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What's On Your Bench
Post 12 Mar 2012, 10:53 • #1 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/26/06
Posts: 3837
Location: Northeast Of Heaven
Hello
I recently promised to start a new thread in the old fiberglass odd ball crowd style.
Hopefully everyone old and new to the site will share in this thread.
"What's on your bench" can be anything pertains to fiberglass fly rodding.
A few examples might be?
Art Work,Carvings,Fly Tying Benches,Leader Furling,Sculpture,Wader Repair,Reel Tinkering,Machine Tools,Wading Staffs, Net Making,Camping Gear and of course Rod Tinkering of any kind.
Anything you are currently working on or have worked on as long as it's something you tinkered on that in some way adheres to the Fiberglass Fly Rodders creed quoted below

"The main topic of discussion here is fiberglass fly rods. We discuss collecting fiberglass rods, the finer attributes of modern glass rods, the finer attributes of classic glass rods, classic fly reels, repairing rods, and of course fishing with glass rods. Especially the fishing, because that is the point after all. On the other hand, we don't discuss politics, religion, sports, news, or pop culture. The tradition here is to keep the discussions on topic and courteous. " Tom Jigester

I've got a new project that I will be starting this week when I get it underway I will share what's on my bench lets see what on your bench?

Tight Lines and Fiberglass Loops
Andy M


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 12 Mar 2012, 11:41 • #2 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 11/09/10
Posts: 1355
Location: US-CA
Not exactly "on the bench", but a couple of weeks back, the Warden informed me, "NO MORE FLY FISHING CRAP IN THE HOUSE!" so construction is underway on a 10'x12" gear/tying shed in the backyard. Plans and materials list are completed, 3 vinyl windows and door/jamb/hardware acquired. Sweet blueprint cabinet, locking file cabinet, and bookcase picked up this weekend.


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 12 Mar 2012, 12:39 • #3 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/11/05
Posts: 3327
Location: US-TX
I'm in the process of restoring an old shakespeare FYA-310; actually the tip top because the butt section is in very good shape; got it from a friend on this site. I'm waiting on ferrules then its a go-p-


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 12 Mar 2012, 13:44 • #4 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/20/07
Posts: 8920
Location: US-ME
Other than some touch ups and tweaking a grip, I didn't do any rod-building this winter. But since this is tackle-tinkering, too, I always seem to defer my fly-tying and reel tinkering until the season is closer. I just got done replacing the outer spool face of an MG3 spool with a palming rim spool face from a 63 SS. I did the same a few years back, so along with my Martin MG3SS I have three palming rim MG3s along with a few conventional spooled. Now I will have to decide and start swapping lines around off other reels, plus I have several new lines to load up, swap around and so on. I dug out various unused or lightly used reels to look over and see what the plan is for them this season.

Once I get done, I will probably wind up fishing most of the season with the same stuff I already have set up, except that new palming rim spool. Last season I only phased in one more reel, a Young 1525, and I loaded it with a DT 5, exactly the same except for color as the other Young 1525 I use all the time. I also swapped a line to a Martin LM56, from another LM56, so that doesn't count either, but I might swap it back this spring.

I should probably tie a full range of new leaders, also, but that probably won't happen until 4:00 a.m. a few mornings when I'm going someplace.

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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 12 Mar 2012, 14:39 • #5 
Master Guide
Joined: 12/09/11
Posts: 888
Location: Athens GA
I've no rod projects presently in the works but I've been learning how to use a sewing machine to make rod socks which also happens to be an incredible pain in the butt. When I wrap that up I need to get back tying to refill the boxes.
Jim


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 12 Mar 2012, 15:42 • #6 
Guide
Joined: 07/04/09
Posts: 118
Location: Laurel Highlands, PA
A one-piece Reed, a Lami 1661, couple of Kabuto blanks, a Paul Young Perfectionist, and unfortunately a timeframe, and I am not even home yet ... As they say here, conyo!


