FD.

I don't like working with EVA compared to cork. However, the eva is much more durable in the Florida sun. Of the rods that are always on the deck, the eva ones look great, the cork ones not so much.

Email I received. I know Fishing Cowgirl will be there, anyone else going to pitch in? This will be my fourth year and the experience is priceless. Are you ready for our upcoming Paralyzed Veterans of America 2015 Bass Tournament? You still have time to register, come and support us once again and enjoy 2days of fishing for cash prizes! Attached below is the official flier and info... P.s We are also looking for volunteers, please call Sports Director Kevin Poindexter for more info...813-264-1111 or email poindexter.kevin@yahoo.com **WE Need Boat Captains**Please Contact Steve Jarrett (813)391-4105 Register online: pvabasstour.com Lisa Santiago Executive Director Florida Gulf Coast PVA 15435 N. Florida Ave. Tampa, FL 33613 (813) 264-1111 (813) 264-6285 Fax

And so the addiction begins..... Welcome to the club.

I did not like the way the cork and the aluminum trim rings matched up so I changed them to two tone eva. Grips and reel seats are done.

Thanks Brian. Dinner was great company. The steak was more like a stake. You and Grover are welcome in my boat anytime.

I found it at Northern Tool for 19.99. It has a 4" 2X magnifier which makes wrapping guides SO much easier for my old and crusty eyes.

Not a lot to look at but considering I have been building rods out of a plastic tote for 10 years, it is a Huge Production Facility. I annexed 24 sf out of Nicole's office. I had to buy her a new cherry desk and filing cabinets but it was worth it. Finally I don't have to pack up and get out of her way when I'm done building a rod.

Lisa is our resident Toho expert, I listen to her, you should too.

16mm or 17mm is the diameter. All reels will fit either. It's personal preference for the most part but you do want to match up with blanks and grips. I build using both. You don't really want to put a 17mm seat on an ulra light and if you are building on a mag bass blank then a 16 makes your handles tricky sometimes.

It is very tip heavy compared to the HM. It looks great and by spec it should be nearly identical, but it does not feel that way. I guess I just had higher expectations from a blank that is supposed to sell for over $200.

Finally got back on the build today. I could not make up my mind about the blank but I wound up building on a Rainshadow RX8+C843. This blank is supposed to sell for $211 and was marked down to $127 from Get Bit. I have a MHX MB 843 ($50) and a MHX HM 843 ($105) also hanging on the wall waiting for a build. First impressions is I'm not overly impressed with the blank. I'm going to build on it with high end components and test against Nicoles HM 843 I built last month. We shall see. Here is the handle. A few changes from the original design.

You only need 4 baits this time of year. Siebert Outdoors Fogy in brown head/bluegill skirt. Rage Toad Green pumkin pearl swirl. Bitters Naked Swimmer in Watermelon shad or majic craw. Bitters Vibe in shadow blue glitter. Rig the Fogy with a small green trailer. Toad - T-rig with a punch stop and a 1/16 oz bullet and a 3/0 ewg hook Swimmer - same as toad but a 3/8 oz bullet. Vibe same as the toad. If for some reason you don't get bit on the above, throw a weightless Mardi Gras fluke.

I bought 2 Rainshadow RX 7 blanks not paying attention to the fact they are 2 piece. I was paying more attention to the $38 price tag because they are discontinued. Not really wanting 2 piece rods, is there any reason not to epoxy the pieces together without using a ferrule?

The parts for the triplets arrived today.

I know who is getting my name in next years Xmas exchange.

Remove and replace the guide if you have any rod building skill, or at least are not afraid to try. You can buy individual guides if you know what size. Otherwise sand it with a dremel tool and hope for the best.

Solid as a rock. I can't break it loose. That went better than expected. Total time including turning down the cork was about an hour.

Flip flops and flip flops. I was not aware it gets cold.

Next using a syringe I injected resin under the seat using the two holes as I turned the seat filling the groove. Waiting for the epoxy to set now. We will see how it does.

The cork was pretty well shot so I put it on the power wrapper and turned them down a little and even gave the rear grip a bit of a split profile.

The original plan was to take the seat and grips off and rebuild from the butt, but, plans changed. For now I'm going to try and fix it. If it does not work then I will go back to the original plan. I drilled two holes in the barrel piece and discovered that it has a cork arbor. I then took my dremel with a barrel grinder and cut a groove all the way around the blank using the two holes for access.

It's a HM 7' mh fenwick that I bought Nicole in 2007. A couple of years ago she went to hookset and the reel fell off. The the barrel of the split seat was loose and turned. Fast forward a few years and I'm finally getting around to fixing it.

That Marble looks awesome. I will have to try that.

Yep, they are more for Surf and Carp rods. Way to big for the light saltwater rods I'm building.