Splitting by Harry Boyd

Here's a great splitting post from the Rodmaker's List if you missed it.  Harry Boyd is a full time rodmaker and CCI from Louisiana.  Good rods and rodmaking classes and great Boudreaux stories.  Here's a link to his web site.  http://www.canerods.com/

So, with Harry's permission, here's the post from the List:

What I do is an amalgam of ideas gleaned from others and dreamed up on my own.  Those methods are what I teach, too.

I split butt sections into 20 pieces, mid sections into 24 pieces, and tip sections into 28 pieces.  Every time.  I never have a wasted piece of bamboo even though lots and lots of leftover bamboo goes into the fire-starter box.  I try to average one top quality, customer-worthy rod per culm.  If I use a culm for more than one rod, that second rod from just-less-than-the-best-bamboo-in-the-culm is for me, or for inventory.

Sections are first cut to 1/2 the rod length plus 4" for extra length, plus 6" for node staggering.  I try to avoid nodes near ferrules and tiptops, but don't let it drive me crazy(er).  With dividers I mark butt pieces into five sections, mid pieces into six, tip pieces into seven.  Do the math and you'll see how these match up to the numbers in the paragraphs above.  Splits are started with one of these http://www.sears.com/craftsman-edge-utility-cutter/p-00937309000P?prdNo=2&blockNo=2&blockType=G2 which is far more accurate than a hammer and blade.

Initial splits are just yanked apart by hand after starting the split.  Takes about 2 minutes to go from a whole culm to 5, 6, or 7 pieces.  Internal nodal protrusions are whacked away with a small plastic hammer kinda like this one:  http://www.sears.com/northcoast-tool-inc-2inch-flat-face-mallet-in/p-SPM6520957402P?prdNo=14&blockNo=14&blockType=G14  Next each piece is marked in halves with a rule like one of these.  http://www.toolking.com/big-horn-19109-24-inch-center-find-ruler?CAWELAID=430263757&cagpspn=pla&gclid=CP-mss39yLECFY2b7QodS3UAfA   Actually mine is 12" rather than 24", and I made a paper copy of it on fluorescent orange paper, then laminated that.  Now it's flexible and wraps around the culm. 

Each of the initial 5, 6, or 7 pieces is split in half, giving me 10, 12, or 14 pieces.  Again, I start the split exactly on the center with the Craftsman Edge Utility Cutter.  Wiggle it around till the split is 6" long or so, then split on down by hand.  Bend the fat piece if one is larger than the other.

With 10, 12, or 14 good pieces now in hand, I measure and mark each piece again with the center finding rule and split again.  That gives me 20, 24, or 28 pieces.  Almost every single time.  The only times I lose a piece are when the culm has already split on its own and I don't notice that in advance.

20 butt pieces give me strips plenty large enough for even swelled butts, with plenty of extra material to remove to insure that a good edge is formed in the Bellinger or Bertram beveller.  Same is true for the 24 mid pieces for three piece rods, and 28 tip pieces.  From the 28 tip pieces I can get four tips plus a few throwaways for worm holes, etc.  From 24 mids I usually get three mid sections.  From 20 butt pieces I can get three butts.  But again, I really only try to get one top end rod per culm. 

Takes me about 30-40 minutes to split a culm, start to finish.  Much more time is spent laying out node stagger and choosing best pieces for the rod to be built.

My thanks to John Bokstrom, Bob Nunley, Ron Grantham, Jeff Fultz and plenty of others whose names don't occur to me right now for their ideas which I have worked into my own way of doing things.

Bamboo is cheap, even the good stuff.  No need to use material that's even debatable in an expensive rod.

Best,
Harry

Ozark Rod Makers School

The Ozark hills of northern Arkansas are world-famous for lots of things…handcrafted quilts and American antiques, good home cooking and homemade whisky, not to mention breathtaking river valleys and fantastic fly-fishing. Now, we can add bamboo fly rod making classes to the list. Bob Nunley and I have been making fly rods in this area for a combined 35 years. Our experience, innovation, positive attitudes, and attention to detail have allowed us to be featured at many rod making workshops and symposiums. We have joined efforts and are now ready to pass this tradition of craftsmanship on to others.

April of 2009 marks the inaugural Ozark Rod Makers School in scenic Mountain Home, Arkansas. This week-long school will take 6 novice makers from a stalk of bamboo to a finished fly rod, ready to fish. On the last day of the school, you will actually be casting YOUR rod. Just imagine the pride of casting a bamboo fly rod that you have made.

