I also took this photo of my most recent reel.

This reel is brass and Delrin. The spool is fabricated from Delrin sheet (1/8″) and rod (1″). The pouch is one of my custom-designed deerskin pouches and the tall skinny thing is an antique reel oiler from the late 1800s.

Hopefully this will help some people get started. Please note, the end of the article is incomplete. However, you really should be able to figure out how to complete assembly based on the instructions and photos. At some point, I will complete this and republish.

Cheers!

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.

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 fishing with a fixed line and no reel!). But I have been working on building a brass fly reel for several months using primarily hand tools. My motivation originated from the work John Betts describes in his book “Making Strip-built Fly Rods“. He only describes his reels in his original self-published version of the book, but the new hardcover version has a color plate that shows 19 of Mr. Betts’ handmade reels! All works of art.

I googled “reel making” until my fingers were blue to find information on making reels, but there is very little information out there. I took the liberty of calling Mr. Betts several times to help get off on the right foot. I also discovered an article in Power Fibers where-in Peter Dallman shows a photo of reels he made in collaboration with Mr. Betts. I contacted Peter and he has been an incredible help over the last few months. We’ve exchanged well over 100 emails as he’s guided me through the process.

This post will show the results of my first fly reel. Numbers 2 & 3 are already in progress! Later, I will post a tutorial on how to build one of these reels. The required tools are modest: an electric drill, a hacksaw, various files, several taps, screwdrivers, sandpaper, and a lot of elbow grease! Oh, and a hammer or mallet! I cheated a little and used a drill press but I did make a set of spool plates by turning them on a hand drill. A small metal working or woodworking lathe is also a convenience for turning the grip and spool hub – but these can be done on a hand drill too.

The reel basically consists of a spool assembly, a cage assembly and a reel foot. Here are the main components for the spool and cage:

There are 2 spool plates on the left, the hub (Delrin) and axel (1/4″ hard anodized aluminum tube), the front plate ring, standoff posts (1/4″ brass tube tapped on both ends), the back plate and a bunch of 4-40 3/8″ round head machine screws.  The next photo shows how these items are assembled.

The final product uses a different bracket assembly for the foot that replaces 2 of the 1/4″ standoffs. You can see that and the foot assembly in the next photo, which shows the reel “in the rough”.

At this point, the reel is functional but needs its final “fit and finish”. You can see the reel foot bracket where 2 of the posts used to reside. Here are three other views of the reel at this stage:

With the mechanical assembly complete, I turned my attention to the final details. I was not happy with the shape and length of the handle. Peter also suggested filing all of the machine screw heads flat to minimize tippet snags (plus they look a lot better too!). The spool plates and back plate also needed to be drilled out to lighten them and for aesthetics. And then there was the polishing! Lots and lots of polishing. Here is the completed reel, assembled, adjusted, lubricated and ready to fish:

The new handle is much more comfortable and easier to grasp without looking down. It is made from Amboyna Burl. Brass and Amboyna Burl were made for each other! The reel foot is not AFFTA standard but does work in modern reel seat hardware that is not milled or slotted for the reel foot. It also works nicely in sliding ring hardware that I make for my wood and bamboo rods. You can also see the simple hole pattern I used and the flattened machine screw heads – both simple but elegant additions.

To date, I’ve made several wooden fly rods (primarily using the beautifully lettered and illustrated book “Making Strip-Built Fly Rods from Various Woods on a Lathe” by John Betts) with handmade guides and reel seat hardware, hooks and flies, and several small brass reels. The final item to complete my early fishing equipment was the fly line itself. Many of the early accounts go in to detail about procuring and making horse-hair fly lines. Darrel Martin describes and illustrates several methods to make these lines in his excellent “The Fly-Fisher’s Craft, The Art and History“. I’ve made short (6′-9′) lines using these methods using both Mr. Martin’s descriptions and interpretation as well as the original citation. These include:

1. The “Treatyse Jig” as it is called to furl short lengths of hair in to snoods that are knotted together
2. A Walton’s Engine (twisting machine) that I designed and built of brass – again to furl snoods that are knotted together
3. The Williamson Quill Twister to furl snoods that are knotted together
4. Plaiting (braiding) to create a knotless, tapered line

