more affordable for a starving college kid. Used a pre-formed cork grip because I had no way to turn my own. Dale Clemen's "Fiberglass Rod Making" copyright 1974 was my guide.

Later, Andy Puyans taught me how to glue up and turn a cork grip. I still build them for friends and people who need a rod.

I think one thing that works against building your own is the cost of blanks has gone up faster than the cost of factory made rods. That said, if you do a little searching, you can still find some really nice blanks for well under $100, which means you can build a top notch rod for under $150. If you like fast action rods check out Brian's blanks at Ye Olde English Fly Shoppe.

[BS]

When I grew up in Sacramento in the 1960s we went to the iconic Edwoldt's Rod & Reel Repair on Del Paso Blvd in North Sacramento.

Mike and his parents, Lee and Wanda Edwoldt, taught us teenagers how to build fiberglass fishing rods of all types.

They helped us pick a blank and all the hardware then they professionally installed the cork and reel seats for us.

At first all we did was wrap on the guides and fishing the wraps.


Seemed like we had blanks, all the hardware and rod building supplies in our fly shop for years.

I think the Lifetime warranty and good casting inexpensive imported fly rods killed rod building in the fly shops?


Maybe 20 years ago the rod building seemed to go to catalog sales then online sales with extreme specialty companies?



Nobody would build a fly rod today to save money when you can buy an imported fly rod with a Lifetime warranty for $100?


Rod building was very popular in the rural areas up north of here, especially in the winter.


It is fun to build your own rod and tie your own flies and tie up your own leaders........I did it all.


Are you building rods today?


In the 90's I use to build quite a bit for friends and family.
Pre-internet, I would scour my Anglers Workshop and Hook and Hackle catalogs for supplies/components to purchase.

The accumulation of "rod building tools/supplies" was probably the biggest pain in my rod building venture back then.

I'll still build a rod or two if my needs/wants are there. ;);)

Just last winter I wanted a "specialty two handed rod" for our local trout.
I wanted a light 11 foot IM6 blank and could only find one overseas, so I ordered it from there.
Cork rings here in the states looked to be poor quality and expensive, so I ordered those from Portugal.
The rest of the components were ordered domestically.

When finished, I had exactly what I was "wanting". :):)
My selected color, finish, wraps, hardware, seat, guides, cork, and all the rest of the options that a factory rod wouldn't include.

I may have saved just a (very) few dollars to assemble and complete my custom rod, however, my labor was "a labor of love".

So, yeah, I'll still build a rod if my "want/need" outweighs making do with what I have. :cool::cool:



Bob

[avidangler]

I'm in the process of building a 2 handed spey rod for a friend of mine. I love doing it.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

When I was young I worked in a wonderful "bait-n-tackle shop", West Capitol Rod & Gun, where I worked on rods and reels all day long.


People brought in their complete well used outfits where the tip was broken off a little, a guide was missing, half the mono was gone,

the bail spring was broken, the spinning reel handle was missing and it was covered with fish guts and scales.

I would put on a new tip top, replace the missing guide, add 100 yards of new mono, fix the broken bail spring, replace the missing

handle and wash off all the fish guts and scales. Customers would always say, "Are you sure this in my outfit?"


I got so fast that my boss, Harry Boley, would bet people that I could put a new set of guides on their rod while the two of them ate

lunch next door at the Tower Club (bar).


In over 50 years in the fishing tackle business in Sacramento I have thousands of stories I can tell here......

_____________________________________

Right out of high school I took a mechanical skills test for the City of Sacramento where I came in 3rd out of over 500.

I got the reputation for being able to fix anything....

Had my first motorcycle (Harley for $75) at 13 that I completely rebuilt, worked on very old outboard motors, fiber glassed old

wooden boats, worked on cars, did some hobby gun smithing, started building fishing rod in my teens, hunted and fished for

everything.

[Jay Murakoshi]

I built a number of rods in the 70's. Most of the blanks were fiber glass, Saxton blanks. They were one piece, so we had to cut them and install the ferrale. These rods were used to fish the Smith River for salmon. Then I started building graphite rods using the J. Kennedy Fisher blanks, which were made in Southern Cal. Then they moved to Moundhouse, NV. My first store bought rod was a Fenwick HMG 9010 graphite rod.
Those were the good ole days

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

My old friends from the Greatest Generation who are almost all gone now bought blanks from Art Dadini in Ferndale, California on the Eel River. They were one piece fiberglass Lamiglass seconds that were very inexpensive. Perfect for steelhead and salmon on the coastal rivers.

[wineslob]

I think my first rod was built on a Fenwick blank bought at Broadway Bait (I think). All I remember is the many pull out shelves of blanks for cheap. From there I built a few from Bills Shop (Sages). Now I build Bamboo rods from blanks and restore vintage ones.
My latest was a Quad 7.5 foot 4wt. Next is going to be a Edwards "Bristol" that only needs a little resto.

