SO-BLUE HALO

Finished the 8' 5wt Blue Halo fiberglass build. The color is So Blue that it looks like a light saber in the sun.
Custom carbon fiber wrapped grip with blacked out reel seat with a carbon fiber insert. Guides are Black Pearl Recoil.
Wrapped the guides in white silk thread to give it the clear look like I was wanting. Actually looks like only the finish is holding on the guides.
This is going to be a fun trout fighting rod to fish.
#glassisnotdead

 

 

8wt LOOP Cross S1

Started another LOOP build. This one is on a LOOP Cross S1 blank in 9ft and 8wt. Perfect for chasing redfish.
Winn custom grip and fighting butt is going to be a sweet addition to this rod. Black reel seat paired with black Recoil guides. Not sure on the color of thread yet but it will pull it all together.

Let me know what you think of the grip choice.

BLUE HALO SKY BLUE 5wt

Recently started building a 5wt fiberglass fly rod on a Blue Halo blank. I've always liked the color of this one and decided to put the carbon fiber wrapped grip on it and black it out with reel seat and guides done to match the grip. I will wrap it in silk thread that will end up being clear on the blank.

 I'll post up pictures of the completed rod.

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.