Gosh, I built a rod--I still have and use it-- more than 40 years ago on a picnic table while camping and fishing in Idaho. An apartment, no problem. You can make an advantage of it by not getting unnecessary, superfluous equipment that pretends to do the job for you. It is a very easy job, especially if you want a fishing rod that will be durable and good looking. You learn to assemble a fly rod best by keeping it simple, so think of your apartment as an advantage.

Keep it simple by selecting one product line and seller who offers a kit or recommended component list. Ifs, ands, or buts, only complicate the process, same as sorting through conflicting advice or minor differences in procedure. No rod blank and hardware shop wants you to be confused by the product assembly or disappointed with the outcome. Select one and stick with it.

Use the resources right here for suggestions, but avoid paralysis by analysis. It is easy to assemble a fly rod. With one good set of instructions and components that suit them, you really can't go wrong. With too much information and equipment, you may not either, but the task won't be as much fun, and the outcome may be no better.

If you have an existing rod that needs to be rewrapped, that would be a good way to get started.

Matt at Proof has everything you need to know on his site . I built my first rod with the help of his videos . Good stuff .

I started with Matt @ Proof and now I'm hooked, too. He's the best!

Started with Matt (Proof) as well!
Matt has always been responsive and patient with my "too many" questions.
Thanks for everything Matt!

Built my first rod a couple months ago using a tool kit and blank/guide kit from Proof and basically just following along with his YouTube videos for instruction. So another vote for Matt’s stuff being great. I love the rod I ended up with too (Proof Vale).

I would definitely agree with the person that said don’t get ‘paralysis by analysis’. After getting my kits I waited a few weeks just watching and rewatching videos and sort of getting up the nerve to get started. Once I finally did I was pleasantly surprised by how easily everything went! (And perhaps also how easy it is to just start over if your first attempt at wrapping doesn’t go well).

I would also add that I was in the same boat as you, wanting my first build to be on a high quality blank (I posted a thread about it that I’m sure is still only a few pages back). I’m very happy that I didn’t go with an expensive blank on my first go round. I’m super happy with how my rod turned out, but I’m also a perfectionist and very aware of a couple spots where I got a little impatient with varnish layers and it doesn’t look so great up close. I got to a point where I decided I was happy to just complete my first build and have a functional and pretty good looking rod. I think if I had invested in an expensive blank and made a rookie mistake like that on it I would have been a lot more upset! (No offense meant to Matt or the quality of his blanks, I freaking love this rod).

Here's some advice noob to noob: a lot of really good points already provided in this thread but the note i quoted from Whirlpool sums it up for me. I'm only 5 builds in and although I was extremely pleased with all of my builds, there is a learning curve and no matter how much research you put into it in advance (I sat on the build fence for months reading and researching before I bought my first component), you're going to make mistakes. I notice a notable difference in my work from build one to build five. Oh, and if you're like me, here's your first four mistakes:

1. You're going to use too much epoxy on the seat and grip and end up with some on the cork and the DL threads. Not enough to effect anything but just enough to piss you off. Even though you know you don't need a lot, you'll still use too much and be caught by surprise at how much pushes out and where it goes.

2. You're using too much tension when you wrap. I can tell already. I know if doesn't feel like too much but it is, especially if you're thinking silk. BTW: you won't know until you coat it and the fuzzies start showing up. You'll decide to fix it by footballing the wraps - okay but just not what you were going for.

3. Speaking of coating wraps, you're going to make mistakes with whatever you coat them with - if it's spar, you'll get too impatient between coats, end up touching it too soon, or rushing the next coat and introducing a blemish. If it's epoxy, it'll go on too thick or a little uneven or tunnels will show up even though you thought you took care of them. Oh, and on your first build you'll learn exactly how much fuzz dust separating a paper towel from its roll ** near ** a blank that's turning with a frsh coat of spar on it can actually produce.

3. Even though you didn't notice it until after you apply your wrap finish, you're going to step over at least one wind on one wrap - rest assured it'll be on the wrap that you look at every time to join the 2nd and 3rd sections. Every time.

Bonus: might even forget to install the winding check at the right time and not realize it until you're a ways downstream but that's just wrap practice . . .

