How to Build Fly Rod Handles
Making fly rods right from the scratch is a great creative hobby to follow. You can spend some quality time at home being indulged in building fancy fly rods and handles to gift your friends and family. You can get very attractive fly rods from the market but the cost of purchasing them might be beyond your reach. Making fly rod handles at home can give you a memory of a lifetime to pass the finished product along to your family or a friend of yours.
Instructions
-
1
Begin with one 1-by-6-by-14 inch pine board and fabricate a pivot stand with it. You will further need two 1-by-6-by-6 inch pine boards. Carve a V-notch cut at the centre of one of these boards and make sure it s 1 inch of the length.
-
2
Now place the two 1-by-6-by-6 inch pine boards at both ends of the 1-by-6-by 14 inch board, making an angle of 90 degrees. Ensure that you have made a handle spindle so that it can move freely and the boards are secured with wood screws.
-
3
Next you have to thread the cork rings one by one with glue to achieve the desired length of the rod. You have to use the 3/8-by-18 inch long all thread rod, having a 3/8 inch hex head nut and flat washer for this purpose.
-
4
Once all the cork rings are glued, install the second flat washer and 3/8 inch hex head nut to tighten them up firmly.
-
5
Determine the design and shape of the handle you have to make. You can draw out a template on a piece of paper for this purpose.
-
6
Take a small 3/8 inch drill and let the rod handle spindle to rest as a pivot upon it.
-
7
Use a pencil to draw the design of the template onto the rod handle cork before you start carving out the shape of the handle.
-
8
Turn on the drill at slow speed and make sure to lock the trigger; this will make the drill act like a lathe. Take a rasp or a filer to start shaping the cork to match the template.
-
9
You can use a sand paper to give the finishing touch to the handle and make it smoother.
-
10
Remove the handle from the spindle once you are finished and glue the completed assembly onto the rod blank with reel seat and ferrule to conclude your project.