While all of these lines are functional I was not quite satisfied with the final product. Lines constructed using the techniques in 1 and 2 are the best of these but suffer from having a knot every 30″ or so that can hang up in the rod’s guides. They are quick and easy to construct though and wrapping the knot with silk thread helps somewhat. The Quill Twister does not twist the individual strands as tightly as the above methods so the furled snood is looser and prone to unwinding. It does, however, excel at twisting 3 single strands of horse-hair together to make leaders. Finally, the plaited line is very time consuming to construct but does result in a knotless, tapered line. The texture of the braid is very rough though and the line itself is flat – more like a ribbon than a line. This can be somewhat corrected by reducing the hair count in one of the 3 strands.

Then, several weeks ago I found an old book in the Google collection that I had not seen referenced previously. “British Rural Sports: Comprising Shooting, Hunting, Coursing, Fishing, Hawking, Racing, Boating, Pedestrianism, and the Various Rural Games and Amusements of Great Britain” by Stonehenge, published in 1867. A woodcut on page 265 shows a new device for creating continuously tapered, furled, knotless fly lines from horse-hair! The description on page 265 (for some reason the Plate and text pages are numbered the same) is quoted here:

“Reel-Lines are made of horse-hair (from the tail), of silk, or silk and hair mixed, of Indian-weed, and of silkworm gut. It is usual for the amateur fisherman to purchase these lines, which are made by a small machine, but sometimes the angler prefers making them himself, and if at all handy, he may do this with great advantage by the following mode, which is much superior to the twisting-machine, because it admits of the introduction of fresh hair with much greater facility.

In Making the horse-hair line, first procure a quantity of good hair, which may be bought at the shops ; but if it can be obtained from a good young chestnut horse with a flaxen-tail so much the better. When such a horse is docked, a considerable portion of his tail with the hair attached is removed, and that is the very best for the present purpose. A grey horse with a silver mane will give white hair, which requires staining, but the colour of the flaxen mane is as good as any art can give. Young hair is twice as string as the milk-white hair, which is peculiar to old horses. Next procure three pieces of strong goose-quill, each about half an inch long, and fit loosely into them three pieces of deal three or four inches long ; then divide your hair intended for your line into three equal portions ; thus, if your line is to be of eighteen hairs altogether, then let each of your quills receive six, leaving about four inches projecting ; then push in the sticks gently, and ties the loose ends together, as shown in the annexed woodcut (fig. 1). The knot formed by the union of the three divisions is to be attached to some fixed object by a pin ; then take out each stick, one after the other, and pass the quill up to within an inch of the knot, replace the stick, and take two of them in the left hand. The remaining stick is to be gently twisted from right to left, and when sufficiently so, passed over the other two also from right to left, when it should be grasped by the left hand, gently keeping up a slight strain upon the knot. At this time the three are in the position shown in the woodcut ; then let the angler take hold of a d, draw it towards him about a quarter of an inch, allowing the hair to slip through the space between quill and wood ; twist it as before, and pass it over to the left. Repeat this with b e, and then with c f, when a b will again occupy the same position as at first. By carrying on this process a line may soon be turned out of great strength, and of any degree of tightness of twist ; but if too tight, it will be liable to be entangled, or to kink, as it is generally called. As soon as the angler has mastered this part of the process, and has twisted a few inches of line, he must divide the remaining length of his hair into the same number of portions as he has hairs in his line and cut off one hair at each of these lengths, so that he may spice his line regularly throughout its whole length. As soon as one of these cut ends appears loose above the head of the quill, the stick must be removed, and another hair of full length inserted and twisted in with the rest, and so on with every succeeding break. In this way the line appears, when finished, to be furnished with a series of projecting hairs, but these may be removed without danger with a knife, or scissors, or a taper, previously soaking the whole line for twenty-four hours in water. The line may also be gradually reduced in size at the pleasure of the maker, by omitting to insert fresh hairs. By this mode all links and joints are avoided, and the line is everywhere within one hair of the full strength with which it would be furnished if joined in links in the ordinary way.”

