The qualities of a spinning rod ...

[clutch_kick]

I'm doing my research for a new rod project.  Basically, i already have an idea of what I want but, I want other members' input.  What do the local spinners look for in a rod?

So this is for Martin, Ed and the spinnisti on this forum, kindly use this checklist to outline your ideal rod, which should be aimed at the more common mediterranean fish that we catch with spinning.

- Length and Pieces
- Line Weight
- Lure Weight
- Action (slow/medium/fast)
- Handle (Cork/EVA)
- Any other remarks, eg: Cost to quality ratio, would you be willing to pay that little bit more to get SiC guides instead of Alconite?

[MartinB]

I'm doing my research for a new rod project.  Basically, i already have an idea of what I want but, I want other members' input.  What do the local spinners look for in a rod?

So this is for Martin, Ed and the spinnisti on this forum, kindly use this checklist to outline your ideal rod, which should be aimed at the more common mediterranean fish that we catch with spinning.

- Length and Pieces
- Line Weight
- Lure Weight
- Action (slow/medium/fast)
- Handle (Cork/EVA)
- Any other remarks, eg: Cost to quality ratio, would you be willing to pay that little bit more to get SiC guides instead of Alconite?

Hi Clutch!

More than glad to give you my input mate! its awesome that we have someone local getting into rod building!,although i suspect we'll probably have a very similar idea of the 'ultimate' custom spinning rod  
Anyway's here goes!

Length & peices :- Personally my ideal spinning rod would be between 3.5-4.5m max in a two peice config. Although the obvious trade off with this config. is the sections would be 1.5-2m long which can be a bit of a pain in the ass when your going to not so accessable fishing spots..and telescopic rods whilst definitly being more comfortable to carry around,have alot of problems with the running guides sticking or flipping upwards during casts (usually the 2nd and/or 3rd ring from the tip ring) & also one of the sections sticking (refusing to close) after a long spinning session..Grrrr!

Lure weight :- a weight of between 20g and 60/70g ideally as i feel it covers most fishing scenario's

Action:- Medium 100% definitley! The best compromise between surface and deep diving lure fishing imho! A nice 'straight' continuous taper all the way throught the blank ideally.

Handle :-  Aesthetically speaking cork!!!..looks awesome,but in my experience for practicality,durability and a more lasting finish (our climate doesn't do a cork finish any favours unfortunatly!) so then it has to be EVA.
Another thing i look for in a spinning rod's handle is that the back peice (from rod seat to rod butt) be around 30cm length so it tucks nicely under your forearm up to your elbow so you have a nice fulcrum & don't have too much undue strain on your wrist when fighting a fish & with continuous casting (especially if your using an "inchiku" lure/retrival)..also having a butt tip that unscrews so you can put some weight inside to fine tune the balance of your reel is great if you use a few different reels like me.  
Also i prefer a casting trigger reel seat like on alot of lamiglas rods.

As for paying a bit extra for SiC guide..definitly! Tbh i was just speaking with a local tackle agent (angler centre) about changing the rings on one of my rods over to SiC guides!
Good luck with your project! Can't wait to see what you come up with mate!  

[clutch_kick]

Thanks Martin, well the length of the rod you mention obviously reflects the spots where you prefer to fish.  However, you raise the point of not having too much strain on the wrist.  Keep in mind that the longer the rod is, the heavier the effort you have to make to work the lure or fight the fish. The only way to offset it would be to use a parabolic action rod which is slow to medium.

Also a 30cm lower grip is very short for such a long rod.  Idealy it would be based on one of those american Surf Spinning blanks that are long and the handle would be an EVA split grip, to keep it light, and have it fitted to your desired fit.  Balancing weights would be no problemo at all, there are brass or aluminiun balancing discs on the market.

All in all you pretty much have a nice idea for a Heavy Action Surf Spinning rod, that can be excellently used for shore jigging very effectively.  I just don't understand why you need a casting trigger on a spinning rod. 

[MartinB]

Np mate! I think maybe i wasn't exactly clear on the length of the back peice/handle i didn't mean the whole back peice having a 30cm length but from the end of the reel seat (just behind the reel) to the butt..In fact the american style split grip is ideal for such a rod and they are pretty much all config to have this "overhang" (if that makes more sense) of 30cm,which is roughly the average length of an adults forearm and will afford you alot more control on a longer version 4.5m rod (for more secluded deep water spots) and more so on a 3.5m rod,which i feel is the ideal "go between" length for a rod suitable for both ports and harbours and also being decent for the more secluded spots as well.
In fact my "proper" 2 peice spinning rod is 3.3m in length and i find it ideal for ports whilst also being pretty decent for other spots,without giving up too much in the way of casting distance..
I just read through what i posted previously and realised i didn't put the word style after casting trigger..no wonder you couldn't figure what i meant..here's what i was trying,badly,to explain
The seat has one adjustable ring and the opposing side is recessed into the blank/handle like the casting trigger style seat...just obviously minus the casting trigger which wouldn't be very ergonomical on a spinning rod!.... 
I used to own a Shimano travel spinning rod like this & it was just the best reel seat ive ever seen! It seated the reel alot more sturdier than the more traditional spinning reel seat by far and was still very weasy to undo after a long session.
As i mentioned Lamiglas do a few of their spinning rods this way.I can see why!

[clutch_kick]

Regarding the reel seat, fuji have a product that works that way. I think the model is IPS.  It's a smart and neat way to merge the reel seat to the lower grip.

regarding the lower grip 'over hang', I still think that 30 cm is short.  Sure it will tuck in nicely under the fore arm, but for casting the rod will be unbalanced.  On a 3.5m rod I would go for at least a 50cm lower Grip, to balance out the rest of the rod during the casts, without the need for any heavy metal discs at the butt end.