The Ozark Rod Makers School will cover rod design and resources, techniques and tools, and all the skills necessary to turn bamboo into works of fly fishing art. Included in the $2495 tuition price are all materials and instruction, all meals and lodging, plus partial two days of guided fly-fishing on the beautiful White and Norfork Rivers. The school provides all tools and equipment. Show up with your toothbrush, leave with your finished fly rod in a cloth bag and aluminum tube.

Rods we've made as well as others, will be available for casting at any time during the school to help guide you in your search for that unique feel that makes the rod your own; a rod designed by you, for you. At all times, a safe, fun, working environment will be maintained and proper use of tools will be stressed.

This fast-paced course includes:

• Day One: selecting, splitting, coloring, and straightening the bamboo.
• Day Two: rough planning, heat-treating and tapering the strips.
• Day Three: final planning, gluing, straightening and sanding the sections.
• Day Four: mounting the grip, ferrules and reel seat. Apply the first varnish coats. (An afternoon fishing trip to the White or Norfork River is planned while the first varnish coat dries.)
• Day Five: space and wrap on guides, seal and varnish guides. (Hit the river again for more fishing. Then, reapply varnish to wraps. After dinner, apply one last coat of varnish to wraps.)
• Day Six: apply final varnish coat to rod in the morning. The rod is dry and ready to cast by that afternoon.

We will be there guiding you every step of the way. This full immersion, hands-on approach to teaching the craft of rod-making will insure that you walk away with a truly personal and functional piece of fly-fishing art. 2009 Classes will be held April 20-25 and September 14-19. We invite you to call or email for additional information or to reserve your space today.

(Bob:479-414-6470 or BobNunley@RLNunley.com)
(Harry: 318-282-1825 or maker@canerods.com)

Is there just one way to make a rod?

How many "correct" ways are there to build a bamboo fly rod?  A recent online conversation led to several folks sharing broad outlines of the steps they take in making a rod.  I suspect the steps I follow are different from those followed by the owner of this blog, and perhaps from almost any other rod maker.  For what it's worth, here are the steps I usually take as of late 2008.  And of course, any of these are subject to change as better ideas come along.  Read my how to series on making rods at http://www.globalflyfisher.com and see if you can determine how many things I have changed in just the last few years.

Choose culm and cut to length
Power sand node ridges
Flame, or don't flame
Split by hand, start with nippers.
Aim for 20 butt section pieces, and 28 tip section pieces.
Stagger for 3x3 or 2x2x2 node spacing and trim to final length, plus 4"
Press nodes dry, without a depression for relief
Rough to equilateral triangles with beveller
Temper at rough equilateral triangle stage, before tapering
Bind into heat treating fixtures by hand
Forced hot air oven, 375*F for 11 minutes or until things smell right
Initial taper with beveller
Hand plane to final dimensions
Five identical planes used set for .001" - .005" shavings
Diamond stone sharpening and leather wheel final honing
Wipe clean with mineral spirits on a golf glove
Epon glue
Four string binder (nylon string)
Roll on flat surface to straighten
String removed afer 8 hours
Excess glue removed with alcohol and a thumbnail
Re-bind, heat set 3 hours at 185*F
Sand any glue with Fine SuprSandr
Sand blank with 400g
Tweak straightening with heat gun on lowest setting
Cut ferrule stations on lathe with dowel cutters.
Install ferrules (CSE step-downs, mostly)
Ferrule glue -- Rod Bond Epoxy  Pin all ferrules
Fit male to female in lathe with Grobet files
Trim till each section exactly same length
Build grip on blank. Gorilla Glue
Dip two coats P&L #61 polyurethane varnish, very slow retrieval
Scotch-brite between coats, held in block to keep corners sharp
Determine guide spacing through static deflection.
Snake Brand guides (bronze) Pac Bay tiptops
Wrap with old Gudebrod 00 or YLI 100 silk, tip with Pearsall's Gossamer
Finish wraps with thin epoxy first coat, poly for rest.  Usually no color preserver
Sand wraps flat with 600g paper
Sign with Pigma Micron .005 pen
Dip final coat(s)
Polish specks with Finesse-It
Install reel seat and filler with Rod Bond and a pin.
Locally made bag
Landmark Aluminum tube

The Influence of Wayne Cattanach on today's bamboo rod makers

A recent thread on the Rodmakers Email List asked what there was to know about Wayne Cattanach other than his Handcrafting Bamboo Fly Rods book and DVD/video series.

Brian Creek from Michigan reminded Rodmakers' readers that Wayne was the first to program Everett Garrison's math for the computer (I think it was in Visual Basic. If you can remember that language, you've been hanging around PC's for a long time) in his Hexrod program. He offered Hexrod as a bonus with Handcrafting Bamboo Fly Rods and as a free download from his website.
Brian also pointed out that along with Ron Barch, Wayne started The Planing Form, a newsletter for bamboo afficionados. "The Makers' Rod" was another of Wayne's unique brainchildren. Eighteen different rod makers contributed a single strip of bamboo, planed to taper, and formed into a one-of-a-kind rod which was auctioned to help raise conservation funds for Michigan streams.

