The Nodeless Striped Bass Rod
So it took Me a while to settle on a taper for a saltwater rod. I finally went with a Powell B9 taper as a base for the rod and then went from there.
I started this rod on the Monday before I left for Cape Cod and finished it on Friday night before leaving. The strips were planed out and glued up on Monday. Cork and ferrules were glued up on Tuesday. On Wednesday the cork grip and fighting butt were turned on the lathe. Wednesday night the rod was coated with Gorilla Glue for a protective finish (Three Coats). Then wrapped on Thursday. Varnish went on the wraps Thursday night and Friday. Done and in the tube Friday night and on the way to the Cape. Its no show piece for sure. It got the job done though.
This rod is Nodeless and Hollow Built. I could have hollowed it a little more. The rod was light enough to cast for hours, but could have been lighter. The next one will be hollowed more aggressively.
It casted Airflo Cold Salt 8 and 9 Lines very well. Better than I expected actually. I fished this rod every day for a week and for several hours each day. It held up great and worked fine for sight fishing the beaches, throwing flies in mild surf conditions and in tidal creeks.
I didn't get into any really large fish, but it fought and landed some decent sized fish with no problems.
All the splices held up fine. The rod is still as straight as it was on the first day also. The Nickel Silver ferrules worked fine. This rod was dropped and dunked several times and caught a lot of fish.
Now I'm sold on the glue that have been using recently. I will continue to use it until they no longer make it available.
Thanks for looking.
Time to get back to Trout sized rods.
Best,
Anthony
