Biting The Bullet

[jjtroutbum]

Its done I have made up my mind. And now a build Is imminent. Got to pick out what size weight action and cost as well as where In my little place this is going to take place.

[Terry Beeson]

John,

Dorber all the way!!! www.dorber.com

[Crippled Caddis]

While I'm in general agreement with Terry I would point out that Schneider Rods in Mt. Home has a wider selection of blanks and accessories. <http://www.schneidersrods.com/>

I've built rods from both sources and enjoy all of them. My latest build was a Batson Forecast blank from Schneider. It is a 6 1/2', 2 piece graphite reputed to be a 2 wt. but I was already prepared for it to throw a 3 or 4 better from comments on a few rod building boards. The advice proved to be true and both the rod and the user are happiest with a WF4F. So I STILL need to roll a 2 weight. Upside is that the blank was only $16 from Schneider IIRC. The grip/reelseat is one of the all-cork w/sliding bands from Netcraft for under $12 so it's not like I broke the bank.

Take a close look at some of the E-Rods on the Dorber site. They are an early generation graphite that isn't so unmercifully fast and are a pleasure to fish with. They may not come out ahead in the parking lot wars but they're a joy on-stream and more durable than the later, ultra fast and ultra fragile graphites. For my purposes I'll take a rod that's friendly for fishing and let the cannoneers enjoy their parking lot artillery. I have the 7 1/2', 3 wt and it is a pure joy to fish. CC

[Danoinark]

And I echo Schneiders and Dorber...nothing else to say. I wouldn't go anywhere else for a blank actually

Dano

[jdmidwest]

Not knocking any of the locals and I don't know where you are located, Janns Netcraft is a good source of blanks and parts. Good prices and fast shipping.

Jann's Netcraft

[flyfshn]

jjtroutbum, you should consider joining Ozark Fly Fishers. The FFF donated some rod blanks to our club and they had a drawing for those that wanted to learn how to build a rod. Fortunately, I was selected and we had our first class today.....what a blast! i still have a lot to learn, but it is really fun. They have guys that are experienced in rod building and I am sure they would help you. I dont think I could build one by reading a guide/book alone. The next OFF meeting is Thur 10/25 and Matt Tucker is going to give a presentation of fly fishing missouri streams, they are going to have guys tying flies and are going to have a swap meet.

[jjtroutbum]

Thanks for the recommendations on suppliers guys.

Anyone know any references ie books, DVDs, links or St. Louis area masters that like fine bourbon or need fish tank or koi pond work?

Ya Mike thanks for the heads up on the next O.F.F. meeting I have already decided to join up. Now that I know which side of the park that the meetings are not held on. I should be able to make the meeting on time.

Also I think the learning curve would be greatly increased by having some experienced builder at least help point out the do nots of rod building.

My main thing right now is trying to keep my self from rushing out and as they say not getting all my ducks in a row first .

I am reading Al Campbell's on-line tutorial over at another forum and thinking about getting a DVD to go along on my personal learning curve.

Thanks for all the info,

JJ

[Gavin]

Talk to Tom Hargrove...he builds some incredible custom fly rods and he'd be happy to help you out with whatever you need. Here's a pick of one of the inlays on a rod he built for me.

[flyfshn]

Tom Hargrove is an amazing rod builder, Feathercraft sells rod building supplies and they can help. Steve Antonic of Ozark Fly Fishers showed us some really COOL rods he built with inlays of feathers, size 32 hooks, etc. If you make the next meeting, find me and I will introduce you to him. He had some really good books, but I cant find the paper I wrote them down on. Will let you know what they are when I find it.