Now, let me interpret that for you! I had to read this passage many times, refer to the woodcut and try out each step before I got the true meaning. First, obtain your horse-hair. Contrary to this recommendation, I use white hair (not from an old horse) from a stallion. The woodcut and description of the goose-quill sections is straight forward. Finding goose quills in New England is pretty easy! Cut off the tips of the quill, back to the point where the shaft is fairly straight. Then cut off a 1/2″ section. These quills have a white foam-like material in them that must be removed. I used a 1/8″ drill bit and simply pushed it through the quill section with my fingers. Then spin the drill with your fingers to clean out the material. I used goose quills for my first line but used small pieces of plastic tubing (soda straws) for my second. I am working on a “high tech” version of this idea using aluminum tubes split lengthwise so a hair can be easily introduced and a foam plug to hold the hair and provide just the right amount of friction… but read on.

It took a little googling to determine what “three pieces of deal three or four inches long” meant. Deal, as it turns out, is an old term for for or pine wood. So, this means to use 3 pine sticks about 3″ long. The stick needs to fit into the quill snugly in order to hold the hair, but not too snugly. These sticks should be round and the last 1″ or so tapered to fit the quill. Here is a photo of the sticks fitted in to the quills:

I wanted a line that contained 18 hairs at the butt end and tapered to 3 hairs, approximately 25′ long. That means that each of the 3 strands will start with 6 hairs and taper down to 1. To make this taper, you need to remove 5 hairs over 25′ on each strand. That calculates to 5′ of 6 hairs, 5′ of 5 hairs, 5′ of 4 hairs, … down to 5′ of 1 hair. My tail hair is about 34″ long but after trimming the tips to remove frays and weak areas, comes out to about 30″ long. So, 2 hair lengths will make 5′. I love it when things work out like this.

One thing this account did not mention is to align 1/2 of the hairs in each strand the opposite direction – so, if there are 6 hairs in the strand take 3 of them and turn them end-for-end so their tip ends align with the butt ends of the other 3 hairs. Horse tail hair tapers significantly from the butt to tip – the thin tip section being the weakest. By realigning 1/2 the hairs in this way, you even out the final diameter of the section as well as redistribute the weaker tip sections so they lie next to butt hair sections. Almost every other horse-hair line making description points this out, so maybe it was considered “known art” in this description.

The description of getting started makes sense if you’ve ever furled a rope, line or leader. After inserting the strands (6 hairs each) in to the quills and locking them in place with the wooden pegs, you tie their ends together. This knot is then held so it does not spin as you furl the line. I used my fly tying vise and gently clamped the knot in its jaws – but a nail or push pin works well too. Next, hold 2 sticks in your left hand and the other in your right hand. The instructions call for twisting the stick in your right hand from right to left to impart a twist on the hair. However, right to left clockwise or counterclockwise? Looking up from the bottom of the stick, the rotation should be clockwise. This imparts the standard “rotate, counter rotate” twists required to furl. It is also important to twist enough to give a good furl but not so much as to “entangle or kink” the strand. I find that 3 twists per 1/4″ length of hair is about right. You’ll know when you’ve twisted too much. Follow the recipe of twisting the stick in your right hand, then pass it over the top of the other 2 sticks in your left hand. (Looking from the bottom, this would be a counterclockwise rotation.) Hold the left most 2 in your left hand and  the other in your right. Repeat. You’ll find that it goes pretty quickly. Each time you place a new stick in your right hand, you pull it towards yourself (away from the knot) to let about 1/4″ of hair come out of the top of the quill – that is why the sticks need to be a loose fit. If they are too tight in the quill, you will not be able to pull the hair out without breaking it.

The next challenge comes after you’ve furled about 4″ of line. Just when you get the hang of it, you need to stop and stagger-cut the hair. The description takes a little explanation;

“he must divide the remaining length of his hair into the same number of portions as he has hairs in his line and cut off one hair at each of these lengths, so that he may spice his line regularly throughout its whole length. As soon as one of these cut ends appears loose above the head of the quill, the stick must be removed, and another hair of full length inserted and twisted in with the rest, and so on with every succeeding break.”