[John Sv]

I have a friend on the east coast who builds beautiful custom rods and gear. He says blanks are becoming harder to find. Orvis and st croix are no longer selling their blanks, only rods.
I have wound up a couple of rods as fun projects with my dad, but pretty infequently. I think he does it because of a ‘why pay someone else if you have the time and the skill’ Kinda the same way my parents are remodeling their bathroom themselves at age 77. Notable rods we’ve done (to me) are a powell ‘summer run’ rod we did around 25 years ago. It is green blank with purple thread and wierd guides. We just did a 9 wt sage vxp a couple of years ago.

[JasonB]

I got interested in rod building a few years back, and pretty quickly got hooked on it. A good portion of the rods I use are those I built myself, and I’ve built a few for friends and family. Some have turned out to be really special, and it does add a lot to the overall experience for me. Two rods really stand out for me: one is an 11’6” 6wt Sage One switch rod I built for my Dad and has been used since for countless hours and fish; the other is a 12’6” 3/4/5 Meiser Highlander Classic that has been pure joy on the Klamath and Trinity this fall for Steelhead. Both rods cast beautifully, and have grips that fit just so in the hands, and I love the way both of them look as finished rods. I wish I could build a lot more... if only “time and money” weren’t in the way. I don’t know that I’ve saved any money yet, but honestly if it were about saving money I wouldn’t be fly fishing at all.
JB

[Jay Murakoshi]

I still have a Powell Summer Run. I bought it when they first came out. I bought it from Alan Clemens who was the manager at the time. Bill, is that correct.. you can remember the old days

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

I still have a Powell Summer Run. I bought it when they first came out. I bought it from Alan Clemens who was the manager at the time. Bill, is that correct.. you can remember the old days

Chuck Campana cast the Powell IM6 "Summer Run", 9'6" #7/8 in 2 piece, at one of the sport shows.

He is a superb caster and said he could throw the entire 105 feet of the Cortland SL green WF7F.

Chuck and I each bought one......

[Mr T]

I have a friend on the east coast who builds beautiful custom rods and gear. He says blanks are becoming harder to find. Orvis and st croix are no longer selling their blanks, only rods.
I have wound up a couple of rods as fun projects with my dad, but pretty infequently. I think he does it because of a ‘why pay someone else if you have the time and the skill’ Kinda the same way my parents are remodeling their bathroom themselves at age 77. Notable rods we’ve done (to me) are a powell ‘summer run’ rod we did around 25 years ago. It is green blank with purple thread and wierd guides. We just did a 9 wt sage vxp a couple of years ago.


I have built a number of rods over the years, and its becoming hard to get blanks, like John said. It's fun but the time and cost does make it a labor of love and not economics.

[tcorfey]

I have built on many blanks over the years starting out in the early 70's with a Herter's fiberglass blank. I have built on fiberglass, Bamboo and graphite.

When my son's wanted to get in to fly fishing I helped them pick out a blank and cork and thread and hardware and we built rods together. It's lots of fun and useful knowledge.

Mudhole still carries several brands of blanks and all the things you need to build a rod.

I also taught the boys to tie flies and I bought spinner parts awhile ago and taught a group of Boy Scouts to make their own lures.

Back in the day my friends and I would make jigs, spinners, spoons and hand carved plugs for poppers/topwater and bass-o-reno style diving plugs.

I have not built a rod in about 6 years but I have stripped and redone at least one of my older rods every year. They all seem to be in good shape now though.

Regards,

Tim C.

[Dennis Papike]

Built my first rod on a True Temper blank in 1965 when I worked as a deckhand on the sport boats in San Diego. Bought the blank and components for under $10.00 at Midway Bait & Tackle.

We have some great rod builders on the west coast such as Doc Ski and Jim Trelikes , that being said the largest number of rod builders are found east of the Mississippi. We have a gathering of custom rod builders in North Carolina every Feb. at the "International Custom Rod Building Expo" with over 2000 attending.

[k.hanley]

Say hey Pappy,
I just wanted to say a big howdy. I think the last time I saw you was when we worked the Renzetti Show in Florida! What's your email address bud?
Cheers, Ken

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Built my first rod on a True Temper blank in 1965 when I worked as a deckhand on the sport boats in San Diego. Bought the blank and components for under $10.00 at Midway Bait & Tackle.

We have some great rod builders on the west coast such as Doc Ski and Jim Trelikes , that being said the largest number of rod builders are found east of the Mississippi. We have a gathering of custom rod builders in North Carolina every Feb. at the "International Custom Rod Building Expo" with over 2000 attending.

Hi Dennis.....

1) You live way out.....?

2) I am sure you have some good stories about the San Diego offshore fishing.

3) I heard stories about all the custom salt water conventional rod building in Southern California back in the day.

[Dennis Papike]

Hey Ken, Good to hear from you !!! My addy is cwcr123@gmail.com

[Dennis Papike]

Hi Bill, I live in Mariposa nowadays ! Still building customs but most of my time is spent designing and building prototypes for Spiralite.

[hwchubb]

I’ve been building my own for 35 years now, for pretty much the same reason I tie (and build furnitue) - nothing off the rack looks or feels exactly right anymore. The guides on so many production rods, even relatively expensive ones, are one of the areas that they seem to cut costs as an example. I’ve replaced quite a few guides that had broken, gotten crushed, etc. Plus, the custom wraps, inlays and reel seats (I’ve only turned a few grips and it’s not one of my stronger skill sets, so most of those are off the rack) just set the rod apart from the crowd a bit. Different strokes for different folks I guess. And I still think you can build the equivalent of a lot of $700-1000 rods for well below half that cost. Valuing your time cheaply, o’course.

