Cornholio
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- Feb 3, 2012
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Does anyone on here make these? and if so how expensive is it to get started and how complicated of a process is it?
L
Lonewolve
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Cornholio,
Depends how dedicated an serious you want to get into it. Maybe you have certain things that you would like, such as a swelled butt or a quadrate blank, perhaps hollowed out ect.
I would give Russ Gooding at Golden Witch Rods a call, I also know he has a great class to learn how to make these special rods.He also is probably along with a circle of a few other guys , "THE" single best source for bamboo rod building in the country right now.
From special tools to special guides/handles/nickle silver appointments/and silk to wrap them with ...hes the man.
http://www.goldenwitch.com/
two other fellows i also know of that teach classes are:
George Maxwell......
http://www.gmaxwellrods.com
and last but not least...
Art Weiler...who also builds and teaches......
http://www.artweiler.com
these would be where i would start if i had an itch to build a bamboo flyrod.
Hope this helps.
Tight Wraps & Tight Lines
Rick Wallace
Depends how dedicated an serious you want to get into it. Maybe you have certain things that you would like, such as a swelled butt or a quadrate blank, perhaps hollowed out ect.
I would give Russ Gooding at Golden Witch Rods a call, I also know he has a great class to learn how to make these special rods.He also is probably along with a circle of a few other guys , "THE" single best source for bamboo rod building in the country right now.
From special tools to special guides/handles/nickle silver appointments/and silk to wrap them with ...hes the man.
http://www.goldenwitch.com/
two other fellows i also know of that teach classes are:
George Maxwell......
http://www.gmaxwellrods.com
and last but not least...
Art Weiler...who also builds and teaches......
http://www.artweiler.com
these would be where i would start if i had an itch to build a bamboo flyrod.
Hope this helps.
Tight Wraps & Tight Lines
Rick Wallace
Cornholio
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thanks, lonewolve
T
tomitrout
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Building my own from scratch is something I'll do someday, but for now I'm easing into it with a pre made blank that I'll finish out sometime soon...
Rough idea about cost....if you take a class, expect to pay around a grand or more for a week long course, and you'll come home with your own rod. If you wanna set up your own shop in your basement, depending on the route you go, you're looking $1-2k until you've invested in all the tools..planing forms, handtools, binder, wrapper, some type of oven for heat treating, lathe, etc.
I'm figuring 'til I get the minimal tools and remaining parts I need, reel seat, ferrules, guides, etc, I'll be dropping about $500 to finish out the blank I have.
Rough idea about cost....if you take a class, expect to pay around a grand or more for a week long course, and you'll come home with your own rod. If you wanna set up your own shop in your basement, depending on the route you go, you're looking $1-2k until you've invested in all the tools..planing forms, handtools, binder, wrapper, some type of oven for heat treating, lathe, etc.
I'm figuring 'til I get the minimal tools and remaining parts I need, reel seat, ferrules, guides, etc, I'll be dropping about $500 to finish out the blank I have.
Cornholio
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wow, i never realized it would be so costly. Are there any alternatives or methods other than bamboo and graphite?
Cornholio
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- Feb 3, 2012
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i'm just wanting to make a small stream rod from scratch, but i want something nice, although i do (at some point) want to get into the bamboo rod building.
T
troutbert
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You can buy a bamboo blank, and do the finishing yourself.
afishinado
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S
shortrod
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Cornholio,
The major investments needed are a good block plane and a planing form. Take a look at this
step by step description.
The major investments needed are a good block plane and a planing form. Take a look at this
step by step description.
G
GreenWeenie
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- Sep 12, 2008
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- 697
If you want something nice I think your best bet is to make a graphite or glass rod because cheap boo blanks can be pretty crappy and don't feel like a true rod. For a good boo blank that actually feels and performs like a boo rod you're probably looking at $300+ and then you've got to buy all the components on top of that. And that's just for a decent blank.
On the other hand you can go out and buy a Winston GVX blank (graphite fast action) for about $300 or a top of the line Winston WT (graphite medium action) or BiiT (boron medium action) blank for around $450 and the WT/BiiT will feel SO much better than a $300 boo blank.
The problem with boo rods is bamboo is not man-made and each piece of boo is slightly different than the other so quality control is everything. The quality/feel of the rod has everything to do with the quality of the wood and how well the wood was selected, split and glued together.
There is a big difference between a rod made from bamboo and a bamboo fly rod.
On the other hand you can go out and buy a Winston GVX blank (graphite fast action) for about $300 or a top of the line Winston WT (graphite medium action) or BiiT (boron medium action) blank for around $450 and the WT/BiiT will feel SO much better than a $300 boo blank.
The problem with boo rods is bamboo is not man-made and each piece of boo is slightly different than the other so quality control is everything. The quality/feel of the rod has everything to do with the quality of the wood and how well the wood was selected, split and glued together.
