Custom rod builds Ice

[icecaptain14]

Getting into building ice rods for a second business adventure I know its late in the season and I just started building some rods this one is my first rod I'm building if anyone is looking for an affordable ice rod p.m. me I'm not tuned up customs where they need your left nut for a ice rod to use 4 months out the year

[icecaptain14]

[fedrusion]

This is perfect timing as ive been thinking about trying to build my own as well.

[trapper2000]

first in most cases you can  buy a  rod  cheaper ...i  tie  all  my  rods  accept 2  and those  are  my  walleye  rods  i  got on sale  from  gander mtn......

i tried   alot of brim  rods  36 inch  for walking around  and  32 to 30 inch  for in the  shanty  ....i  bought my blanks and handles from  net craft  my tips too  the eyes i made myself   .......i been using those  rods  for  years but  i  fished    for 50 years  with nothing  but a  spool reel lol i  like the little  ones  i  use  reels and  braid on my  walleye  rods my  kills  and  crappie  rods in  shallow  water  2  pound mono i like bright gold  and i did  get a couple  inline  reels for deep water ....i think they suck .......that is  just me  .... the  best  part is  catching fish on a  rod you  built!  on  jigs you  made and  painted  ...on  flies  you tie ......that is  where the  fun is.... go on  try it i think you will love it

[BUCKSKI]

Building or assembling ice rods is pretty easy, especially with a hand wrapper. I have built many early rods with a bobkin for tying flies.
Also look to sportsmen direct for parts, in the off season they go on sale. Many of the rods I built this year the seats, handles and guiles cost X3 more than the $5 blanks.
Yesterday I fished a carbon walleye rod I made for jigging. $23 blank and nice feel, just no walters yesterday.
Make your own and fish, you will love it!!
I wrap and build fly rods, been catching kings, brown and steel on em for years. Made a 10 wt. NFC for tarpon, musky and pike. Throws big flies nice.
Start on the ice rods and all the others come easy!

[62&done]

I have a surf rod on which the reel seat has come loose and spins round and round on the blank.  Is this repairable and how or by whom ?

[icecaptain14]

I plan on building quite a few different style rods from 24 up to 36 inch and share them to a few tackle shops around me if they'll sell  if anything larger like a 40 that'll be going in my collection for fishing 

[ECobb91]

I started building a year or so ago. I got tired of always compromising on mass produced/factory rods. In regards to ice fishing , the only rod I truly loved was a Frabill bro series quick tip. Imo BassKhang rods are the best Ice rod blanks on the market.

I really like building rods on RodGeek blanks (St Croix’s brand they sell blanks through). NFC XRay blanks are amazing as well. Most sensitive rods I’ve ever used

[meandcuznalfy]

I started building rods out of convenience, when covid hit and supplies were short and couldn't find what I wanted, started with open water rods, but love being able to build a ice rod that is far greater than what I can buy for cheaper and get what I want. Plus like catching fish on what I've made, makes it all worth while, most of my rods are just tips from open water rods glued into a dowel and work great.

[Pequod1]

Same here guys. I started as a kid, gave it up for a long time, and got back in to it a few yrs ago. I also like the basskhang blanks for ice. For the long rods, I prefer NFC. Be careful with the Mud Hole long rod blanks. They break easily. Especially the UL 6 1/2’ size I use for perch. You can always find a rod cheaper in the store than build one but you guys that build know you will not get the satisfaction out of catching a fish on your own build.
Probably should start a thread on rod builds to share info.

[fedrusion]

I can tell you if a rod building tips/source thread gets started ill probably end up going broke.

[BeenPerchin315]

I can tell you if a rod building tips/source thread gets started ill probably end up going broke.

Don’t go over to the general chat side then. A big forum on it last time I went over there. But I could use some pointers on the good products for this endeavor as far as the roller set ups and those parts and pieces. Glue. And threads.
Yes I know I can buy a cheap kit from the Amazon but are all components cheap or just the rod materials?

Another question is do I need to buy carbon fiber blanks if I want to sand and customize them myself or can I start on a fiberglass blank.

