tags to ID the rods / reels that need work

[steelfish]

ok, things are getting outta control, now I have rods from friends, local captains, co-workers, family, etc at the corner of my bedroom waiting to be repaired or to be completelly re-built (I dont have a garage, attic or basement) as well of some reels too, so, now I need a way to know what rod belongs to X or Y person and remember that my ohana bros use tags on the reels from customers as ID, so I thought its about time to get me some tags to ID the rods and writte the name of the owner and what kind of job it needs, same with the reels (I have 5 penn 113h that needs work right now and had hard time knowing which one belongs to who).

But since Im more DIY person (cheap and poor) than a BUY it person, so instead of buying a 100, 300 or 500 pack of tags that go from 10$-20$ or more, I took some waste cuts of craft paper from my wife (she's a teacher) that normally go directly to the trashcan and cut some on a "credential ID" cutter at my work and made some really cool "ID tags", I also had some thinner cuts from the craft paper that didnt made it for credential ID size so, I just cut them on 3" and 4" long and made some taller/thinner tags that should work too, specially for reels since they are smaller.

as you can see I got around 100 of the 1.75"x2.75" tags and same number of 1"x3" & 1"x4" thinner tags, that craft paper have some really cool designs with attractive colors that will help me to find them easier on the fishing rods/reels when hung, I will use the backside of the tag that is 100% plain white paper with nothing on the surface (showing them on the 4th row) so, any kind of pen should work to write the name of the owner of the rod and the job that was done on it and they cost me zero, nada, only few minutes on the ID cutter I just need to add some strings to each tag to have them finished, I will take my wife out for a coffe and cake with the saved money.

PS: I still have a lot of craft paper cuts waste that I saved to make more tags when needed.
PS2: this tags will also work as answer for my wife from a question she made me few weeks ago, when I had a bunch of expensive reels and rods from some customers and since I keep them in my home my wife asked me (you know how they brain always work), honney, if something bad happens to you, how I will know which reels and rods belongs to? if someone just knock the door and ask me for the reels I just give them away to him?

well, now she have a way to know which reels and rods are from friends and customers and the ones with no tag are for my personal use (half the rods for my personal use will have a tag of "John Doe" on it )

[Crow]

Those look great !!  I need to do the same thing.....I *know* who belongs to each reel (they are all mine...but don't tell my wife !), but I need a way to keep track of not only what "needs" done, but what "has" been done!

[Donnyboat]

great idea, for the few I need, I save the devides out of lipton tea cartons, I also cut the carton as well, then punch a hole in one end, cheers Don.

[Jeri]

When we started our custom rod business, obviously there were a lot of repairs and the like, not just new rods. We came up with a system of a 'worksheet', where all the personal details of the owner and all the work required were listed. Then simply with masking tape on the rod, identified the owner. Saved a lot of problems trying to remember all the details of each job. Carried the same format over to our full custom rods, to detail fully the clients requirements.

It has worked for us for 15 years.............. 

[boon]

Nice! I'd buy a big bag of rubber bands, maybe size 32 or 33, and use them to attach the tags - through the hole, around the thing being tagged, put the tag through the loop.

I think they look quite "premium" despite their humble origins. I would consider leaving them attached if they just have the owner's name and what was done, gives it that personalized touch.

[steelfish]

When we started our custom rod business, obviously there were a lot of repairs and the like, not just new rods. We came up with a system of a 'worksheet', where all the personal details of the owner and all the work required were listed. Then simply with masking tape on the rod, identified the owner. Saved a lot of problems trying to remember all the details of each job. Carried the same format over to our full custom rods, to detail fully the clients requirements.
It has worked for us for 15 years.............. 

well, my normal job is accounting I work with worksheets and spreadsheets all day, so, I also have a spreadsheet in the computer with every rod and reel I have worked so far (dont get surprised that arent that much LOL), and I have the information of the rod/reel, brand, size, work done, costs and owner, mostly friends and local captains, so when they ask me if I recall what it was done a year ago to "X" or "Y" reel/rod I can tell them easily and still have that worksheet in use, its been I think 5 years since I started to charge for my work on reels, before 2014 any repair or service was free for my fishing friends and family.
when they were few reels and can easily ID them by the brand and model, but now I have 4 113h reels that look the same, few weeks ago I have 3 talica 20-II from different guys, etc.

Nice! I'd buy a big bag of rubber bands, maybe size 32 or 33, and use them to attach the tags - through the hole, around the thing being tagged, put the tag through the loop.

