188 AMATEUR RODMAKING 



your oilstone handy, and hone the cutters fre- 

 quently, for with this blunt edge a very sharp 

 iron is a necessity as well as a joy. 



This brings us to the rough work on the 

 strips. As an aid I have found that a piece 

 of pine board with a grooved edge is as good 

 as anything. Fasten it in your vise and hold 

 the strips in the groove while planing them. 

 It is a good plan to plane the sides only at 

 first, thus leaving the strips rectangular in sec- 

 tion, and tapering slightly. 



Select the best six strips for the purpose, 

 and match them. Lay them all enamel up on 

 the bench, first having marked on its top two 

 lines, as far apart as the length of your rod 

 joints when finished. Place the first strip over 

 these marks so that the fewest possible num- 

 ber of knots will be between them. Lay the 

 second strip alongside of the first one, and 

 shift it so that its knots will not come very 

 close to those on the first strip. By shifting 

 the rest of the strips many times, or trying 

 still others instead of some at first selected, 

 you will eventually be able to match up six 

 strips for the butt joint, with no two knots 

 directly opposite each other. Mark across all 

 of them in two places, and saw them, being 

 careful that their length exceeds by at least 