[MartinB]

Regarding the reel seat, fuji have a product that works that way. I think the model is IPS.  It's a smart and neat way to merge the reel seat to the lower grip.

Just done a quick search and yep that's the model! Like i said i found that the reel is alot more sturdier with this reel seat type,especially if your doing some light spinning and you happen to hook-up on a decent 'fighting fish' like say a jack..

regarding the lower grip 'over hang', I still think that 30 cm is short.  Sure it will tuck in nicely under the fore arm, but for casting the rod will be unbalanced.  On a 3.5m rod I would go for at least a 50cm lower Grip, to balance out the rest of the rod during the casts, without the need for any heavy metal discs at the butt end.

Im sure your probably right about this mate! and if on the off chance your not,id rather have an extra 20cm of "overhang" than having it too short which would be a major discomfort!
Anyway like i said every success on your endeavour!! and when its ready maybe we can meet up and go for a spin session and give it a baptism of fire?!  

[clutch_kick]

hehe ... sure ... you know I am scared of heights lol

[MartinB]

hehe ... sure ... you know I am scared of heights lol

Of course you are...LOL 

[clutch_kick]

Anyway like i said every success on your endeavour!! and when its ready maybe we can meet up and go for a spin session and give it a baptism of fire?!

To be honest with you, it won't be ready for a while.  I cannot justify buying another blank, guides, etc, just for the heck of it.  Good blanks for a 10' rod range from $180 to $300, then you add in the Fuji guides and that's another $60   not exactly cheap!

On a different note, it is interesting to see that only Martin has contributed to this thread.  I ws sure that there are many more people who practice spinning on this forum? We need contributors on the Forum, not just Leechers.

[MartinB]

Anyway like i said every success on your endeavour!! and when its ready maybe we can meet up and go for a spin session and give it a baptism of fire?!

To be honest with you, it won't be ready for a while.  I cannot justify buying another blank, guides, etc, just for the heck of it.  Good blanks for a 10' rod range from $180 to $300, then you add in the Fuji guides and that's another $60   not exactly cheap!

Yeah i noticed that on the quick search i did!!...True its not cheap,but then again as they say "you get what you pay for !"
And as you well know mate,a custom built rod costs a bomb to buy on the net! or at least the ones ive seen!
In my opinion if its being done locally then that way you can go and meet the guy and talk face to face,and more importantly see his work 'in the flesh' so to speak!

Also don't worry if its not ready for a while! If you wanna go for a spin session after the festi just give me a buzz! Maybe we can finally do that spnott session!!

[jean]

Hey Guys,

Have not posted for quite a while. Actually have not fished for over a year let alone went spinning. Full time work and studies are getting the best of me. I read with great interest your posts on the topic, and it got me going to find some time for a quick spinning session. Yet unfortunately, when I went to have a look at my rods most of the guides went bust. I took the rods for repairs but the costs I think is going to be quite high - after i took them I had a look at my surf rods and those too have guide problems. (the spinning rods are a 2.7m 10-25g action and a 3.2m 20-80g -not sure about the length  but the action is meant to be correct)

Now its true I am not that meticulous when it comes to cleaning rods after a session but wanted to ask how do you go about maintaining your rods, fixing them and stuff! And whats your opinion about Fuji Guides?

I hope that in 2010 i will manage to get organised to at least spin some more.

Thanks and regards,
jean

[clutch_kick]

Hi Jean.  Keeping your guides in good nick is not complicated.  All it takes is a simple wash down with luke warm, tap water once you get home.  Then dry them off with kitchen paper.  Every now and then spray them with solution of water and soap, give the whole rod a good rub with a soft sponge, and then rinse it with luke warm water.  Dry them off and apply some car dashboard spray on a cotton rag, and wipe the whole rod, but not cork grips.  The rod will look virtually new 

Ofcourse, certain 'cheaper' guides, will inevitably rust, break, lose rings.  That's why you pay a premium price for quality guides like Fuji and AFTCO.  Just take a look at the new Titanium guides, virtually corrosion proof, but they will burn a hole in your pocket.

[Granitu]

i have a rod with titanium guides, really corrosion free

[jean]

Wow thanks Clutch_kick,

That's a bit of a long process to do at 1:00am and then having to wake up at 6am to go to work hehe but I think its about time I start treating my rods with a little more respect hehe. The problem with rods is that at times you look forward so much to getting newer rods that you consciously ignore those rods that are serving you well hehe. What I found particularly interesting is using the dashboard spray. So do you suggest using the ones with UV protection? And with respect to the cork, is there anything one can do?

Basically after looking on the net re changing guides I got into certain rod building sites and hence interest is increasing. Yet as I said, I'm no expert in the field and have not been fishing in ages (and will be posting lots of questions as I'm deciding to focus on spinning).

I think constructing an all rounder would be hard but what should be kept in mind are the places you fish from. I think your project should take off from there. For example, if night fishing in ports is your thing I would go for a rod that would guarantee casting precision (to get to the nasty spots and control lures well). Hence a good 2.7m with a light action.

On the other hand when fishing from rocky shores I think MartinB said it all in an amazing manner!

I don't know if you would be interested, and actually wanted to ask whether anyone is actually trying the following – spinning with waders in shallow waters with incoming surf. I think a heavy strong action rod would be necessary to cast heavy lures against the incoming wind.  I mean fusing surfcasting experiences and trying to take on some nice bass via spinning would be fantastic.

Therefore I think a 3.2m rod (2pcs), that could cast 10-80grams, with medium action, would be best as an all-rounder. Lamiglass produce a rod of this type but the budget is way high!