.ghoti.

Considering the time involved, I would not do it for $40.

The KR GPS software will likely give you a 16 stripper, an 8M or 8 H reduction guide, and maybe five snall running guides. I have not run it for your example, but that is my guess based on previous rods built using KR guides. They work very well. Place the guides on the blank were the software suggests. Static load test to tweak placement of the running guides. Cast test to the tweak placement of the stripper and reduction guides.

Steam will loosen the epoxy used to adhere the cork or eva to the blank. When you cut off the rear grip leave at least 1/4" of blank sticking out of the grip. Fire up your teapot. Using pliers, hold the open end of the cut off blank in the steam whistling out of the teapot. When it gets good and hot, twist and pull the section of blank out of the grip. To install the grip on the rod, build up the blank with masking tape, thread, or better yet, drywall tape. You want a slip fit. Apply epoxy, twist on the grip, and wipe the excess epoxy using a towel soaked in alcohol. Leave it alone for at least two hours, overnight would be even better.

Given the yo-yo weather we've had so far this winter, I won't even try to guess. local lake has frozen over and thawed four or five times already. So, we've had multiple ice-outs, and will undoubtedly have several more.

That was the second thing I said. The first was thank you.

Can't truly be a coincidence, can it?

Well, if they do that, I will.not be buying any.

Me too. Wanted to find out, direct from the horse's mouth, where the SCV blanks are going to be made.

I hope your dealer is right, and mine is wrong. In either case my nice wholesale discount is gone. Won't be building on any St Croix blanks if they are not made in the USA, and won't be building on many USA made blanks without the discount. If it turns out that my dealer is correct, and all SCV blanks will be built in Mexico, I will be going to my dealer and buying as many SCV blanks as I can afford, while they are still available.

Just got the call from my supplier. They were told almost the same story. The only St Croix blanks now sold will be SCV blanks, which will be made in their Mexico facility, not in Wisconsin, and will be sold only through Rodgeeks. No more American made blanks at all from St Croix. Period! My supplier has about 300 St Croix blanks in stock. When those are gone, that will be it. They have no plans to discount remaining stock. The run on these blanks has already started. They expect to sell out quickly. Better get your orders in right now.

Andy, I have built on the top two blanks in your your list. That medium power rated Immortal blank is, in my opinion, a MH blank. The rod I built for myself on that blank is a fav, and the ones I built for other folks have been very well received. You will be happy with it.

Bassman, I suspect you do not feel you have received an answer to your question. Allow mw to take a shot at it. Do a little test. With reel and line installed, tie off the line to something substantial. Start putting a load on the rod, and observe the tip flex. You will notice that as th applied force increases, the part of the blank flexing moves towards the butt. It doesn't take much to get past the tip. You will know when you've gotten past the tip flex when you see the tip section pointed straight at the load, with no flexing. Tip flexing only occurs at light loads. With that in mind, you should realize you have cery little to worry about.

Simple recipes are sometimes the best Marinate one small ice cube in two ounces of ancient bourbon. Sip and repeat.

Amazing recovery!! Hope it continues until you are back 100%.

When fishing, my phone is OFF!!!!

Very nice! Also very glad I have no use for such a device!

Looking forward to seeing you folks again as well.

Looking forward to seeing you two again.