Any info is much appreciated.
Thanks fellas

[GatorNY]

You can sand either fiberglass or carbon, so long as they're solid blanks. With carbon, I am always amazed at how thin and tapered the blank has to be in order to get it "UL". I broke a 13 Fishing Widowmaker recently and build on salvaged parts using a Mudhole carbon blank. I think that I managed to get it to a light taper, but any further and I was afraid that I would sand right through the blank, even off the lathe. Might make sense to buy some cheap practice blanks to get a feel for carbon.

As for components, I like Pacific Bay single foot fly guides in titanium grey (CSFG) - there's a guy on eBay who sells them by the five pack. I like sizes 5, 4, and 3, with a #3 tied at the tip in place of a conventional tip top. Trust me, ice rod tip tops suck. And it's nearly impossible to get the right size. Using the same guide at the tip as in your guide train will make for a sharper looking rod and better line control.

I would avoid one-part finished like Threadmaster One. I built a friend and myself five rods each for tip downs, and thought to save time by applying a water based finish rather than two part epoxy. Five years later, the finish is cracking. Gen 4 finish is excellent however, or the standby FlexCoat, using a light build mix.

Reel seat, cork, carbon tube, 3D printed: the list of grip possibilities is endless. Lots of good blanks out there, too. I've gotten some good ones from Sportsmans Direct, but can't recommend their components. Bass Khang has really good blanks for not much $ too. If you're set up to wrap, figure on paying 10-15 for a blank, maybe less, 8 for a 5" or 6" straight cork grip, and 5 for guides. So, you're looking at ~$25 in materials, on average. It's easy to pay more. Measure the taper of your favorite rod every couple inches, sand away, and have fun!

[filetandrelease]

 Ben  I have a 31”glass perch rod that needs no sanding and has plenty of backbone and I have a  ,31”, and a 36”  big eye rod and laker rods
 

[icecaptain14]

First drop at Schroon lake right after dark on the custom

 

[icecaptain14]

[ECobb91]

That’s a new way of doing it, I haven’t seen anyone put the handle together first then slide in the rod. I’ve always epoxied the sections to the rod one at a time to make sure each piece is properly snug (with or without arbors). Helps me not over ream.

Also just a heads up for anyone who builds, NFC has their annual sale right now. HM blanks are 7% off and XRays are back down to $85.

[BUCKSKI]

That’s a new way of doing it, I haven’t seen anyone put the handle together first then slide in the rod. I’ve always epoxied the sections to the rod one at a time to make sure each piece is properly snug (with or without arbors). Helps me not over ream.

Also just a heads up for anyone who builds, NFC has their annual sale right now. HM blanks are 7% off and XRays are back down to $85.

Built em all kinds of different way, that is a later choice. I did built a NFC Gamma Beta 10 wt. for tarpon, but it man handled kings this fall. Got it on the sale last year, just took forever to come in. Nice blank! Can't wait to throw monster pike flies with it this spring in the yak.

[icecaptain14]

Little extra backbone for the handle area 

[ECobb91]

Little extra backbone for the handle area 

I always have the rod inserted in the full length of the handle haha

I meant I haven’t seen anyone glue the cork and reel seat together before epoxying it to the rod. I’m still a rookie, only have built 10 rods but I put on rear grip, reel seat, and fore grip all individually. Only exception would be if I use a VSS reel seat

[Tuma]

That’s a new way of doing it, I haven’t seen anyone put the handle together first then slide in the rod.

Because you shouldn’t do it that way for many reasons. Alex please do some more research before making any videos. You are giving out bad information. There is a 100% chance that handle will fail. Read over the custom rod making section on this site
https://www.iceshanty.com/ice_fishing/index.php?board=130.0

But only members can see that section and it seems like you are here to push your YouTube channel like you are doing on other fishing sites.

[GatorNY]

I'm not entirely sure who's saying what, but I will jump in - having built many, many ice rods.

Because the diameter of the blank can be very small, and you don't want the blank to flex through the handle or stuff will start coming apart, it's common-place to assemble the grips and handle on a stiff section of hollow fiber (generally carbon or fiberglass) - with the inner diameter slightly larger than the butt of the blank and masking tape arbors used to center the blank in the handle.

This is in fact how 13 Fishing builds many of their UL rods. You can purchase 10" hollow fiber mount from Mudhole (ie.) that's made specifically for this purpose, and cut it to length as appropriate, or you can use a dremel tool to cut up an old blank. For many ice rods, a 5 or 6" simple Tennessee-style cork handle suffices. If the blank is stiff enough, there's no need for a separate handle mounting tube. But for L and UL builds, a mounting tube provides a significant advantage.

