Meet the Rod Builder Q & A - Warren McCarthy

This is our first meet the rod builder Q & A session and first up is Warren McCarthy, many of you interested in rod building will have seen Warren's work on Instagram or heard him speaking to Pete Tyjas on the Fly Culture Podcast.

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

My very first ventures into rod building were ‘playing around’ replacing the cork grips and reel seats on a couple of my older graphite fly rods.

I was almost exclusively fishing bamboo fly rods at this point and decided to take on the daunting task of restoring an old bamboo fly rod purchased from eBay. With very limited space and tools I managed to produce a very fishable rod and loved learning the process and new skills required.

A new small stream very tight and overgrown in places led me to purchase my first glass rod which I loved. Before long I began my first glass build with a blank from Adam Rawson. I loved the different colour blanks and creativity that glass allowed, the rod building bug had well and truly bitten.

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

I remember whipping the guides then stripping off and whipping again striving for a better finish! I also remember using spar varnish as I had on the bamboo restoration which turned out ok, but I was very soon exploring the ‘alchemy’ of epoxy resin.

So many lessons learned on this build, I needed more space, tools and knowledge to enable my rod building to improve to the standards of some of the outstanding glass builds I was seeing and reading about at the time. The garage was slowly evolving into a proper workshop in which I was increasingly spending more time.

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

Absolutely glass rods specifically small stream glass 6’6 and 7’ 2,3 and 4 weights. These are the rods I love fishing and really enjoy building.

A quality glass blank with a beautiful cap and ring reel seat, exotic wood insert, matching agate stripping guide and carefully chosen silk colours to bring the build together. Although I enjoy all builds these are the ones that get me excited.

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

Very clean and ‘un-cluttered’ I do believe less is more most of the time. Of course, the rods I build are not for me, so I strongly believe in letting the customer design their own build. I like to help this process with endless photos and messages offering different colours and components before decisions are made and the build begins.

If left to my own devises I think my builds are recognisable by clean lines without winding checks, hook keepers and trim bands. This I believe makes the blank, agate guide, whippings and reel seat the stars of the show.

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?

When choosing the blank to build on performance first although I will always try to give customers a choice of blanks which if glass may offer different colours.

With reel seats also performance must be a consideration. But after performance I make no apologies its aesthetics all the way! For me personally aesthetics is a huge part of my fly fishing, rods, reels and flies must look and feel how I want them to for me to get the most enjoyment out of my time on the river.

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

I wouldn’t be without my ALPS rod wrapper I was lucky enough to pick up one second hand early on in my rod building venture and got on with it instantly. Before I added a lathe to the workshop I also used it for shaping my cork grips, it’s a wonderful piece of kit.

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

TAKE YOUR TIME never rush any stage of the build. Also, if you are not 100% happy with any stage of the process go back and re-do before you move on to the next stage.

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?

For me small streams and wild brown trout, during the trout season I will always fish dry flies it’s simply what I enjoy the most!

With regards to rod choice it changes depending on the venue, it may sound daft, but I will often choose a stream so I can fish a particular rod. Stand out rods I often reach for include (in order of length)

• Livingston Western Glass 8’6ft 3wt
• Taniwha TSH S-Glass 7’9ft 3wt
• Ijuin Yomogi 6’6ft 3wt

I must also mention my various bamboo rods which I still fish regularly and enjoy immensely!

A big thank you to Warren McCarthy for taking the time to join us for our first Meet the Rod Builder Q&A. It’s been a pleasure learning more about his approach to rod building, the thinking behind his work and, of course, his life on the water. We really appreciate Warren sharing his time, knowledge and experiences with us and the Fortitude Rod Co community.

To see more of Warren's outstanding work you can find him on Instagram or to discuss having a rod built by Warren his contact details are below.

warrenmccarthy@hotmail.co.uk

Phone 01256 814549

Mob 07771558028