Its been a while since I posted a rod and I figured this one was such a pleasure to cast and fish that I had to show her off. Its a Perfectionist (Maurer version - #2 in RodDNA) slightly modified to turn it into a 3pc, then scallop hollowed with varying hollow sizes and depths ranging from 1"-3" and .060"-.045". Guides are bronze Snake with a bronzed Snake agate and bronze PacBay tip tops. Wraps are Pearsall's gossamer antique gold with chestnut tipping. Ferrules are bronzed CSE step down truncated, and the seat is a bronzed Bellinger ULSB .660". The rod is quick action in most cases but begins to flex deep and act more parabolic once you get 35'+ of line out. She sings with a WF5 Sharkskin line. I used a black Shilton CL3 reel that balanced her perfectly. A really amazing taper that works well in a 2pc, 3pc and/or hollowed.

Outstanding.

What's the length?

My buddy fishes a Sharkskin and that line sure does make some noise...haaha.

Bart

Oops. Its a 7'6" rod Bartman.

Yes, the Sharkskin does make some noise. Much like my silk lines.

WOW Chris, that is one beautiful rod . Love the colours of the wraps and those ferrules .

bronzed Snake agate?

BIRCHWOOD CASEY ANTIQUE BROWN™ M38 IMMERSION CONCENTRATE

http://www.arizonasculpture.com/products.a...&subcatID=3

Not quite perfect, but works pretty well.

I really like the look of the antique gold on a flamed blank. Didn't think it would turn out that color. I have a perfectionist taper in the works althoug it is the standard 2 piece. Only roughed at the moment but I may see a similar color scheme. Beautiful work as always Chris. Did you turn the insert as well or is that one of Bellinger's? It really looks nice. What is the wood? I like the look of the bronzed hardware.

Very Sweet

Perfectionist applies to both the rod and maker. As always Chris, .

Cheers,

Jay

Hi Chris nice rod

The perfectionist hollow built is my favourite rod.

Gary

www.nichobamboorods.com

Vey nice! But not a surprise. You have that gift of knowing what combinations work well together. Another outstanding accomplishment. Did you treat the guides for color? Thanks for sharing this with us.

Wayne

What a beauty

That's probably the nicest rod I've ever seen, everything from reel seat to tip top is a perfect match.

Another beautifull rod Chris.

I would have to agree

Hu Chris finally another nice one you show us

Like Brendan want to ask how you did the stripper guide - is it a snake brand that you tuned?
Thought Golden Witch has bronze guides
Love the whole "chocolate" brown tone of the rod

Friedrich

Thanks for all the kind words guys!



I used the following solution on a nickel silver Snake Brand stripping guide. The rest were standard Snake bronze and the tip tops were PacBay bronze.

BIRCHWOOD CASEY ANTIQUE BROWN™ M38 IMMERSION CONCENTRATE
http://www.arizonasculpture.com/products.a...&subcatID=3


The insert and hardware are both Bellinger. I have no idea what the wood is. I usually just call Chet or Joe and ask for something "brown and funky" and they always find something nice.

Chris--as usual beautiful job. RodDNA says this is a 4wt but you rate it a 5. When you applied the taper did you assume that the RodDNA values were with or without varnish? RodDNA like a lot of other databases is pretty sparse on this comment--Larry

I assumed the taper was without varnish. If I remember correctly, most of the Young tapers posted by Maurer were taken off the planing bars and not off of a finished rod. Please, correct me if I'm wrong in this case, but regardless, the rod simply did not load enough at short distances with a 4wt line. I've cast solid 2pc versions that were fine with a 4 or 5 but between the 3pc and hollow modification, this gal is a 5, no question.

Chris--this is one of those questions I keep trying to answer for myself since so many of the tapers in the program and online don't specify whether varnish is subtracted. The taper you used simply says it was posted by George Mauer and unfortunately he can't answer it for us. Hopefully someone reading this discussion will tell us whether or not your assumption about George's tapers is true. It would sure help a lot to know that for sure.

I sometimes wonder if when a 4wt rod turns out to load better with a 5wt if it is because the original taper was a tad bit thinner. Maybe as you say it was the conversion to a 3pc or the hollowbuilding that did it. I wish there was a program that could take measurements and predict the specific line wt so we could get these tapers sorted out. I don't know if RodDNA can do that but since there is no real users manual that I have found it is hard to say. One thing I did find out is that if the taper came from Ray Gould's book then it is based on bare tapers--says so in his book--Thanks, Larry

Not to take away or hijack this thread but I beleive Garrison states in his book what the ideal stresses are for loading a rod. I think it is around 180,000 to 200,000 but I could be wrong. It also depends on how much line is out. Garrison used 50 feet but RodDNA defaults to 30 feet of line out. If you want to go by the Garrison numbers, you need to change this. So far it has turned out to be fairly accurate. I'm sure some more knowledgeable builders can give you better advice but it has been a good starting point for me.

