Part 2: Spining the Blank, Guide Selection and Preparation

In this article we will cover spining the blank, the selection and preparation of the guides and handle materials and assembly.

1. Spining the Blank

Proper spining of the blank is probably the most important factor to consider in building a custom rod. The position of the spine relative to guide placement is critical in achieving optimum performance of the rod.

The spine is that side of the blank where it comes to a stable position when the blank is put under a load. How many of you have experienced having a good fish on the rod and while during the fight the rod had a tendency to twist to one side. That was the rod trying to come to rest on the spine. If the reelseat and the guides are properly aligned with the spine, then the rod will not twist.

Here is a simple way to find the spine of a blank:

First make sure that the butt end of the blank is perfectly smooth.

Next, wrap a piece of masking tape around the blank approximately 1/3 of the distance from the tip.

Place the butt end of the blank on a hard, smooth surface. Now supporting the tip end of the blank with the palm of one hand, use your other hand to gently push down on the blank.

As you push down on the blank, the blank will begin to rotate. When the blank comes to rest the spine will be on the outside of the curve. Mark the position of the spine on the masking tape.

Some rod builders use spine finding tools to locate the position of the spine. They are sold by many of the rod component supply catalogs, however you can easily make one yourself. If you'd like to make your own, here's instructions I've written up that will explain how to build it and how to use it - Al's Spine Finder Tool Instructions

2. Selection and Preparation of the Guides

The selection of the proper guides is another important step in the process. However, the choice of guides today is mind-boggling with all the different manufacturers and styles.

I believe in the "Kiss" principle, keep it simple. I use Fuji ceramic guides for all my rods, except where roller guides are a better choice, and then I only use Aftco. After building rods for more then thirty years my experience with just about every type of guide out there has brought me to this decision. Other builders may feel differently and use other brands of guides and that is their choice.

Let's talk about ceramic ring guides. Fuji makes several grades of ceramic ring guides: silicone carbide (SIC); hardaloy; alconite and aluminum oxide. SIC is the hardest most expensive and aluminum oxide is the least expensive. I use only SIC and hardaloy guides. Again, experience and the test of time have proven these guides to be durable under some very tough conditions. SIC, alconite and hardaloy with stand up to using spectra line. I even use SIC for wire line rods.

The style and shape of a guide must also be considered. There a double foot guides, single foot guides, high-frame, low-frame, Concept, conventional and spinning guides. Each style of guide has its optimal application.

Again, I try to keep it simple. For most of my conventional rod applications I use the following Fuji models. Remember the choice of SIC or Hardaloy is your own personal decision based on your budget:

Up to 20 lb. -BNLGH or NSG

20-30 lb. inshore - BHNLG, HNSG

30-80 lb. offshore - BULG, USG, LRSG, LRLG

For spinning I use the following:

Light Spinning - YSG or YLG

Surf Spinning - HVSG or BSVLG

Note - I always use an SIC tip top even when using hardaloy guides.

3. Guide size and proper number of guides

The number of guides used is determined primarily by two factors, blank length and action. Therefore the longer the rod and the softer the action the more guides on the rod. Most, if not all production rods have too few guides, except possibly the offshore type using roller guides.

There is no exact formula for the number of guides, however the following formula is a good starting point. For a conventional rod use the length of the rod plus 1. So, for a conventional rod of seven feet in length, use 7 or eight guides. For a spinning rod, this does not work. Depending on a spinning rod's length and action I typically will use 5-7 guides. Both methods are just starting point and require that you do a stress distribution test for both the correct number of guides and their placement.

For conventional rods I start with a #20 stripper guide.

For surf spinning rods I use a 40HH stripper, jetty rods a regular 40 stripper and for lighter spinning rods a 30 single foot super high frame guide.

The smallest guide near the tip is determined by the ring size on the tip top. I typically use two guides of the same size at the tip end of the rod.

Here are some examples of guide sizes I would use:

Conventional 8-foot heavy plugging rod: 20, 16, 12, 12, 10, 10, 10 and a # 10 ring tip.

Conventional 9-foot heavy plugging rod: 20, 16, 16, 12, 12, 12, 12,12 and a # 12 ring tip.

10 foot Surf Spinning - (Lami GSB1201M or XRA 1205) 40HH, 30H, 25H, 25M, 20M and a #20 ring tip.

8-9 Foot Light Bucktail Spinning Rod - High frame single-foot 30, 25, 20, 16, 12, 12, 10, 10 and a #10 ring tip.

Again, these are only starting points since all will require a stress distribution test.

4. Guide Preparation:

Now that we have selected the guides, we now need to prepare them for wrapping. The first step is to make sure that the guides lay perfectly flat on the blank. You can adjust them by using a pair of smooth jawed duck billed pliers.

