The HOBBYIST - Pete Emmel

Every so often one of the members of the Fiberglass Flyrodders forum will post photos of a rod build that they've done that will strike a cord with how all the elements come together.

Pete Emmel (pemmel) recently posted photographs of a Steffen Brother's eight foot three piece 3/4 weight fiberglass blank fly rod build that he completed. This build spoke to me since I'm also a pushover for twist thread, spiral wraps, and agate stripper guides which this build has all three tastefully done.

Pete Emmel sent an email where he explained his start in rod building, style, and his soon transition from hobby builder to custom builder.


"I built my first rod about twenty years ago. It was a Sage blemish kit. I got back into rod building after a long layoff. I've been rod building with a vengeance and went straight to building bamboo rods. I built a Lamiglas Spring Creek glass blank for a rod swap in our club. Seeing how nice it was it got me hooked on glass. A big plus to glass is the action is as close to bamboo as you can get."


"As far as my "style" goes, I am more of a traditional builder. I am not attracted to fancy inlays or handles and I prefer the retro/traditional builds. Aside from the components and colors I don't really plan every detail of the rod. The spiral wraps just show up. No two rods have ever been the same."


"I am planning on starting up a part time rod building business. I am calling it "Renaissance Rods" and will build bamboo and glass rods. I am going to cater to custom rods. What you want is what you get...up to a point. In my opinion, there are some things that just don't look good on bamboo or fiberglass. For example, I am going to draw the line at putting Flex Coat on bamboo. For bamboo and glass I feel the varnish is the finish that belongs on the rod."


Look for Pete Emmel to soon unveil a "Renaissance Rods" website at some point but in the meantime if you'd like to contact Pete Emmel, he can be emailed at p_emmel5@hotmail.com.