What is the best way to cut an NFC X-Ray blank to fit an XO handle? I need to remove roughly 2" from the butt end to get the blank to fit. Will a Dremel with an abrasive Cut-off wheel work or are there other options I should consider?
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Hey everyone. Just got some rod building gear and figured i would rebuild an old rod before i go full bore with a new blank etc. Ive stripped all the old guides off and ready for the next steps. Figured I would document the process and obviously use all of you for some help along the way and maybe at the end it can help another newbie like me. Now that the guides are off I'm going to scrape o
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Hi, Just wondering if anyone has built or used the NFC Fly blank For 699/blank I am really debating buying one. Thanks, Ben
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Have couple rods with broken guides. 10 feet 3 oz weight 2 pieces spinning. Just hate to throw things so decided to fix them . Striped the first one with abrasive pad, paint and primer both. What paint and primer to use ,brands and models? Clear finish? Read some topics on forums and internet, feel more confused now? Will appreciate any info. Thanks in advance.
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I'm looking for a purple and lavender rod for a grand dtr who's rod I broke this morning. Dayum
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I am working on my 3rd and 4th builds and have maybe a silly question but it bugs me nonetheless. I have been using dental ligatures to temporarily support my guides as I place them so that I can test cast and do static loading before finalizing guide location. When I am sliding the guides around a bit to fine tune placement I have noticed that I sometimes slightly scratch the finish on the bla
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Hello. Long time stalker, but my first post! I really want to figure out the squeegee method of painting rod blanks that I've seen in factory tour videos. I'm frustrated with the mess, paint waste, and overall hassle of spray painting (plus I suck at it). I can get the single stage high quality automotive paints I need, but the materials I've tried for the rubber membrane aren't working well.
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While no one can dispute that any weight added to a blank reduces its recovery speed which basically deadens the “feel”, how much additional weight is required to actually notice the difference? Of course, and should be obvious, cantilevered weight out toward the tip of the blank will have a significantly greater impact than the same amount of weight closer to the fulcrum / real seat. Many on th
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Hey guys, Am building my first eglass trolling rod (80lb), iv never worked on such blaks thats why i feel it strange between the guides. So is it better to wrap all over the blank or just to apply epoxy? Am afraid epoxy will be damaged when it bend. Please advise?!!
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Hello! Need some info on rod Blanks please. I need to know what • 68-degrees (RDA) • 77-degrees (CCS) and 380gr (RDA) • ERN 18.2 (CCS) means. This is a point blank rod blank. I have built a couple rods but I need to learn more about the blanks. Bob Length: 6 ft 9 inches Action Angle: XF • 68-degrees (RDA) • 77-degrees (CCS) Power: Med Light / 380gr (RDA) • ERN 18.2 (CCS) Weight: 1.
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I have been thinking about and have done a little experimenting with using the squeegee method for painting blanks. Primarily ice rod blanks. I like a high vis tip however the OCD part of me doesn't like when the factory high vis doesn't align with a guide wrap. I am wondering if anyone has experience with the method? More importantly has advice on what to use for a film. I have tried a couple of
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Okay so I'm on to what I believe is the final piece of the puzzle. I have my Rod Blanks selected. Going with the for my jerk bait rod and for my skipping rod I know this doesn't make a difference, but for the jerk bait rod I'm going with a Ohio State/Classic car style the entire rod being Red Metallic with silver metallic thread. For the flipping Rod I'm using my old high school colors of p
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Ever since I started building rods about 6 years ago, I have experimented with a few different methods of “clearing” a raw blank. Recently though, the trend is to leave the blank uncoated, in it’s raw, possibly sanded condition. While that is fine-and-dandy from merely a weight perspective (infantesimal as it may be), epoxies, including those used in blank manufacturing, are typically sensitive t
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Good day all. I heard on the street that there is someone out there who can paint specs and logos and things on to rod blanks? Is this true?
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Here is a look at the second place rod in the 2021 International Rod Building Challenge. Photo: This beautiful custom was designed, built, and submitted by Wade Christensen. Wade built this red to be interchangeable between a spinning and casting rod. A unique design and nothing short of amazing!!!