There is a big difference between a rod made from bamboo and a bamboo fly rod.
turkey
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For pre-ferruled bamboo blanks, I would go with one of these two guys. Dennis Stone, http://www.stonerodco.com/ or Chris Bogart, http://www.shentel.net/canerod/. I'm sure there are a ton of other makers that sell great pre-glued blanks but these are the first two I thought of.
shakey
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you could practice up your wrapping on a nice fiberglass blank.
in the meantime,keep your eye out for a nice old plane!!!haha
and it would make a lot of sense to start haunting clarke's now
www.classicflyrodforum.com
gfen
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the ultimate cost of a bamboo rod is the bamboo blank. if you chose to not buy a cheap chinamade blank then there's any number of cheaper graphite and fiberglass blanks out there.
also, failing the creation of the actual blank, any idiot can make a fly rod. furthermore, any idiot with a little effort can make an attractive fly rod.
the blank that's sitting on my desk right now cost me $22, with shipping. everything else will set me back less than $40, i bet.
JoeE
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- Sep 12, 2006
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I started building bamboo rods in 1996 when I had the option of buying a bamboo fly rod or start down the road of making my own rod and I decided on making my own Hex rods and five years ago started playing around with Quads. My shop is in the basement and almost completed the way I want and I just added a metal lathe. That said: Costs are estimated. 1) Planning forms 400.00-800.00, 2) Binder 175-200 (should be able to get a used one cheaper) 3) Oven 350.00 (I made mine for about 125.00), Plane and Scraper: Plane 50.00 + 50.00 Hock blade, Scraper 175-250. That will get you started after you buy some bamboo 3 culm’s shipped about 175.00 and some other incidentals. So to get started is about 1,195.00, if you make most of the tools yourself you can get started for half of that and that is about what it cost me (650.00). I can build a rod not counting time for about 185.00. Also I started with one Bamboo Rod Making book and I think I’m up to about 8 or 10. If you only wanted one I would say pick up Wayne Cattanach’s Book “Handcrafting Bamboo Fly Rods”
Joe E
Joe E
FarmerDave
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For the record, about 12 years ago Joe E told me that he was building a workshop in his basement for this. Now he says it is nearly completed the way he wants it???
See what you have to look forward to? It is every bit of an illness as flyfishing itself. You are a sick man Joe. Very sick. :lol:
Actually that sounds about right.
The truth is our workshops will never be exactly the way we want it. All we can hope for is to get close.
JoeE
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But when I get it completed, I’ll have to move and I don’t want too.
afishinado
Moderator
Staff member
Reading your posts Cornholio, I get the impression you've never even cast a bamboo rod. My advice to you is crawl before you walk when it comes to making a rod. Try putting together graphite or fiberglass rod form a blank. This alone is a bit of a challenge for a beginner.
Making boo is as much an art as it is a craft. Joe E is a serious builder and he gave you some idea as to what it involves in time, money and acquired skills.
Further, you may not even like the feel of casting or fishing a boo rod (boo guys gasp:-o). My advise to you is to try fishing some different rods to get an idea what type of rods you favor.
Have fun.
Making boo is as much an art as it is a craft. Joe E is a serious builder and he gave you some idea as to what it involves in time, money and acquired skills.
Further, you may not even like the feel of casting or fishing a boo rod (boo guys gasp:-o). My advise to you is to try fishing some different rods to get an idea what type of rods you favor.
Have fun.
F
flytyingfred
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- Mar 1, 2009
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Corn,
Buy yourself a graphite blank or better yet a kit. build it and see if you even like doing it. It can be frustrating your first or second time. If you buy a kit for around 70 bucks and look on you tube you can probably get away with a decent graphite rod for under 100 dollars. you can make a jig for holding the blank or use a cardboard box and all you need is some epoxy and thread everything else comes in a kit. If you are inclined to buy a blank look at sevier mfg. they make a 4 pc. blank for a very reasonable price and they feel good and look even better(not affiliated just like the product). Good luck in whatever you choose. Russ goodings dvd is probably one of the best on the market for rod building the others I have purchased were basically of no use and you cannot send them back for a refund.
Buy yourself a graphite blank or better yet a kit. build it and see if you even like doing it. It can be frustrating your first or second time. If you buy a kit for around 70 bucks and look on you tube you can probably get away with a decent graphite rod for under 100 dollars. you can make a jig for holding the blank or use a cardboard box and all you need is some epoxy and thread everything else comes in a kit. If you are inclined to buy a blank look at sevier mfg. they make a 4 pc. blank for a very reasonable price and they feel good and look even better(not affiliated just like the product). Good luck in whatever you choose. Russ goodings dvd is probably one of the best on the market for rod building the others I have purchased were basically of no use and you cannot send them back for a refund.