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 12 Mar 2012, 16:32 • #7 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 10/31/06
Posts: 1262
Location: Mid- coast Maine
One Lami-glass bait caster and minor repairs on two Phillipsons I think I should have sent to Andy. Hard to do anything like tying flies and working on rods with the new terrorist living with us. All our other cats are really well behaved around my gear, but this new kitten is an ill mannered little @#$%er. I might have to finally get around to building that studio I've been putting off.
RFMcD


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 12 Mar 2012, 16:43 • #8 
Guide
Joined: 12/14/11
Posts: 212
Location: Oregon
Two yellow glass blems, 7'9" 3wt & 4wt 3pc and a 8'6" 6/7 Fisher blank. I finished up two Tiger Eye blanks for a friend, an 8' 4wt 4pc & a 6'6" 4pc. I have not tied up any flies & have got to be thinking about that but those yellow glass & the Fisher, I want to be using them, soon!


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 12 Mar 2012, 17:51 • #9 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/05/10
Posts: 5229
Location: Mid Hudson Valley of New York
A few weeks ago I found the old rotisserie motor that's been laying around in the shed. I repurposed it as a dryer motor for turning rods while the finish dries. Here are a few pictures.

Image
Image
Image

I fit a short piece of a wooden dowel into the chuck that held the rotisserie spit (rod) and put the dowel into a rubber stopper from a five-gallon carboy. To the stopper I fixed a short length of plastic pipe. I drilled three holes into the pipe and threaded nylon screws into the holes. The screws adjust to the size needed to hold the blank in place. Then I rigged mounting plate and fixed it to the side of the rod jig.

I have not tried it yet, and might not ever, since I build so few rods. I also tend to put such thin coats of finish on that there isn't any drippy stuff. It was fun putting it together though.


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 12 Mar 2012, 18:48 • #10 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 09/18/09
Posts: 5561
Location: Relocated to the Drought Stricken West.
Piles of #@*&@!. Fly tying stuff, two shoe boxes of reel parts. A box full of snake guides, Some bottles of TM light and my rod dryer is pushed over to the corner.

I'm in the Cleaning phase, so the ping pong table is half taken over with reels and rod building supplies.

Of course I have a McFarland Blem (6'6" 4wt) and an RX7 7'9" 3wt with grip and reel seat attached, just waiting to be wrapped.


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 12 Mar 2012, 22:11 • #11 
Master Guide
Joined: 08/30/08
Posts: 659
Location: Lincoln,CA
Well, if the question is "what's on your bench?" then my answer is "just about everything! :rollin What a mess, need to straighten up after the last 4 rods. Got my reels spread out to see which need service and which will go on my new rods. Got some fly materials out, need to get busy. Trout season opens May 1st!
Thinkin I should try to find some gold foil so I can add some guides to an old True Temper.

Mike


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 13 Mar 2012, 10:42 • #12 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/26/06
Posts: 3837
Location: Northeast Of Heaven
Hello
Wow what a great cross section of projects we have got started already in this new thread!
Thanks for sharing everyone loves to see or hear what other tinkers are tinkering on.

Mike I would love to see how you do those grips you posted in that other thread any chance you can elaborate here?
Carl I hope you will share more of the McFarland Blem as it unfolds!
Pat That rod turner is great, fantastic job re purposing that rotisserie, I hope you use it more as time goes on.
2 Wt Welcome I hope you will post some picture of your projects I'm sure we would all love to see them.
John I know you love those adorable little kittens when you get going on the Cat House :lol I'm sorry I meant Studio you will have to tell us more.
Bruce I would love to hear more about your projects they are always very interesting especially that Reed 1 PC.
Jim rod bags are a big pain in the backside lets see some picks.
Steve I'm not familiar with the MG3 modification please show us more!
Gene lets see them ferrules I'm sure you have some other stuff cooking as well?
Able that sound like the start of a Fiberglass Fly Rodders paradise the "Glass Shack"

Thanks again for sharing folks!