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I had a great day in the shop today. Until today all of my practice consisted of replacing and wrapping line guides. I have one rod that I stripped all the way to the blank. A 7' med/mod fast casting rod I have had since the early 80s. Another was a 6.5 ft. med H/fast Bass Pro Pro Qualifier I bought in the 90s. This was the best and most $$$ rod I had bought at the time. It was still in pre
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Hello to all of you, My name is Alexis, I am 19 years old and I work in a department store (Decathlon) in France. I work in the fishing department and many customers often ask me very technical and thorough questions! I have a lot going on in my head and a lot of questions about fishing rods come to me and more particularly about blanks.  This is something that fascinates me from the outset, bu
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I have a customer that have a certain color blank. We've agreed on color I seem to remember something about you can paint with krylon spray paint. Can any you help me?
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Hey everyone New to the site and the concept of rod building, but jumping in head first. First, even though I haven't build a rod yet, I'm in awe of the wealth of knowledge on this site. Thank you all for putting something like this together. So I've been bass fishing as long as I can remember, did a bunch of tournament fishing in college a couple years before college bass teams were a
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Wanting to know what grit sandpaper to use to sand a blank. And also can I use Valspar spray paint. And can I spray a coat of clear Urethane With UV in it Thanks Dennis
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I have blanks that come matte black and the fiberglass white and ive tried painting them and doing coats of clear but they always seem to chip. How do guys get those multi colored rods and gloss finishes over the entire rod? I have been using Krylon Fusion paints and clear coat.
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Building up a new rod and decided to go with the Fuji VSS reel seat and split grips and wondered to possibly put a twist and maybe it’s too big of twist but wondered if you guys have ever had any luck painting cork. I read one man first expoxied the cork, then sanded, primed and painted then to cover and protect he epoxied over top of the paint and he said it worked well but I wanted to see i
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Greetings, It seems that I asked this question before - but can't find it. Perhaps I did not. I have some very thin walled UL blanks. These identical blanks came either in bare carbon fiber unsanded, or painted. Before painting, the surface was smoothed. Everything else is identical. Well, the painted ones are lower powered and just right for some applications. now I want to sand dow
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Ok, I had three spinning rods I didn't use much because of the old style huge guide sets. (Replacement guide sets with tip-tops purchased at Utmost weigh less than each original stripper guide) Carefully, I scraped them down. I did go over them with 400 grit for smoothing. Since they were <$30 each when purchased I decided to try an experiment with Rustoleum Ultra High Heat enamel. The paint w
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Has anyone had any experience with Rod Geeks colored blanks? Just wondering how the paint job holds up etc. any info will be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Don
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I've have been reviewing all the different threads about painting rod blanks. But my problem is I don't have a spray gun. Is there an option out there for a spray can paint that works well for painting rod blanks? I'm trying to make a brightly colored rod tips to see the action on a fiberglass blank.
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I have a serious bleed through problem using madeira thread, on a black eglass blank, ruined the butt wrap............
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I have inherited an old, full length, Fenwick SP847 rod blank that was built up as a surf rod, using a metal ferrule that fit into a hardwood handle and reel seat that was not included. I decided to try and salvage the rod blank and build a saltwater casting rod using a Penn Squidder and 20lb. mono. I, very carefully, removed the windings and line guides as not to nick the blank. This left onl
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Hello all, I am just starting out rod building and would like to build myself some extra heavy catfish rods. I would like to experiment with doing some custom painting with automotive urethane paint. My question is, after a clear coat has been applied to the automotive paint, should I apply another type of protective coating over the clear coat? If so what should I use and how should it be appl
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So I'm in Florida right now, and when I go back to Cali on Friday, I'll have a brand spankin' new Seeker blank to turn into a spinning rod! I was thinking about painting it up to either the first or second guide in white. I would have the transition under the guide's underwrap. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION ON PAINTING BLANKS!!! I have that part down. Just wondering what your thought
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