# A little slow.



## pg542 (Oct 9, 2006)

What's everybody working on? Post it up.... I'm still tryin to get a personal heavy surfstick done. Got the buttwrap done and split grips and reelseat on. Not enough bench time these days. Pic is of buttwrap and grip(s) before assembly. Be kind,,,Jim


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## mark blabaum (Dec 6, 2007)

Very nice work Jim. I really like the colors and the workmanship is great.

I'm enclosing a picture of the last one I've been working on. It's walnut with aluminum for the dividers of the segments. There are spiders climbing between the webs as well.


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## Scott Kleppe (Apr 30, 2007)

WOW, who would want to post anything after those? AWSOME!


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## Brad K. (Sep 5, 2007)

No kidding I think I will keep my latest project where it belongs....In the dark....LOL......Awsome work guys


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## JOHNNY QUEST (Mar 6, 2006)

Thats very nice jim... Color match is great..



Mark, you are gunna have to do a build thread on the web thing..

inquireing minds wanna know how its done....
:wink:


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## spitfire (Jan 2, 2007)

Sweet!


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## steve35 (Aug 23, 2005)

Whoa. PG thats very nice looking. Keep up the good work


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## d4rdbuilder (Jan 19, 2007)

Ok Jim, your not worth a **** at discribing what this was going to look like. As a matter of fact you missed it by a mile! 

Great job! Really like the colors.

Your right, it's been slow.


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## d4rdbuilder (Jan 19, 2007)

Mark, what can I say that already hasn't been said about your work. 

Simply amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Billy 40 (Apr 3, 2008)

Neat color combo. Not my taste, but its' cool to be different. Mark, you're always on point.

I haven't done anything nice lately, I've been wrapping stuff I HAD TO get done and can't wait to actually build a rod the way I enjoy building them. My next project I am prepping for, is a rod for my Mom. I havnt' yet finalized exatly what I am goign to do, but I'll throw some pics up here so you can see where I strted and the finished result. I havent' started yet, and have probably spent 15 hours researching images, creating the wrap, and getting the images prepped for inlays.

Theme is a Butterfly rod. I'm not sure teh combo I am going to use yet, but I am leaning towards a GUSA SW76MH blank with a split EVA butt grip, each one with teh Rose inlayed. Teh wrap pictured at teh bottom is one of my new ones I created with VW, whih I will put between teh grips. Teh Foregrip will be the Tribal butterfly, and the wrap ahead of teh grip will be a single Rose wrap from my book. I haven't yet finished the Rose inlay, I need to change teh colors and the pattern design a little to match teh butterfly.


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## mlv (Oct 12, 2007)

*I have been busy trying to keep up with the grass cutting...sad_smiles ...I have a project in the works, but don't want to post it just yet...it is a surprise for one of my buddies...:cheers: *
*I am thinking about placing my home on the market and moving to Galveston and becoming a beach bunny !! *
*Got to go...got more grass to cut....*

*ML...:texasflag *


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## Rainshadow (Apr 8, 2008)

Amazing work guys.


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## PSRods (Mar 31, 2008)

*Outstanding!!!*

Jim, buuuutifullll work!!! I really like the color combos.

Mark, like others have said, your work just blows me away. About the time I've got it figured out, it moves!!!!

Fantastic, guys.

Finished a rebuild for a co-worker recently with a tiger wrap. I'll try to post some pics later.

Paul


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## pg542 (Oct 9, 2006)

Thanks alot everybody. Most of the time I do the buttwrap between the splits 1st and then slip the grips over the wrap so there is only 1 tie-off showing at the tip end of the fore wrap. I like the clean look and it's sooo much easier. Instead of 4 tie-offs, I have 1. I had a little surprise when shaping the woodgrain EVA. After sectioning and spacer insert glue up, when sanding down to final shape, the matched woodgrain from section to section began to shift and did'nt line up as well as I'd hoped. It's a mystery to me, cause the grains matched very well on rough glue up.???.... I'll add a couple more coats of TM lite after everything is built/wrapped. Right now there's just 1 thin coat of hi-build on it, so it's still a little wavy. .........Mark, Randall is right. That looks alot more involved than the ellipticals. I should be getting the parts for my lathe early next week and I'll be in touch again. Is the aluminum spacer material soft enough to turn with standard wood tools? Is that some kind of insert(green) I see at the center of the spiderweb? ....Spiderwraps on spiderwebs. Very, very Cool! Thanks,,,,Jim


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## Goags (May 28, 2004)

Jim, GREAT job on the wrap and grip! Pink and purple on a "personal rod"?? ... hmmm, okay. J/K! Jerry


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## pg542 (Oct 9, 2006)

Yeah I know. I've been told to get in touch with my feminine side and sorry, thats about as far as it's gonna get. Now leave me alone, I've got to rinse out some unmentionables and do my nails.


