Rod Building Newbie - creating new from old

[strobe1970]

Hi!,

I have 2 (and a half) broken Rapala T-spec overhead rods (6 and 1/2 feet overheads) that it would seem to be a waste to bin given the components seem to be good quality. I was wondering whether it is relatively easy to 'harvest' the guides (Fuji SiC) and the real seats and have a go at creating a new rod from the ashes of the old(s) with an appropriate blank.

I wouldn't mind creating something of similar length and maybe 10-15Kg -- the tip seems very small - maybe 3mm diameter.

Any hints, thoughts or places to look for direction (and blanks to suit ?). I'm in Canberra (would be keen to attend a workshop but I suspect Canberra is not easily achieved.)

Regards,

Paul

[robfish 1]

Hey Paul...sorry for the late reply, but I've only just joined the site. Salvaging those parts is certainly not impossible - particularly those costly guides. Get a REALLY sharp knife, like a stanley knife, and slide the flat of the blade along the blank about a quarter turn from the guides. Mind your fingers - I still bear some scars from slips! This will sever the epoxy coating and the bindings, allowing you to peel the bindings away from the guide foot. If you still have the tips, heat them with a cigarette lighter - not too hot, or you'll soften the blank, and remove them with a twisting motion.
As far as the reel seat, cut it off with a hacksaw, (mind the graphite/epoxy dust - not good for you), and if needed, chisel out the blank from the inside with a flat blade screwdriver by sliding the blade between the seat and the blank, and levering it to split the blank - which can then be removed piece by piece with long-nosed pliers. Discard the grips - they're cheap and too much trouble to save. When regluing the seat onto a new blank, allow a little clearance for glue, and shim the blank with four snug bands of masking tape, allowing space in between the bands for glue. 5 minute araldite will, when smeared over the tape bands, expand with the heat, causing the tape to also expand and give a firm grip. I still fish with rods built this way - 20 years on, and the seats have yet to slip! Sorry - I'm in Melbourne and can't help you with local blank retailers. However, there's a big online retailer in Coffs Habour who sell a lot of blanks.
Good luck,
Robfish.

[BARICK]

It might be hard to salvage the reel seats, but the guides shouldn't be too hard.
Just follow Robfish's instructions and you should be fine regarding the guides.
You can orders blanks from lots of different places and if you want to bait caster overhead then go for a medium to med-fast action blank.
Get some grips and a reel seat, butt caps and you'll need a new tip guide because the blank will have a different tip diameter.
If you need and more guidance I'm sure you can get some help here.
Cheers,

[strobe1970]

Thanks Robfish/Barick,

I have started the process of 'harvesting' the guides. Looks like I'll go with a Samurai nv9 which seems to be fit the bill. Was also looking at the Graphite's USA dual helix (US70H) but a fair bit more compared to the nv9.

Cheers.

[Stuart]

The graphite USA stuff is miles over priced.