Hi everyone,
I usually post over on the Rod Building Forum, but I though I would share this with all of you as well. I'm an engineering student at the University of Colorado where I work in a machine shop. I designed and built my own fly reels from scratch. What you see here represents (nearly) the culmination of over 600 hours of work over the last year, from concept to finished product.
Here are some pictures of my fly reel. I just finished the first reel yesterday and loaded it with 125 yards of 20# backing and a Cortland Clear Creek WF2F line. The reel is designed for a 3-4, hence the excessive amount of backing, but it is still very light weight.
I have 4 frames and 6 spools with associated components all machined, and all of the purchased hardware ready to go! The only thing left to do is make some wooden handles to add a touch of class. I'm holding off on anodizing the aluminum parts until I've had a while to test everything and make sure it all works.
I'm still not sure what color to get them anodized, I guess it all depends on what the metal finisher is capable of. What do you all think?
I'm especially proud of the foot of the reel. It turned out to be a lot easier to machine than I'd originally thought, once I figured out the best way to do it. I was able to machine every feature without compromise, and it also left me with a way to do some engraving on the sides.
Hope you enjoy the pictures, I uploaded 17 pictures to the Misc. section of the RBF Photo Gallery. Below are a random sampling of some of them. Sory for the crappy pictures, I was experimenting with various methods for partially covering the flash to get less glare with my cheapo digi cam. Also sory for the huge file sizes. I just wasn't up to editing all those pictures.
I will be trying it out this weekend. I will post back next week sometime to tell you all how it works.
Mark
