Rod Building: Old Rod Blanks - Fiberglass Rod Blank Stripping (Cheap Blanks For Rod Building)

The methods used in this video are for a fiberglass rod only. Caution must be used with graphite rods and the methods shown in this video are a little rough for graphite blanks. Graphite is much harder which also makes it more brittle and prone to breaking if the underlying graphite weave is damaged.
I use a lot of fiberglass rods because they are so hard to break and I'm a little rough on my gear. I also like the slow action of fiberglass rods and love the look too! I've been asked a few times recently where the "wooden" looking blanks I often use in my videos come from. They get a lot of attention because they are not the modern looking or painted rods people are so used to seeing these days. Good fiberglass rod blanks are out there hiding in ugly wraps, crusty grips, junk reel seats and peeling epoxy just waiting to be refreshed...and they can be had for very little money and some elbow grease! They also make great blanks for beginning rod builders to build and practice on.
I hope you enjoy the video and please feel free to leave comments or questions below!
All of my links (my store/social media/email information) are here: linkpop.com/5286af

[@chrisinsley5880]

I like that you are very concerned about not damaging the blank. Bravo to you for documenting sound technique! Great Video!

[@guns4freedom]

I just got into rod building and I collect vintage fiberglass fly rods. I enjoy restoring the old rods as well. This is a fun video.

[@TheFishingHobby]

Thank you! I collect (and use) vintage fiberglass rods and ultralight spinning reels!

[@guns4freedom]

@@TheFishingHobby I live near the headquarters of both Heddon and Shakespeare (Dowagiac, Kalamazoo).

[@TheFishingHobby]

@guns4freedom very nice! Do they have any museums? I live a few hours away from the Daisy headquarters and they have an air gun museum that is actually pretty fascinating!

[@guns4freedom]

@TheFishingHobby Heddon has a museum in Dowagiac. I have met the owners a few times. They are very nice people. I was able to purchase a few rods from them last summer when they were downsizing. The Daisy museum would be neat. Extremely nostalgic I would imagine.

[@FishingLouisiana2020]

looking forward to the next video.

[@jasonlopez4855]

I got tree and one newer in white fiberglass made rod. Medium light to light I like in a rod. The old rods was not dune epoxy on the guide's it was a tip of super glue. You want find grift on the order rods from the 80's or older rods. I have my dad's and grandfather rods from the 40's to the 2002/ when my dad passed away. I want to do this great stuff thank you for your service and time to show us. 🎣

[@toddmonte5954]

Hi. Todd Here from New Mexico I love old fiber glass fishing rod Through more bitter than the new ones they make now Old fiberglass rods are my style in My go Using I fish with my old fishing rods from this day forward I love collecting those old fiberglass fishing rods The best old fiberglass fishing rods in the world

[@CommunityToursAustralia]

thankyou for showing its good learning with you

[@ManojMoradiya]

Creative natural is always good🙏🙏👌👌

[@stephen579]

I am in the process of rebuilding a beach caster rod at the moment, I have stripped it and primed it and it is ready for its top coat, it was a cheap rod although the action of the blank was very good, but the rings and seat were rubbish, so after it has been in my garage for over 12years I decided to do something with it I am going to spray it in metallic burnt orange with white whippings.

[@TheFishingHobby]

That sounds like it will be a nice rod when you get done with it.

[@TelipatiEvolustions]

Pure fiberglass

[@basscatlildave]

I enjoy redoing old rods. I did some for kids and those old fiberglass blanks are almost child proof.

[@TheFishingHobby]

You almost have to be trying to break them, perfect rods for kids 👍

[@ddselvig]

I took two graphite rods on a fly in fishing trip to a lake in Manitoba last year. The lake I fished held large northern pike and walleyes. In the course of two days of heavy fishing, both those rods snapped in half. Luckily, one of my buddies brought a couple old fiberglass Browning Silaflex rods as backups. He lent me one of them to use for the rest of the trip. It didn't take long to convince me that fiberglass rods still have their place in the fishing world. I have since taken all my old unused fiberglass rods and replaced the guides on them. They are now my "go to" rods for the bulk of my fishing here in Minnesota.

