.ghoti.

I'm a Daiwa guy myself, but I work on a lot of reels. In my opinion, the best bang for the buck reel shimano ever made was the E series Curado. In today's line-up, anything from the Citica on up will do you just fine, if it's a shimano you're after.

That problem almost always requires a gear set replacement. Don't replace just one; get the set.

Seems like almost everybody uses Fuji seats. I know I do, for the most part. I just did a build using an Alps TexTouch casting seat. Very nice. A bit heavier than an ACS, but also a bit more comfortable. And, that is what is more important to me than weight in a reel seat. I despise that SK seat from Fuji. Not even close to comfortable, in my hands. I guess what I want to ask is, who makes the most comfortable reel seat? The ACS is not bad, the ECS is a bit better, and the TexTouch is a bit better yet. What I would like is for Daiwa to start selling the reel seats they used on the discontinued Light & Tough series of rods. I know the Batson crew keeps track of what's being said on this forum. Why don't you guys take a look at that design, and do something like that. For me, a perfect casting reel seat would have the L&T base, with fewer threads, and the TexTouch hood and dual nut design. Perfection. If you guys made that, I would buy nothing else. I know I'm not alone in my opinion of that particular reel seat. If you want some pics, let me know. I'll take "em and post "em.

I would love your blanks more if they were not painted. I bet you've never heard that. LOL I should say, I like the color of the Immortal blanks. Not the Eternity series. I know, you say I have LTB rods, and they're blue as well. I don't like the color of those either. But they fish well enough I can put up with it. I haven't built on an Eternity blank. Yet. I do plan to do so, just to see if there's much difference. I will say the price delta between Immortal and Eternity is not that much. It would not take much in terms of weight savings and sensitivity increase to justify the extra cost.

I've had a Hedgehog tool since they first hit the market; several years ago. I have 20+ reels, which all get serviced yearly, and the most used get it up to three times per year. I also service reels for quite a few other people, all local guys. I've used this tool hundreds of times, and its still going strong. And, I've never scratched or damaged a spool with this tool, despite reports to the contrary. Like any other tool, one needs to know how to use it properly.

I only use mono except for trout fishing. I use 4lb test FCC for that. So, I doubt if it's the line. It is a perplexing problem.

Well, you have a lot more rods under your belt than I do. I have built three rods with Microwave spinning guides, and all three are very good casting sticks, with none of the symptoms you've described. I placed the stripper guide, reduction guide and first running guide by following the directions that came with the guide set. I placed the remainder of the guides, which would be the guides in the area under question, by static load testing. I gather this is your rod, so you can fiddle with it a bit. If it casts well, leave the first three guides up from the seat where they are. Remove the rest of the runners, and relocate them by the static load test method. It may cure the problem. Take all my comments with a handful of salt. I'm a rookie. If Scoot, or Mike from DVT give you a different opinion, I'd listen to them, and ignore me.

Sad to say, I haven't had time to fish with it just yet. I thought I had it done. I was wrong. I screwed up the finish on the area right in front of the reel seat. A holo wrap / hook-keeper / decal; all basically one entity. Cut it all off, scraped off the epoxy and started over. I'll post some pics when it's done. Backyard casting told me it will be a very nice rod for casting very light plastics, with that reel. I expect it to fish very well. I've built other rods with Immortal blanks, and they are superb in their price range. Easily the equal of an SCIV in my hands; maybe better. I say that being a St Croix fan. I have three Avids, several LTBs and one Extreme. The Immortals I've built have been better than the Avids, equal to or better than the LTBs. Can't compare to the Extreme. Haven't built one close to that particular action power and length. I'll be buying more Immortal blanks.

You have a point.

$2.59 this morning. Down 30 cents from one fill-up to the next.

Really?? Just how stupid does one have to be to join a website devoted to adultery?

Methinks some of you have been drinking your own bath water.

That would be my take, as well. I do not intend to ever use it again.

based on your description, you need one of these

Wish I could, but I don't have the space. It a case of there, or nowhere. A box fan with a furnace filter taped on clears the air in less than a day after cork sanding. Bugs are a worse problem than cork dust for me.

Scott, I've read reports about TM1 going white after getting wet. The one rod I used it on did not get out of the cabin for a week after the last coat. It has never become discolored. Not saying that's the cure. I can't draw many conclusions from one experience.

Tim, do you use the static load testing to place your guides? If not, this could be the problem. Look at your line path as the rod is loaded. If the line path does not follow the natural curvature of the loaded rod, an unnatural bend occurs which puts additional back force on the line guide at the spot where it occurs, producing some additional friction. That would be the only thing I can think of which would produce the extra resistance when cranking under a load. If you use static load testing to place your guides, please ignore me. I'm a rookie at this game, not someone with your years of experience.

I tried Threadmaster One. This is a one part finish. No hardener, no mixing. I used it on one rod. It is crystal clear, but I have no idea what it will do over time. Like Scott said, it's the hardener that turns yellow. TM One has no hardener, so maybe it will stay clear. Who knows? I will say that it is difficult to work with. It sets up quickly, so you'd best get it as level as you can right off the bat. It took me several attempts on a scrap chunk of blank to get it to look acceptable. About six thin coats is what it took. Also it shrinks as it cures, so you need a whole day between coats, longer if it's colder. If I were doing a white rod and/or white wraps, TM One is what I would try. But that would be the only thing I would use it for. Flex Coat Lite and Threadmaster lite are both a lot easier for me.

That's what I did for a couple of years while trying to decide if this was something I truly wanted to pursue. Except for the bucket. I used a cardboard box, reinforced with duct tape, which was also my rod stand for hand wrapping. We aquired a cabin on the lake when my wife's older brother passed away. Spent quite a bit of cash getting it into reasonable condition. The north end is the a-frame section you see. There's an identical section on the south end, which is now a small kitchen. A fifteen foot square room separates the two a-frame, with a second floor the same size accessed by the narrowest spiral staircase I've ever seen. I have to go up sideways. The whole thing is about 600 square feet. Not very big, But big enough for me. Lee, like I told my wife, I hope I haven't built my own doghouse. I haven't had to sleep there yet. LOL.

Who the flip is Ashley Madison?

The bait finesse stick I've almost finished is built on an Immortal blank, one of yours listed for walleye spinning. 7'2" ml-f, cut down to 7'. Winn grip, no foregrip, an Alps winding check in front of an ACS reel,seat, black Alconite stripper and tiptop, Recoil running guides, spiral wrapped. The whole thing weighs 3.4 ounces. Got an SS SV spooled up and ready to go.

glue an end cap on the pvc, and drill a 7mm hole in the middle of it. glue it on with contact cement. Just enough to keep it in place, but still removable if necessary.

Almost all factory rods at this time, nearly thirty of them. I've just gotten started in this rod building thing. I'm planning to follow in Roadwarrior's footsteps, and get it down to eight rods, since I have a rod rack built into my jeep that holds eight rods against the roof. I have one almost done now, a bait finesse stick I can't wait to try out. I have yet to decide what the other seven will be, but I'm betting I may not be able to stop at eight.

Alps wrapper

New lathe