Looking for opinions

[harleybob87]

Yea I can't spell LOL. I have the following opinion on custom built rods. I am a strong believer in less is more. I feel that instead of spending money on fancy butt wraps, weaving, etc. you should put it in components. I am a firm believer that you should use the best of everything including but not liminted to cork, reel seats, guides and tip tops. A lot of times a single componet will cost more then the blank itself. Clasic example good cork $50+, guides $40+. You can get a good blank for about $40 depending on what you want. I am just curious how others feel about this. Do you get the best of componets or do you build for cost? I have put together quite a few rods and unless the customer stated they did not want the best of components I figured that price in the cost of the rod. Even those I have donated to organizations. If you see a rod of mine for sale for under $100 I used ordinary components. Am I being stupid here or what? I also don't like to build what I call preaty rods, those with fancy butt wraps or snakeskin, or mother of pearl inlays. I feel all this takes away from the action of the rod. I have a couple of rods I will be selling here with just the basic componets and you will see how sparse I build. Just feeling a little insecure for some reason. Got a back log on rods so am preaty busy there and very happy customers just want some of your thoughts.

[JohnScott]

Bob -

I've only built two rods so my experience is quite limited. However, I have strong inclinations toward simple, functional, inexpensive and "less is more" in most things, and that has carried over to the rods I've built and the ones I'm thinking about building.

Probably when I have more confidence in what I am doing and how a given rod will turn out, I'll be more inclined to go with higher quality components, but I can't see the basic approach described above changing - as long as the more expensive components represent real value in the overall scheme of things.

My guess is that one of your rods would feel right at home where I live.

John

[PanFisher]

I started building rods in the late 70's as I wanted to build the best there was for tournament casting. Then I decided to get fancy and add decorative wraps. Through the years I have found a few things have become important to me.

My priority has become performance. The choice of guides DOES make a very big difference. Each type has its pluses and minuses so I decide on the guides based on what the rod is designed to do. I also find guide placement to be equally as important if not MORE important. I tend to disagree with some of the comments I've seen on the board in this regard. Using a guide chart is just building someone else's rod (IMHO) - I prefer to use my designs.

I like the smaller guides for rods designed to fish in an environment where accuracy is critical - I go to larger guides if the environment calls for covering a lot of water. The larger guides will allow the caster to shoot a further distance. I also prefer to use a "Training Guide" about three to four inches up from the stripper. Even on my 2 wt I have a single foot Hopkins & Holloway wire guide as a training guide. The line just flows through the guides better (IMHO).

The handle needs to be a proper size for the caster. I once had a friend who built some of the same blanks I built and they were absolutely terrible to cast. He said the same about my rods. That's when we realized his hands were twice (literally!) the size of mine. He couldn't get a hold of my small handles and couldn't get my fingers around his.

As for reel seats I consider two aspects to be important. First it must be glued on so well it can only be cut off later. If I put a reel seat and handle on a blank I DO NOT expect it to come off. Second the reel seat must hold the reel properly. I have seen some very expensive/beautiful reel seats that were a pain to fish with because the reel keeps falling off. I choose a reel seat by its ability to hold the reel first; then by appearance.

As for looks that is also important but it can be done without adding all the weight. A single metallic colored thread for a trim, or mid-wrap can add some real beauty. I like the silver and gold but have used many other colors as well. It doesn't take much to add a touch of class - just a little creativity.

I used to build expensive rods, now I've gotten cheap and make a challenge of building exceptionally good rods on a budget.

[Greg F]

I agree with you, harleybob. Personally I prefer the look of rods that are less decorated. I do like a nice colored thread or metallic trim wrap as long as it's small. I use single foot guides and start the thread about three wraps from the guide foot. I like minimal finish on the wraps, too, because footballs really bother me. I guess I just like everything that is put on the blank to be minimal, so as not to take away from the performance and look of the rod. I am going to try varnish for the inscription area next rod, so it doesn't get a build up of epoxy there. Now of course I appreciate the skill and artistry that goes into a "fancy" rod; I do not have that skill. I am happy there are builders that can do that for those that want it.

