8 or 9 weight ideas

[Greg F]

I posted something here without realizing you guys were on page two. Edit: I believe Hugefish can build a very nice fast action 9 wt rod for around $200. Batson rx8 and Mudhole MHX are lighter than TFO TiCrx. Personally I would not buy a TFO 9 wt factory rod only because they use HUGE guides and I see no reason for that. PacBay just came out with a new line of fast action blanks, too. Dan Craft prices have gone up.

[jstraightj]

Fish,

Just got first order from Seiver Manufacturing, for salt 9ft 12wt build. Tigereye blank ( mod. fast ) looks far betterthan the $30 it cost. I ordered all components except for handle as I make my own foam covered fiber carbon. total price including shipping a little over $60. Fantastic service, but call as numerous products are out of stock. I'll post more after rod is completed.

[cheffy]

just putting it out there that Utmost enterprises has a killer deal on blanks right now, including some 9' 8wts. i just picked p a 3pc 9 7 wt with shipping for just over $30.

[LadyFisher]

Something to consider - the manufacturers do not use single-foot guides on rods larger than 5 wt. The reason? I was told the force/torque on them in the larger weights is enough to tear them off.

[kbproctor]

Lots of opinions here.

If it was me, I think I would start with the Tiger Eye blank. I did one for my lawyer not too long ago and he uses it for bonefish and loves it. The foam might be an option. There is nothing saying you can't use it on a fly rod, nothing at all. The graphite grips work well, too and are very light. My choice would be to turn a custom grip from cork, cork mixes, and cork burls and seal it well. I would make a matching fighting butt that mounts permanently to the rear of the blank.

Double foot guides over about 6w are the "norm". However, considering that an 11' spinning surf rod that will chuck a half pound of bait 100 yards or better and can drag some fair sized fish to shore uses single foot guides, I don't think it would be absolutely necessary to use double foot guides on an 8w. A 3 turn Forhan lock on the wraps would certainly be in order, though. I think you will break your tippet or leader before you pull a guide loose.

If you like ceramics, Fuji SIC micro guides might be an option. If you use the concept system for placing guides, you will have more guides and the weight will be distributed more evenly along the blank. They shoot like crazy, too. Of course, snakes are always an option, but go for higher quality stainless snakes instead of plated ones due to the salt. Snake Brand and the Fuji SIC guides are both pricey. Using these will preclude using an expensive blank to stay under the $200 limit. The REC guides do sing to you, but it's tough to destroy one. Since most folks are more careful than that with their gear, I do not see them as worth the price. My choice would be a nice Fuji stripper and taming guide followed by TiCH (not plated) H&H single foot guides. These will wear and function well at a moderate cost. Not the cheapest, but far from the most expensive, too.

For your reel seat, the convention is aluminum or something with a graphite insert. If the insert is made with stabilized wood, it should make no difference whatsoever. I would probably go with one of American Tackle's fancy cutout seats with the contrasting aluminum insert. They are sharp looking and moderate in cost.