New Spring Rod Building for 2009 Season

[rodmaker]

I kind of felt the same way when I tied my first IMX. After building on the IM6 blanks, (at that time they were a shiny brown).

It takes time to get use to, but I haven't had any problems with the dull finish.

[rodmaker]

Harvey,

What do build on??? I'm always open to looking/trying different things.

Rod

[EyesOnThePrize]

I personally liked the dull finish on the IMX - I used gold and silver for thread and it really makes those colors pop against the dull/matte black of the rod.

[Dark Cloud]

My first build was on a cabelas blank and subsequently well over 50% of the rods I built after that were. Mostly because I have never had an issue with the quality plus the IM7 and Fish Eagle II blanks are quite similar to blanks costing 2 or 3 times as much.

Most of my builds have been gifts for relatives or close friends at cost or free. I can usually build a really nice rod for around or under 100 bucks...

I have built on about every single brand blank out there and after handling, building, buying, and sending back alot of diff blanks I look more at what someone wants in a rod more than what brand.

Im ordering stuff now for a fly rod for a close cousin. Besides wanting a rod by me after seeing the one one I made his brother. He want to keep it onder 150$, 9ft 5wt, a unique costom grip, and a slightly faster action. That leaves out the slower IM6's and leads me right to cabelas IM7's of one of the TFO blanks.

Dont get me wrong, you usually do get what you pay for. The mid-upper range stuff is specked tighter and a tad cleaner looking. But many times the price point and quality dont go hand in hand...

Its nice haveing tons of blank options but sometimes its confusing and frusterating! Espacially for the beginer, but thats what questions and places like this forum are for...

[EyesOnThePrize]

Alright here is a question for you Dark Cloud,

My standard fishing is walleye - usually jig or (my favorite) lindy rigging.

Currently I have two rods I like:

A G.Loomis IMX popping rod 7ft med action, that I like for lindy rigging (it's nice for those deep eyes on mille lacs mud). Even though it is a relatively stiff rod, it is still pretty sensitive.

A Shikarri 7ft med-light - I really like for jigging - very sensitive.

Also I do a fair amount of fishing in the Boundary Waters. I like to keep my rods to 7 ft and single piece.

So I am debating what my next rod should be to enhance my arsenal. I figure I would like something that is med-light, 7 ft, and under $100 for the blank. I am not really partial to a brand (although do like G.Loomis).

Any suggestions?

Thanks

[A.W.Wolfram]

We all have our preferences and personally I would rather build on St Croix, but the Rainshadow blanks are substantially cheaper for the same quality. People can make up their own minds on what they want to purchase and why.

OK, My .02

The name doesn’t make the blank. What I mean by that is blank construction is more important then the name.

Lets take the names and origin out of it and see what is more important to us as builders.

IMO- action, taper, weight, and durability are more important then who made it.

Warrantees are getting to be standard with all manufactures.

Action and taper come from the cut shape on the sheet of material and the mandrel it is assembled on.

I use to build a lot on St Croix blanks and I own quite a few production rods by them. What I don’t like about most of the St Croix’s is the action. They seem more moderate then other blanks out there.

Weight comes from the material the blank is made out of. Every one has mid and high modulus blanks, 40 million being mid and 50 million being high. And every one has (state of the art) blank using high modulus graphite with a carbon fiber scrim (or some other term they use to describe the same thing). The technology is standard with all manufactures. Some could use a different resin or fiber, but all and all its apples to apples.

So, to compare blanks fairly you need to put the construction side by side.

And when you do that each one will be a little different and it still comes down to personal preference.

If the name is more important to you then action and fit to you then that’s your choose.

I chose what works and feels good (what ever it is) over a name .

[A.W.Wolfram]

Sorry to butt in.

7' ML mod-fast 6-12LB. 1/4 to 1/2 oz.

44 mill mod with a mat finish (like the one you like)

Rainshadow IP842

You could buy 2 for your price range and it is a hop skip and a jump for you to look and feel one before you buy (instad of taking the HSOforum gamble)

[bemidjibasser]

Eyes- I would look for a SC3S70MLF. That is an Avid blank in the the spinning series at the specs you wanted. I built one of these blanks last year for drop shotting bass and light jigs (1/8 to 3/16). It is a sweet blank and you should be able to get it for around $100.

[Dark Cloud]

Eye - You mention boundry waters, so are you looking for a 2 piece?

Personally I dislike one piece rods. Mine are in and out of diff boats and vehicles all the time and I prefer 2 piece. Plus with the new materals and furrels I have a hard time believing someone can tell the sensitivity difference...

My personal favorite general use rod is a 7 ft ML cabelas XML 6S- 703 for about 85 bucks. I love it for everything from light jigs to casting stickbaits and cranks. It is quite fast with lots of backbone, and light...

Quite similar is St Croixs SCIII S70mlf - that is offered in both a one and two piece rod. And about the same price.

Kinda depends on the color scheme and look of the rod you want. The XML is matte grey and the Croix is a pearl.

I you want a slightly slower and cheaper blank then there is the Fish Eagle II which is a glossy dark green.

That rainshadow mentioned a few post back is a nice blank also and I believe it is a neat dark blue glossy...

[sweept]

Just built a 6' - 10" Rainshadow XSB 843 5/16 - 3/4 oz. as a bait caster. Intend to use it primarily for light bottom bouncers and riggin. Can hardly wait to get to Chamberlain to use it.

[EyesOnThePrize]

Thanks for all the input.

DarkH - Even though I fish the Boundary Waters I actually still prefer one piece rods. We use a bazooka rod case to hold our rods. The nice thing is the case doubles as center tarp pole on those rainy days.

[rodmaker]

Eyes on the Prize,

Consider a 7' 6" Cabela's Fish eagle II ML , or a G. Loomis

HSR 9000 IMX $135 I believe for the IMX . They work great for rigging on Mille Lacs. Good slip bobber rod. And works great for deep water (Slab) Crappies.

My Son is building a 7'6" two piece St. Croix Avid ML. Same applications I mentioned above.