Home Made Fiberglass and Graphite Rod Blanks

[oc1]

http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMBa.jpg

There are two basic methods of making tubular rod blanks.  The Havens process rolls pre-impregnated fiberglass or carbon fiber cloth around a tapered steel mandrel.  The Howald process lays loose fibers longitudinally along the mandrel, impregnates them with resin and binds them with a spiral wrap.  In both processes, the mandrel is removed after the resin has cured.

I have been trying the Havens technique without success.  An aluminum mandrel was shaped by hand but the cured blank would not break free from the mandrel.  After three attempts and having to chip the stuck blank off the mandrel the aluminum mandrel was gouged and ruined.  Haven't given up on the Havens process yet, but it will require a different approach.  Making a quality mandrel seems to be the stumbling block.

The Howald process was used to make Shakespeare Wonderods but all other tubular rods were rolled using the Havens process.  The earliest of the Wonderods used a balsa wood core to bind the fibers to.  After a few years Shakespeare switched to a polished steel mandrel that was removable but you can still find a few of the balsa core Wonderods from the early 1950's.  Shaping balsa wood cores sounded a lot easier than trying to shape another metal mandrel.  

I also tried making cores from modern Divinicell urethane foam.  Divinicell is the stuff they used to do foam sandwich construction.  The foam is encased with fiberglass or carbon fiber and impregnated with resin.  Divinicell and balsa wood weight about the same but balsa works better because the grain of the wood provides just enough longitudinal strength to allow it to be shaped to a very fine point.  The Divinicell and balsa wood are easily hand shaped with coarse sandpaper.

http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMBl.jpg

The first layer of fibers are stretched out on a loom-like thing.  The loom thing is just a piece of wood with some pegs.  It can be adjusted back and forth an inch or so with a nut and bolt to add or remove tension from the fibers.  The loom things are clamped to a strong-back of more scrap lumber.  As you can see, I'm working in an old tent.

[iurl]http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMBh.jpg[/url]

The fibers are then bound to the balsa core with a spiral wrap as they are wet-out with resin.

http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMBf.jpg

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The fibers come in a roll of "tow".  Tow is a bundle of fibers (either fiberglass, carbon, Kevlar of whatever) that have a little bit (about 1% by weight) of sizing to keep the bundle together as it is wound on a paper arbor and then later used for fabrication or weaving cloth.  Once the tow is removed from the roll the sizing shatters so if it is handled too much it will turn into a mass of useless lint.

http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMBq.jpg

The wall thickness of the blank is fairly uniform over its length with just a slight increase in wall thickness toward the butt end.  Since the wall thickness is nearly uniform, while the diameter of the rod changes dramatically from one end to the other, there has to be a much larger mass of fiber near the butt than there is near the tip.  To gradually add more fiber as the rod tapers toward the butt, a additional strand of tow is added every inch or so.  It is best to work all this out on paper before starting.

http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMBe.jpg

http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMBk.jpg

I have been adding about twelve strands and then binding them with a spiral wrap.  After several dozen new strands of tow are added the resin is allowed to cure and then the blank is sanded to get rid of the lumps and bumps and prep the surface for another coat of resin.

http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMBj.jpg

http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMBd.jpg

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http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMBb.jpg

http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMBa.jpg

After a few layers of fiber are laid and sanded it is best to check the rod's bend.  If it does not make a smooth curve then start making adjustments in subsequent layers.  Add more fiber in places where the bend it too sharp.  You can try sanding a little more in places where it is too stiff but if the wall becomes too thin on one side of the core you are sunk and it is difficult to correct.  

I need an ultra-light rod, 9'2" or more, with the sweet spot at 1/4 to 3/8 ounce lure weight.  When the bend finally looks correct I add more weight until it passes a three pound dead lift stress test.  Three pounds of drag is my maximum because that's when my thumb starts burning with a direct drive knuckle buster.  After that, I tape on guides and a reel and start test casting.