I retired at the end of 2015. So, it's just a few days shy of three years. I was a full time professor, and a part time consultant. Still do the part time job. I think that really helped me make the transition. I went from 60+ hours a week to my current 10-12 hours a week. I do miss the teaching part of my old job. My times in the lab with my students were some of the most gratifying, and rewarding times of my working life. I suppose I will always miss that. I most emphatically do not miss the other parts of the job: committees, faculty meetings, diversity training, harrassment training, sensitivity training, ethics training, budget wars, etc, etc, etc,,,,the same old same old, year after year after year. As far as finances go, I'm ok. Not great, but I get all my bills paid on time, and have enough extra to fund my fishing. Between a pension, social security, and a part time gig, my take home pay is about 70% of what it used to be. I look at that this way: I am working about 20% of what I used to work, for 70% of the money I used to make. I can live with that. The only real difference is in the vehicle I drive. I used to by a new one every three or four years. Now, I will be buying a used one, when the current one is on it's last legs. I can live with that as well. Another thing that helped with the transition to retirement, maybe even more that the part time gig, was my new hobby. Rod building. I have been steadily busy with that since the beginning of 2017. I spend some part of almost every day at my cabin/workshop working on rods. It is slow, meticulous work, requiring patience and attention to detail. I find it quite peaceful. And, if I feel like taking a day off, I take a day off. I don't need to make money building rods. If I make enough from it that it pays for itself, I'm a happy guy. And, so far, it has paid for itself. You guys who find your time weighing heavily on your hands might consider rod building. It does not take a large investment to get started. I spent most of 2015, the last year I worked, experimenting with the various small tasks required to build a rod from scratch. Spending that time time told me what equipment I would need, and what I could do without. It also told me this is something I can enjoy doing, and can feel good about investing some cash in good gear. In the end, I believe retirement is what you make of it. I went into it virtually debt free, and with a clear idea what I would be doing with my time. I feel for the guys who were thrust into retirement without having had the time to figure it out. One last thought. I've heard a pot of people say I'm gonna fish every day when I retire. I'm here to tell you fishing gets old when you you do it every day. I got myself almost burnt out on fishing. Had to take a break for a while. Got back into it, fishing once or twice a week. Until this year. 2018 pulled a vacuum, as far as fishing goes. Rain, rain, and more rain kept me off the water a lot more than I wanted. And now the season is over. Got the itch bad.

International Custom Rod Building Exposition Winston-Salem North Carolina Feb 23 & 24 2019 made my reservation about a month ago. Who am I going to see again this time, and who am I going to meet for the first time?

Said Ohtahdeetahdoo. LOL

There's a size 17 Fuji spiining seat in the middle of that cork.

Sorry, no experience with that particular blank, but the other Elite Pro blanks I've built on have been very nice. Trimming two inches off the butt will technically reduce power and slow the action. Be very willing to bet you could not tell the difference. Trimming two inches off the tip would definately be noticeable, and would be the wrong thing to do in my opinion.

The Booyah OC Sports hit is a new fav. I am not a fan of baseball stype caps; basically because of the fitting problem. I have a very large head, and have a hard time finding caps that fit. I do not like the one size fits all type. The ones with velcro pull out hair, with which I am very well supplied. The plastic adjustable straps are not much better. Very few people make a fitted hat that works for me. This Boooyah hat is a stretch fabric, and the L-XL size they sent me fits nicely. It is supposed to be some type of performance fabric, purported to help keep the old melon cool. It's a bit late in the year to test that, but I've been wearing it around the house and cabin and my head has not become at all warm, which it normally would, wearing a cap indoors. Thanks to Pradco for the hats and shirts. The Yum and Bandit shirts are some kind of synthetic fabric that feels really nice. Again, a bit late in the year for a real test of their cooling performance, but the are very comfy. I wonder how they knew to send me an XL hat? I'm betting Glenn told them I had a big head. Or maybe he said I was fat-headed. Gonna have to have a word with dat dude.

Rainshadow Immortal 6'8" M-F, 1/4-3/4oz, 10-17lb, 5 tip, 0.48 butt, 1.9oz, $95 list price. I've built five rods on this blank, including one for myself. I like mine a lot, and the other four were very well received. I have one more in progress at this time. Don't be distracted by the medium power rating. Look at the line and lure ratings. You won't find many reciews on the Elite-X blanks. They are too new to the market. I've built several rods on MHX blanks; original series, gen-2' and Elite Pro series. All made very nice rods for the price. The Elite Pro blanks are on my best bang for the buck list. Immortal blanks are at the top of my best bang for the bucks list.