Goags said:


> Jim, GREAT job on the wrap and grip! Pink and purple on a "personal rod"?? ... hmmm, okay. J/K! Jerry


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## mark blabaum (Dec 6, 2007)

Billy, great work with the butterflies, I love the look and think your Mom will love it as well. You and the Nerb's have got me doing thread work and I can't seem to stop, your book is getting much easier for me to understand. I've got another spider in the works and I'll post it in a bit as well. I made a web to go with the black widow wrap out of an old yoga block and veneer, you'd approve the price of the block is only $6.00 and enough to make 5-6 webs. 

Jim the blue in the center is crushed stone and super glue, the aluminum turns very easily, I use just standard wood tools. The hard part in turning the webs is the aluminum runs all different directions and has a tendancy to catch if you take too big a cut at one time. Slow and steady is the way to go. When you get the lathe up and running let me know, any thing that I can do to help let me know.


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## JOHNNY QUEST (Mar 6, 2006)

Sorry for the highjack here.. but Mark,, after a very long and close inspection of that fantastic handle, I actually had a moment of clarity..... i know how its done..

wow there must be a heck of a lot of burned up material to get those results..

i see how the webs are made and the center piece also....
i would like to see a side pic to confirm my thoughts.

man that is some great work and i can only imagine the band saw you are using to get the perfect pie slices after the glue up...


it looks like a web from the top but from the side it looks diferent. right.

here is what i am talking about.. 
on this one its a pearl X on top but its an O on the side..
Tell me if i am even close to being right..

your great and inspire me to try different things....

here ya go.


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## Raymond Adams (Apr 17, 2008)

*OK here is mine. Just completed*

This is a 10ft 1 pc. Shikari SW blank cut down to 9.5 Built "deckhand" style.


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## Fishtoys (Jul 4, 2007)

*Amazing*

That is a nice pc of work there guys. Jim told ya thats a beauty, be sure you post the complete finish rod. An eyecatcher for sure.


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## mark blabaum (Dec 6, 2007)

They lay a little differently than the X cuts. If you want drop me an e/mail and I'll see if I can find a picture of the blank in the rough for you. [email protected] Thanks Mark


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## mark blabaum (Dec 6, 2007)

John the cross cut in the picture is more like this pattern when completed.


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## JOHNNY QUEST (Mar 6, 2006)

Thanks a bunch Mark... email sent. 

I thought i was on the right track, now its off to the tool store again..


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## Billy 40 (Apr 3, 2008)

THE secret revealed, lol. It's a lot easier than it looks... figuring it out the first time is the real challenge. Than actually doing it. Pretty funny how far off bas eI was, when you told me I was like..."OHHH!!. Yeah, of course, that makes sense now". lol. 

We need to talk about Yoga. I've peeked for a second but haven't taken any steps down that route. I've got a couple of sites I was goign to ask for free samples from, I think that guy Andy C is in that process now. Mike J turned me on to those.


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## mark blabaum (Dec 6, 2007)

Billy I'll snap a couple of photos and send them off to you Sunday.


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## Terrynj (Jun 27, 2006)

Dang...I don't look at the board for a day and things start jumping! Jim, when I was with you Saturday and you were talking about this thread, I thought you were talking about an older one I had never seen...I missed all of this!! haha
What beautiful work! That is really great workmanship....I love the metallic thread in there for "bling"..Really looks good.
Mark, your stuff is ALWAYS incredible...I am speechless when I look at your work.


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## BigJohnBlair (Apr 18, 2006)

Not much going on in my world except some charter rods for halibut and salmon in Ak. The rods are so plain I hate to post a pic. I get so bored that at times I put a weave or fancy but wrap on just to break the same-o-same-o. I am not complaining, I am glad to have the work because there are a couple more toys I want to buy........I will post the three pink rods (mudhole blanks) that I am making for my wife's pink flamingo group. Enjoy guys and have a good day.


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## BigJohnBlair (Apr 18, 2006)

Oh yeah nice work to everyone.........There sure is some great work going on here.


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## sandyd (Mar 31, 2008)

I am about to start on a new spinner rod which will include the handle Mark made for me. So far I have decided on the blank and guides and new reel but still thinking how to do justice to the grip set.


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