Yep, I had a look at my custom LX and compared it to my over the counter LE. You can tell that Matt used slightly less thread, and with the smaller guides, even less thread was needed. Hard to tell how much finish was applied to the wraps, but the custom rod wraps do look a lot more level than the over the counter rod... probably just the amount needed on the custom to do it right... and no more.jimmyb wrote: minimal finish and thread.
also good construction practices for bonding the reel seat to blank. graphite arbors + rod bond = good
masking tape =bad
Many years ago, I built myself several custom fly rods. I don't believe graphite arbors were available back then, and the recommended practice was to use masking tape to build up for the seats. I didn't like the thought of doing that, so I found some small strips of a very lightweight rigid foam or something... can't remember what? Anyhow, the rods turned out great and fished extremely well for many years. After 30 years, two of them are still around, and another one would still be if my wife didn't break it when she was cleaning.
This turned out to be a very informative thread.