Note added: this post is not intended to take sides or endorse anyone's opinion, point-of-view, or product. Just information. Cheers

[icecaptain14]

I'm not entirely sure who's saying what, but I will jump in - having built many, many ice rods.

Because the diameter of the blank can be very small, and you don't want the blank to flex through the handle or stuff will start coming apart, it's common-place to assemble the grips and handle on a stiff section of hollow fiber (generally carbon) - with the inner diameter slightly larger than the butt of the blank and masking tape arbors used to center the blank in the handle.

This is in fact how 13 Fishing builds many of their UL rods. You can purchase 10" hollow carbon fiber that's made specifically for this purpose (cut it to length as appropriate), or you can use a dremel tool to cut up an old blank. For many ice rods, a 5 or 6" simple Tennessee-style cork handle suffices. If the blank is stiff enough, there's no need for a separate handle mounting tube. But for L and UL builds, a mounting tube provides a significant advantage.

Thank you gator haters gunna hate no matter what you do

[icecaptain14]

Better do your research before bashing someone on first getting started building rods got you to watch my video so must of done something right 

Because you shouldn’t do it that way for many reasons. Alex please do some more research before making any videos. You are giving out bad information. There is a 100% chance that handle will fail. Read over the custom rod making section on this site
https://www.iceshanty.com/ice_fishing/index.php?board=130.0

But only members can see that section and it seems like you are here to push your YouTube channel like you are doing on other fishing sites.

[Tuma]

Better do your research before bashing someone on first getting started building rods got you to watch my video so must of done something right 

1st I never watched it because I can tell from the thumb nail it would be a waste of my time since the person making it doesn’t know what they are doing. 2nd why are you making videos about making rods when you don’t know how to make rods? There is so much miss information on YouTube and the people making the clip only care about views. That’s fine, put it up. What drives me nuts is when that youtuber than jump on forms and pushes their video. I am sorry for lashing out at you and I have been in a bad mood the last couple of day. I normally skip this stuff but you are going on multiple fishing forms advertising your YouTube channel and.......

[lowaccord66]

I have a surf rod on which the reel seat has come loose and spins round and round on the blank.  Is this repairable and how or by whom ?

CMS customs New Bedford Mass.  Ive had Charlie do several custom rainshadows for me and a custom jigster.  They can take care of you up to and includong rewrapping.

[ECobb91]

Thank you gator haters gunna hate no matter what you do

No one is bashing you for using a carbon fiber insert. But what me and others are saying is it’s not ideal to be gluing your handle together before epoxying them to the rod. It’s standard practice to install the rear grip, reel seat, and fore grip separately to give you the best fit possible.

I’m new just like you. Often times I build a rod and let people I know check them out who will be 100% honest on the quality even nitpick down to the smallest details. Yes men do not produce a better outcome.

There’s a big difference between constructive criticism and being a “hater”. If you take offense to constructive criticism then your only limiting yourself. Not all praise is good or deserved. Not all criticism is bad.

[missoulafish]

Insert is the way to go if you wanna swap out rods. My go to rod has a carbon insert and I can swap out a glass blank for a carbon blank in about 2 seconds. Been using it for over 8 years, have caught literally thousands of fish up to 30 pounds and zero failures anywhere.

[stripernut]

I have a surf rod on which the reel seat has come loose and spins round and round on the blank.

Depending on the value of the rod, it may not be worth having a rod builder work on it... If the rod is not worth that much I have had good luck drilling holes into the reel seat (not through) and injecting epoxy in the voids you will most likely find in there. Do this where the foot of the reels sits so you will not see the evidence of your red neck ways... I know many rod builders (I have built many myself) are saying you can't do that or it won't work, but it does in the 3-4 rods that I have done it to, all have held up...

[ECobb91]

Insert is the way to go if you wanna swap out rods. My go to rod has a carbon insert and I can swap out a glass blank for a carbon blank in about 2 seconds. Been using it for over 8 years, have caught literally thousands of fish up to 30 pounds and zero failures anywhere.

Just curious, but inserts let’s you swap blanks?