Alan has been a huge help in getting me set up for my first trip out of san diego this coming october! One of the biggest tasks that I've had to figure out which of my existing setups geared toward bottom fishing will "slot in" to which options for pelagic fishing. I must have talked poor Alan's ear off for hours! We were discussing alan's method for rating rods, which he described as such:
" Position the rod at a 45 degree angle with respect to the ground, held by the top of the foregrip and the butt. Then, pull downward from the tip, and note the force needed to position the tip halfway between the top of the arc and the butt of the rod. Take this force and divide by .3 (corresponding to 30% drag strength at strike). This will give the rod line class rating in pounds"
Of course, I had to make a couple of figures to describe this method using my rod collection and check the ratings at the same time (see attached). I found it most convenient to use weights (dumbbells and water bottles) while I supported the rod and my poor Fiancee took pictures. From there I was able to analyze the images offline and see exactly where the rod components were. End result is that a lot of these sticks can span the required line ranges, leaving plenty of funds free to waste on tackle :D
Thanks again to Alan for his help! I am a sucker for a nice quasi-scientific method :)
There is a reason that Alan is "The Boss". Those are great photos and tests Ryan! And you will find no shortage of folks here that will chime in on getting you prepared for success on your upcoming trip; the volume of knowledge and experience on this forum is excelled by all the quality folks that are here to help. - john
cool, thanks for the pictures, a picture is worth 1,000 words (or something like that)
Quote from: Ryan W on February 24, 2022, 02:10:06 AM
[...] and note the force needed to position the tip halfway between the top of the arc and the butt of the rod. Take this force and divide by .3 (corresponding to 30% drag strength at strike). This will give the rod line class rating in pounds"
60lb photos looks about halfway, but the 40lb and 30lb photos don't look like half. Should you have repeated your test with a little more weight?
You're right, I probably could have put some more weight on those 30 and 40 lb sticks. The 30 is a little funky because it has an extended rear grip and shortened foregrip so with too much pulling the balance could get a little off-kilter. The 40 lb stick could probably fish 50 (and i might fish it that way with straight braid), but i was planning on sticking with 40 lb mono for throwing jigs on our cedros trip.
Now to test them with some peligac fish! They have caught many lingcod (and even a 9 lb canary rockfish a few weeks ago!) but unlike with a tuna, that fight is won or lost in the first 10 feet
Did you find your measured/tested rod line class in the midrange of the factory's silk screened rating on the rods?
If so, it is validation of the mid-range rule as well as the 1/3-rule for max drag.
The boss has a jig on his fence for doing this. I used it on a bunch of old spinners, and found out I like them a lot.
The half way is subjective, and depends on how you like to fish. I prefer to play my fish, it is much more fun, and so I prefer a bend to about 75#. With glass it is easy, the rod and but should get close to touching :)
The Man
Quote from: Porthos on March 02, 2022, 04:36:20 PMDid you find your measured/tested rod line class in the midrange of the factory's silk screened rating on the rods?
If so, it is validation of the mid-range rule as well as the 1/3-rule for max drag.
It really varies. The 40 lb rod there is rated 40-80, but I wouldn't trust it fishing 20 lbs of drag for 60 ob. Similarly, the 60 lb rod is rated 50-60, and I think it will fish the 20 lbs of drag no problem (maybe even a little more!). The 30 lb stick is a custom job which has 20-40 on the rod, which I would tend to agree with. I just got a new rod for for big fish rated 80-130, will have to give it a new rating with the Tani method soon!
I am slightly different than Ron and prefer to have a little more backbone in my rods so I don't run out of lifting power. I personally prefer a rod with a sensitive tip but a lot of power further back...perhaps that is a holdover from bottom fishing for codfish, blackfish, and seabass back east with heavy sinkers
Good to have you along on the Oct trip. Last year was my first and I will be back again this year. You're gonna have a great time! One piece of advice, bring a spare liver 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. Bill
Quote from: Bill B (Tarfu) on March 10, 2022, 08:29:37 PMGood to have you along on the Oct trip. Last year was my first and I will be back again this year. You're gonna have a great time! One piece of advice, bring a spare liver 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. Bill
Very good advice, for sure.
Ronald Jones
Can we make this a "sticky" topic? Bill