- Do the right thing.

I've been working on a couple of rods, an 8013 tri-hex and an 8615 tri-hex.  The 8013 is first in line, and since I've made the rod before, and it has been well-received, I decided to make 2 of the same at the same time.  It saves some time, since you only set the forms once for 2 rods, so to speak.  Of course, the tri-hex rods, with strips of different sizes require setting the forms twice as often as a regular hex rod (not to mention precise planing of the inside apexes too), so maybe it all works out more or less the same...  Anyway.

This morning was glue-up for the 2 butts and 3 tips.  The first butt went together just fine - mist the strips with water, carefully spread the URAC 185 on the taped-up splines, roll them up, then roll them apart again, removing glue that squeezed into the inside cavity (something you have to do when you are making hollow-builts), making sure that you don't starve the glue joints, then roll back up, and run through the binder 4 times.  Heat-shrink tubing on each end, hit it with the heat-gun, then pierce the tubing, paper clips through it, then hang the rod section from a hook with a pipe wrench hanging on the other end.  Easy.

The second butt went the same way.  Then, done with binding I looked it over - Hey, what's that gap?  How did THAT sneak through?  This is "WHEN THINGS GO WRONG".  A rod with a nice, visible glue gap like that would probably fish just fine for decades, with nary a problem, but it looks like Hell, and what rodmaker WANTS  to show off a rod that "looks like Hell?"  No one, at least on purpose.   If I had not noticed the gap, and hung the rod to dry, then I would have had no decision to make -  the rod has a gap, that stinks, but it's still a good, fishable rod. 

But since I saw it right away, I had a choice - let it go, or strip off the string, wash the strips, throw them into the oven to dry, and later replace the offending strips.  Well, I've inadvertently made enough rods with gaps, so having a choice this time, the decision was kind of already made.  (Not without a pause and a sigh, though.)  Those 4 layers of string, when still wet and sticky, are a mess to pry apart and get off.  The glue washed off pretty easily with running water and a rough rag.  Then, straight onto one of Harry Boyd's fixtures and into the oven to dry out.  The rod will eventually turn out fine, but not today!

We all have "things that go wrong" from time to time, in all facets of life.  Sometimes all you can do is react to the consequences; sometimes you have a choice and I guess I'll argue that most of the time it'll end up feeling better to do the right thing, whatever that is, even if it isn't easiest.  (But I'll modify this post as necessary after I eventually get the second butt "fixed").

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