roger wilson Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Anton,
> I wrapped one rod by hand.
>
> I am an engineer by trade.
>
> I said that is why we were given us a mind to
> reduce manual effort. As a result, I started on
> my quest of making power wrappers of various
> sorts.
>
> After about a dozen different wrappers over the
> years, I finally have one that I am very happy
> with. All of the previous wrappers worked, just
> some worked better.
>
> Same thing true of dryers.
>
> Because I do other things in the shop beside wrap
> rods, all of the building tools break down and
> store in small spaces.
>
> After the many rods that I have built over the
> years, the actual tools that I use is really a
> small number.
>
> ---------------------------
> Exacto knife - supply of blades.
> Fly tying scissors that I use to trim thread. I
> just find that a scissors work much better than a
> razor blade for myself.
> A few different scissors that I use for trimming
> and cutting different things during the building
> process.
> I few sharpened picks that I use for a wrapping
> aid to move thread and to assist when tying off
> thread.
> Tweezers to deal with small objects
> A few different sized needle nose pliers
>
> Soap to wash hands. Frequent washing of hands
> work well to eliminate hand debris and oil that
> end up on the rod being built.
>
> 5 minute epoxy.
> 15 minute epoxy.
> 30 minute epoxy.
>
> Tite bond III wood glue
>
> Elmers light oak wood filler to fill voids in
> cork.
>
> Sand paper - grit sizes 100, 150, 220, 320, 400 -
> for shaping and sanding cork when creating cork
> grips.
>
> Alcohol for various cleaning purposes.
>
> I prefer to use an alcohol lamp for heating tip
> cement for tip application. I also use the lamp
> to shrink the thread and melt the tag ends of
> thread.
>
> If you use pre made grips, you will minimize the
> need for a wood lathe and the associated turning
> tools. However, if you do decide to make grips
> from cork, the use of a small wood working lathe
> makes the job a lot easier.
>
> For myself, I much prefer the use of a power
> wrapper, as well as a good dryer.
>
> -------------------------------------------
> For many years I used a simple power wrapper with
> a power head mounted on a wooden board with a slot
> routed down the middle to hold the rod rests. A
> thread unit with an arm and tension device on the
> arm took care of the thread needs.
> The thread unit simply rests against the back of
> the wrapper base board and slides along the back
> of the board. I made the rod rests from aluminum
> bar stock and pulleys made of skate board ball
> bearings with O rings on the outside of the
> bearings.
>
> [
www.rodbuilding.org]
> /photo/18627/title/swing-arm-halogen-light-for-wra
> pping/cat/508
>
> [
www.rodbuilding.org]
> /photo/16330/title/binders-for-guide-attachment-fo
> r-ice-rod-1/cat/500
>
> [
www.rodbuilding.org]
> /photo/14484/title/thread-tensioner-using-simple-s
> pring-loaded-disks/cat/508
>
> ------------------------------------------
> Really good lighting is necessary to do a good job
> of wrapping rods.
> I like to use a head band mounted magnifier of
> 2.5x power to be able to better see the individual
> wraps of the thread.
>
> Good luck and enjoy.
AS Always..."Right On Roger"!
Don Campbell
don@sensorfishingrods.com
