here's the link
Forum: rodboard

Assuming the video is the Epitome 1290, At 20lb of *actual* drag capability on a 2.4oz blank, I think it's kind of a game changer, especially for big tarpon. the GammaBeta is the same weight, it's a wonderful rod to cast and it fights quite above what it feels in hand. but this one seems to be an entirely different animal.... it won't be an armbreaker like the Warhorse is.
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Sorry I'm a little late on this one. if you have a FB account, you can go check Goulven's review of the blank. He took it to Costa Rica, and in a nutshell: it's quite a good light popping blank, up to advertised specs.
Forum: rodboard

well, that's exactly the point. the concept stems from my distance casting rods, which were inspired from tuna popping xxh rods. the idea being to try and minimize friction by having straight concentric guides when seen along the blank axis. the difference is probably small, but I quite like the way it feels when the the running lines shoots into the guides.
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I've built mine using full fuji torzite guides. KW 16 12 then KT 10 8 and the rest KT7 I find this set up shoots an impressive amount of line
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I think Phil's (very valid) point was not about who's got a big cast, but about a specific need in custom fly rod building: namely to be able to recommend a good line for the rod, which is hard to do if you didn't spend enough time casting fly rods. The way I understand it, just being good at catching fish with a fly rod on your waters isn't good enough, because you'll have to put yourself into y
Forum: rodboard

All I can tell, never having tried the head-on magnifiers+LEDs,I'd that moving around the mounted mag is a bit of a pain in the neck...
Forum: rodboard

I've got a big magnifying glass with integrated LEDs. Changed my life, the single most valuable equipment for rodbuilding I ever bought.
Forum: rodboard

KR works well with 4lbs mono on the trout rods I've used. I can't be positive for 10lbs but I don't see why it wouldn't. And then you get the benefits : lighter tip, better preserving the blank's action, and better sensitivity.
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I like the spirit and the commitment. Now figures can be used raw just as a means of comparison but it's always better to attach some kind of interpretation to them. What would you say is to be learned from them ? How quick cpm go higher when the beam shortens? Can't wait to read some commented comparison between similar blanks.
Forum: rodboard

I just wanted to point out that B. Batson's mail doesn't mean that the Testament that were sold were subpar. We've seen and used a lot of them this year in France, and they are by no means under what you can expect from a top range Rainshadow. If you did pull the trigger, I suggest you check the Testament rep online and you'll see what I mean. Just saying this because the 72M is such an absolute
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I never read any serious blind test report to back any claim wrt the difference it makes. I'm convinced such differences are not detectable. Now one needs to believe in their own gear, and be confident one did their best while building the rod. So pick up a system an go with it, just please don't forget it's just poorly justified beliefs. I tend to follow straightest axis, then flex the blank
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Well, you've got a perfect micro spey with the ST1302-HM. I'm building one right now, and I can tell you it's gonna give a wicked rod. 13' of pure Loomis magic.
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Can't wait to build the 1007. I'm expecting a pure gun for distance.
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I'd say there's a little bit of both: I like to think of the wraps as reinforced concrete, where the thread is like the metal frame and the finish is like the concrete. Strength comes from the combination. I just stripped bare a rod to change the guides, I had removed the thread but the guide feet was still embedded into finish around it. Let me tell you there was quite some force involved in the
Forum: rodboard

Quite a generous use of your time, I appreciate the work. Thanks for sharing. I'd be interested to hear about your results if you measure again that 736 XRay blank in your new setup.
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If you want to go the light way you could build a rainshadow Eternity 1064. True 4wt, probably good with a 175-200gr skagit, but also excellent with a wf4f single handed.
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In my view, adding another color with the wraps will more often than not make the red flashier. I would try to match the hue as close as possible (testing to see how it looks after.coating, there's always a difference, usually darker)
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Given that AA is an angle you can eyeball it, provided you find a curve where the tip looks like a 1/3 of the length down. Then the comparator gives you the weight needed to get such a deflection. So I must disagree here, in your analogy you would have to merely invent missing data, it's not at all the case here. Does it provide accurate CCS? No. Does it give info similar in kind ? I argue th
Forum: rodboard

Hi David, We really do appreciate the support, so thanks for the kind words. The grid on the comparator I'd 17cm x 17cm, that is 6.9" x 6.9". There's really no way to add the straight blanks, that would take dozens of hours. But if you think about it it wouldn't be very very useful. To guesstimate AA and ERN is interesting obviously, but especially when you want to compare with a
Forum: rodboard

You're welcome! It took a lot of work, it's good to see it being used.
Forum: rodboard

Hi everyone! I'm glad we officially joined this great community. For those of you who had an interest in the récent discussions about the availability of CCS measures of the blanks (and everyone else): if you think objective data about the way a blank reacts to load is useful to compare and choose what to build, you're welcome to visit our website (in English). You'll find there an exclus
Forum: rodboard

If you're an avid reader I would also recommend to have a look at Art Schenck's "Fly Rod Building Made Easy" if you can lay your hand on a copy. A most excellent book in all regards, true to it's title, extremely well written and illustrated.
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I'll have to second the suggestion of a mhx 905-4. This is one @#$%& of a good blank, seriously above it's price range. (Even if the NFC's LMX F590 Gammabeta is better, the best one I ever cast, period. But way pricier.) Now I would also suggest to pick up your own components. This is one of the most fun part of rodbuilding! It's not hard, and sizing is fairly standard. If in doubt, just ask
Forum: rodboard

Modulus is often more of a marketing thing to assess a blank. You may get better advice if you gave us some detail about what and where you intend to fish with your rod. In any case I'd start saying that rodbuilding is almost fail proof, and extremely addictive, so if you choose a "modest" blank "just to learn", it will probably take dust in a corner while you build a better
Forum: rodboard

There's another possibility to get useful data to compare blanks, coming from the distributor and not the maker. I work with a French company and we have a comparator applet, where you can see the shape of any blank in the catalog under 4 different loads and compare up to 4 of them. All curves are legit, vectorised from actual photographs, all taken in the exact same way. In our community, plen
Forum: rodboard

There's a touch of bad faith here. When a company designs a blank, they do a whole lot of testing on it, and probably some of them (NFC does it for sure) will measure the CCS parameters (AA, ERN, CCF). Adding that to the protocol, even if you didn't do it previously, would be negligible in the design cost. Anyone who actually did CCS tests knows it's quick and easy. And the figures would help
Forum: rodboard

Blank frequency is one of the measures in the CCS system. I couldn't agree more with the interest of such measures to be as widespread as possible. It's hard not to suspect that the more you sell snake oil, the less you're interested in objective measures.
Forum: rodboard

Like Michael already mentioned, NFC st1002 in either Delta or HM yields a great light rod. Some use it in France to fish toc-style, which is long drifting a line with just a couple of shots on it and a worm. Precise, extremely sensitive (an absolute must with this kind of fishing where all you have to detect a bite is the 'toc' (French for 'tug')). And then you've got the legendary Loomis backbon
Forum: rodboard

It's tricky. The overall mass of the rig is not the sole factor, maybe not the main one. What really makes a difference is the swing weight of the rod, ie it's moment of inertia : the way it resists when you want to put it motion (cast it). This is related to the mass in front of the fulcrum point. The mass of the butt will also play a role : everyone knows that a well balanced rod is much less
Forum: rodboard