Tight Lines and Benched Loops
Andy M


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 13 Mar 2012, 11:21 • #13 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/20/07
Posts: 8920
Location: US-ME
Sometimes curiousity kills the cat, but that doesn't stop me trying stuff. A guy probably doesn't want to do this unless he has extra conventional spools for his Martin MG3 reels, and unless he isn't that keen on fixed-click-tuna can reels like the simpler Martin 63 and its "skirted spool" version, the 63SS. If I wrecked one or the other, I really wouldn't have been out anything because I had half a dozen extra MG3 spools, 4 or 5 more complete reels, plus several fixed-click models, including two 63 SS models with the skirted spool. I only use those for panfish, so I don't care about the palming rim (aka skirted spool in Martin-speak) and I had enough extra spools to try the modification. I did one a few years ago and liked it, so when I ran across a few more MG3 spools, I decided to do it again using my other 63 SS. The spools themselves from these models don't interchange because the frame side click gear is entirely different.

Most reels from Martin USA production used spools assembled from a central hub (arbor) with the spool faces press fit and crimped in place. They aren't really designed to be changed, but they are easy enough to pry off, so that is the easy part of process.

Remove the latch cover and pry off the conventional spool face from an MG 3 spool. (A couple are shown on the left). The black spool in the middle is damaged (lacking the handle) from a 67 but shows the dissassembled status as far as the spool construction goes. Pry off the skirted spool from from the 63 in the same way. These came in black or silver gray. I refinished the black one to battleship gray as shown on the lower left. The silver gray from a 63 SS is shown lower right.

Of course then you have to swap and reinstall them on the hub, which takes a little epoxy and a little banging and crimping with a screwdriver, and a little checking that the spool face sits right so it doesn't rub the frame. Then what you have is a conventional-spooled 63 as shown on top with the black latch cover and the reinstalled spool face from the MG3 spool. The 63SS spool faces are now on MG3 spool hubs (with the 28-tooth click gear for the adjustable click) as shown at the bottom.

Image


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 13 Mar 2012, 15:35 • #14 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/12/07
Posts: 1292
Location: western Massachusetts
Ok Andy, I'll bight!

I am currently working on a spg 601 that I want to make into a glass 2 piece 5'6" small stream fly rod. Naturally, it is well along, but I will try to get some pictures up tomorrow.


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 13 Mar 2012, 16:34 • #15 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/05/10
Posts: 5229
Location: Mid Hudson Valley of New York
John, I am also working on a SPG601. Mine will be 5'3" when finished -- which should be soon. It's wrapped and I just need to touch up the grip and glue the reel seat on.
I'll post a few pictures of mine too. BTW I think mine will take a 4/5 wt line. Have you tried a line on yours?

--Pat


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 13 Mar 2012, 16:47 • #16 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/26/06
Posts: 3837
Location: Northeast Of Heaven
Hello John
That's great rods from your bench are always great to see.
Thanks for biting it will be as painless as possible this is a catch and release thread!
Tight Lines and Barb Less Loops
Andy M
P.S. Pat we must have both been typing at the same time.
That's great I just finished one a week ago too so I'll put up mine too.
The folks were all lawn casting mine lined up with a Old 5 WT Silk Line Last Saturday at the HFFA Expo.
What a great little caster!
Steve I must have spent too much time smoking in the lav at school I still am not understanding the MG3 retro fit.
Could you do some old burt out friendly pictures just for me please.
Tight Lines and Over My Head Loops
Andy M


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 13 Mar 2012, 17:27 • #17 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/05/10
Posts: 5229
Location: Mid Hudson Valley of New York
Cool, I can't wait to see yours and John's.


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 13 Mar 2012, 21:46 • #18 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 09/18/09
Posts: 5561
Location: Relocated to the Drought Stricken West.
I just went down and took a few pictures of some of the rods that are "on the bench". Some of these have been stalled for some time. 3 graphite and one glass. I am ready for a Wrapathon. I have 5 rods in the "everything but guides" stage.

McFarland Blem blank, Ventilated grip, PacBay S1 reel seat.
Image Image Image

DiamondBack Carbonite rod. Ebay special, I purchased it in this condition with the grip already turned and reelseat on.
Image Image

7'9" 3wt 43M modulus graphite Utmost Enterprises blank. Cheap preformed cork grip and sliding band reel seat.

Image Image
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9' 7wt 4pc Graphite (again an utmost enterprises blank) for Smallmouth fishing.
Image Image

These are stashed about in pvc tubes ready to wrap. I just have to choose thread and start wrapping.

