Meet the Rod Builder - Dan Wilcox

In this months Meet the Rod Builder we catch up with Dan Wilcox, Dan is based on the English South Coast and predominantly targets saltwater species, he also has  annual trips to Chew after Pike and trout fishing rivers and stillwaters does make him a great allrounder when it comes to understanding rod builds for his clients.

1. How did you first get into fly rod building, and what made you decide to build your first rod?

I got into rod building shortly after I started fly fishing in saltwater. I was primarily using a 6wt Vision rod and wanted an 8wt to fish bigger flies for Bass. When looking online and in shops at rods, a lot of 'proper' saltwater fly rods were a fair bit more than what I wanted to spend and the thought crossed my mind of whether I could build a rod with proper saltwater hardware for significantly less outlay, even if there was a learning curve involved. I started researching and soon found Fortitude and Jason helped me put together my first kit that would fit the bill.

2. What do you remember about that first build and is there anything you’d do differently now?

Lining up the blank, fitting the grips and reel seat and wrapping the guides were all fairly straightforward processes, but what I initially found trickier was working with epoxy. It's not difficult once you know how but making sure to mix it slowly, work in a room that's in the right temperature range and apply it ideally to the rod while it's rotating all massively improved my results. That and having a proper rod drier, for my first couple of builds I applied the epoxy and then rotated it by hand for 3 hours or so. On the first build the epoxy sagged a bit while drying and it was a bit disappointing, but you learn from your mistakes and a rod drier is a worthwhile investment if you plan on building more than one rod, which you likely will as it is a bit addictive.

3. What type of rods do you most enjoy building, and is there an area you’d say you specialise in?

My favourite rods to build are anything featuring a glass blank, as the blanks often feature more variety of colours and allow more creative freedom than carbon fibre blanks, which on the whole are mostly black. I definitely specialise more in Saltwater builds, not that there is anything particularly different to freshwater rods other than hardware in terms of the build process. I have built mostly saltwater rods for myself and clients and my specialism as a saltwater angler probably draws people to me who are looking for custom saltwater builds too.

4. How would you describe your own rod-building style, and what makes one of your builds recognisably yours?

My style mainly combines reasonably flamboyant but complimentary colour schemes with solid durability. I started out building rods for myself and I wanted something that looks good and is a bit of a conversation starter on the water, but also can take a beating from harsh environments. I think my trim wraps make my rods stand out as recognisably mine, I'll often use 4 or 5 different colour threads on a single build and I'm a bit OCD about making all my colour transitions line up on the underside of the blank to make it look as seamless as possible.

5. When choosing components for a new build, what matters most to you is it the performance, aesthetics, tradition, or a combination of all three?

Primarily a mix of performance and aesthetics. You could have the best performing rod in the world but if it wasn't pleasing to the eye it wouldn't inspire you to pick it up and fish, but equally a rod that looks good and casts terribly will have the same effect. My favourite rod to fish is my Ogawa S-Glass 8wt, the blank is bright orange and it has a fairly elaborate wrap scheme, but an Alps reel seat and REC titanium alloy guides make it bombproof for saltwater. I've caught bass, pike and carp with it and hope to one day add bonefish to that list.

6. Is there a particular material, component, or tool that you wouldn’t want to be without at the bench?

You can build a fine fly rod with very little in the way of specialist tools but they do make the process smoother and more enjoyable. A rod drier was a game changer for me, once I got one my epoxy finish improved massively to the glassy smooth look I had wanted to achieve. My drier is actually a home made one built from a scrap of timber, a microwave motor and a Fuji rod chuck, totalling around £20 to make. I'd also highly recommend the CRB Advanced Hand Wrapper if you're hoping to use more than two colours on a build. A hand wrapper lends itself to more complex wrap patterns and the CRB model comes with 2 or 4 spool holders for threads meaning you have to change spool less often.

7. What’s the best piece of advice you could give someone building their first fly rod?

My advice would be, if you're thinking about it and haven't taken the plunge yet, do it! And not to worry about getting it wrong. As I said before I was a little disappointed with my first build from a cosmetic point of view, but I caught some great fish with that rod, including my first bass on the fly and a double figure pike. It's similar to the satisfaction of catching a fish on a fly you tied, but now you can say you caught it on a rod you built as well! Build it, tie it, fish it is my motto these days.

8. Finally, when you get away from the rod building bench, where do you most like to fish and what’s your go to rod and set up when you’re there?

From March to October, most weekend I will get up at silly o' clock in the morning to go and fish for bass and occasionally mullet. The Hampshire and West Sussex coast is all within a relatively short drive and offers beautiful scenery and great fishing opportunities. I most enjoy sight fishing bass with a glass 5wt and small crab flies or fishing topwater flies with a glass 8wt, but when the wind gets up and conditions get a bit tougher I'll reach for my carbon fibre Fortitude N-Tech X to help punch the fly out.

To see more of Dan's work or to find out about a Wilcox custom rod build his contact email and social feeds are below, if you thinking of building your own rod Dan did an excellent 'How To' video which can be found on his YouTube channel.

Email - dan.thereel@gmail.com

YouTube - Dan Wilcox - The Reel

Instagram - Wilcox Custom Rods