Don't know for sure, but please, the end of the blank sections where the spigot is mounted should be reinforcement wrapped, just as the female ends are. This is a failsafe against splitting, more important with the female, but almost always advised with any blank of any manufacture.

Thanks - given the price of the rod I figured it was an import and I guess it’s likely they’re all made in the same factory to the same loose specs anyway. Good call on wrapping the ferrules - I’ll probably take it out tomorrow weather permitting but them see what I can do about wrapping it.
Thanks again,
Paul

Thanks for the info, I’ll certainly fish it. While I probably wouldn’t have purchased this myself I’ll certainly not hold anything against it.
One of my customers (I’m a guitar builder) saw this on eBay and she bought it for me as a tip or gift. She said it was for very little money but she knows I like fly fishing and also have an affinity towards fiberglass rods. Got to love and appreciate great customers like that.
I don’t know the first thing about rod building or repair but I guess I’ll buy a spool of thread and figure out the wrapping thing one way or the other.

Paul

Thanks Tom, I appreciate the encouragement!
Looking at a few websites wrapping two male ends seems doable but a quick question on thread if you don’t mind. The small towns I live between don’t have a fly shop or really a sporting goods store so getting rod thread locally is a no-go. We do however have a fabric store - is there an equivalent I could purchase rather than mail ordering a spool for a one-off deal?
Looking at the websites it seems like if I don’t use color preserver the thread will turn clear-ish which seems like a better bet than trying to match the existing wraps. Is this correct? Also I use a product called z-poxy for guitar finishing - a two part clear epoxy - assume this will suffice for coating the wraps?
Thanks so much for the info and patience!
Paul

Nylon thread is the normal choice because it is strong and resists the elements well. A problem with nearly all sewing thread is the sizing/lubricant applied to make the thread pass more easily through a sewing machine. Rod wrapping thread should be cleaner, thus causing fewer issues with the finishing steps.

Even if you rewrap the whole rod, one 100 yard spool is plenty of thread. Good deals on new-old-stock Gudebrod thread can be found on eBay. Currently sold brands include Fish Hawk, ProWrap, and Fuji. You can buy either regular thread or NCP thread. NCP refers to "No Color Preservative" thread, because the preservative is already applied. No need to buy an additional material.

You are correct, matching existing wraps is difficult. The following options are in order of difficulty;

• Pick a contrasting or 'matches close enough' NCP color, wrap the male spigots, and finish with z-poxy. The z-poxy should have a minor effect on the final color, probably making it a bit darker.
• Wrap with regular white thread, don't use color preservative, and finish with z-poxy. This may give you a colorless/clear wrap. But clear wraps are not a given without practice and careful control of materials.
• Skip the thread and mount a brass/aluminum ferrule ring on the male section. This would be more than enough protection for any ferrule mishaps. In addition you wouldn't have to deal with thread colors.
• Pull the guides off and rewrap the whole rod. The current guides were finished with epoxy, so removing the guides will take more work that you want. Save this treatment for a rod you really, really want to refurbish.

Tom