Ever had a guide mysteriously break on you while you were fishing. Maybe you left your rod in the garage after a fishing trip without washing it and found the guides have rusted. Or your line is being ripped up because the guides have deteriorated through pure age. Now imagine that you discovered all this the day before a fishing trip. Well there is a way to repair your guides quickly and easily, just enough to get you through the trip and maybe a few after that.
Now in no way will I commit to the following instructions as a permanent solution. If you wish to have your fishing rod guides repaired properly, then allow a Custom Rod Builder to take care of it. The following guide is only advice to get you out of a sticky situation which after testing has proven to hold a repaired guide in place for a fairly long time.
STEP 1
No matter what happens, the old guide will need to be removed if it has broken. Use a Stanley knife or something like a Fat Max knife to remove it. Start by softening the existing epoxy with a lighter, then cut away the epoxy and thread on top of the guide foot in order to expose it completely. Do the same thing to the second foot if you have a double foot guide. Once the feet are completely exposed, remove the broken guide by pulling it out of the bindings. Now very carefully peel away all the thread and cut away any left over built up epoxy.
STEP 2
Prepare the new replacement guide by sharpening the guide feet to a sharp point. This will allow for the thread to climb easily when binding. Cut two thin strips of masking tape and tape down the guide in the same spot as removed. Remember to allow space on the guide feet to start your thread bind. Remember to tape down the guide as straight as possible in-line with the existing guides.
STEP 3
You will require a rod wrapping stand for this step and thread and bobbin and scissors.
Using the same colour thread and a fly tying bobbin, begin to bind the wrap before the guide foot and till the end of the foot. Repeat the same procedure on the second foot. Use a small length of thread as a pull-through to tie off the wrap.
STEP 4
This will be the final step in repairing your guides and you will require a thin based UV activated resin and a UV Torch. You can easily purchase something like Solarez Thin UV Cure resin, available from several Fly Tying suppliers. Make sure you buy the thin based resin in order for the resin to soak into the thread and level properly.
Take you wrapped repair and hold it against a white ceiling and to the side of a light source. Look down the guides and adjust the repaired guide until it is in line with each of the other guides. Now gently lay it back down in the wrapping stands and grab your UV resin. Begin applying the resin to the thread-work and using something like a spatula force the resin to soak into and under the guide feet. Once it has soaked through and under, wick off the excess and hit it with the UV torch for about a minute. Repeat for the second foot. Now load more UV resin on top and build a smooth ramp as per other guides on the rod. Remember when applying epoxy to rotate the rod section so the epoxy can level. Do this even for the first soaking step as well, at a slow speed. Once you have build a smooth ramp hit the epoxy with the UV torch for about a minute.
This will allow you to have a semi-permanent repaired guide that will definitely get you out of trouble.
Check out BWCFlies for you fly tying supplies.