The intent is to stagger the ends of each hair in each strand so that when you need to “introduce” new hair, you add 1 hair at a time. This eliminates any weak points in the line if 2 or more hairs needed to be spliced in at the same place. Assume the hair is 30″ long and there are 6 hairs per strand – 18 hairs total – and that you’ve furled 6″. Simply divide 24″ by 18 hairs to get 1 1/3″. Now, you need to leave 1 hair full length, cut 1 1/3″ off all of the remaining hairs. Leave one of those at the new length and cut 1 1/3″ off all of the remaining hairs. Continue this process until you have 18 hairs progressively shorter by 1 1/3″. In practice, I think you need to also stagger the cuts across the strands to help distribute the splices within a strand. Here’s how I do it:

I lay the 3 sticks and quills out side by side in front of me with the hair draping over the edge of a table. Starting with the strand on the left, I leave one hair alone and cut all of the others 4″ shorter (3 * 1 1/3″ = 4″). I pull out one of these and cut the remainder 4″ shorter. Continue this process on this single strand until all 6 hairs are progressively 4″ shorter than their neighbor. Now, move to the middle strand. On this one, you cut 1 1/3″ off ALL hairs. Then, leave one of these alone and cut 4″ off all of the remainders. Pull one of these out and cut the remaining hairs 4″ shorter. Repeat this on the middle strand until all 6 hairs have been cut and are progressively 4″ shorter than their neighbor. Now, take the right-most strand and cut 2 2/3″ off all the hairs. Pull one out and cut 4″ off all of the remaining hairs. Pull one of these aside and cut 4″ off the remainders. Repeat until all 6 hairs have been cut and each hair is progressively 4″ shorter than its neighbor.

Now, look at the mess you created! The cut off sections of hair can be thrown away. What remains are 18 hairs divided into 3 strands and no 2 are the same length. Also, you will notice that within a strand, the hairs lengths are evenly cut at 4″ intervals. Here is a graphic to illustrate:

From this point it is pretty straightforward. You need to introduce a new hair when the end of a hair comes out of the quill. Except, remember, you want to taper the line from 18 to 3 hairs. Since we already know that we need to furl 5′ of length for each set of hairs (18, 15, 12, 9, 6, 3), simply continue replacing hairs until you have completed 5′. At this point, when the end of a hair in a strand appears, do not add a new hair. When the second end emerges later, that’s when you add the new hair (the strand will now have 5 hairs in it). You need to skip adding a single hair on each of the 3 strands. You could simply skip the first hair end that appears in each of the 3 strands. I did that for my first line and it looks fine. But if you think about it, doing so results in the line dropping from one increment (18 hairs) to the next (15 hairs) over a distance of 2 2/3″. I thought it would be better to smooth this transition out so the line transitions from 18 hairs to 17 hairs for 1′ to 16 hairs for another foot to 15 hairs. To do this, simply skip 2 ends on one of the 2 remaining strands and 4 on the other. You could get carried away and create even a smoother transition, but from a strength standpoint, I think about a foot is good. Once you get down to 1 hair per strand, it is harder to twist and furl the line. Be persistent but do not over twist.

Once you reach the final length, tie a knot in the end and clip the hairs to even them up. Starting from the thin end, carefully let the line coil around your hand as you coil it up in to about a 4″ diameter. Don’t stretch it or pull on the loose hairs that appear every 1 1/3″ or so. Place the coil in a bowl or jar filled with water and let it soak over night. The next day, remove it. Starting with the fat end, carefully uncoil the line and use a fine pointed scissors or single edge razor blade to carefully clip the protruding hairs that jut out every 1 1/3″. Do not stretch the line. When the protruding hairs have all been clipped, you need to let the line air dry. I found that coiling it loosely in a 4″ coil and simply laying it on a clean plate in my shop does the trick.

The last step is to make a loop at each end of the line. I like to simply make a bend in the line and bind it down with fine silk thread. Here is the end result:

25′ tapered (18 hairs to 3 hairs), knotless, furled horse-hair fly line

Close-up of furled horse tail hair fly line

You can modify the above to create any length, taper, and thickness of line you need. It doesn’t take a long time to make a horse-hair line in this way and the results are quite pleasing.

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 references at the end of this post include scholarly works on fly fishing history. Let’s get started!

Leader

The leader is the short section of line between the fly and the fly line. It’s primary purpose is to deliver the fly to those wary trout as naturally as possible. It also provides a replaceable section to which flies can be tied without harming the fly line.

