We hear that some folks would like some instructions on how to put on our transfer decals. Here you go!

We’re proud to be building blanks for Trey and any other rod maker that is interested in moving to blanks made in our little shop in Woodland, Washington, USA.
You can see a review here.
If you watch at the video, we don’t recommend yarding up on the middle of the blank with your off hand!

The handle was nice…

The North Fork ARB (Approved Rod Builder) Program is already underway with three approved builders (so far). Those builders are now listed in The Registry on the main site, with each builder having his own page that opens when “Full Listing” is clicked. It is planned that a small set of photos of each ARB [...]

The ARB program is moving ahead, with a few rods already into or nearly through the evaluation process. In that process, the rods are being seen by several people, all hand-picked by (and including) Gary. One of those people is Vern Dollar, Gary and Susan’s long-time friend, and a man who has directed literally thousands [...]

Congratulations to Jimmy Tutor of West Kentucky Rod & Reel LLC who submitted this MB 709-1 (IM) for entry into the ARB. The rod is a solid build with nice finish and an electric blue wrap.

It’s also a tribute to those that protect our freedoms.

Again, my apologies for the photos. You should check these out [...]

This time, it’s Bill Havens of Salty Dawg Custom Rods who is now on the Approved Rod Builder Registry.  Bill’s model of choice was the MB 663-1(IM).

Aside from showing good finish, wrap and alignment, Bill’s special touch included some custom artistry.

Again, we aren’t judging the art, that’s for the customers, but it’s much more interesting [...]

We are excited to announce that the ARB registry now contains its first approved rod! The rod was crafted by Matt Davis of Otterods on an MB 664-1 IM blank, and will now become part of the NFC display at select shows, as well as being part of the ARB Registry on the NFC site [...]

Cork is a pretty amazing substance. It’s comfortable across a range of temperatures, it’s easy to hold on to, and it’s easy to shape to one’s liking. In other words, its a really good material for making rod grips. It’s also a natural material—it literally grows on trees. Of course, that means it’s a finite [...]

Continuing the ARB theme, we recently got an interesting email, asking us a couple of pointed questions: Will North Fork just be including everyone and anyone who submits a ARB rod, regardless? And, is the ARB program just marketing hype? We’re happy to provide the answers to those questions.
As for the first question, the answer is [...]

Gary has long been a proponent of educating anglers and builders alike on the issues surrounding rod breakage. What follows are a few of the bullet-points gleaned from Gary during a recent interview on breakage. That interview will be published as part of an upcoming article in Rodmaker magazine.
• A weak area/defect should show up within [...]

We have word that some builders have already completed their ARB sample rods. Great news! We even have pix of one that has us truly excited to see more. Look for some rod-builder eye candy here later today…
(Update: We received some quick pix from Bill at Salty Dawg Custom Rods. This is the rod he’s [...]

Announcing the Gary Loomis/NFC Approved Rod Builder program.
http://northforkcomposites.com/arb.html
Update: The PDF-based program application form is now available on the main NFC site. If you want to save a click, you can download the form directly from here.

There is definitely a “special language” of the fishing-rod world, especially among manufacturers and builders. While manufacturing has its some of its own lingo, there is a fairly broad spread of terms that apply across the board. At North Fork, we like to be able to communicate effectively with our customers and others in the [...]