I have a Sig V 4wt blank, 9ft that I am getting ready to build. I am pretty new to this and have a question. I have heard a lot about Fuji SIC titanium guides. I have some TLSG 8’s and 7’s as running guides and single foot 12 and 10 strippers. Will using the 8’s and 7’s as runners be too heavy for this blank and slow the action vs using a set of wire guides? Or should I just drop down to 6’s or switch to wire guides for this blank. Thanks.
BB
I have one of the old Sig V blanks, and I tied mine using black frame, gold ring guides. I would use 6’s for runners, and keep your wraps as small as possible, just to get everything you can from your blank. The Sig V is a wonderful line of blanks, and I think you’ll love it when you are done.
If you are really concerned about weight, you can always look at the titan guides. They are very light, but still have the ceramic insert. I personally like the ceramics, and feel they shoot line much better than the wire guides. And your Dan Craft will definitely throw some line out there when you need it to. If it were me, I’d stick with a ceramic, and keep the wraps and finish as light as you can.
This is a picture of my stripping guide to give you an idea of what I used. The running guides were the same type, but with single foot fly guide style.
Just a related question – how are these Sig V blanks rated? Fast, Mod-fast??
What tis the modulus?
Dan’s old line had the Sig V with a med-fast action, the Sig III with a mod-fast action, and the Sig IV with a fast action. The Sig V was the lightest and slowest action (but still a very good action IMO), the Sig IV was the heaviest and the fastest action and the Sig III fell right in between in both weight and action.
I think today’s line is similar, with the Sig V being the lightest and slowest (60 mil modulus), the Sig 3 is next (51 mil mod) and the FT light/FT is the heaviest (57 mil mod). The mod numbers probably don’t match what many expect, but there is a lot more to a rod’s performance and weight beyond the modulus numbers. I really like the Sig V’s action, but haven’t tried any of the Sig III or FT line. I have heard some say that the FT line is VERY fast action and many have said it was too fast for their taste. The folks who like them, though, really like them.
Hope this helps.
Thanks for the reply. I think I will drop down to 6’s for the runners maybe. I have been reading a lot between here and rodbuilding.org to decide what to do with the guides. Some have said they can tell the difference in the action between Titanium SIC’s and using wire guides but just seems hard for me to beliew when I hold a pile of 7 SIC’s and they seem extremely light. I know I didn’t put them on a scale but when you have line running through them and a fly on line and a fly loading the end just seems like any weight difference may be miniscule. But that is why I am asking the experts as I am a rookie builder!
PS: The Sig V’s are supposed to be Medium Fast action. From what everyone tells me they recover very quickly but have a medium overall action feel.
BB
You are looking at the right sites to get good answers. I have trouble believing the impact is that much, especially since that handful of guides is distributed over the length of the rod and not hanging on the end. The thread and finish are probably more weight. I’m sure that SIC or titans would be just fine on the rod, though. You can always tie or tape them on without finish and cast them, and then tie on some snakes and compare. I’ll bet there are guys who can tell the difference, I’m just not one of them.
I think the light weight and fast recovery speed is what makes the Sig V so nice to cast for me. I can cast a medium action blank just fine, but that quicker recovery rate can really crank out the line if you need it to. I just like casting it and that’s the bottom line for me.
Why don’t you give Dan a call and ask him? He’s very helpful. Tell him what you want to use the rod for and any other concerns you might have.
John
Excellent advice! Dan is a great resource that I should have mentioned before.