Does anyone know the manufactors name of the two part 6# foam cores?

Lone Wolf Rods
"Keep your powder dry and your lines wet"
God Bless

here
[www.rileyrods.com]

Bill - willierods.com

I have personally have been trying to get a hold of Capt Mike of Riley Rods this week. I know some of the guys on here have been getting communication/shipping delays/issues in the past. I messaged him asking if I put in an order for supplies would he be able to ship them out in a timely manner. I have yet to hear from him. I also messaged him on his instagram account which he posted a pic within minutes and still no reply.... Not trying to bash him or anything. I have purchased from him several times before. I just want to make sure if I put in an order it get shipped...

I have been waiting 5 weeks for a grip that Mike told me was completed. I have had no success in contacting him by phone, email or voicemail for over 3 weeks now.

MIke operates a fishing charter service, plus recently received a commercial contract for the carbon fiber skinned grips. Not making excuses for him, but it seems to be an ongoing thing and he generally does get back in touch with people but perhaps not as quickly as some others are able to.

..................

Tom

There have been a lot of complaints on service
He has to get some help to straighten it out
I would like to order some stuff -- BUT -- I will not until he gets it together
No one in his family - friends that can help ????

Bill - willierods.com

I Agree with Bill, Sounds like he is getting in over his head.. I'm just looking for supplies... ie. foam core etc... not asking for a custom handle. I think he needs to remember the little guys (hobby builders, small business builders) who made his business successful... I have several standing orders who want carbon grips. Too bad I cant deliver....

About a month ago I ordered some supplies, came on time as ordered. Not doubting others, just providing another data point.

Per the magazine article that unveiled how to make them - U.S. Composites offers liquid urethane foam.

..........

BUT
What if one does not want to MAKE THERE OWN and just order either raw or done

That is not the idea
There is or should be a way to fix this ---- he needs help !!!

Or who else sells them Another business ??? I would - but don't have the room

Bill - willierods.com

Bill,

Foam-core, carbon-skinned grips are not expensive in terms of the materials involved, but they are very time and labor intensive. I would not bother to make and sell one for less than $50. But that's just me.

Whether or not Mike needs additional labor help and can incur that additional cost is really something only he can decide. The demand may not be high enough to find and train a person to do this full time, or even part time. I have no idea - it's his business.

....................

Speaking as a multiple business owner.
Saying some one should get help and them being able to find someone willing to work or trained to do a job is another mater. It is the most frustrating thing I deal with.
And in Mikes situation it is even worse. He is in a field where there are NO trained employees to be had. So he is forced to hire amateurs slow down the entire process.to teach them, then must continually ride their backs to get them to do the quality work that every one on this board and commercial customers demand.
As for me If I was handed the contract that Mike recently received and was looking at 3 plus years of continual income for more product then has sold since being in business. Every one on this board including my own demands would be put on the back burner.

I sometimes get 30 to 50 calls and emails a day, and I can either spend the entire day answering all those calls n emails and get absolutely nothing done. Or I can work to get as much accomplished as I can then answer the calls when I can.

Now if I and probably mike want to feed our families and pay our bills we do the work get to what we can done then worry about calls.
Mike is hiring people but is still a long slow process to train them

And just you are curious as to whats on Mike plate
[www.rodmakermagazine.com]

Steve

Train people to pour and set handles ??? read emails - Send orders You are joking
This is not building a rocket ship
Some one to get and take emails - Take orders After a while they can SEND the orders
You can not do TWO THINGS as one person
No offspring -- No Family _ no Friends ??

I am not putting him down !! But there has to be a friend or family member to help
No One Does Anything without the help of SOMEONE Life does not work that way !!!
Unless you got money UP THE you know

Bill - willierods.com

Wow......... I'm a newbie at all of this, only been building rods for about 11 months, been reading a lot here, "Thank you". I got my kits from Mike about 5 days after ordering it, not sure what the problem is.

I ordered mine on 7/18/15 and got it on 7/24/15, fact is I have 6 new grips ready for rods.

I too am self employed, and at times it gets overwhelming, I understand, I have called one of the sponsors to the left here to order some blanks and the components twice this week and left a message, still no returned call.

So, I guess I know the feeling...

I had not seen the blog entry about Mike. That is great news for him! He's a good guy, and will get back with you when he can. Exercise a little patience with him. As noted, he has a lot of irons in the fire and that can be a double edged sword at times. I'm still waiting to get back to the Wilmington area to go catch some reds with Mike. We had a trip scheduled a couple years back, but it got canceled due to motor issues. I was looking forward to talking rod building as much as fishing and should be back in his neck of the woods and will hopefully get in a little fishing with him next summer.

Another place I've gotten foam cores in the past is from Alex at Hydra. He used to have cores up on the web site, but I don't see any now. It might be worth an email or call. I will say that Alex's cores were a bit tougher to turn and cut. With a little patience I could usually cut Mike's to length with a piece of mono or braid and were easy to sand, but it took a lot of patience and several pieces of line to get through Alex's cores, as well as a bit more time to sand.

You could always order some of the PacBay arbors, glue, and sleeve them. Probably more dense than 6 lb, tho. I've used them
[www.mudhole.com]

Thanks Joe. If you got the cores we poured in tubes, yes because the material creates a skin that is tough. Once you get past that, it was easy.

We no longer offer them though. We're too busy building finished rods these days, and as crazy as it sounds... rods are no where near as labor intensive as the grips were. Not saying we won't do it again, but we simply had to make some business decisions and that was one of the first things to go. We still have some things on the back burner, but even that has been a low priority over the past year.

Hydra Fishing, LLC

Online: [www.hydrafishing.com]
Facebook: [www.facebook.com]
Email: info@hydrafishing.com

Alex,

Don't get me wrong, your cores are great, and I would use them again if/when things settle down enough to bring them back. Those were likely the ones I got, and I know you've been busy lately. That's a good thing! Even after getting through the skin, they seemed a little tougher, but I turn mine on a drill lathe, and my drill doesn't turn as many RPMs as I would like. So, a slightly tougher material takes me a bit longer to turn. With a good lathe and proper tools, any foam would turn like butter. With my lower speed drill lathe, a sure-form rasp and sand paper, it can take me a bit to turn a grip. When I turn burl cork, it feels like an eternity to finish a grip, but the slower speed also prevents me from taking off too much too quickly, and that can be a good thing.

I understand putting the cores on the back burner. There's a reason a lot of us would rather buy a ready made core than set up to pour them ourselves, mostly the time and the mess that the urethane foam can make if it gets spilled.

Forest,

I just send you an email.

Don Campbell
don@sensorfishingrods.com

There is a rule of thumb in the business world that keeps business honest. If your not able to keep up with your customers and do not provide the quality of service expected you open yourself to competition. I would believe that Riley Rods does not hold a patent on the product. It should just be a matter of time before someone else brings carbon fiber and foam core customs to the market. Just saying there is a opening there for someone that has the capabilities.