Custom Fly Rods?

[chainsaw510]

i can build two custom rods for the price of one factory rod.and they are the exact way i want them.building rods are easy.I would never buy a rod retail.too much dough.either wait for deals on the classified or build your own.my motto.i've built 20 or so rods now and yes it is awesome catching pish on your creation.

[LNelson]

"PS: Changing the size, amount and spacing of the guides is not a real good idea because that has more to do with the casting action than anything else.On a trip to Christmas Island with the Sage Company we all tested some new rods that Jerry Siems was developing. They were a 9' #8 rod in A, B and C prototypes. The only difference was the amount, size, type and spacing of the guides."

PS2: The top rod designers like Steve Rajeff and Jerry Siems have already done all the R&D trying to get the smallest, lightest, least amount of guides on the rods so they will be very light without giving up any measurable casting performance/distance. Unless you have your own tournament caster and tons of different guides it is best to use the exact same guides and spacing as the factory."



Bill,

Some manufacturers have used fewer guides on models to reduce the cost in materials and labor, thus making the rod less casting friendly than it would be otherwise.

I have owned 2 very expensive rods, Diamondback Golden Shadows, with the only difference being one had a single stripping guide on the butt section of a two piece blank while the other had two. The two rods behaved very differently, with the rod having the extra stripping guide casting and shooting line far nicer.

I have also played around with a lot a vintage fiberglass rods that have had 5 snake guides and cast awful. You take those blanks and increase the number of snakes guides thus changing the guide spacing and placement and they turn into pleasant casting fly rods.

The top graphite rod designers are focused(Too focused IMHO) on making the lightest, maximum distance rods, not necessarily those that are pleasant to cast within normal fishing distances. This is why there has been a resurgence in interest in fiberglass rods and full flexing graphite like the original Scott G and Winston IM6 series, at least for those that primarily fish for trout and other freshwater species.

[Darian]

I'm in agreement with the idea that rod manufacturers change their products and not necessarily for the better in order to achieve cost savings. An example of this was the Fenwick company. Somewhere around the late 70's or early 80's, Fenwick decided to reduce the cost of producing their rods by using a lesser number of guides and lowering the overall quality of the reel seat, etc. I owned one of the original FF 85 rods (purchased in 196. It was a very good rod, cosmetically and performance wise. During the late 70's, I purchased an FF 858 rod and found that it had a lesser number of guides and the stripping guide had been changed to a cheaper model. The reel seat was a lighter metal and the finish on the rod/windings really appeared cheap. I was very disappointed.

Nothing new here....

[pgw]

With a true custom rod, you are involved in the development of the rod.

That "R & D" is the major expense in production rods regardless whether they are a Sage, Scott, TFO, Orvis, or others. If you build a rod (the ones I build tend to have 12-14 cork ring grips and very short thread winds on the guides) or have one made to your specifications...not the builders', you have an individual piece of work.

In 1983, I had Russ Peak build me a rod that was developed through phone discussions between him and I about intended use. That rod traveled between his shop in Pasadena and my home in the Bay Area 3X as it evolved from a 8' 6" to a 8' 9" rod. The first time I cast it, there was no reel seat, the cork grip was a temp and all the guides were taped to the blank; I sent it back with comments and the next time I saw it, the butt section was completed (different & longer than before) and it had a tip section (with a different action than before) with the guides still taped on. After casting it, I retured it to Russ with comments and the finished rod ended up matched to my casting style and fishing requirements. $375 then was a lot for a rod but it works out to about $13.40 a year for a great rod. I recently picked up another of his rods on Ebay, not made for me but mint and fully functional for me in a different fishing application.

Paul

[Charlie S]

I have to agree with all the previous reasons posted also. I have a friend who started out building rods as a hobby. Now, over the past 5+ years I think he has built over 2,000. He builds fly, salt water spin and anything else for many people. It is still part time for him. No way a factory rod can have the detail and he is very meticulous with every phase he does. All the way from the blank he uses (Sage usually) guides, grips, thread, color of thread, and any personal info you want on the blank, which for me and some others is your name on the rod. I like to support someone like this. Come to think about it, I did get his very first rod built. Any breaks, tips usually for me he takes care of for me. Haven't bought from him for a while, so not sure if he is cheaper or not. Last rod I bought anywhere was a Cabella's 8wt. L-Tech for Pyramid. Not a bad rod for the money. And times are a bit tight as far as money goes. Also bought a Cabellas RLS3 reel. Usually buy Ross etc. but the price was right.

Wow...over 2,000 rods in 5+ years. I have been building rods seriously since 1958 (really amaturish prior to that time). I have completed almost 1900 rods in that time. I have to question the ability of someone to build 2000 rods in 1825 or more days. That would be more than one rod per day with no days off.....don't think so. Even in my heyday of building when I was doing them commercially I could get at best 7 rods in five days and that was busting my rear to do so. Building a custom rod is a work of the heart. I still build them for friends as gifts and each one is special to me, and hopefully to them.

[C J Dodge]

[IMG][/IMG]Hi Dave,

Sounds like a fun project! Have you tried to mudhole.com, jannsnetcraft.com?

Hey if you are interested in a road trip in May, we have a cabin in Jackson, Wyo. Pictures follow (I hope!)


http://s148.photobucket.com/albums/s...d%20Surrounds/