[L Kenney]

I got into rod building in the 60s because I’d discovered good rods and couldn’t afford them on a grad student budget. But I could buy a Winston kit that included everything but guides, thread and varnish for $30 when a factory Fenwick cost $45 and that started me on what has been a long – I guess I have to call it a career – in rod building.

The decline in amateur rod building over the past decades seems to me due to a combination of things:
• the higher cost of graphite rods and blank, as opposed to that for the fiberglass rods that predated them.
• the higher rate of both unexplained and customer-caused breakage for graphite rods, particularly before toughened epoxy resins were introduced.
• the Unconditional Guarantee, which gave you a free rod if you broke one. If you broke a blank, it would also be replaced under this guarantee but you’d have to scavenge the components or buy new, and put in the time to rebuild. Cheap and Easy trumps Costly and Hard just about every time.
• the increasing reluctance of most shops to stock blanks and components. Why sell components when a finished rod makes you more money, and where do you put them in the limited space of a small shop? A corollary to this was shop employees increasing unfamiliarity with rod building as shops stopped selling components. Most of the big catalog outfits stopped listing rod building components by 1993 or so.

But rod building is seeing a contemporary renaissance. The fly fishing market has grown somewhat with more anglers looking at more options. There are lots of shops – though mostly online – that carry a wide range of components - Proof Fly Fishing, Custom Fly Rod Crafters, Anglers Workshop, Jann’s Netcraft and Mudhole Tackle, among them. I’m convinced that there are very few bad fly rods out there anymore, only decent and better ones. You can put together a decent one from components for a little over $100. And for the $400 price of a good mid range factory rod you can put together a much better one yourself. Buying a top end Sage or Loomis or Winston or Scott blank and high quality components to build an excellent one won’t save you much over the cost of the finished rod, but the reel seat and guide wrap colors will be your choice, and you’ll probably end up with a cork grip in a shape and length you like, not to mention one that isn’t filled with lots of ugly patches. And there’s still the intangible value of fishing something you built yourself.

YouTube has scores of videos on the various aspects of rod building, and there are a number of good books on the subject, Art Scheck’s Fly Rod Building Made Easy being my favorite. Some fly fishing clubs are again offering rod building classes. Diablo Valley does, and the Golden Gate Angling and Casting club runs 3-4 rod building workshops every fall/winter that are popular enough to have waiting lists to enroll.

Finally, I have to disagree with Ralph on the time involved. You probably own most of the tools you need already, though if you plan to build more than one rod it’s probably work the $100 it will cost you for a rod wrapping jig and a turning motor setup. You can glue a reel seat and a preformed cork grip on a blank in an hour (or spend another hour gluing up cork rings and turning them on a jerryrigged lathe made from an electric drill), then file guide feet smooth and tape them to the blank in the correct position in another hour. Wrapping is generally the thing that gives folks the most trouble so let's figure 8 hours for those who struggle to learn and from 2 to 4 hours for the rest. Finishing wraps with epoxy or varnish adds another hour. That's ten or twelve hours or so at most spread, out over however many days you want. And if you're particularly picky or challenged by any of the steps, and it takes 20 hours, so what?

Russ Chatham, famous for his lack of interest in fancy gear, once suggested that we spend our dollars on tackle and our hundreds on travel. Multiply those numbers by ten and you’ve got a recipe for contemporary success.

[Bob G]

Larry - Very well said, and thank you for sharing. Best, Bob Giannoni

[Charlie S]

DL...do you deal with Roger Penrose?

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

I am glad to see that some out there are still enjoying rod building.....


**If a fly shop has a staff member who is way into rod building, building rods at the shop to create interest, I think that shop could justify carrying rod building supplies.

That Lifetime warranty on all fly rods seem to kill that rod building business for all but the catalog and online rod building specialty businesses.

[DLJeff]

DL...do you deal with Roger Penrose?

Charlie,
If I'm the DL you're asking, no, I'm sorry, I don't know a Roger Penrose.

[Charlie S]

Jeff, we corresponded before with messages. Please check your messages, I sent one with Roger’s contact info.

[Rich Morrison]

I am glad to see that some out there are still enjoying rod building.....


**If a fly shop has a staff member who is way into rod building, building rods at the shop to create interest, I think that shop could justify carrying rod building supplies.

That Lifetime warranty on all fly rods seem to kill that rod building business for all but the catalog and online rod building specialty businesses.

This is a wonderful old interview with Press Powell where he talks a little about the lifetime guarantee and what it’s meant to rod builders. It’s a great piece and makes me miss the old family Powell shop.

https://www.sexyloops.com/articles/presspowell.shtml

[DLJeff]

Thanks for posting that Rich. It is interesting reading about the history and what some of the early developers thought about fly rods. I hadn't heard Andy Dear's name in quite while. He's still making epoxies but focusing on knife building now.