Wayne was the chief impetus behind starting the Rodmaker's Email List, way back in 1994 or early 1995. I still think that List is the single most important source of bamboo rod making information anywhere. The archives go back to January 1995, but the list actually began before that time.

Without Wayne's encouragement I wonder if I would ever have completed a rod. I bought his self-published book back in 1996, and completed my first four bamboo rods in 1997. I still remember the first time Wayne called me on the phone. We talked over an hour, on his dime. In those days long distance wasn't cheap like it is today.

His week long rod making classes in Grayling, Michigan, Mountain Home, Arkansas, and other places introduced scores of want-to-be rod makers to the craft. The outline I use in teaching my own classes largely follows Wayne's original ideas.

I still believe Wayne's book to be the best printed text on making rods, especially for analytical types. Jack Howell's book may appeal slightly more to those with an artistic bent, but Wayne's fingerprints are all over Jack's pages too. Though I have both the hardbound and softcover editions, I treasure the old 3 ring binder with the first edition book. Not just because it's inscribed to me and signed, but because Wayne and I poured over a coupla those pages with him trying to help me understand some point or another.

The Grayrock Gathering was held in Wayne's clubhouse for years. He still attends most years.

It's been a few months since Wayne and I talked. I will always consider him not just a mentor, but a true friend. Most of us have few true friends in this life, and I count myself fortunate to call Wayne one of mine. Though I doubt we've spent more than a few hundred hours together over the last dozen years, each of those hours is precious. I remember some moments spent sitting on a rock together in the middle of Wildcat Shoals on the White River. And other moments with Harold and Eileen Demarest, Rick Crenshaw, Miles Tiernan, and Lowell Davis on the back patio of Unit #7 at Fulton's Lodge. Tami and I still recall with tenderness stopping by Wayne's place unannounced on our way back to Louisiana from Traverse City, and taking Wayne and Brenda to Bennigan's that night. I remember helping him with a Beginner's Workshop at SRG a few years ago, and slicing the stuffings out of three fingers. He laughed and laughed as he ran to grab some band-aids for me.

And a call from Wayne this summer helped me over some bumpy places in my personal road.

What else is there to know about Wayne? Well, let's see. He built his own home with his own hands on the family farm outside Grand Rapids. He's an engineer and HVAC man by training. He's the father of two great kids -- now young adults, but kids when I met them. He's a pretty good fisherman, a good talker, and a great listener. He's putting together a place somewhere on the Manistee. He runs on caffeine and nicotine and a few kind words.

He's my friend, and I'm grateful for his friendship.

For over ten years I have been helping others learn this craft through demonstrations, classes, forum posts, email correspondence and phone calls. Anyone who has learned from me owes a debt to Wayne Cattanach, as I do.


Harry Boyd

Welcome Harry!

I've invited one of my rod making mentors to contribute to the blog. He needs no introduction to those of us in the rod making community. But a few comments might be appropriate for folks that are new to the craft or just passing through the blog on a lazy Sunday afternoon.

Harry Boyd gave me the inspiration to finally tool up to make bamboo rods. Matt West had tempted me with the idea for a couple years. So all it took was a little encouragement to take the plunge. Harry is a regular vendor at the annual Sowbug Roundup in Mountain Home Arkansas. I was making the rounds through all the booths at the roundup when I met Harry. I'd like to say it was a brilliant array of beautiful bamboo fly rods that got my attention. But it just didn't happen that way. The rods were there on the table, but it was the planing forms that got my attention.

Growing up in a family of construction workers, I've always had a soft spot for quality tools. Harry's planing forms were very cool. The push pull adjustment stations and the precision ground grooves were impressive. I remember asking Harry where he got the forms. I was surprised to learn that he made them himself. And he said I could do it too. Encouragement is one of Harry's God given talents. That's all I needed to hear. The guy in the booth next to Harry had a copy of Wayne Cattanach's book for sale. I bought the book and the rest is history.

Harry is an active participant on the rodmakers list serve. The last I heard, there were about 600 members on the list, but just a hand full actually post. Harry is one of a few experienced rod makers that make the list one of the best rod making resources on the internet. He has recently made the transition from part time to full time rod making, book writing and freelance ministry. Dr. Harry Boyd has spent most of his career in full time ministry.

I hope we will hear from Harry often. He's a talented rod maker, a FFF certified casting instructor and a great teacher. I'm certain everyone will enjoy his posts.

David