Jeff Davis, former owner of Foster’s Farm Market in Beach Haven, NJ knew he was hooked crafting custom-built fishing rods immediately after building his first one fifty years ago.

Since then, he has been building custom designed fishing rods from his workshop situated behind his house in Brant Beach, NJ. “I’ve built a few,” he said. “Maybe two, three hundred.”

But nothing lasts forever and Davis has now decided he is done hand crafting rods. “That is correct,” he said. “There’s a lot of sitting and bending over and my back isn’t what it used to be.”

His fishing rods, on the other hand, are made to last a lifetime.

“How long do my rods last?” he asked. “They can last forever if you take care of them.”

For Davis, making custom designed fishing rods has been a labor of love. “A craft and an art,” he said.

That labor of love is also labor intensive. From start to finish, each of his fishing rods takes hours to complete.

The process begins when a rod blank (the pole) is inserted into a lathe and coated with a fiberglass and graphite mixture. After almost twenty-four hours later, when it is completely dry, the rod is coated with Flex Coat.

After another drying period, the rod is ready to be painted with custom colors the client has requested.  “Unless it’s a surprise for someone I will probably stay in touch with the customers as to the decorations,” Davis said. “Or just use my discretion.”

Further embellishment is done by carefully wrapping spider web thin threads around the pole, one color at a time, to create different patterns. As a final step, the pole can be accessorized with sports team logos, college emblems or personal names and special dates.

Davis’s workshop is where the magic takes place. It was built by a carpenter who at the time was rebuilding his current home in Brant Beach, NJ. Its wall surfaces are covered with ship lap, and the room is full of the components of his craft which includes drying machines, a wall-to-wall table, a lathe, a foot pedal dimmer, and a collection of various colored threads used for embellishment.

“Before I got the professional equipment I was making rods with homemade Rube Goldberg equipment,” he said. ‘And then I finally sprung for professional equipment and over time I tweaked and improved it. I bought my equipment from Mud Hole, the number one wholesaler company of rod components in the country.”

Davis hasn’t quite figured out what to do with his workshop full of equipment now that he has decided to stop making custom rods. “I don’t know,” he said. “I have to make sure nobody in the family wants it. Maybe sell it.”

All the rods that Davis has custom crafted- except for his first rod and one he made for his daughter – have been sold to collectors as well as to people who use them to catch fish. “My rods are for a small population of people,” he said. “Usually, the rod is a present from a wife.”

Davis said a fancy fishing rod isn’t necessary to reel in a catch. But a custom designed rod can be better than a commercial one.

“You can catch a fish on a stick,” he said. “But when it comes to choosing between a custom rod and a commercial one, it’s like driving a low-end compact vehicle versus a custom NASCAR race car.”

Contact Information

Captain Jeff Davis will not be producing any more custom-designed fishing rods. But he will continue to operate his charter fishing boat out of Van’s Marina on 8^th St. and the Bay in Barnegat Light, NJ. for 4-hour fishing trips out in Barnegat Bay and the inlet.

For more information visit www.letitflylbi.com

Phone: 609-377-1299

Email: jw****@*****st.net

Images: Marjorie Amon

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