When it comes to making custom fishing rods, Barry Weaver employs many skills. Weaver alternates among being a woodworker, an engineer, a lathe operator, a technician and an assembler. And when it ...

ARCHBALD – From Pittsburgh Steelers colors to a stack of skulls to match a client’s tattoos, Mike Kozlowski has decked out his goods to suit his customers’ tastes for years. But the work he does goes ...

For 5 Questions this week, the Herald speaks to Adam Omlid, who runs Aro Custom Rods, from his home in Grand Forks. A: It’s not my full-time job, it started out as a hobby. I started it about seven ...

In his quest for the perfect ice fishing rod, Brandon Greene says he never could find one he liked and that fit just right. So, he built one that did. And hooked a booming side venture in the process.

Finding your passion in life is everyone’s goal and if you’re lucky enough, you can sometimes figure it out at a young age. For Christian Bueter, he discovered that building and wrapping fishing rods ...

CHISHOLM, Minn. — If there’s ever a tornado warning for this Iron Range town, Mike Lesch will likely be safe. That’s because he already spends a lot of time in his basement shop, where he turns drab ...

The man on the other end of the phone was noticeably hesitant, perhaps even a little embarrassed. He had spent 34 years in the quiet, comfortable background of the sport-fishing industry, most ...

It was familiar fishing advice in an unusual setting. Because I wasn’t standing on a boat, but in the shop of Snake River Custom Rods owners Ricky and Goldie Prieto. And the line I was keeping tight ...

CHISHOLM — If there’s ever a tornado warning for this Iron Range town, Mike Lesch will likely be safe. That’s because he already spends a lot of time in his basement shop, where he turns drab sticks ...

Mauston fishing enthusiasts looking for a custom fishing rod don’t have to travel far. Mike Taake makes custom fishing rods from his basement workshop in Mauston, a craft he’s refined for 35 years.