To insure a smooth and professional guide wrap, and to slow down the cracking at the guide foot that eventually occurs, the guide feet should be taper ground and polished. There are a number of ways this can be accomplished. You can taper them with a metal file and then polish them with crocus cloth.

I found that the easiest way is with a sanding pad and buffing pad mounted in an electric drill. Home Depot sells a sanding and polishing disk kit for $10 by 3M that does a fantastic job. Simply mount the mandrel in your drill, snap on the sanding disk and taper grind the feet from the leading edge to approximately half way up the foot. Next, replace the sanding pad with the doffing pad and buff the area smooth. Also remember to buff off the underside of the guide foot to remove any burrs.

The final step is to seal the exposed metal. Just blacken the feet with a waterproof magic marker and then apply a coat of color sealant. Allow the guides to dry for 24 hours before starting your guide wraps.

5. Handle Assembly

The handle assembly is composed of the rear and fore grip, the reel seat and the butt cap. It is important that the components of the handle been fitted and properly glued to the blank. The last thing you want to happen is having a grip or reel seat loosen up.

There are many choice of handle material to consider. Each has its optimum application. The choices of grip material are the following:

- Cork rings or preformed cork grips.

- Synthetic grip material like EVA or hypalon.

- Cork tape

- Synthetic tape

- A synthetic rear grip called a Slick Butt or Tuff Butt

Factors to consider in your choice of grip material should include the type of fishing you will be doing and durability requirements. In addition, you need to consider grip length and diameter to insure the proper comfort of the fisherman using the rod.

Once you have determined the choice of grip material and the length and diameter of the butt and fore grip, we now need to focus on the reel seat. Three issues need to be considered when choosing a real seat: the reel seat must be able to fit the intended reel to be used; the reel seat must be able to fit on the blank in its final position; and the reel seat is strong enough for the application intended.

The first two items are easily addressed by matching the reel seat to the reel and blank you are intending to use. Addressing the issue of strength, again I try to keep it simple. I used Fuji reel seats for all my surf, bottom fishing and inshore applications. For offshore fishing I use Aftco machined aluminum reel seat or their Uni-Butts. There are other manufacturers on the market with less expensive reel seats, but time and experience again have proven that you get what you pay for.

6. Fitting and Gluing up the Handle Assembly

To fit synthetic grips to the blank, the inside diameter of the grip should be approximately ¼ inch small then the diameter of the blank at the final position of the grip.

For cork grips use the same ¼ inch difference and then ream the cork for final fitting. A round file will easily ream out the cork. When reaming out the grips work slowly and constantly check the fit. The fit should be reasonably snug.

Installing the reel seat will require you to fill in the gap between the inside diameter of the seat and the outer diameter of the blank. You can make bushings out of masking tape, fiberglass perforated tape or synthetic or wood arbors. If you use masking tape or fiberglass tape then use ½ inch diameter tape and make 4-5 bushings spaced ½ inch apart. Wrap the tape tightly around the blank until you have a snug, but not too tight, fit into the reel seat.

7. Steps in Gluing Up the Handle Assembly

For gluing up grips and reels seats I use a 2-part non flowing epoxy glue called Kardol that is used in fiberglass boat building and repair. Another good non flowing epoxy is U40 Rod Bond. You can also use slow cure liquid epoxy like Devcon and Flexcoat Rod Builders Epoxy glue.

The first step is to thoroughly clean the blank area where the handle will be. Paper towels moistened will alcohol will easily clean the blank.

Spread several sheets of newspaper on the floor to catch any glue drippings.

Mix your glue according to the label instructions and pour it onto a piece of aluminum foil. This will allow the heat to escape and increase your working time.

Slide on your butt grip and note where the grip stops on the blank. Remove the grip and apply the mixed epoxy glue from above where the grip stopped on the blank all the way down to the butt. Be very liberal in apply glue to the blank.

Slide on the butt grip and quickly move the grip up and down to thoroughly coat the inside of the grip with epoxy.

Now stand the butt end of the blank on the newspaper. Holding the butt grip at the top edge of the grip, quickly push it down into place. Clean off the excess epoxy glue with paper towels moistened with alcohol. Wipe down the grip and blank several times until all the excess epoxy is removed.

Let the butt grip dry overnight.

Next is the reel seat. Build up your bushings leaving ½ inch of exposed blank between the bushings.

Apply you epoxy glue making sure the glue completely fills the gap between the bushings.

Slide your reel seat into place.

Wipe off any excess glue.

Install your fore grip in the same manner as your butt grip. Clean up the fore grip and reel seat from any excess epoxy glue with paper towels and alcohol. To clean the reel seat threads use a medium toothbrush and alcohol.

Now line up your reel seat with the spine of the rod and let it dry overnight.

The next installment in Al's ongoing series will cover guide placement and wrapping.