SAFETY PIN HANGER AND 
NOTES ON VARNISHING 
RODS 
HANDY little kink in connection 
with varnishing fishing rods is the 
safety pin hanger herewith illustrated. 
This is for use in drying freshly varn¬ 
ished joints. Stretch a length of pic¬ 
ture wire across a corner of the room 
and suspend each joint by a safety pin 
attached to the top. When dry enough 
to handle, you can slide them back and 
forth at will on the “loop” of the pins. 
Varnishing should always be done in 
a warm room (about 70%) free from 
dust. If the weather is very damp, it 
is better to wait, as dampness and cold 
will sometimes cause 
the varnish to 
“crawl” and ruin 
your job. 
The ordinary 
color preservative 
bought in stores is 
usually made of col- 
lodian or amyl- 
acetate. It forms a 
coating which en¬ 
closes the silk but 
does not penetrate 
the windings and 
thus grip the wood. 
When exposed to air 
and sunlight on the 
stream, windings so 
treated will often 
come loose and allow 
the guide to slip from the joint. 
It is better to use the thinnest and 
whitest shellac obtainable, if one de¬ 
sires the color to retain nearly its 
original hue. The best and most per¬ 
manent method, however, is to use a 
much lighter colored silk than you de¬ 
sire to have on the finished windings. 
Then coat evenly with the lightest spar 
varnish. When the first coat is dry, 
rub with fine powdered pumice or rot¬ 
ten stone, wipe carefully and varnish. 
If you desire a crimson winding, use a 
bright pink silk to start with. Apply 
at least three thin coats of varnish, 
putting it on rapidly and allowing it to 
flow evenly. The varnishing room 
must be dust free and must have an 
even temperature. 
Rods should be varnished at the close 
of each season, especially if they have 
been subjected to hard use. Take 
plenty of time for the work and start 
early in the winter, then it is a 
pleasant task indeed. 
Harry Irwin. 
fisherman who forgets to properly pro¬ 
tect his rod. F. K. Singer, 
Pittsburgh, Pa. 
BROKEN AGATE GUIDES 
pjOR years one may go a-casting with 
a good 5%-foot steel rod as I have 
done, then all at once some of the lug¬ 
gage got mixed up with the rod and 
when it was unpacked two agate guides 
were found among the missing. Fur¬ 
thermore, the ring of the guides next 
to the tip was broken. 
A WIRE & SA 
f - 1 
''AL 
ETY PIN HANGER FOR 
i 
FRESH VARNISHED ROD JOINTS 
The big question was a quick repair, 
and the sporting goods man said O. K. 
in three or four days, as he might have 
to send it to the factory. Now, some 
people have either lots of money or 
lots of rods, but this was my only one 
and I wanted it repaired and at once, 
and here is how it was done in twenty 
minutes: 
A jeweler supplied me with a piece 
of 14-gauge German silver wire, and 
four turns were made around the end 
of a rattail file. Then two rings were 
cut off and dressed up to be the exact 
size of the agate guides. 
A soldering iron and some half-and- 
half completed the job in a jiffy. And 
maybe this will help some other poor 
RETRIEVING DUCKS 
HANDY little device for retriev- 
ducks that have fallen in lakes or 
ponds, where the shooter has no boat or 
dog, is a simple arrangement of fish 
line or chalk line that may be carried 
in the pocket. 
Make a sliding knot or “noose” on 
each end of a piece of line about five 
or six feet long. In the center of this, 
attach the main line, which should be 
about one hundred feet long. This 
may then be rolled up and put into a 
pocket of your game 
coat. When you 
- have killed a duck 
near shore, cut a 
straight stick about 
a yard long and 
slide one loop over 
each end and pull 
them tight. Then 
uncoil the line on 
the ground in front 
of you and throw 
the sticw beyond the 
duck, but as near to 
it as possible. By 
walking either up or 
down the shore, you 
can pull the loop 
over the bird, and 
thus drag it in. 
Those marsh hunters who are also 
bait casters can use a short rod with 
an ordinary plug, to advantage. A 
steel rod is best for the purpose, as it 
consists of short joints, which go into 
the pocket readily. A regular bait¬ 
casting reel and line is used. Attach 
the plug and cast oevr the floating bird. 
Move up or down the shore until the 
line is over the bird. Then reel in 
until the plug touches the duck. The 
gang hooks will become entangled in 
the feathers and the bird may be re¬ 
trieved by gentle reeling. 
It is best to use a heavy floating 
plug. Unscrew the standard hooks 
found on the plug and substitute large 
gangs, as they get a better grip on 
the bird. Marsh Hunter. 
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