John Turick's wood strip rods

[eclecticguy]

JTurick gave me the ok to post the photos he emailed me.

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Great work John! Thanks!

Cheers,
Michael

[eclecticguy]

John sent me a few more photos to post and share with you. Here's what how he describes them:

"Theres red oak, red oak with walnut morticed in, and purple heart. All components I made in shop, real agate strippers,bronze or brass ferrules, "fire-wood" reel seat fillers (except ebony on the purple heart". I have barely used them for lack of time this year, so I coulnt' even tell you if their any good, but I had a blast making them. I've got plans to make another batch out of hickory soon, then I got sidetracked with your reel stuff!!! I'll try to figure out how to put some shots on the forum

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cheers,
Michael

[peter dallman]

Dear John,
I shared your work with John Betts last night. We talked about your work and he is very happy and proud to see people have taken up his work. John does not go on the net and is a very private man. But with his permission, he said excellent work, he likes to see this more than you know. Now, from me, I am envious. If you read the book you have seen my name. I say that only so you know I have made and fished over 50 wood rods for 7 years. I won't go back to anything else. I have a few rods that I fished 2 days a week, for 1 yr, over 100 days of casting. Know that wood, bamboo, and graphite rods loose their stregnth in time and use. Bow makers like myself know this well. In bows it is called pressure checking. Fibers are in a plane parralel to each other and under strain the fibers slip and compress. Always have another rod in the works. I replace them every 1 1/2 seasons. I fish a lot though. Always make 3 tips. The tips wear and break but the butts not so much. I just replace the tips. I can grind out a quad in 3 hours so I punish those more than the hex. John and my approach to rods like a cross between tools and mission furnture or Shaker design. By the way, John like birch and so do I. John made a birch rod for me and I love it though I am afraid of breaking it someday. My opinion (after 50 rods) is Beech is the best wood. John does love his purpleheart (AA) but he has something good to say about them all. I do not like hickory B, it takes a set to easy, red oak very good AAA(I have 12), white oak sucks, yellow alaskan cedar A, red southern cedar AA, lemonwood from Cuba AAA, Flame birch very rare AAA, and I am trying yew soon. I have tried more.

Now, I am editing John's next two books. The first is making your own fly line. Rod/reel/line the Betts trifecta. The line book tells you how to make the best fly line in the world in 4 hours for 20$. With this 3 combo you will have the best that even money cannot buy. Also I am deting his new reel book next. Wow, thsi book will blow your mind.....truly. Michael has seen some of the designs but is sworn to secrecy. You are only on the 1st leg of great fishing journey.

By the way, can we include you rods in John's new book?

[jturick]

Peter, sorry a reply is so long coming, its the first time I`ve looked here in a while. Sure you can use any pictures you like. I must say though, these rods havent been fished much, and some havent been fished at all. I strayed from Johns technique when I couldnt produce a decent taper on a lathe. I tried Perry Frasiers planing boards, then using a regular bamboo rod planing form to make the purpleheart rod in the pictures. So I guess I`m making wood rods "bamboo" style. I get a kick out of peoples reactions when you tell them the rods are made from oak! All the parts are homemade, even the agate strippers.

[peter dallman]

Hey, great.

But you don't need a lathe to turn a rod. As a matter of fact this is where my technique I think is better. I have a Mikta battery powered drill with a ratchet break away. I cut and plane finished the glued blank to within 1/8 inch outside dia of the final dimension in a hex shape on my bench. Then I chock the end in the drill I have clamped by the base to the bench. I use a string to keep the trigger down and I wear heavy lether work gloves to keep the rod stable as it spins. It is varible speed so I start slow. Then I use the sand paper clapper to round it down. I set the ratchet break away low so if the paper catches it won't twist and destroy the blank. So my secret is out. Cheap simple and safer than the lathe method. In a lathe that rod can spin/wobble out and watch out. The slow speeds I can achive with the drill allows for delicate tips. Should take about 3 hrs to finish a 3 peice rod and 2 tips.