Larry,

I spent a little time researching the Perfectionist #2 taper. In Maurer's book some of the tapers that he lists say "taken from a varnished rod" while others do not. The Perf 2 was one that did not have the varnish note next to it. In only one case does he say, along with the varnish statement, "subtract .xxx for varnish". So, can we infer that he meant all the numbers to be read as if they had already been adjusted for varnish (assuming it was needed), excepting the one explicit example? And can we assume that if he doesn't mention varnish at all that it shouldn't be adjusted. Both sounds reasonable but a little dangerous to me.

However, the Perf listed in Hexrod, as posted by Wayne Cattanach, is the exact same taper as the one in Maurer's book and in RodDNA as given by Maurer. There is a specific note with it that says "No varnish to subtract".

So, I think in this particular case, we can take it for granted that this PHY Perf taper is to be cut as the numbers show without adjustment.

However, that doesn't help us in regards to why I like it with a 5wt line while it is clearly listed in all 3 locations (Hexrod, Maurer's book and RodDNA) as a 4wt. Could certainly be personal preference as I find a lot of rods that I fish I like to go with a heavier line weight than is recommended, the Dickerson 8013 Bureau version (5wt) and the Garrison 209e (5wt) - nearly all Garrisons in fact - are two that I use 6wt lines with and couldn't imagine using a lighter line, unless I needed to cast into the backing on every cast with a WF line or want to cast 60'+ of DT line for some reason. In fact, I never assume a line weight designation is correct until I get a look at the curve and values for myself. I've just found too many to be, well, I guess 'wrong' is the word. Wrong for me in any case.

gmreeves,

Interestingly, the Perf #2 is the Perfectionist that has the highest (softest) stress curve (on average) of all those listed, and all are still listed as 4wts.

You are absolutely correct that if you want to use Garrison's ideal stress numbers, you'll want to change the line cast variable in RodDNA to get a better feel for what the stress numbers really are, but of course you could also look at it the other way and use a lower stress number with less line. The key is to be consistent, or at least aware of how much line you are working with and what it does to the stress curves in each case. The program I use actually shows the stresses from 2' to 60' in the same chart giving me an idea of how the stresses progress as more line is fed to the rod (which is easy to infer in any case, unless you want to see exact numbers).

Regardless, it is my opinion that one man's 4wt is another man's 5wt and there is simply no way to reconcile that fact in every rod. I've made enough rods and designed enough tapers that I am confident in my ability to judge a rod's line class - at least the line that I'd prefer - by simply looking at the stress curve and the average stress (though average isn't quite the word, but certainly an aggregate of many of the values along the curve). And simply looking at the Perfectionist #2 stress curve, I'd judge it a 5wt in any case.

Oh, and it was Wayne Cattanach, not George Maurer, who posted the PHY tapers straight from the planing bars (as found in an email note in Hexrod), and Wayne seems to be pretty good and quantifying where the taper originated. Sorry about the mistake on that one.

Oh, my... That is one sweet looking stick. Is she for your personal use?

Lead on!

Yep Mats, this one is for me!

Thanks for that reply Chris, I see your reasoning on this one now--Larry

That is a great build.

Jon

Good on ya!

I tried the 7'6'' Driggs tweaking of yours last year so (as I´m always curious) I´m wondering if this 3 piece Perfectionist have a similar feel as that 2 piece Driggs? I liked casting on green water with that one...

Oh, BTW; Can I try her?

It does have a bit of a resemblance to the Driggs, but it feels faster and lighter overall. Its a little more of a 'user input' rod whereas the Driggs flexes deep a little quicker.

I'll be bringing this one to the Metolius in July so you can try it there. It might just be the perfect rod for the Met (well, for the trout anyway ). I'll likely try and make an extra for sale as well since I expect it to be popular.

Beautiful rod Chris great color choices again. This going to be great travel rod for you being a three piece.

Ken

very nice rod!
Made me want to use some bronze , it gave the rod a nice touch I think.
I that some american wood in tthe reel seat?!

Wow Chris!


Absolutely beautiful work as always. Enjoy it!

Stunning!! I love the look of bronze guides and it seems that not many people use them. Nice work and keep it up.

Whoooo-eeeee! That's about the prettiest piece of cane I've ever seen. You're an artist, Mr. C!

John

nice work chris!