building rods

In the depths of a wet winter I decided to build my first rod ever. I didn't really need a new rod, but a fisherman is never satisfied with what he/she has, so of course I should collect more gear while I'm not even fishing. My 7 WT saltwater rod broke on me a few years ago so I figured I should replace that one, but I don't really fly fish the surf much and I'm just about to move to the mountains so why build a rod I probably won't use this year. I decided to try building a 6 WT switch rod since I'd been hearing so many good things about switch rods, and a 6 WT would allow me to cast my old 7 WT lines.

I started by reading up on what it takes, what steps to follow, do's and don'ts, forums, FAQs, etc. It seemed pretty simple, the only tools I needed my dad had for me to borrow (drill, rasp, sand paper---Thanks Bob!) and the rest I could make or improvise. All that was needed were the components which are exceedingly available thanks to the internet. Though shopping around for custom parks was definitely the most fun, it was also really overwhelming to choose from so many sources. A checklist was definitely a must, but be sure to double check all of your sizes.


I chose my blank, the sections of tapered graphite which all other components are fastened to, from a domestic company called Batson Enterprises. They're a relatively small company that produces a wide range of blanks and building kits for cheap, but they don't lack quality. Though they are a little heavier and slower action than top of the line makers like G. Loomis or Sage, you can't beat $80 for a 10 & 1/2 foot switch blank with a sexy flat black finish, especially for my first rod (Spoiler alert: I think it cast really nicely).

The first step was "finding the spine" of the blank. Every blank has a naturally stiffer side to them which makes a difference in the rods casting a fish fighting ability, thus this side is called the spine. Finding it was easier than I thought and just by taking my time and following some instructions I had the spine all mapped out. However, whether to place the spine either along the back of the rod or along the front is still up for debate and seems to be a matter of preference. My rod's spine runs down its back, it just seems like the natural choice (for a chordate).


The next step was building the cork grip. Since switch rods are used both for two handed casting and single handed casting, they use a pretty unique grip system. The few pre-made switch grips that were offered online didn't appeal to me so I opted to make my own form a full-wells grip and 7 stock cork rings. You can see in the pictures how I've cut the full-wells grip in half and sandwiched the rings in between them. I made a simple press to keep all the parts from moving while the glue dried. Also, I decided to build the grip directly onto the blank for a better fit, but I was running the risk of making a mistake and ruining my blank.


Thankfully everything went well and I have a custom shaped grip for one or both of my hands.

Next up was spacing the guides, the little loops of wire that "guide" the line down the length of the
rod. I found the measurements online, but basically you want one guide for every foot of your rod plus one. I have a 10.5 foot rod and the spacing chart I used gave me the distances for 10 guides plus the tip top (a total of 11). In the picture is a thread wrapping stand a made (glorified shoe box) holding a section of my blank. The section has guides taped to it at the appropriate intervals.


Thats a wrap! Seriously, it is. Thread is wound over the foot of the guide and finished in simple, knotless way that gives a seamless appearance to...a wrap. There are many styles of wrapping that can give a rod extra flare, but I thought I'd save those till next time. To keep tension on the thread you can either buy ($$$) a fancy spring loaded thread holding that has a variable tension knob, or you can run your thread through a large book. The friction of the pages is enough to hold the tension and to can adjust it by running the thread through different chapters of the book. Wraps not tight enough? Try chapter 8, to tight? Bring it back a few, try chapter 6.


Once all the wrapping is done, you have to make sure the guides are all alligned with each other and with the spine.
Sighting down the blank through the guides is one of the best ways to see this step.




Then its time to finish the rod, literally. After adding a hook keeper, a few fancy gold wraps, my name and a few other labels, I covered all the wraps with a special flexible epoxy finishing glue. The glue has a long curing time so I had to keep rotating each section every 15 minutes for 3 hours or bulges would develop.

The last step was to glue on the reel seat and rear grip. For the rear grip I decided to use a 4 inch tapered grip that was sold as a fore grip for a spinning rod but it works perfectly for my needs. The only thing I would have liked to do was add half an inch of EVA foam to protect the butt end, but I forgot to order it. I used the reel seat's butt instead. Presto! In 3 days a made myself a great new rod which I love casting and has opened up some new fishing opportunities to me. The new member of my arsenal:


I thought it was appropriate to show it in its new environment. I never named it but I was thinking of something like Duet, Duo, or Les Duex since its meant for two types of casting, but I thought those were too boring so I put it off. Comment your suggestions please!

March Madness: Trout!

