Wow, what a weekend!
The two days had very different "flavours": day 1 was a very social affair, with lots of catching up and settling in, and day 2 had more of a focus on getting rods finished or well underway. I thought both were great.
Highlights for me included:
- Seeing EVA shaped on the lathe
- Getting weaving tips including use of the cable tie
- Working with Douglas to lay out a detailed a cross wrap pattern on his blank
- Working with Mark (trymyluck) to decorate his rod with a custom decal
- Speaking live with the American Tackle guys on Skype thanks to Mark Newcombe
- Hot water trick for installing EVA grips
- Seeing the custom rods that guys brought along
- Catching up with friends and making new ones
Thanks to all those who attended and made the day a success. Thanks also to our sponsors who donated various gear including:
- A Texaliam spinning blank from Troy at Wilson's
- RodMaker magazines from Tom Kirkman
- Samples of cork from Joaquim Loreiro (Cork4Us)
- Mudhole promo gear and Rod Guild Journals from Ross Van Enckevort (The Rodworks)
- American Tackle promo gear including reel seats, catalogues and the new Tidal Wave MicroWave guide sets
- Components for the RBW Group Rod from Pedro
If I missed thanking anyone please accept my apologies!
If you were the recipient of any of these items it would be great form to send a quick note of thanks to the sponsor.
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The RBW Group Rod
We took the 10-14kg Texalium spinning blank and built it up with gimbal, hypalon grips, Alps reel seat and a great set of guides. Pedro assembled the butt section beforehand, we glued the tip on Saturday, came up with the guide spacing on the Sunday and then did the guide wraps (mostly Ian).
We would like to auction this great rod to the highest bidder, and donate the proceeds to a charity. As part of the auction I will finish the rod with a custom decal showing the winner's name (or name of boat or other text or logo as requested).
I am hoping somebody can take care of running the auction, and I will focus on epoxying the rod and doing the decal.
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Thanks to all who attended the SEQ RBW. I had a great time and am looking forward to the next one.
Cheers
Dave