EclecticGuy

I frequent a number of forums on a variety of topics. One in particular – CNCZone.com, or “zone” to its members – has been a great resource for me in learning machining skills and converting my MicroMark mini mill to CNC (computer numeric control). Here is a photo of the basic mill before conversion:

These mills are made in China and fall in to the class of Seig X2 mini mills. They are quite capable little machines especially once converted to CNC. I keep a log on my CNC … Continue Reading

I’ve just completed the cover design for my book The Reelsmith’s Primer! I am now completely done with everything. I wanted to feature a photo of some of my reels on the back cover so I set up this photo. I call it a “family portrait” since it includes my very first reel (the one sitting on the deerskin pouch) to my most recent (the black and brass one).

I also took this photo of my most recent reel.

This … Continue Reading

I like to ice fish several time a year. I’d do it more if I had more time! Several years ago, I started ice fishing with my son’s Boy Scout Troop when they have there annual winter cabin camping trip in January. The camp has a beautiful lake loaded with fish. So, to cut costs, I designed and built a few tip-ups to use. Surprisingly, there is very little information on tip-up building on the web, so here is an article I wrote: Ice Fishing Tip-Up

Hopefully this will help some people get started. Please note, the end of … Continue Reading

One of my customers asked for a handle that is easier to clamp to a workbench or furling stand. This is what I came up with:

It is massive! The weight balances the mechanism nicely though. It feels great in the hand and can be easily clamped or bolted through the two 1/4″ holes.

1/20/2010 UPDATE – a lot people find my blog by searching for handmade or homemade fly fishing reels. That’s great! I just wanted to let everyone know that I started a reelsmithing forum and have written a book on reelsmithing called “The Reelsmith’s Primer”. The book is being printed and will be available soon from Whitefish Press.

It is a little ironic that I would be posting about fly reels considering that I’ve been spending the last several weeks focused on tenkara fishing (Japanese fly … Continue Reading

I have been studying the history of fishing for several years to learn more about the rods, flies and techniques used by early anglers. There are many early books that have survived , including “A Treatyse of  Fysshyng with an Angle” attributed to Dame Juliana Berners and originally published in 1496! The contemporary ”The Compleat Angler” by Izaac Walton, originally published in 1653 and a second part added by his friend Charles Cotton (gotta love that hair!). These works … Continue Reading

or “Furled Again”

I give a few fly fishing related presentations each year on topics including fly tying, rod building, and leader making. I plan to create a series of posts to supplement these presentations starting with this one on leaders. You can download the presentation in PDF form to use – but please let me know how you are using it!

Please note that I am not a fly fishing historian. I give a little background history more to set the stage on the evolution of leaders than to be an accurate historical treatise – the … Continue Reading

If you are in to fly tying and want to get better, have an excuse to tie more flies, and see some great work from other fly tyers, I highly recommend participating in a fly swap. Check out the Fly Swaps and Contests forum on FlyTyingForum.com to get started. There are other Web sites that host swaps – each has its own set of rules so make sure you read a few posts and any rules and policies the site has.

Basically, here is how a swap works:

• First, … Continue Reading
  

Click to see larger diagram.

I finally decided that I build enough rods to justify making a small investment in building a jig to hold the rod at a 45 degree angle while the guides are adjusted for optimum placement. A great reference on the process can be found here. The process is simple enough but firmly holding the rod without marring its finish can be a challenge! This jig solves that problem, holds the rod securely, and is attached to … Continue Reading

Every January, my sons’ Boy Scout troop goes cabin camping on the (frozen) lake at our Council’s camp. I posted about our ice fishing experiences back in January. I forgot that I had taken some video of another favorite activity at the Cabin Camp – potato canons! Also called Spud Guns, Spudzookas, and potato launchers – checkout this article on How Stuff Works for more details on how to build them and some theory of operation.

These canons can shoot a full size potato 100s of feet – we fire them out on to the frozen lake. This year, … Continue Reading