With spring around the corner and coastal steelhead season dwindling to an end, I felt the pull of the mountains and the trout that call them home. Unfortunately, mother nature didn't seem to agree. This March is proved to but a much wetter month than last year and I had to adjust my tactics several times through this excursion. After two weeks of day-in and day-out fishing, hundreds of miles of driving, and several couches crashed, I built a chicken coup, cleared a fallen tree, went snow boarding, and somehow caught some trout.


Packing madness: kayak gea+fly and conventional fishing gear+camping stuff= way too much

After packing I was off to the foothills to hit up some lakes with my kayak. Sly Park, or Jenkinson lake, was the first stop. I made it by 3pm and decided to try for an evening session.


A nice sunset but no fish.

I made my way to my cousin's place no more than 10 minutes down the road only to find a large oak tree blocking the driveway. Cleared most of it, made some grub and passed out, glad to have a roof and kitchen in the cold weather---Thanks Sarah and Mas!


Next day I headed back to Sly Park for another go at some monster lake trout. Beautiful sunny weather, lots of fish on the finder, but no bites! Tried everything too. Ended up falling asleep on the shore after lunch under the shade of the nice pine.

Disappointed with the fishing and anxious to see my girlfriends new place, I packed up and headed to the next stopping off point, Garden valley. Her family is starting a small scale farm on a small piece of land there and things seem to be rolling along. There were hundreds of sprouts, bees swarming the empty bee boxes and lots of other projects stirring. In two days we set up a large coop and 13'X20' covered chicken run. They've since gotten a dozen chickens and have been getting tons of eggs, can't wait to see everything in action when I go back. For more, check this out: http://30tiesfor30years.blogspot.com/



Headed down to Folsom lake to try my hand at land-locked king salmon, but it was the same story---no bites. I got the down rigger working well though which should make for some interesting options in the near future. After trolling with another kayak fisherman who seemed to be having sparse but consistent luck with stocker rainbows I finally got a hit. Unfortunately it didn't stick and I went home skunked. The launch and take out were extra easy given that you could drive all over the shore, pretty neat.

Back to Garden Valley for some R&R tacos, best around. After a couple good dumps of rain my plans to fish the lower Yuba were blown out. I waited out the weather and made the long haul up I-80 to Truckee and beyond. Got a Nevada license and started scouting the river. I found a few beautiful stretches of river near Verdi and Boomtown, but no fish. The evening hours brought lots of midges out of the water but the fish didn't make an appearance. Headed back to Truckee to find my fishing buddy Nic and settled down at his Donner lake ski-bum rental. Unfortunately he couldn't join me the next day but his fishing map provided some more access points to scout out.


Many flies to choose from but only one rod to sling them: my hand built 6 wt switch rod was such a joy to cast I couldn't bring myself to even string up my other rods. I'll post about building my first fly rod soon.


Finally got one to the net! I found an amazing stretch of water near Mogul and got to fish with some awesome people including one dude named James who works at the local Cabela's super store. Good fishing with you James and I hope you got some more hogs from Pyramid.

Unfortunately the next day was too windy to fly fish, even for my hand-cannon switch. I spent the next two days slaying whitefish in the Hirschdale stretch, better than getting skunked and I couldn't have asked for better weather. Not the mention the hospitality at the Donner-Monster thanks again everyone!

I started hearing some rumors spread about some people braving the snow to get into the upper stretches of the Little Truckee River only to find amazing dry fly action---I had to try. Sunday I broke out early with a set of snow shoes and trekked my way up, about 3 miles I'd guess.


Low and behold on my second cast...



These little guys were all over the snow and getting blown around in heavy gusts. During lulls in the wind, but rainbows would lazily suck them down. I didn't have a good match for dry winter stones aside from a black caddis which didn't seem to work. As usual for the Little Truckee there was a very diverse group of bugs out so there were many other flies to choose from. Baetis and midges seemed to be working the best for me.


This one came out of the 610 hole for a #16 baetis nymph.



I ended the day with this beautiful brown.


There had been showers off and on all day, but I knew there was a storm blowing in so I tore myself from the water. It was pouring by the time I got back to the truck and there were already two worried messages from Nic. That storm dumped 12" of fresh powder at Suger Bowl so Monday morning was spent ripping up some fresh tracks thanks to some hook-ups from the ski-bum allies.

The afternoon brought showers so the boarding ceased. During a brake in the weather Nic and I got out on the water one last time.




Headed back the the bay to dry off all my gear and party it up in Santa Cruz for St. Patty's day. I tried to work some more shifts for the San Lorenzo fish trap but the river was blown out of course. Hope those boys get a few more fish for the hatchery. All in all it was a great trip and it will only get better as spring and some dryer months roll around.