[Ginge]

Im trying to rebuild a Conoflex Super 5 Mk 2, and Im having difficulty in lining my rod rings up. Im just tapint them in at the moment, and seeing if they look right, but how do people line them up, for whipping?

Ben

 

[philtherod]

PM me with an email address, and I'll send a set of spacings. I need to know whether fixed-spool or multiplier, of if you need a set that will handle both.

Where is turkmenistan?


philtherod

 

[David Gould]

Im trying to rebuild a Conoflex Super 5 Mk 2, and Im having difficulty in lining my rod rings up. Im just tapint them in at the moment, and seeing if they look right, but how do people line them up, for whipping?

Ben

Ben ,
with the whole rod assembled secure the whole rod with the sweet spot at the uppermost point
Use a bit of line through all the runners, anchor it at the but end so it will not slip after locating it on the sweet spot alignment then with the rod laid flat pull the line taught ,fix in place with a solid object at the tip end of the rod and centre the runners at the correct spacings ninety degrees to the taught line fit the top eye first then the bottom runner ( that way you have an easy check that your still aligned )
You can then decide if your going to ( COWGUM .copydex , latex glue ) temporary fit the runners letting the glue dry overnight and whipping then on in the morn or a tiny dob of super glue on both of the feet and whip then when set or use elastic bands . or a few inches of adhesive tape to set all the runners in line and hold one end of the foot and then whip the runners on as you go long the rod one at a time.

Or you can mark the sweet spot on each section top and bottom with a small soft pencil /white crayon mark and again fit the upper and lower rings first then the intermediate rings ... still use the taught line through the eyes to check for true alignment through the eyes by checking it directly passing over the feet of the ring , be aware that if you do not look down at the same vertical angle on every alignment the runners will be out

Or you can do the first stage of getting the sweet spot and taught line then carefully transferring the axis of the line onto the rod at the correct spacings using a fine point permanent marker pen or a soft pencil with a line just over the length of the runners feet to give you alignment points to whip to ( it becomes easier as you do more rods ) then whip the runners on there and then.

hope it helps.

David

 

[Bagstar]

I placed all of mine on with masking tape, then I whipped them on. I was surprised how much you can get the eye to move after whipping it in place and found that I could line them up spot on like this. Im not sure this is the professional way to do it but it suited me and my eyes are just where I want them and after putting the resin on the whips, they are solid. This was only ok for moving them from side to side and not up and down the length.

 

[chris grace]

I do the same as Bagstar , aroll of sellotape aneye ball mk1 then position correctly after whipping and before applying resin

 

[Ginge]

Thanks for the info lads, appreciated!

Ben

 

[philtherod]

Rule 1...DON'T use sellotape. It leaves a gungy residue and prevents getting a decent finish.
There is no rule 2.


philtherod

 

[kezza foster]

go to your local butchers and ask him for a roll of the tape they use to seal the bags, its thin but strong, use this to keep them on no need for cotton

 

[Ajohn]

I bind them all at one end 1st with tape round the other end of each ring. If they are roughly lined up it's then easy to move them around a bit and align them by eye looking along the section through the rings.

It is possible to bind them too tightly to do this with some threads so check one before you do the rest. The bindings should be firm though.

I haven't had much luck finding sweet spots on rods for a long time. It's caused by a spine inside the blank produced during manufacture. I suspect most manufacturers now use a carefully cut spiral wrap so don't worry if you cant find more stiffness in the tip section in one direction as you rotate it against your hand. The other end can be rested on a table etc or the whole thing can be done the other way round. You may even be able to see something inside the blank.

John

 

[Ginge]

Ok, thanks for the info lads, appreciated! Ive fixed the rings in place with some masking tape, and have slowly started whipping them on. Looks really good. Once its done, I'll start the long process of varnishing! Any things to look out for when varnishing?

Ben

 

[Ajohn]

I would use rod dope not the newer high build epoxies etc. It's much much easier to replace a ring if you need to in the future. I only use it on the bindings. Varnished rods scratch and chip too easily. If I don't like the look of the blank I spray it with car touch up paint before I bind the rings on. I've only ever done that on glass blanks though but hopefully there shouldn't be a problem with carbon.
You can get dope from Jims Tackle in Cornwall.

John

 

[philtherod]

Dope (cellulose nitrate) for rodbuilding purposes goes back to the use of silk as whipping thread. In the infancy of aviation in the 1st war, aircraft wings were covered in fabric, and something was needed to tighten this after fixing to the airframe. They used shrinking dope (there is a non-shrinking version called banana oil), and the rod-builders of the time used the same principle to tighten the silk whippings, as there was little or no stretch in silk. after it had dried, they then applied resin varnish, produced from pine trees as the final finish.
Today, forget the dope. We have NCP and non-NCP threads, NCP retain their colour when finish is applied, non-treated don't. If you just want one quick coat and then out to play, then a moisture-curing urethane is perfect. If you want a pro-finish, then the 2-pack epoxy with plasticiser is the way to go. Today, dope serves no useful purpose.

philthrod

 

[Ajohn]

All I would say about dope is that it should be used in a reasonably well ventilated area. I've used the water based varnishes and aren't impressed for binding or fly tying so I stick to dope. Modern dopes are based on xylene and I don't think cellulose nitrate has had a look in for a long long time. The cellulose nitrate dopes aren't particularly water proof either. They are also chemically very close to a certain explosive and have been know to as well.

Xylene is something that shouldn't be sniffed to often or in too large a quantity. People who have been heavily exposed to it on a daily basis in industry have been harmed. Use was common and still is in plastic primers for flock spraying etc. As a solvent it is relatively harmless in comparison with many others.

John

 

[Ginge]

I was told buy the guy in the tackle shop to use, External Polyurothane. And to build the layers up?

Ben

 

[Ajohn]

Take your pick but the polyurothanes don't soak in as well as rod dope will.

Same applies to the ones Phil mentioned. You can thin them with water but they take a lot longer to dry. My main use of those has been with fly tying. Even the very thin ones don't work as well as the solvent based ones do.

John