Well, it's getting to the point that I want to upgrade my hand-wrapper to something with more horsepower. As I live in NZ I will be needing to purchase something from the US and have it shipped across - so I dont have the luxury of going into a shop to look at them or discuss. So, any tips on what I should be looking for? Or any recommendations for a good reliable model??

Cheers!

Damon Taylor
New Zealand
www.thedryrise.com

I only build fly rods and I have never thought of using a power wrapper. I believe there are a number of issues with using one for them, they are these. 1) most fly rods today are multiple piece, so it is quite easy to wrap a section at a time and not have to deal with long lengths. 2) as the sections are different diameters, chucking them might be a concern, 3) most fly rods do not have extensive decorative wraps, only guide and ferrule wraps. 4) as the guides are often single foot and small, the wraps are short. 5) Will still need to do the locking wrap by hand.

On the other hand, I don't see why any one of the commercial offerings would not work.

Damon,
Due to your location and issues with shipping as well as taxes and tariff's; have you considered the idea of making your own power wrapper.

Really, all that you need is a source of power, some rod rests, and a thread stand for the thread.

Lots of us have made power wrappers over the years with excellent results.

I will just post a couple of pictures of items that I have built over the years to help to build rods. I built one rod by hand and decided to never again spin a blank by hand.

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For example - here is a picture of a wrapper that I used for building short rod sections which is exactly what you need for multi section fly rods. The bed is a simple 1x6 board with a slot routed down the center to attach the rod rests. The rod rests are made from a couple pieces of aluminum, shower door rollers and a plastic cutting board. The thread stand is made from a simple thread tension device, an oak stick, and a piece of plastic cutting board.

[www.rodbuilding.org]

Here is a power head unit using a $2 surplus cordless drill motor - powered by a foot pedal 24 volt regulated power supply.
[www.rodbuilding.org]

An early head unit using a sewing machine motor, belts and a speed reducing jackshaft and pulleys.
[www.rodbuilding.org]

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Certainly is you go with one of the widely available commercial units, virtually any of them will do a fine job for you.

In the interest of saving money, you might check for local sources through some of the on-line sites and some of the on line @#$%& sites and find an even better deal than having to deal with long distance shipping and taxes.

Good luck

Damon

Two thoughts:

If you buy the ATC wrapper or one of the several clones, be certain to buy additional drive belts, drying motor, and upgraded chuck upgrade - you will need them more sooner than later.

You wrote you wanted more horsepower and horsepower is usually associated with speed. Know that a power wrapper does not accelerate starting or ending a wrap, and that you must still pack every 3 to 5 turns of a wrap. My point is you need to be realistic for expectations of speed or improved throughput. And just to prove life is unfair, it is possible to make a royal mess of a wrap in a hurry with a power wrapper.

There are other benefits to be realized from a power wrapper, and I'm truly not trying to talk you out of the purchase of one. Just be realistic with the expectations for wrap speed for fly rods.

Damon:

I agree with Phil. Fly fishers [where rod action is relatively more important than trolling, casting, spinning, or bait rods] have embraced four-piece rods. There is no apparent reason to have a wrapper more than four feet long to build fly rods.

Thanks all for your responses,

So maybe a power-wrapper isnt the best option then. I should have explained - what I currently have is a small CRB hand wrapper ( [www.mudhole.com]) and I find I get frustrated with constantly having to readjust rod stands etc due to the small size. So maybe I am better served by a bigger (as in longer) hand wrapper?

I guess the other benefit is I eventually plan on making my own cork handles - so something that is powerful enough to allow me to turn cork would be handy to have.

The current one has been good in that it is small - and I have been building at my kitchen table - so it is portable. But I am now look at setting up a proper rod building workshop in my basement, so I can go to something more sturdy.

Cheers!

Damon



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/27/2018 05:52PM by Damon Taylor.

Damon Taylor Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thanks all for your responses,
>
> So maybe a power-wrapper isnt the best option
> then. I should have explained - what I currently
> have is a small CRB hand wrapper (
> [www.mudhole.com]
> -1) and I find I get frustrated with constantly
> having to readjust rod stands etc due to the small
> size. So maybe I am better served by a bigger (as
> in longer) hand wrapper?
>
> I guess the other benefit is I eventually plan on
> making my own cork handles - so something that is
> powerful enough to allow me to turn cork would be
> handy to have.
>
> The current one has been good in that it is small
> - and I have been building at my kitchen table -
> so it is portable. But I am now look at setting up
> a proper rod building workshop in my basement, so
> I can go to something more sturdy.
>
> Cheers!
>
> Damon

If you've got the CRB hand wrapper, here's what I think would be much cheaper than a power wrapper while allowing you the flexibility you're looking for. Buy either a section or two of the aluminium base station and the bearings, or just get the whole base station kit. That way your hand wrapper is anchored to the base with the bearings so there is no need for your stands to be directly attached to the base. Place your stands where you want them, and roll the base station along as you're wrapping.
[www.mudhole.com]
[www.mudhole.com]-
[www.mudhole.com]

I forgot an even cheaper alternative. Get a 1"x8" to 12" board. Mark the center of the board length ways, and then measure the distance center to center on the holes of your stands. Drill holes at that distance down the length of the board. Get some 1/4" wing nuts and enought 1/4" T nuts to put one in every hole. That way, you can put anchor your stands at any position along the board and anchor your hand wrapper at any point along the board.

Damon,

I have two power wrappers and never use one on a fly rod, not with power anyways. When wrapping, I put the reel seat in the chuck and adapt my supports to the proper positions. Then I go to the first rod support, the one closest to the handle, and tighten the upper roller against the rod so that it provides a fair deal of tension. Then I wrap by hand. This system gives me the support I need and the tension keeps the rod from spinning backwards and the wrap coming loose. Good wraps.

Check out the Pacific Bay online catalog, pg. 132, it has a hand wrapper with the same roller supports and base as the power wrappers and pg. 134 has additional supports and base lengths to fit anything you want. Lots of sponsors to the left can help you.