The Early Years – Horsing Around

The earliest recorded history of fishing (at least in western civilization) spans the last 1300 years or so. Anglers used long wood rods – 14 to 17 feet long – with a line made of horse tail hair tied to the tip. This line was typically 2 rod lengths long and made of furled sections the length of the horse’s tail, called “snoods”. These snoods were water-knotted together to make the line. The line maker might start with a butt section containing 21-24 hairs and gradually remove hairs from successive snoods to reach 3 hairs at the tip. Horse hair line can also be plaited (or braided) to create a knotless, continuous line that tapers. I’ve made lines both ways and it is a lot of work! Plaited lines are made exactly like a young lady would braid her hair – with 3 bunches of hair. I may write a post in the future along with a video on making horse hair lines if there is interest (let me know in a comment!). 

These horse hair lines were relatively stiff and fragile. There are a few historical accounts on making horse hair lines - replete with folklore and opinion. The general consensus is that stallion hair is better than mare hair (presumably because the mare urinates on her tail) and white hair is stronger than black or brown – although there is controversy over all of this!

Western anglers fished with wooden rods and horse hair lines for about a 1000 years with very little change.

No Guts, no Glory

The British rediscovered silkworm gut in the early 1700s – as trade with the China opened. This material is flexible, translucent, and strong. The British referred to it as “catgut” but no one really knows why – catgut has never actually been made of cat guts! The Chinese process to make this material was a highly guarded secret. The British eventually stole the process and smuggled it to Europe.

Silkworm gut was revolutionary in its day. It was dry and brittle but when moistened, became soft and very limp  (like a wet noodle) – although it does swell when wet. Fishermen carried and stored their “gut” in small tins with a piece of felt that could be moistened before heading for the stream or lake. By the early 1800s, the market for gut leaders was well established and dominated for 250 years. Eventually, Spain produced the highest quality gut leaders. For all of the positive attributes, gut did have some negatives; inconsistent quality, variable strength, variable size, and no way to compare one vendor’s gut to another’s. 

The “X” System

In order to address this, a standard was developed abut 250 years ago. We know it today as the “X” system – you know, like 6X or 8X tippet. This standard was based on a watch wire sizing standard and was developed to standardize drawn gut sizes in the range of 0X to 8X. For a given material, it allows correlating strength to diameter.

Basically the system works like this; subtract the X factor from 11 to get the diameter in 1/1000″. So, for example, 6X tippet would have the diameter = (11 – 6)/1000 = 5/1000″ (or .005″) diameter!  Break strength can be estimated in pounds by subtracting the X factor from 9, so 6X has a break strength of about 3 pounds (this is for modern monofilament tippet).

“I want to say one word to you… Plastics”

Dupont discovered nylon in 1937 and this material also revolutionized fly fishing. Nylon can be manufactured to tight tolerances and is strong. It is stiff and difficult to tie good knots but these weaknesses were acceptable. At about this same time, silkworm gut was becoming scarce, primarily due to WWII cutting off the supply.

Basic Leader Training

Leaders provide the connection between the fly line and the fly. They help minimize splash and provide a drag free drift. Leaders have the following anatomy:

The butt connects the leader to the fly line, the midsection is typically tapered, and the tippet is the thinnest section to which the fly is tied. The length, taper, and other attribute of leaders were developed through trial and error.

Take me to your leader

Today, there are 4 common types of leaders; knotted, tapered, braided, and furled. 

Knotted leaders are made by tying short sections of monofilament line together – typically of decreasing diameter from the butt to the tip. The stiffness of different types of mono can also be used to modify the properties of the leader as can the use of fluorocarbon or co-polymer line. Knotted leaders are highly customizable. In fact, there is a great spreadsheet called LeaderCalc that you can download that has 100s of leader formulas – and it is free. Knotted leaders are also inexpensive and can even be made while you are on the stream. But, they do have a few cons; the knots cause drag and can snag aquatic plants, they have a memory (i.e. remember their shape) and those blasted knots (blood knots) are tedious to tie!

Tapered leaders are manufactured. The taper is designed in to the leader. Tapered leaders are labeled with the X factor at their thin end, so a 6X tapered leader ends with a 6X diameter. The advantages of tapered leaders include they are knotless, inexpensive, and you can “buy and fish” them. They also have a memory and low wind penetration.

