I did a few in my younger days, and now I'm getting back into it. I've built a new cradle (jig?) for myself, and have about a half-dozen nice blanks waiting to be finished out.

First order of business is to rebuild a couple of less expensive rods, then on to to the new stuff.

I'm surprised at how reasonable some of the components still are.....

Otony

I do . I have refurbished many older rods. I still have my first rod my dad bought me when I was too young to remember and it still catches catfish 48 years later.

When I lived on the Cowlitz River I bought a store brand rod in Kelso. The first steelhead I tied into was a real frisky one and was stripping off line and doing aerials. I yanked back to try to turn him back upriver and the rod broke right above the reel seat. I took it back and put some money with it and got a national brand rod, but still had no faith in it. One day I met an fellow while fishing and he told me he used to work for Eagle Claw. He had me follow him to his house and in his garage he had a bunch of blanks of all different sizes. He told me they were blemished and the company was going to throw them in the dump, so he ask if he could have them. They looked fine to me. He pick out one that was long and fairly large in diameter. Then he slid three more blanks inside that one. The inserted blanks only stuck out of the base about four inches when he was done. To counter that I just wrapped more twine in those areas to smooth out the butt. The last thing I did was put on a rubber tip from a walking stick or cane. The reel seat, eyes, and rod tip were easy to put on and glue. When the eyes were wrapped and varnished it made a fine looking pole that looked custom made. It was nice to have when you tied into a big sturgeon. It still flexed, but never enough to break. Thanks for bringing back those memories.

When I was a kid my father made a few surf casting poles. 10 to 13 footers. Maybe 25 years ago now he decided he wanted to build something else. What we found was just the opposite, and we were stunned at the prices. And while you couldn't buy a pole as nice (or just the way he wanted), you could buy really nice, quality pole for a fraction of what the parts cost. You could buy a dang nice pole for a good deal less than the blank alone cost.

.......blanks are priced through the roof, but guides, thread, seats, all seem to be reasonably priced considering what the stuff cost years ago.

I am doing my usual hunts on eBay and have found reasonably priced blanks. Found a place or two that sells new blanks online for good prices as well.

Since most of what I look for are UL or light blanks, I’ve managed to find bargains. A lot of the lower cost fly rod blanks will make up into swell spinning rods, albeit on the long side.

No deals to be found by me on surf rod blanks, better off buying a complete rod.

Otony

Me, Jan, our son, Jake and Brad on Joe 's excellent catamaran C Dory. Looks like pictures aren't working again...

Not as subtle as a day on the river with a nice fly rod and dry flies, but it did fill up some freezers and was time well spent with family and friends.

--
Of the Troops & For the Troops

As Paul pointed out to me a couple of threads down, and to somebody else a few threads before that, there is door #1, and we have door #2, and then we have door #3 where the lovely Carol Merrill is standing....try #3 to forum, here...
http://sixshootercommunity.com/forum/
They show for me using that one...

......it will get the job done, but not as nicely as a Simply Rugged!

BTW, I own an Ugly Stick or two.....

Yes - on occasion. If a worthy rod is in need of TLC to restore it to nearer it's former glory. I try to match threads, but have resorted to black epoxy to cover a few work horses used for Musky's. My Cradle strongly resembles the pallet wood that it was hewn from.

I do enjoy a good St Croix or Temple Fork rod when the opportunity presents.

than any leather, in the day to day world. They hide better and stay put better.
Nothing beats practical. Now, if I only fished, would run out and buy one of those ugly things.

But fishing was WORK when I was a kid, sunrise to sunset summers on glaring salt water, hundreds of fish to catch, hundreds to clean until midnight outside by droplight, fighting off mosquito hords. Will leave fishing to others.

Had the same choices been available, then, we would have gone ugly thing every time. Too many snapped rod memories to dither with pretty toys.

I build all my own rods, I enjoy it as much as I do making grips.