[newyorkcityman]

hi capt. neil,
this is my first rodbuilding project. a spiral wrapped CGBT841ML to match a penn 975 w/powerpro to be used for sea bass, porgy, stripers, and also weaks and fluke on sheepshead bay party boats.

well, i screwed up and got GNLG guides, which i hear will green and corrode no matter how well i treat my gear. luckily some other stuff was backordered, so i have the chance to order new guides now, before i start. what style should i get? NSG? USG? BHNLG? UST tip?
what are the best hardaloy or SiC guides and tip for this purpose. my thread colors will be metallic black and gold if that affects your choice.

basically, what would you use?

thanks for any suggestions or first time guide wrapping tips,

(This post edited by newyorkcityman on 03/09/2003)

 

[Captneilf]

newyorkcityman

Hi,
Excellent choice of blank, you will really like it's sensitivity and strength. I am building 3 of them presently.

I use the BNLGH guides. The frame is the standard size but the rings are the thick ones. I feel the thick frames/thick rings are overkill for this blank.

I will be going with 20H-16H-12H-10H-10H-10H-8H-8H-8H.

The 1st #10H should be under, at 180*, under the blank. I usually offset the #20H about 15* or so to the left of top center for a smoother transition from each end of the spool. In my case the reel handle is on the right.

You are looking for a linear line as possible as the line wraps from top to bottom.

Yes I use SIC tip tops.

I use hardloy guides unless the customer will be using wire line. SIC guides are great but at what expense!

If you need any help give me a call at (631) 567-8049.

Hvae fun building your new rod.

 

[newyorkcityman]

thanks, capt neil,
great advice. i actually lucked out and ran into billy40 in the chat room last week, and he hooked me up with some great spiral advice.
it was your now famous "taped on spiral wrap" story that finally convinced me to go spiral with my first custom rod.

im still on the fence as to whether i should try to use the GNLGs i have and take really good care of them (soap/water after every use, coat with surfcater brand grease), or just order those BHNLGs now and save myself a rewrap next winter.
im sure you have had customers insist on the gold guides against your judgement, lol, anyone ever succeed in take care of them?
what SiC tip do you use? i do lift hefty fish over the rail a lot (on good days).
thanks,

 

[Captneilf]

newyorkcityman

Hi,

Use the GNLG. You will do fine. Sounds like they will match your threads.

I use the Fuji UST tip tops.

Watch out for Billy 40! He will have you wrapping 'pink hearts' as a butt wrap. Hi Billy!

When you get back to the dock rinse the rod off with fresh water and shake dry. Then when you get home take the rod in the shower with you and wash it with soap and water. rinse well and dry. Let is stand in a well ventilated place to thoroughly dry. Wax the rod and guides with Mothers Plastic Polish several times a season. It will stay great.

I have some guys who show up on the boat with a custom rod and never clean them They look terrible. I hope the customers never ask who built that rod as sometimes it is one I wrapped.

 

[newyorkcityman]

yeah, the gold will look really nice i hope.

thanks for the advice,
i think thats what ill do. i already shower with my rods after every trip, convincing my roommate i am nuts, and ill find some mothers plastic polish, too.

 

[Leprechaun]

I was gonnna post this last night but -

There are other alternatives available - I tried to find pictoral links for the guides I want to tell you about, but failed miserably. It was like 1 A.M., so that might have been part of the problem.

If you want a near-bulletproof gold finish, then look at something along the lines of the newly-released Fuji ICNSG - which are ion-coated (Vapor deposition) Titanium Nitrate plated frames with the SIC rings.

Very expensive, but really nice.

Now if you are cursed with a mortal-sized wallet like me, then I believe that PacBay makes their Hialloy guides with that same TiN plating on the frames and they do it in a few different guide styles, including their equivalent to Fuji's NLG series. I have their catalog at the house, so I'll look tonite and give you part numbers.

Or if you want something especially nice that looks sharp on a custom rod, look at PacBay's new line of guides that have the TiCh (Titanium Carbide) gunmetal-grey plating on the frames and the TiC gold plating on zirconia rings. Zirconia is the same thing that Fuji is calling "Alconite."

I had a pair of rods made up with these last winter and fished them hard all Spring and Summer and not a spec of corrosion to be seen anywhere.

And in my opinion they are about the sharpest guides around.

But that's subjective, of course.

rgds, Leprechaun

 

[newyorkcityman]

ion coated money

hi lep, talking about these pricey beauties?
yea, i wish i could justify spending the $$. also turn green reading about the Ti frame gold cermet guides.
looked at pacbay TiCh (in cool gold and silver colors) and american tackle's TiNiZi guides (in cool blue and hologram colors) but decided with my first rod i better trust the old standbys.

 

[Leprechaun]

Ain't those things just gorgeous?

Man, oh man, I wonder what a set of 7 goes for?

Anybody get pricing yet?

rgds, Leprechaun