Braided leaders are made exactly like plaited horse hair fishing lines were made centuries ago, but only from mono, nylon or polyester. They are hollow core and knotless, supple, drag-free, durable, and usually visible. But that hollow core can retain water that may drip during the cast and spook fish (that is usually the least of my casting woes!). Braided leaders are harder to find and are usually expensive.

Furled leaders are basically a thin tapered rope. The process goes back 100s of years to furled horse hair lines. They are supple and do not have any memory – perfect for turning over your fly and drag free drifts – they are also durable and visible. One nice property is that they provide a bit of shock absorption depending on how they are made and materials used. The few negatives include expense ($10-$15 each) and they will completely snarl up if you try to free a snag with a jerk.

I have made my own knotted, braided, and furled leaders (100s of them) and fished these along with tapered leaders. For the past 4 years, I’ve used furled leaders exclusively. I love their suppleness and drag-free drift. I make my own so I have a lot of control over size and properties and the cost is about $1.00 or less each. I’ll write a post on making furled leaders to supplement this post – but I need to take a lot of photos of the process!

Choosing your leader

There are a few general rules on choosing leaders. Here they are:

• small flies – use a small diameter leader
• large flies – use a large diameter leader
• big flies – use a short leader (5′ or so)
• flat water – use ling, thin leaders (12 – 20′)
• wind – use shorter leaders (5 – 8′)

Here is a nice chart on tippet size to fly size:

“X”      Fly Size

8x      #20 – #28

7X      #20 – #28

6X      #18 – #26

5X      #14 – #20

4X       #6 – #14

3X       #6 – #12

2X       #4 – #10

1X       #4 –  #8

0X       #4 –  #6

Leader to line connection

The last topic is, how do you connect that leader to your fly line? There are 2 basic connection types; direct connections and loop-to-loop connections. Direct connections include needle knots and nail knots. Loop-to-loop connections include braided loop connections that you can buy, or a perfection loop tied on a piece of #20-#30 mono that in turn is direct connected to the line. In loop-to-loop connections, a perfection loop is also tied on the butt end of the leader.

References

The Treatyse of Fysshynge Wyth an Angle (1496), Dame Juliana Berners (attributed author)

The Compleat Angler (1766), Izaak Walton and Charles Cotton

The Fly, Andrew Herd (www.medlarpress.com)

Fishing with Guts, Paul Shullery (www.midcurrent.com)

The Fly-Fisher’s Craft – The Art and History, Darrel Martin, The Lyons Press

Furled Leader Tutorial, http://globalflyfisher.com/fishbetter/henk/henk1.htm

Basically, here is how a swap works:

• First, a tyer (the “host”) advertises the swap on the fourm. They may limit the number of entrants (tying 50 flies for a swap is a lot work!), and pick a theme for the fly like “salt water flies”, “foam flies”, or “wooly buggers”. They will also pick a deadline – make sure you can finish your flies and mail them BEFORE the deadline.
• If this is your first swap, make a post to the swap thread and say you would like to join (if the swap isn’t closed) and that this is your first swap. The other swappers and host will help you along! Many times, swappers will say what they are tying for the swap. It helps to see what others are doing and pick something unique.
• Tie your flies! If the swap has 10 entrants, you usually only need to tie 9 since you do not need to include one for yourself. Sometimes the host will state this or say that they want you to tie all 10. I always tie the total number plus 1 or 2 extras to make sure I send the best flies to the swap. Usually, all of the flies are good, so I’ll either send them to the host as a gift or keep them to donate to Casting for Recovery or another organization. Sometimes the host will announce that s/he will send extras to Casting for Recovery.
• Something to consider is whether you will squash down the hook’s barb. I always do since I practice catch and release. Some swaps ask that you do. If in doubt, ask! In fact, during the swap, it is a great idea to post to let people know you are working on your entry and to respond to other’s posts and photos.
• Once your flies are completed, you need to tag each one with your name at a bare minimum. I like to include the name of the fly, the date, hook size, and even a recipe on how to tie it. It also helps if you put your forum “handle” on the tag so people can relate it to you. Here is an example of a swap I entered a few years ago. Also, you can see from the photo above, you attach 1 fly to each tag at the hook.

