Building an 8wt

Finally getting around to building the 8wt Loop Cross S1 Flatsman blank. This blank makes for an awesome rod used to fish for Bass and at the coast chasing reds. The ability to make long casts with big flies or a precise controlled cast are why it is one of my favorite blanks to build on. The grip that I use on most of my builds is a two part foam that is shaped then covered with carbon fiber and then sealed. I'm asked all of the time what the advantage of this grip over foam would be. The grip is tough, it won't pit like cork and is very hard to crush. If you abuse it you then sand it down and add another coat of finish and it's just like new again. If it gets wet it does not become slippery like many would think.

The next step after finishing the grip is reaming it out to fit the taper of the blank. This is done with a reaming tool that has a taper like the rod and covered with sandpaper. You can do it by hand or it can be done with a drill. I usually do this by hand. After sliding the grip down the blank you build an arbor with tape to fill in the void between the reel seat and the blank. To save weight most manufacturers only use a few drops of glue to attach the grip and reel seat. I have repaired many of these for customers after coming loose. For this reason I use plenty of glue to make sure this doesn't happen.

Next up will be to place and align the guides, test cast and adjust, then add finish. I'll post up pictures of the completed build later.

LOOP Custom Builds for sale

Ready to build.
Loop Cross S1 Flatsman 890 MC/MF, and 1090 MC/MF both are 4piece blanks
Carbon Fiber Grip
Black Pearl Recoil Guides
American Tackle reel seat with Carbon Fiber insert

Your choice $750.00

Back in Glass

Built a 5wt on a Jade colored Blue Halo blank earlier this year for a client.

He is enjoying fishing the new glass rod so much that I was asked to build a duplicate on a Cranberry colored Blue Halo blank for him.
First step was to wrap the handle in carbon fiber.

After applying finish to it and then sanding down, two more coats of finish were applied to give it shine and protection. Then the Black Pearl recoil stripping guide and the snake guides were wrapped in black thread,

Here is the finished rod.

And a look at the two of them together.

TRES LOOPS

Just finished building these three for LOOP USA. They will be going to Baja for Bull Dorado and Roosterfish.
All three built on Loop Cross S1 Flatsman blanks.
Custom carbon fiber grips with American tackle reel seat with carbon insert.
Guides are Recoil Black Pearl stripping and Pac Bay heavy duty black snake guides and tip top.
All were wrapped in Purple Pro Wrap thread from Mudhole tackle.

If anyone is interested in a custom build I have two Loop Cross S1 Flatsman blank available. One in 8wt and the other is a 10wt.

Rods for sale

I have two LOOP blanks that are ready to build on.

If you are interested contact me at yakntx@yahoo.com and we can discuss the options and pricing.

 

Blank Inventory:

 

LOOP Cross S1 1090-4  (10wt) 4pc

 

LOOP Cross S1 890-4 (8wt) 4pc

 

 



 

 

LOOP Builds continue

Building a trio of Cross S1 10wt rods for Loop.
All three will have carbon fiber grips, reel seat with carbon fiber insert, Black Pearl Recoil guides and wrapped in purple thread.
When done they will be used on a trip to chase some Roosterfish.

While waiting on some components to come in I started on the rod by gluing up the reel seat, grip, and fighting butt to the first one.

 

 

When finished they should look similar to this one that I finished earlier.

 



Diablo Paddlesports build

Built this for a friend who owns Diablo Paddlesports.
Built on a LOOP 590-4 Cross S1 blank and completely blacked out. Used Black Pro Wrap thread, Black reel seat with carbon fiber insert to match the custom carbon fiber grip that has a Diablo inlay on it. Really like the way it turned out.

LOOP Cross S1 Flatsman 1090-4

Finished building this tonight and snapped a few pictures.
Built for my friends at Loop and headed to Idaho is a 10wt Cross S1 Flatsman. Grip is a full wells wrapped in carbon fiber and Loop logos added before sealing. Guides are Recoil black pearl stripping and Snake brand the rest of the way. American Tackle reel seat with carbon fiber insert to match the grip. Guides are wrapped in Pro Wrap thread and purple is the primary color.

Bliss

It's pretty awesome to see the results of something that you built for someone to take on a trip work out.
This was a custom Loop 10wt that I built earlier for someone who would be fishing in Mexico for some large saltwater fish.
Here are some of the pictures that he shared.

Dorado

Roosterfish

Progress update on the 10wt

Finished sealing the custom carbon fiber grip and the fighting butt. Rod is wrapped and on the dryer.

LOOP Cross S1 1090-4 Build has begun

Started on this build for Loop and should have it ready soon. Carbon fiber grip with the Loop logo sealed inside. Recoil black pearl stripping guides and heavy duty black snake guides to finish it off. This rod will be taken on a trip to catch some Rooster fish.

 

 

I'll update the pictures when the finish is applied and the rod is completed.

LOOP 590-4 Cross S1

Looking at blacking this build out. 5wt that will have a full wells carbon fiber grip, black reel seat with carbon fiber insert and black pearl recoil guides. Should look sweet when complete. Will be for sale when done if anyone is interested.

LOOP 990-4 Cross S-1

Finished up a build for LOOP USA. This is the second time that I've been asked to build a rod for them that they will be giving to a friend.

The blank was matched up with a set of Recoil Black Pearl stripping and snake guides. Carbon fiber wrapped full wells grip, American Tackle reel seat and Pro Wrap Purple thread.
With the crazy weather going on, it took awhile to get this one ready for finish. After a few warm days I was able to apply the coat and get it to dry properly.

Looking forward to the next one.

BLUE HALO 8' 5wt 3pc

Just finished this one and delivered it to it's new owner.
Built on a Blue Halo Gen2 glass blank in Jade color. Custom carbon fiber grip and wrapped the recoil guides in a teal colored thread.

This thing looks like a light saber out in the light.

BLUE HALO 7'6" 3pc 3/4 wt

My friends at Blue Halo sent down a couple of their new Generation 2 fiberglass blanks. This one is a 7' 6" 3/4 wt that is translucent in color.

Wrapped the grip in carbon fiber and matched the reel seat to it. Used a Black Pearl colored Recoil guide for a stripper and black snake guides the rest of the way.

Wrapped the whole thing in Canary Yellow and added a snake guide for the hook keeper.

Finished it up with Flex Coat light build. I think it came out great and its almost ready to ship back to Blue Halo for someone to enjoy.

Really like the way the guide shows through the finish against this blank.

Here is the finished rod.