And Andy, I was in blissful ignorance in how many half completed rods I had until you suggested posting some pictures. :o

Tight Lines and Unwrapped Rods

Carl


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 14 Mar 2012, 03:53 • #19 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 10/31/06
Posts: 1262
Location: Mid- coast Maine
Carl, I've never cast the Carbonites with the dgs700, only im6, I'll be curious as to how it casts. The im6's were very nice moderate action rods. Years ago I built a Carbonite Supreme dgs700 for my wife's boss, didn't get a chance to cast it. I only gave it the wiggle test and as I recall it wiggled fine. That era of D'backs were made at a great time at D'back. Many new tapers were being introduced and along the time when D'glass came out.
RFMcD


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 14 Mar 2012, 06:21 • #20 
Master Guide
Joined: 01/10/09
Posts: 499
Location: US-PA
oh boy, where to start? well, first up would be the little 6'6" brown featherlight I just picked up. wraps are nice, but the rod finish is kinda dull, so I hit a spot with some steel wool and then some tru oil, wow, the thing just comes to life! so I'm gonna give the whole thing a coat of it.
then I've got two 7'6" rods that I stripped, one is a Berkley, the other unknown, both brown and slightly translucent. gonna wrap one with brown/black varigated, the other with olive to match the olive anodized reel seat(I remember someone saying they hated them, but I think it's gonna look cool with the matching wraps!)
THEN, I've got a couple bamboo rods that are going to become bantys, both will be 6 footers. already taped a reel to the top two sections and cast them out in the yard, both are very nice to cast. sometimes these things end up being clubs, so I always like to test them before I tear into them. one is dark cane, originally had full intermediate wraps, so I'm gonna replicate that. the other is lighter cane, that one will be a cleaner look. not sure on colors yet, but it won't be RED! too many red wraps on bamboo already!
then there is the wonderrod fly/spinning combo
and the true temper steelhead rod project
and the 7wt action rod with bamboo finish
we'll talk about reels later!


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 14 Mar 2012, 08:25 • #21 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/20/07
Posts: 8920
Location: US-ME
I guess over the years rodbuilding fumes affect one man differently than the other man, so maybe I wasn't clear, Andy. I'll try again.

Martin USA spools consist of 4 main parts: a central hub or arbor; an inner, frame-side plate; a click-gear press-fit to the frame side of the hub/arbor; and a handle/outer side plate press-fit to the hub. The spool latch mechanism and cover is screwed to the outer side of the arbor. All of the latch covers interchange, but the spools don't on the fixed click (63) vs. adjustable click (MG3) reels because the click gear is different. (See below: frameside spool face, hub surface, and click gear, 63 on top, MG3 on bottom.)

Image

You can't move the click gears as these are too tightly assembled to enable a home tinkerer to swap them. But you can remove the outer side plate by prying it off. That is what is shown on the black spool above, the outerside plate removed, and the outer side of the hub with its crimps shown. You can also see the screw positions (one with a screw in it) that retain the latch plate. The latch plate doesn't retain the spool plate; only the press fit and crimping does.

So if we have one spool with an outer-side palming rim and one without, we just pry them off their respective hubs, swap them and press fit them back with a little epoxy and punch-crimping to secure them. That's what I have done: removed the palming-rim spool face from a 63SS spool and put that on an MG3 spool. The non palming rim spool face from the MG3 spool goes on the other spool.

In the picture below, you see another angle on a spool with the handle side plate pried off its hub. Upper right is a conventional MG3 spool. If I had another palming rim plate on a 63SS spool, I could pry its handle-side plate off the same way.

To the left is a 63 spool, conventional now. It is shown frame-side up, but you can just see the outer-side spool edge, not a palming rim since that spool face came from an MG3 spool.

Below that is the outcome for a couple MG3 spools. Both were conventional originally. Both now have a palming rim outer spool plate swapped from a 63 palming rim spool. I'm still in business with the 63 reels because the conventional plates went on to their spool hubs.

Image

Hope that's clear. I had only coffee this morning and haven't cracked a can of varnish or used any contact cement.

