This long winter has me dreaming up all sorts of stuff to battle the boredom in future winters to come. I’ve been thinking about starting to build my own custom rods next winter, but don’t have a clue where to start. Any ideas? Any rod buildling classes in Western WI or Eastern MN coming up?
Do you ever make it down to pool 4(red Wing) at all?
If you did I would give a lesson or 2 for free I have all one needs to teach.
Youtube has a lot of videos as well as a few companies having how to DVDs. I haven’t seen the mudhole DVD, but have heard it is pretty good
check out mudhole.com
and rodbuilding.org
you can pm me with any questions also 
Take your currently favorite rod and snap it in half…that will be a great motivator… 
Seriously though, take trumar up on his offer. Without spending a dime you would be able to see whats involved, ok maybe you will have to bring a few beers. Also, as Randy stated MudHole is a great resource. Good Luck in your venture.
Thanks for starting the thread! I’ve been thinking about trying this out myself next winter. Have you experienced guys seen the starter kits over at mudhole.com…what do you think of them? What tools would you add if any?
I built my first rod last week and used the Mud Hole videos on You tube, there are about 7 or 8. Check out my rod in the ice fishing fourm.
If I still lived in ‘Toona town I’d have invited you over for a few lessons myself. I learned the basics from the Flexcoat DVD and Mudhole, and the more advanced stuff from rodbuilding.org, Google, and youtube.
The kits are good to learn the basics on, but be prepared they do not come with the greatest components. Fishing with them may not be the most enjoyable, but they are great for passing on to kids.
Be prepared though, as it does get addicting. 
If you are looking for some “how to” I would recommend Thorne Bros. in Blaine…You can buy a blank there and buy your other components (cork, eyes, etc..). You then pay a shop fee and use their tools/equipment to build your rod onsite.
I am not entirely sure if the process I explained still exists at Thorne Bros.; but the last time I built a steelhead rod I used this process and my rod came out perfect. They also helped me in the process.
Mel Dickie in Rochester has a shop in Wild Goose Sports. He and his partner have built thousands of custom rods and he has community ed classes as well as teaches rod building in the local high schools to several hundred students. He does true custom work including thread art for one of a kind fancy rods. Mel has a DVD for sale (just a few bucks) and will sell all the parts at very reasonable prices, plus, if interested, you can sit right in his shop and get hands on instruction.
Go to the LakeLink for sale forum there’s a guy selling a lot of rod building stuff,reel seats, handles,guides and tips,all in one bundle pretty cheap and at a cheap price. 
Thanks for all the input guys; it’s much appreciated. Trumar- I do make it down to P4 now and again. If the weather would cooperate a little, I’d be down there quite a bit. I’ll stay in touch and we can try to work out a day and time. Munchy- Come on back to Altoona and you could be my mentor; the weather’s nice this time of year
It’s probably too far for you, but there is a class in Mora, MN that runs on Wednesday nights from the first week of January through March. You order the components the first week and build a rod at your own pace. All other supplies are provided. I am one of the instructors, so feel free to ask me any questions. It is a great introduction to the hobby. You can take what you learn to build your own.
There are a lot of great rod builders on this site and a wealth of knowledge to tap into.
Lars
There are a lot of tools that are not needed. How many are you planning on building?
It is a rewarding hobby. I did it for years before taking on this challenge.
Come down to the shop one night there are a lot you can learn in a few minutes.
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