A heavier boat rod would be easier to build than a light casting rod.  Getting a nice snappy casting tip is the most difficult part.  This project has been a hard row to hoe.  I think I have started over about a dozen times and am just starting to get the hang of it.  If the rod is not straight it is because there is too much and unequal tension on the strands of tow.  In the first photo above you can see the crooked fiberglass tip.  However, that rod casts better than the graphite rod next to it because the graphite tip came out too stiff for the light jigs.  The fiberglass blank weighs about 220 grams, 7.7 ounces.  The graphite blank that is too stiff weighs right at 100 grams, 3.5 ounces.

I have only built out one rod, and that was just to have something to fish with until I get better at the process.  I'm still satisfied with the weird bent handle as described here:

http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=26433.0

This rod is so ugly it is really embarrassing.  The action is too slow and sloppy but it casts good enough if you put a lot of strength behind it.  The reel is a Ambassadeur 2650 from about 1964 or so.  It has a sketchy little free spool mechanism, centrifugal brakes, but no anti-reverse and no drag.

http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMBm.jpg

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There is a whole world of resin pigmenting and custom stuff that could be done when you start from scratch. This may, or may not, be as tedious as making split bamboo rods.  It is probably more suited to someone with better eye sight a lot more patience than I have though.  You certainly won't be saving any money compared to buying a factory blank.  Sort of fun though.  More to come

-steve

[Tiddlerbasher]

Steve - I am in awe - Thank you for this ride

[mhc]

Extraordinary work Steve, from the concept to the process, including the ingenious 'loom like thing'.
Mike

[thorhammer]

I'm sort of curious who the person is that "has more patience than I"......that's some good stuff you got going, Steve.

[Cor]

I have tried many things in my life, some very successful and some less so.   I even changed a rod blanks action by sanding the wall thinner and that was quite successful but I would never have thought of attempting to make my own rod blank.

Hats of to you Steve for the ingenuity!

Fairly recently I had the opportunity to go and look at the CTS Blank factory https://ctsfishing.com/ in NZ and was awed at the high tech machines and processes employed there.

[Jeri]

One key step in the Havens process, is the application of a de-bonding agent to the mandrel - stops the thermo-cured glass/carbon sticking to the mandrel. Plus most factories employ a reverse pressure press to remove the mandrel from the blank, which works on a  'twist and pull' action to break the temporary bond.

Hope that helps

[Bryan Young]

Quite amazing Steve. The patience and enginuity of all diy projects, this has to rank up near the top.

[Swami805]

WOW!!

[Darin Crofton]

Great work Steve! I could never do that, but so glad someone else can. I marvel at your skills!

[foakes]

Lots of respect for your ingenuity, curiosity, and learning new techniques, Steve —

Methinks Steve is like the Professor on Gilligan's Island — he can make anything out of coconuts and bamboo — except a two-way radio.

Thanks for taking us along, Steve!

Best,

Fred

[oldmanjoe]

Lots of respect for your ingenuity, curiosity, and learning new techniques, Steve —

Methinks Steve is like the Professor on Gilligan’s Island — he can make anything out of coconuts and bamboo — except a two-way radio.

Thanks for taking us along, Steve!

Best,

Fred

LOL   I don`t know about that ,we never seen his communication  device...

    I am surprised you didn`t use a bamboo shout for a core .    Good work, looking forward  on your progress

[alantani]

amazing......   

[oc1]

Thanks all.

Jeri, I have the hi-tech release agents and thought that aluminum with its higher thermo expansion would make it pop right off.  Not so.  My son knows a lot more about making composites than I and he thinks it was just because the mandrel did not have a perfect enough taper and polished enough finish.  He says he's going to try it himself using an old fiberglass rod as a mandrel..... but has too many projects of his own.

Here is my curing oven.  Just some chain-link fence pipe wound with a heating strip, some insulation and a programmable controller.  It must look dangerous because people give it a wide berth when they walk by.  The only dangerous part is the ladder.



Here is the Howald patent from the late 1940's and early 50's.  All the fiberglass rod building activity busted loose just after the war as they were finding peace time uses for technology developed for aircraft and other armament. 

http://www.raingarden.us/snap/HMB.pdf

-steve

[reel man]

Talk to an auto body shop that has good experience with fiber glass and they will direct you to which mold release to use on the mandrel.

[Brewcrafter]

Steve that is amazing, the research, the engineering ingenuity, and the flat out skills!