[@TheFishingHobby]

I know exactly what you are talking about. That is the drawback to graphite for sure. They are more sensitive because they are much more rigid than fiberglass, but that same stiffness is their achilles heel. Any little imperfection in the blank is a potential break point. I have seen one break on a cast even. It more than likely had a defect from the factory in that area and it just broke on a simple cast. For me, the extra sensitivity isn't a necessity and the extra flexibility of fiberglass actually helps with casting distance with the type of fishing I do. They aren't the best option for some types of fishing, but I think they are often overlooked by most people who might be better off using fiberglass in some situations.

[@clooperman3745]

@@TheFishingHobby Have to agree with what you said 100% in this video. I have been building rods here in England for around 45 years, both glassfibre and carbon fibre, most anglers here use carbon rods but l still use glass rods for the very reasons you mentioned, and that includes lure fishing for pike, perch and chub and deadbaiting for pike.

[@elonmust7470]

I love glass rods. Some of those old glass rods have a hell of a back bone to them!

[@TheFishingHobby]

Me too. They are really tough compared to graphite. Graphite has its pluses, but I'm definitely a fiberglass fan first and foremost.

[@mohdhambali5440]

Hello.. i like to watch your content.. good job and keep it up sir.. thank you

[@TheFishingHobby]

I appreciate that! Thank you!

[@stephenchung]

I love fibre glass rods

[@TheFishingHobby]

Me too!

[@MrPerforations]

hello, great video. I watched another video by Ms Doyle goes fishing, she explains that you can use citrus based paint stripper on a rod blank to remove finish as other types will damage the blank, might be an idea to look in to that.

[@TheFishingHobby]

I've used it before too. To me, it is easier to scrape it usually. It looks like it takes a long time, but once all of the epoxy is off, it only take 15-30 minutes to scrape the finish off and there are no chemicals to buy. I'd encourage people to try several different methods and see which they prefer. If the blank is graphite, I'd definitely suggest trying the citrus stripper first. Less chance of damaging the blank.

[@davidcoley1304]

@@TheFishingHobby My name is David and Hello, I have a solid 2 piece fiberglass fishing rod that needs some sanding down , I was wondering if the clear Gorilla Glue would be good for a white fiberglass rod? If not, what do you suggest I use?

[@TheFishingHobby]

@David Coley I would recommend the gorilla glue labeled as "White" for a white rod. It will yellow a bit over time and after several years it will probably look like an old varnished rod would look. If you want something that doesn't yellow over time, I'd recommend using a rod blank finish like Bullard's CPXtra or Permagloss. Those are a one part urethane and you have to use it in a well ventilated area, but they aren't supposed to yellow because they have UV inhibitors in them.

[@johncoyote6755]

Very interesting...I’m tying to figure out how to “Finish” a north fork blank in between the split grips. I want the black glossy look to put the rod sticker info on. Do you think they just achieve that with a couple of layers of epoxy?

[@TheFishingHobby]

Epoxy will make it shine. If you don't want to add that much weight, a product like Permagloss or Bullard's CPXtra goes on really thin and is really shinny too.

[@daveconnaker881]

Great video and very helpful. I have a fiberglass blank with a black paint coating and a grey coating under that. Do you think I'm ok to remove those 2 layers so I can just fish the fiberglass blank? Do I need to treat the bare fiberglass? Guerilla Glue, maybe. Appreciate your help.

[@TheFishingHobby]

I would refinish the blank instead of leaving it raw.

[@casualcarolinafishing5835]

Is there a special kind of flexible paint you have to use when you build a new rod and want to paint it a new color after stripping it like that?👍💯

[@TheFishingHobby]

You can use most any paint made for plastic. They are all flexible 👍 The paint is easily scratched, so you need a good protective top coat like the gorilla glue I showed in a previous video.

[@ToRokify]

After you strip the finish off an old rod completely down with the demurring tool, do you wet sand to insure you’re down to a fine bare blank ?

[@TheFishingHobby]

I have done some wet sanding with really fine grit, but I avoid it if possible. If I scrape carefully with the deburring tool of razor blade, I usually don't need to do any sanding afterwards.