I think they look quite "premium" despite their humble origins. I would consider leaving them attached if they just have the owner's name and what was done, gives it that personalized touch.

thanks buddy, I also think the tags ended up looking pretty good, IMO 3x better than the ones I was about to buy (yep, because of the colors), the gree/yellow ones I cannot help but remember me to Dodo Dorado fish skin), currently Im attaching the tags with some 4# monofilament line and its working great, but the idea of the rubber bands sounds good too and again you're right, my idea is to leave the tag attached when giving the rod/reel to the owner, if he want to re-use the tag on another item would be nice.

PS: I knew the tags looked good when my wife and my 15yo daugther asked me to take some of them to use them to put their names, notes or bookmarks on some books and miscellaneous school items.

[Fishy247]

For attaching the tags, I use thread scraps from rod wrapping. I did up a bunch out of some size D bright orange thread also. I'm willing to bet that you(like the rest of us that wrap) have a bunch of cutoffs that are around the areas you work....

Mike

[steelfish]

I'm willing to bet that you(like the rest of us that wrap) have a bunch of cutoffs that are around the areas you work....Mike

totally right amigo Mike, but since Im working (still) on my mobile wrap station and a foldable 3ft table, I always clean the area after working on a rod every night, so no much thread cuttoffs to use, soon I will have a permanent work bench for my power wrapper, the carpenter is still working on a 8ft table, soon I will have a bunch of thread cuttoffs like you all over the place

[gstours]

  Thanks for the custom and colorful approach Alex,  as nother method when traveling occasionally the unused/surplus airlines baggage tags can lend themselves to the same usefulness.  The more sought after ones have minimal advertising and yet an elastic cord/loopy.
   These are great for kegs and carboys that are aging too!
        The problem for me with rubberbands is they crack and break fairly quickly.  just saying.

[RowdyW]

What I found that's better then rubberbands is the elastic colorful bands girls use for pony tails etc. They are fairly cheap in dollar stores & especially on ebay. They come in a couple of different sizes & colors too. They last a long time also.      Rudy

[Brewcrafter]

Great call Rudy.  As the father of a teenage daughter, I can attest to the fact they are VERY resilient (my observations based on running a snake through my house drain line  )  And also based on observations of same daughter - they are readily available cheaply in bulk!

[oc1]

The problem for me with rubberbands is they crack and break fairly quickly. 

Yeah, here too Gary.  If you can get six months out of a rubber band before it rots you're going good.  When I was growing up, in a much dryer climate, rubber bands would last forever.  I'd imagine it's pretty dry where Alex is.

The tags came out really nice too Alex.
-stee

[steelfish]

thanks for the recomendations on the strings to attach the ID tags all those are nice options but to be honest the string was the last of my worries LOL, pretty sure the owner of the rod will take the tag inmediatly and 99% of the time will never use it again, so as long as it last few weeks attached Im good.
so, rubberbands, elastic bands for girls ponytails (Im afather of 3 girs that I had combed their hair when they were young so, I know what you guys are talking about), cotton thread for crochet, monofilament line, etc, all that could work for the intended use, really the hard part was to "make" myself to made some of those tags or buy them.
maybe if I ever use the tags for a collectable reel with the info writted down on it I will use a string that will last some years

[foakes]

Those are all good solutions for tagging and keeping track of your jobs --

But at least for me, it doesn't cost much more to be consistent, organized, and professional.

We need to remember -- and it is easy to forget when we do this work all of the time --

There are very, very few reel and rod techs who do the quality of work on fishing tackle -- as we see on our site.

It is a dying craft -- and those of us that are left -- are appreciated much more than we can ever realize.

So I might suggest that we up our game -- consider yourselves solid professionals who offer an honest service for a fair price.  Folks get a good or poor first impression -- and that is all up to us, not the client.

For me, I order 500 tags at a time -- $100 delivered, no tax, and no extra charges for the artwork.  That is 20 cents apiece.  Contact one of the internet forms suppliers -- and you will have what you need within a week or 10 days.  There are different price ranges and different prices for carious companies.  Some are less expensive than 20 cents each by up to 40%. 

I have used their tags for over 12 years -- and it does many things -- keeps records, keep track of parts and cost, keeps contact information, and any special instructions.

Simple, quick, foolproof, and efficient.

I also use it for my personal reels so that I know when they were serviced last, what line, etc..

We are professionals -- and we should represent ourselves that way -- whether we do this as a sideline or not.

People will consider your level of skill, their finished products, and how you portray your craft -- and that is all up to how you each think of yourselves.

Just my opinions.

Best,

Fred

[steelfish]

Yay !!

that tag is in another level amigo, as you said, those tags are pretty professional specially if you have a formal reer repair business.
you always have something to learn in most of your posts