Chris Catignani

Ah...I stand corrected. (from the article) "Nevertheless I inadvertently went ahead and made the internal plug 2 inches long."

@MickD posted the set of instructions for the repairs...this is pretty much what I have followed for years. One thing I want to point out is in red and bold in this section... Number 2. The break shown last time was in an area that will not see much flexure or bending. Under heavy load, the rod at this point will be mostly straight, except when casting the line. The act of casting is probably the peak load that this repair will ever see. As we go further up the rod the bending becomes more severe. The break in No. 2 is about 14 inches from the tip. The bending moment is more pronounced in this area. Your sleeve needs to be slightly longer in order to accommodate the longer moment arm and slightly stiffer sections being joined. So increase the length of this sleeve to about 1 & 1/2 inch to 1 & 3/4 inch over all, which will mean that about 5/8 to 3/4 of an inch on each end will be structure. Don't forget the tapered ends. The bend moment on this area will be quite severe. Maybe enough for the graphite sections to rupture the low modulus sleeve even though it is wrapped and coated. To counter this shearing force, we will install a very small piece of either fiberglass or graphite on the INSIDE. This piece must fit snugly, and be about 1/4 inch long. If it is any longer it will be involved in the bending force and we don't want that. Be sure that this piece is in place before you position the outer sleeve. When the adhesive is cured, the sleeve is cleaned up and wrapped and finished like any guide or ferrule. Grasp the rod about a foot on each side of the repair sleeve and bend it into an arc with the repair in the center of the arc. The arc should be constant - no noticeable flat spot at the sleeve location. If there is a noticeable flat spot, then your sleeve is either too long or too heavy, i.e., too thick a wall section. I have to believe that this is a typo...1/4 inch for an inside stint is way too short. Looking at the photo(#3) as it sits...if the outer sleeve is 2 inches...the inner sleeve looks to be at least 1.5 inches.

Im with @ike8120. I have used a lot of different boxes through out the years. This one is the best...mainly because it fits in storage locker like all the other boxes.

KatDawg.

I like a shorter rod for pitchin' ... it enables you to "cast" without the tip being in the water. 6'10" is perfect for me.

It just needs a guide...you can fix it.

As of late...the thinking is to start paying it forward.

You can see that the black plastic is rotated such as to not allow that pin to come out and fasten inside the mount. Align the slots and insert back into the mount and then press the black pin to remove the pedestal.

Looks great!

Lets see some of em...

I always have one tied on. No trailer, no trailer hook. Great way to fish a big mud flat with lots of lay down...especially in the summer.

I have always like the "lifted" look of a decal on one (or two even) coats of finish. You could try and burnish the ends down pretty good...I would do this on a finished blank (not matte)...or a blank with epoxy finish thats set up for a few days. Personally I just take it for what it is and go with...either that of just leave off the sticker. I have been making my own water slide decals with some success.

Floatin' Rattle Trap (chrome)

I fished for about 15 years out of a Tracker like that one...I wished I would have kept it as a backup!? That 50hp Merc was golden.

Yes...makes them shiny looking versus the matte look. ...and in the case of a refurbish...it will hide the scaring from removing the guides.

I have varnished a blank where I had to strip the guides off before hand.

I been using their products for years...they originally had a battery terminal spray.

^^ Ain't that the truth.

I have found myself throwing a spinner bait more and more over the past few years. I wish I knew years ago that its hard to lose a spinner bait...I wouldn't have bought so many.

Where you thinking "Inky Dink"? Named after Charlie Brewer's friend Inky Gilmore. Basically a Slider with a tail-spinner.

New paint, skirts and swivel upgrades.