Point is, IMHO it makes sense to consider your first build or two an investment in your process and save the more expensive blanks for after you know exactly what to expect first-hand. Considering every mistake I'm willing to admit to making on my first two builds were cosmetic and didn't really affect the 'fishability' of the rod, I admired my work for a couple of days, lawn cast them once or twice, and promptly gifted them to good friends who I knew would fish the heck out of them and not care about a blems only I would notice.

I'm not through making mistakes by any means but I'm glad I held back the Fisher and Lami S-Glass blanks I acquired when I first decided to make the build leap. I was much more confident after a couple of 'practice builds' on blanks that I knew would fish well but weren't "special" in any way.

Lastly, I am also a bit of a Proof disciple. I relied heavily on his videos (still do) and the ease of ordering everything I needed directly from his site. He's still the first place I look when assembling my shopping list for my next build which for me will be another Fisher and a *********, probably in that order.

Good luck, I've already asked all of the stupid rod building questions for you (just search for them) and don't be afraid to reach out - this community is a fantastic learning resource.

Can't wait to see the pix!

Agreed
Definitely start with cheap blanks and you get your feet wet.
Then when you feel more comfortable and you build your more expensive blank with more desirable components.

When the “stakes are higher” you’ll naturally advance faster & further on the learning curve because you’ll be more precise & will pay even more attention to the finer details.

And most of all, have fun.

I did want to come around quickly to your original questions:

I wouldn't anticipate apartment living to be a show-stopper. I do almost everything on a 7' long workbench in my basement with most of my rod tips strategically 'threading the furnace pipe needle' for the few steps I like to have the full rod assembled. Most of the time I'm working on just one or two sections of a multi-piece rod assembled at one time.

I've purchased a couple of books. You can 'purchase' Epic's build instruction .pdf for free on their site (a pretty good black & white rod building walk-thru). I bought Mel Marshal's "How to make your own fishing rods" book second hand for about $4.00 US (regarded by many as one of the better resources). I received Mudhole's 'Rod building 101' book as part of a thread wrapping kit I bought - I think the book can be had for $14.95 US by itself. The mudhole book has really good pix and descriptions but truthfully the best book you can buy is a good ol' fashioned notebook. Expect to be scribbling down all kinds of measurements, numbers, thread colors used, observations, and unique build notes. If you start racking up builds, you'll want that diary to refer back to to help remember the details of rods built and departed. As far as lessons on tips and technique, I find myself referring back to the hard copy very little and rely mostly on youtube, this site, and a few others that have online repositories of instructionals that are free to download.

As far as tools go, first thing that comes to mind is a good burnisher/thread packer. I bought steel ones, bone ones, and plastic ones. The simple curved plastic one that can be had for $2.00 US is the one a I reach for always. Besides that, looking around my bench, there's a lot of nice-to-haves but only a few things I can't live without tool-wise:

Don't know your situation but I absolutely need a good pair of glasses/magnifiers.

Most will say a rod turner/dryer is a 'nice-to-have' but it falls in my essential bucket. For spar, I'll have a rod turning for 6 days while applying 5+ coats.

A Ruler/scale

Sandpaper/flat file

Something to bore out grips - one or more rattail files

Standard finish consumables - a brush (cleaner if you're not using disposable ones), mixing cups/metal dishes or aluminum foil, etc. I second brockton's suggestion to start with spar. I didn't but now that I have one or two builds that I used spar and love the results, it's my first choice going forward.

How many others would put an alcohol lamp here?

Epoxy for grips and seats. I do prefer the quick set mix. It still provides plenty of working time for me and I like to set a seat/grip in the morning and start wrapping later that day.

Tape for guides and shimming blanks to seat/grip bores if required.

My top-three 'nice-to-haves' are:

A thread wrapper. You can book ad bobbin it for sure but I really like using a thread wrapper.

A heat gun. I use this a lot when finishing - whether I'm using epoxy or spar, I'll heat the finish before applying and usually heat the wraps after application to thin and even the coat.

Perhaps a hobby mitre box and saw if you're planning to cut blanks.