In case anybody wonders, later on Martin manufactured the MG3SS, which came with a palming rim spool. I have one of those. What I did might seem like a lot of trouble, but palming rim spools are hard to come by, whereas the ones to swap faceplates or much easier to get.


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 14 Mar 2012, 09:18 • #22 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/26/06
Posts: 3837
Location: Northeast Of Heaven
Hello
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA Now I get it!
Thanks Steve I just wasn't seeing it in the last post?
You made it very clear now so that even I can grasp the concept.
That's the best reel modification I have seen in these parts for a long time!
Thanks so much for sharing yet another of your brain child's.
Wow you must be using better varnish than I, this morning just having epoxy with my coffee and acetone.

Bikerfish glad to see you are chiming in as well can't wait to see what you got going on!
Carl you are not alone I'm sure many of us have rods that are good to go I have several waiting for the next step.
Sometimes the best thing is to let them set a spell until the creative juices flow again.

Tight Lines and AAAAAAAAAA Loops
Thanks Again Steve
Andy M


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 14 Mar 2012, 13:01 • #23 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/20/07
Posts: 8920
Location: US-ME
Seeing all the different benches and projects is great; you started an inspiring discussion, Andy.come to think of it, the word "inspire" derives from a dead language meaning "to breath in."

Well, you never know how vapors will affect a person. But enough with the epoxy and acetone I say. Have a breath of the good vintage stuff, which I had on my bench (it's a rickety table) last winter.

Image

Here is an MG3 (top) with a palming rim spool, faceplate pirated from a model 63SS spool. The 63 model (bottom) now has a conventional spool faceplate from the MG3 spool.

I think I will need to find something else to do now.

Image


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 14 Mar 2012, 16:12 • #24 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/12/07
Posts: 1292
Location: western Massachusetts
Here is my current experiment: an Spg601 converted to a 5'6" small stream fly rod (under construction).

First an overview:
Image
The rod measures 5'6" with a staggered ferrule. I thought this might help it handle a lighter line and avoid having a guide fall on the ferrule.

Reel seat and grip:
Image
It has been too cold to make thin specie corks out of thick ones outside, so I bought this set-up from Jann's Netcraft. It is a great little seat copied from a design by one of the bamboo masters (It escapes me who, but perhaps some of the veterans here can tell me).

The spigot ferrule:
Image
I scraped it down a little to fit into the butt section and the fit is so close, I think I will coat from the butt section to the pencil line with some epoxy to ensure a good fit with the tip as the spigot wears. Sorry for the dark picture. The spigot is from an old junker rod.

Reel seat butt:
Image
The only drawback to this cork seat is the butt. They supply cork plugs, but that ends up looking like a dead eye, so I thought I would add a butt cap that would fit into the base of the blank (more on this in the future). I also left the first 0.25" of the blank dry of epoxy to control any run-out that might get onto the cork butt. Cork is so porous I can't clean it up after that happens. I plan to pack some runny epoxy into the gap between blank and cork and let it work down into the joint for a nice solid bond (more on that to come).

As you can see,I have half of it wrapped using one of those new twist threads that Prowrap has just issued. I tried using polycrylic as a color preserver, but everything turned dull and dark, so it is back to the drawing board there. I plan to wrap a 8 mm stripping guide just below the ferrule wrap, and put a hook keeper on this in front of the grip. There are 6 snakes (1 #3, 1#2, and 4 #1) making it 7 guides with the stripper.

I had toyed with the idea of doing a cork wrap, but opted for making this lighter and saving that learning experience for another build. Instead, I used a black vinyl winding check (sorry if this grosses-out anyone, but I like them ;D )


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Re: What's On Your Bench
Post 14 Mar 2012, 16:29 • #25 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 10/31/06
Posts: 1262
Location: Mid- coast Maine
Well, I sure am surprised to see the SPGs still getting a lot of attention. The different configurations keep coming and they always get me scheming. So far I've only made two six footers ,one two piece and one one piece and one stretched out 780 to 7' three piece. I have one 720 and one 780 blanks kicking around waiting for inspiration. Staggered ferrules would use up some of the scrap I have laying around.hmmm.
RFMcD


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