[@bonniechilders9316]

Is there a video for the next step? What do you use to finish the cleaned blank? Paint? Colored Epoxy? Thanks

[@TheFishingHobby]

I don't normally paint rods because I don't like adding the weight of both paint and clear coat. Most people who do use a paint that bonds well to plastic and then use a 2 part automotive clear coat to protect the paint/blank. If you aren't painting, you can use a precatalyzed urethane rod building finish like Permagloss or CPXtra like I show here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/npzXlGRqiq2mgbc Those options require a well ventilated area and or a respirator because of the toxic fumes. Another finish I like using is polyurethane glue. It is pretty safe and easy to apply and makes a nice finish as well. Here are 2 videos I did about that: kzbin.info/www/bejne/omLVkmtjh5yslbs and kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZqrEonWjorlpfqc The second video about polyurethane glue as a finish actually shows the blank from this video after applying the polyurethane glue finish. I hope that helps you out and if you have any questions just let me know!

[@bonniechilders9316]

@@TheFishingHobby Many thanks! I took a rod building class from Mud Hole, and now I've acquired quite a few old rods, some very old with wooden handles. They are in pretty rough shape as far as guides and finish, but I believe the blanks are still in good shape. I want to see what I can do to get them back to looking good. This video and the links you gave me are just what I need!

[@TheFishingHobby]

Good luck with the projects!

[@paulbeaulieu723]

all your vids are top dog!!!.Have you ever painted blanks fiberglass or graphite,and if so what type of paint do you use?Thanks Paul

[@TheFishingHobby]

Thanks! I have painted, but I typically don't. Most any paint that adheres to plastic will work. The key is to get a good protective coat on top of that paint. The white gorilla glue (not to be confused with clear gorilla glue, they are two different glues) works well over any paint I've tried it on IF the paint is fully cured. You want the paint really thin, multiple thin coats untill full coverage is achieved is much better than one thick coat. I have a video on using Gorilla Glue for rod blank finish if you didn't see it. The GG should go on super thin so it doesn't foam up on your blank. Good luck and check around the internet and see what others have done. I don't usually paint blanks, but I've had good luck with the method mentioned above.

[@paulbeaulieu723]

Thanks for your super fast reply!!!I have watched all your videos.Great job keep it .Paul

[@TheFishingHobby]

Thank you, I really appreciate that!

[@paulbeaulieu723]

@@TheFishingHobby Your more than welcome.Tight Threads

[@FrantzE1971]

hello, how to recycle an old telescopic fishing pole rod into spining fishing rod ? do you think is it possible ? thanks !

[@TheFishingHobby]

You may be able to epoxy the sections together and use it as a one piece rod.

[@ralphwaltrts5994]

Where can I obtain one of those stripping tools that you're using in the video. Thank you very much for such an informative video.

[@TheFishingHobby]

It is just a deburring tool blade that I epoxied into a wooden dowel rod so it wouldn't spin like it normally would in a deburring tool handle. The blades I'm using are like these: a.co/d/9yZapwD

[@jamesburgess1035]

Hey my friend I have a question I found a old ugly stik fishing rod in I want to rebuild it for my dad I took everything off of it in sand it will I sanded it down to the fiberglass did I make a big mistake are can I still redo the rod this is the first time I ever did anything like this in I really want to get in to making rods but I think I made a boo boo on my first one please help

[@TheFishingHobby]

If you sanded it down to bare fiberglass it should be OK. You will need to refinish the blank to protect it. This works really well and is easy to do: kzbin.info/www/bejne/omLVkmtjh5yslbs

[@fiorevitola880]

One of the least jobs I like doing an old blank stripping and replacing the guides.

[@TheFishingHobby]

Maybe there is something wrong with me then, I enjoy it 😆 It is nice to see a $2 rod become something special!

[@fiorevitola880]

@@TheFishingHobby Yes and that's a good thing. patience is not my best attribute. LOL

[@valdemardelagarza7835]

Is there a follow-up video?

[@TheFishingHobby]

Not really, but these videos are of that same rod and some the things I did to it. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rHKvmKaGo7atmpY kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZqrEonWjorlpfqc kzbin.info/www/bejne/e5iUZJiCr5egnZI

[@guns4freedom]

I just got into rod building and I collect vintage fiberglass fly rods. I enjoy restoring the old rods as well. This is a fun video.