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Step 1
Purchase a bale of Tonkin bamboo cane. It's available in 12-foot lengths in bales of 20 culms. You can purchase them singly but it's more expensive.
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Step 2
Split the bamboo using an old, thick bladed knife and a mallet. It's easiest to start with a natural split in the bamboo. Make sure to wear leather gloves as you're at a high risk to cut yourself. Split the rod in half, each half in thirds and each third in quarters to yield 24 strips.
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Step 3
Keep the same orientation as they were in the culm, and separate the bamboo into 6 pieces for the butt section and 12 pieces for the tip sections of the bamboo rod.
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Step 4
Plane the bamboo rod so that they are equilateral triangles. Use a center gauge to check the accuracy of the angles. They should be at 60 degree angles.
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Step 5
Bind the bamboo strips together in hexagons and tie them using string. Make sure the side facing out is the side that still has the original enamel layer. Heat the strips in a 6-foot long oven to dry out excess moisture, straighten the rods and stiffen the cane. Remove the string.
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Step 6
Glue the strips then bind them together tightly with string in 3 hexagonal bundles. Allow them to dry then sand them. Taper the bamboo fly fishing rod so that the tip is 74 thousandths of an inch thick.