• If you can, photograph your fly/flies. Some swaps don’t want you to post photos until after the swap so it will be a surprise when entrants open their packages. But it is great to keep a record of what you’ve tied and swapped.
• Package the flies for shipping. I usually use an Altoids tin but if you have a lot of big flies, you might need to use a small cardboard box. Whatever container you use, make sure to write your name on it! That way the host will know who’s flies are in the box. Also, the host will mail your swapped flies back to you in the box you sent.

• Now you need the host’s mailing address. This is usually done by sending a private message (PM) to the host to ensure their address is not plastered on the Web!
• The way the swap exchange works is this: you put your flies in a box and make sure they are tagged and your name is on the box. You then need 2 padded mailing envelops big enough to hold the box – one of them needs to be big enough to hold the box AND the 2nd envelope. You put your name and address in the “TO” field of the smaller envelope – make sure to include the host’s return address in the “RETURN” field. Put your box of flies into this envelope but DO NOT SEAL IT! Your host will mail your flies back to you in this envelope. On the other envelope, you put the host’s address in the “TO” field and yours in the “RETURN” field. Now, take everything to the post office. Wait in line. Wait some more. Then, when it is your turn, hand the clerk the envelope with the box in it (the one with YOUR address in the “TO” field. Ask for postage on that envelope and NOT to seal it! When the postage is attached, have the clerk hand it back to you. You then place this postage paid envelope inside the outer (and sometimes larger) envelope, seal it (it has the host’s address in the “TO” field), and ask for postage on this combined package. I usually say that I am doing a fly tying swap and the postal workers now know what that is! The package can be kept by the clerk and sent.
• The host will be collecting packages of flies up to the deadline. The sooner you can get the flies to him/her, the easier it is for him/her. It is actually a lot of work hosting a fly swap (try it after you have entered a few as a swapper). Once all of the flies are in, the host will take 1 fly from each entrant and put those back in your box, put that in the POSTAGE PAID envelope, seal it, and mail it back to you (when he mails all of the other swappers’ packages).
• Wait until your package comes in the mail. It is a bit like Christmas! 
• It is good practice to post on the swap thread that you got your flies and to thank the host and congratulate the other swappers for their great flies!

Here are some flies I’ve tied for swaps:

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 my workbench leg about  foot above the floor so it is not in the way.

Here is a photo of the prototype.

These canons can shoot a full size potato 100s of feet – we fire them out on to the frozen lake. This year, we shot a few at night and I caught them on video on my little Pentax W60 camera at 30fps. There was literally no light so the video (and photos) are grainy but the effect is interesting and capturing the blast in the canon was VERY interesting. Here is the sequence of 4 frames right at the time of launch:

(you can see the full size photos here)

In this sequence you can clearly see the initial ignition, then the blast up the barrel, and finally, the blast expelling the potato out of the canon. Keep in mind that the canon is made of thick, white PVC pipe! Since the camera shoots 30 frames/second and the blast occurs over 2-3 frames, the entire event is taking about 1/10 of a second!

Here is the video from which these stills were captured:

I made this grip for a personal rod several years ago. The reel seat and tips of the grip are olive wood. The decorative bands are 3/16″ burnt cork surrounding burl cork. The main body of the grip is birch bark. Here is how I make them:

Collecting Birch Bark

Almost everyone is familiar with the white papery bark of the birch tree – that is not the stuff you want to use to make fly rod grips! Underneath the white papery bark, is the actual bark – typically 1/8″ or so thick. It can be peeled from the log in strips – I peel strips 6-8″ wide. One really important comment though – Please Do Not take the bark from living trees – it will kill the tree. Windblown birch trees are a perfect source and the bark is usable even on trees that have been downed for many years.

Use a sharp knife (a box cutter is perfect for this) and cut a slit about 6″ along the length of the log. Peel off the paper bark from around the log. Then, working at the slit you cut, slide the knife under that inner bark layer – it is easy to find where it separates from the wood underneath. Once you have started peeling the inner bark up, you can grip it with both hands and peel the bark off the tree. The bark will curl in to a roll. Collect a lot of bark! 