[Joe Valencic]

Fit, form & function. I don't see "fancy" in there anywhere. I agree with PanFisher's assesment. A good quality blank with a decent reel seat and a well fitting grip are my priorities. In my opinion, tournament grade guides are wasted on the average fisherman (spacing IS important), as most of us catch fish within 30-50' of where we're standing. The training guide is a nice touch, but not really necessary. Salt is a different animal all together.

I see no purpose in fancy wraps that spell out the name of your favorite recording artist or your first bird dog or your significant other. It's just fluff like bull horns on the hood of a caddy...window dressing and vanity. So you can weave, who really cares? It's time added and more importantly, WEIGHT added unnecessarily unless the rod is for display purposes only.

That's MY opinion, for what it's worth.

Joe

[ol' blue]

I went with the fancy wraps on my earlier rods, but have gone back to more functional. I have some preferences that I stick with, such as I am starting to prefer fancier seats and ceramic guides. Neither are a real advantage, but I like them.
I might disagree when you get to the point where another component out prices your blank. If so and you are working from a budget, you might be able to get a better casting tool for your budget if you cut back a bit on your guides or a seat, and upgrade the blank, especially if you a on the economy side of the equation. The blank (and you) does do all the casting. I don't believe that high priced ceramic guides perform any better than cheap ceramics on a fly rod. Ceramic over snakes only show an average of 3' or so shooting improvement IIRC. That's not really much, IMO. The rest is aesthetics. If you like it, go for it. It will be a great custom rod that is exactly what you wanted. That is the point. But if you would have spent $35 instead of $125 on components, I'll bet the rod would have performed exactly the same in hand.

[Normand]

Second the reel seat must hold the reel properly. I have seen some very expensive/beautiful reel seats that were a pain to fish with because the reel keeps falling off. I choose a reel seat by its ability to hold the reel first; then by appearance.

uumm not all reels fit all reel seats. i have a factory built winston that will not accept all of my reels, only certain ones. the only way a particular reel will fit is if i were to file down the reel seat on the reel and thats not gonna happen. is that the fault of the reel seat on the rod or the reel seat on the reel?

[dunfly]

I am pretty much a minimalist also, but I have almost the opposite approach when preparing to build a rod. I start with a good blank that is suited to the rod I want to build. All of the blanks I have used are $100+ blanks including Batson RX7+, RX8+ and Pac Bay Custom series, although I have been lucky about finding them on sale. After that I use mostly mid grade components that match the look of the rod.

While components have some effect on the way the rod fishes, it is the blank that defines the action of the rod. I am just beginning to turn my own cork since it is getting so hard to find good preformed cork grips. As far as wraps, I usually use plain wraps or a minimum number of trim wraps. No feathers, fancy wraps, Elvis Presley inlays or fuzzy dice.

[fishbum]

I like to voice opinions. I made my first rod in 1976. I made a couple dozen between 1976 and 1990. In 1990 I started my rod building business. I have long lost track of hwo many rods I have built over the years.

Now to the question at hand. How fancy? Answer, as fancy as the customer is willing to pay for. The price of a fancy butt wrap can very well run $150.00 - $200.00 or more depending on the complexity. Is all that necessary? No it isn't. However, as a rod builder it is not for us to decide. That decision belongs to the customer.

Today I only make bamboo fly rods. I make all the blanks, reel seats, winding checks, grips, and ferrules. Cork grips are glued up and turned to shape on the blank. I build one or two graphite rods per year and then only for special long time customers.

fishbum

[dudley]

I don't build my rods to look at them. I want them to perform
I fish by myself 90% of the time, and believe me nobody's out there admiring my craftsmanship.
I buy the best blank I can afford and then put it together as simply as possible.
I'd been building my rods with spinning rod reel seats and bottle cork fighting butts lately, and I like that a lot. They're nearly indestructible and very lightweight.
They may not look 'purdy' but they fish well and that's what it's all about for me.