# Calstar Grafighter 700L (7' 15-30 lb.)



## Zombie (May 24, 2009)

Built this one for a young lady that won it as a raffle prize at the last Oceanside Angler's Club meeting (Oceanside, CA). She got it built and wrapped to her specs. Originally, the handle was built with just a cord wrap, 3" heat shrink (for reel placement), gimbal with cosmetic wrap onto the cord and a 10" hypalon foregrip. Her husband called me after seeing the pics and asked if I could change the handle and put a reel seat on instead. I stripped off everything south of the hypalon and rebuilt it. Calstar blank, Fuji guides, Bullard pigments for the marbling. Cord wrap has 3 light coats of spar urethane.


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## coup de grace (Aug 7, 2010)

*looking good....*


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## OwenD (Mar 31, 2008)

Awesome.
those pigments are very cool!
I take it you laid that down, then wrapped the trims, then coated over again?


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## goodwood (Mar 30, 2009)

dang awesome


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## mark blabaum (Dec 6, 2007)

Very nice work Randy.


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## d4rdbuilder (Jan 19, 2007)

Very Sharp! Well done...


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## brad king (Jul 21, 2009)

Stunning!!!!


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## mad marlin (Jan 17, 2008)

Awesome marbling...looks loke an antique rod. The idea of the crod wraps its gr4eat , did you just wrap over the blank directly ?
thank you


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## Zombie (May 24, 2009)

Owen,
Sorry, just saw your post. I put down black thread, a light coat of finish over top and allowed to cure. The marbling was the next coat, then trims and the final finish coat.

Marlin,
I'm guessing you mean cord wraps. I put down a layer of 1/16" cork tape over the blank leaving 1/8" gap on each end. I sprayed a light coat of spray adhesive on the cork tape then started the cord wrap in the 1/8" slot anchored by Super Glue. The 1/8" gap allows the end to be hidden and the wrap doubles over then continues to the other end where the end was anchored the same way. Cord wraps are quite popular on the West Coast right now.


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## mad marlin (Jan 17, 2008)

Zombie said:


> Owen,
> Sorry, just saw your post. I put down black thread, a light coat of finish over top and allowed to cure. The marbling was the next coat, then trims and the final finish coat.
> 
> Marlin,
> I'm guessing you mean cord wraps. I put down a layer of 1/16" cork tape over the blank leaving 1/8" gap on each end. I sprayed a light coat of spray adhesive on the cork tape then started the cord wrap in the 1/8" slot anchored by Super Glue. The 1/8" gap allows the end to be hidden and the wrap doubles over then continues to the other end where the end was anchored the same way. Cord wraps are quite popular on the West Coast right now.


opps sorry , Yes i meant cord...awesome thank you. ive done so cord wrap on a couple of my beefy rods on the fore grip when using the rail for leverage , but it would eventually come off as i was not gluing them to the EVA but just spraying with the polyurethane. Now I know better ,
Thanks for your kindly advice


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## oldguy (Jul 8, 2009)

Randy great as always.


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## xxxxxQTRODS (Nov 17, 2009)

*the crazy rod builder*

you do impeccable guide wraps, thanks for letting on to the underwrap on the marbling which is also beautiful, it looks so much like the real thing............bennie


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