Processing the Birch Bark

After collection, I stack the bark between 2 pieces of 1 by 8 pine and clamp them to keep them flat while they dry for a few weeks. A 12″ diameter tree will yield a strip about 37″ long so I cut these in half to make 18″ strips. My 1 by 8s are 20″ long. Use 4 clamps – 1 at each end and 2 spaced evenly between them. You don’t need to put the death squeeze on them, they just need to be held reasonably flat!

Once the strips are dry, I use a 1 1/2″ hole saw that has a 1/4″ pilot drill bit to make as many birch bark rings as I can get! I then quickly sand both sides of each ring on 220 grit sand paper glued to a sheet of glass (with spray contact cement).  This helps remove any bumps and imperfections and provides a good glue surface for the next step.

Gluing Birch Bark Stacks

I like to glue up stacks of bark rings about 1 to 1 1/2″ tall and then glue these shorter stacks together to make the grip. You can also use these short stacks as accents on regular cork grips. These short stacks are glued up on 1/4″ by 2 1/2″ long bolts (with a hex head so you can get a wrench on it) so you can really get a lot of clamping pressure on them. You’ll also need 2 fender washers (1 1/2″ diameter) and a 1/4″ nut. You can use 2 disks of 1/2″ plywood instead of the fender washers if you prefer. I have 10 of these (bolt, 2 washers, nut) “clamps” so I can glue up enough stacks for a grip at one time. For glue, I’ve used Gorilla Glue and epoxy but lately I’ve been using Titebond 3 – it is a lot easier to use and is waterproof and works great.

Here’s how to glue up the stacks:

1. slide a large fender washer on the bolt
2. coat one side of a bark ring with Titebond 3 glue and slide it on the bolt with the dry side toward the washer
3. now, coat both sides of a bark ring and slide it on the bolt – rotating it so its grain line is oriented 90° to the ring below it. 
4. repeat this with 8 to 20 more rings (rotating each one 90°) to make a stack 1 to 1 1/2″ tall
5. coat one side of a bark ring and add that to the stack, glue side to glue
6. slide another fender washer on the stack and screw on the 1/4″ nut
7. use 2 wrenches to clamp the stack tightly

Once the glue is dry, release the nut and remove the washers and stack. You may have to screw the bolt out with a wrench – another reason to work with shorter stacks! Finally, ream the center hole with a 1/4″ drill to clean it up.

Gluing up the Birch Bark Grip

From this point, you basically glue up the grip just like you would glue up a cork grip. Just make sure to orient the grain lines on the ends of 2 stacks being glued together at 90° to each other. I use a 1/4″ threaded rod about 15″ long to glue up my cork and birch bark grips with a nut and fender washer at each end. Add enough birch bark stacks to create the length of grip you want (remember to glue them!) and tighten the nuts to apply clamping pressure. Once the glue is dry, you can remove the nuts, washers and birch bark cylinder. Again, you might have to back the threaded rod out with a wrench (and 2 nuts locked on it). If you want to add cork or wood accents – like the grip in the photo above – simply add those details as you glue up the stacks.

Tips on Turning the Birch Bark Grip on the Lathe

At this point, you can turn the grip on the lathe. I use a 1/4″ mandrel held between centers. Start with a sharp gouge to rough the grip in to a cylinder. If you have cork or wood accents, you need to be careful when you move from one material to another. Go slow and feel the tool cutting. I rough my grip to shape with the gouge until it is about 1/8″ over diameter from the final size. From this point I use sandpaper to complete the turning. Birch bark is harder than cork but not as hard as pine. It tears out easily so sandpaper is the way to go. I start with 60 grit and start to work down to final dimensions. Progress to 100 grit, 220 grit and finally 400 grit. Go slow and measure often. The completed grip should be smooth and silky feeling. Don’t worry if there are small imperfections in the bark – those little black “imperfections” sometimes pop out. We’ll fix those next. Here’s what the turned grip before applying the finish looks like:

Finishing the Birch Bark Grip

I finish my grips on the lathe starting with Tung Oil. I apply it with 600 grit sandpaper. This makes a slurry that fills in the birch bark  imperfections nicely. Let the Tung oil dry between coats – I apply 3 coats. Once the last coat is dry, I use Tru-Oil as the final finish. I apply 8 light coats with a clean cotton cloth – letting the TruOil dry between coats. Finish with a paste wax if desired.

Here’s the final product glued on to a St Croix SCIV blank: