Hello everyone, I have a small collection of graphite framed Shimano TLD star drags. I started buying them after reading an old thread on this site about what gear to leave to a panga fisherman who was guiding for a member. I have three TLD 15/30s, one triton star drag 3 gt, one TLD 20/40, one speedmaster IV, one 100 GT speedmaster, and one speedmaster tsm II fs (which actually has an aluminum cage and graphite side plates).
I have always wondered though if the graphite frames will degrade over time. My question is if that is a valid concern. What is the "graphite" made of, how durable is it, will it become brittle over the decades or somehow break down chemically? Is it less likely to survive the years compared to say a aluminum framed reel (example - my beloved daiwa sealines, Tiburon framed Penn senators)?
Any feedback on this will be appreciated.
Thanks, Chip
These "graphite" reel body parts are made from Nylon (probably Nylon 6/6) with chopped carbon fibers blended in to make the material stiffer. Some reels use a bit more fiber than others. The TLDs are are the rigid side, so maybe around 20% fiber. I have a couple Daiwas that seem a bit more flexy. Rigidity makes for less flexing, but is more brittle. No free lunch in materials science.
Nylon will degrade when exposed to UV light, but it otherwise quite durable over time. These reel parts are loaded up with carbon black, which greatly helps to minimize UV penetration.
You will often see a grayish chalky surface on older graphite reels that have been out in the sun a lot. This is UV damaged nylon. With all that carbon black, UV light doesn't penetrate easily, so the damage is usually just on the outside facing surfaces, and is only cosmetic.
Folk put "rejuvenating" products on UV damaged plastics (including nylon), which does nothing to reverse the damage to the molecular structure, but might mask some of the discoloration and maybe provide some temporary UV protection.
Mostly beecause of the corrosion risk for aluminum in saltwater, I actually prefer graphite body parts (frames and especially sideplates). I have one reel (a Newell) with a graphite spool which is a fabulous caster by virtue of being much lighter than the aluminum spools, although graphite spools can be a bit risky if they are loaded up with mono instead of braid. And graphite reels are usually significantly lighter - check out the weight changes when a reel is "upgraded" to all aluminum aftermarket parts.
Once the model of reel gets too wide and/or the drag requirements get too large, graphite starts to loose out to aluminum. It is either going too flex too much or fracture. This is why we see some frame failures in the old wider versions of the TLD 50 lever drags (LRS), but not in the TLD 20s.
Haven't hear of a frame failure on a TLD 15/30 star. I fish them with impunity with drag up to 20 lbs. I am not sure that I would be comfortable going too far past 20, but mostly because of how the foot is riveted to the frame. Frame to foot is where load gets concentrated, and there isn't a great way to make a strong attachment going from Nylon to stainless on any of these reels. On most graphite reels, the clamp attachment is to the foot, so a clamp does not further distribute the load off of the rivets.
-J
The Boss' 320GTi tutorial covers graphite pretty well. He agrees with the 20# limit, and that's all I really want to pull against.
It might seem that lighter colored reels get less of the surface degradation, but wipe an old one down with alcohol and you'll see it, the grey just matches the frame better!
I fish a Grand Wave Z 20 wide a lot, caught 30# yellowtail and 25# albacore with it, and never had a concern. In it's former life, it lived in the open rod holder of a boat in San Diego for years, it would take a long long time for UV degradation to hurt a TLD.
The Man
"Graphite" really means plastic. But if used to their original design parameters (ie. not spooled with heavy braid and fished with heavy drag settings) something else will probably give out before the frames do. If something does break, most likely through abuse (eg. angler falling and hitting a reel against the boat) it'll still likely be after the reel has given enough service you'll not be too bothered about grabbing another off Ebay - and the introduction of "better" reels has driven prices down quite a lot.
Admittedly aluminium framed reels should, when it comes down to it, be harder to kill - but star drag Sealines can also be had quite cheaply too these days.
Quote from: jurelometer on November 01, 2024, 08:58:11 PMI have one reel (a Newell) with a graphite spool which is a fabulous caster by virtue of being much lighter than the aluminum spools, although graphite spools can be a bit risky if they are loaded yup with mono instead of braid.
I believe you've spoken of this before, a 220? I just got one recently from a very kind member. Assuming braid use, as always, is the graphite spool the limiting factor on this reel? Seems otherwise pretty stout.
Quote from: JasonGotaProblem on November 01, 2024, 11:40:32 PMQuote from: jurelometer on November 01, 2024, 08:58:11 PMI have one reel (a Newell) with a graphite spool which is a fabulous caster by virtue of being much lighter than the aluminum spools, although graphite spools can be a bit risky if they are loaded yup with mono instead of braid.
I believe you've spoken of this before, a 220? I just got one recently from a very kind member. Assuming braid use, as always, is the graphite spool the limiting factor on this reel? Seems otherwise pretty stout.
I lurve that reel. I should make a tribute site to it :) Along with my Abel Supers, it is the only reel that gets me kinda tingly.
The innards are similar in size and durability to a Jigmaster, but in a smaller form factor, about like a narrow Squidder. The handle junction is better designed than the classic Penns so it is not the first thing to fail. The base is built up for the rod clamp attachment, separate from the foot, so if you use the clamp, it uses the reel seat itself to reinforce the frame, making the who assembly stronger and more rigid. Not rocket surgery, but modern reels still don't do this.
Since it is still a gear sleeve design, gear shredding when winding under load (causing axial load from turning the helical gears) is probably the first point of failure. If you lay off the heavy winding, the next point of failure is probably a bent spindle. I wouldn't expect the spool to blow up if loaded with braid. braid just doesn't stretch that much.
Quote from: Ron Jones on November 01, 2024, 09:23:29 PMIt might seem that lighter colored reels get less of the surface degradation, but wipe an old one down with alcohol and you'll see it, the grey just matches the frame better!
The Man
Yep. Black absorbs the UV waves better, converting to heat. That is why most plastic stuff intended for outdoor use is black. Carbon black is a very good and cheap UV protector.
-J
OK! Thanks for the excellent info on the nylon used and why the reels are black. I had never considered it to be protective against UV damage.
Thanks all,
Chip
Here's the weak point on most graphite frames. This was a Shimano TLD 50 if memory serves. This was one of the boat reels so no telling how many hours on it before it failed. We had a decent Marlin on when it popped. Had to hand line it in for the release.
That's convincing.
That looks like heavy line, 80 lb or heavier. There's a reason why "50" is printed in big letters on top of that reel. ..
Quote from: Patudo on November 03, 2024, 11:48:41 AMThat looks like heavy line, 80 lb or heavier. There's a reason why "50" is printed in big letters on top of that reel. ..
Yeah, but you hope for less dangerous failure if you go over the limit.
Frame twisting on the foot is definitely the mechanical cause of failure, but the root cause is that they try to make these graphite reels look similar to machined aluminum instead of designing for the material they are actually made out of - which comes back to bite them on the largest models when they are pushed too hard.
But a properly designed graphite big game reel would look too different, and we probably wouldn't buy them.
A plastic can be the superior material choice if used properly in the right situation. That is why we see a lot of it used in sports and racing, and not just in inexpensive consumer products. I wouldn't want a polyethylene construction crane, but I wouldn't want a steel kayak either. Aluminum is not a universally superior material for all types of reels for all situations.
-J
They could embed metal or carbon fiber in the foot and stand. I'm not sure graphite powder and resin alone could ever be strong enough without increasing the mass to the point where a special reel seat is required on the rod.
Quote from: oc1 on November 04, 2024, 04:42:41 AMThey could embed metal or carbon fiber in the foot and stand. I'm not sure graphite powder and resin alone could ever be strong enough without increasing the mass to the point where a special reel seat is required on the rod.
If you will forgive me, a minor nit that turns out to be important for this discussion:
It is not graphite powder and resin, it is an injection molded blend of chopped carbon fibers and a melted thermoplastic (Nylon). With injection molding of a hot liquified plastic, the wall thickness has to be consistent and you also should not imbed a big chunk of metal with different thermal expansion characteristics, as the part can crack and split.
For larger reels, the foot has to be metal to be thin enough to fit in the seat hoods and still be strong enough. Which means it will have to attached after molding. But a strong foot is only needed if there is bearing the pulling and twisting load. A properly designed clamp mount can do a much better job and fit on any cylindrical reel seat.
With a proper frame to clamp design, the foot does very little load bearing. But this won't look as much like an aluminum frame, making it harder to sell to us rubes.
-J
OK. Chopped fiber, not powder. As Wilmar insinuates, graphite in the fishing arena is not really graphite anyway. Graphite is the stuff in your pencil. Your graphite fishing rod or reel is made of carbon fiber.
Fron the fracture picture above, you can tell that there are no fibers of appreciable length involved. If it was laid-up with carbon fiber cloth or tow instead of powder it could be made strong enough without increasing weight or mass.
Reinforcing polymers with metal is a common practice, even in aviation and aerospace stuff. They use metal mesh or strand; not big chunks of metal plate.
Are there any reel components being made of "real" carbon fiber?
That's not to say the shredded carbon in graphite is imaginary. But are there any components being made from epoxy-impregnated sheets of carbon that get vacuum molded or press-molded?
I don't think so, except for drag washers of course. Laying up carbon fiber is more challenging than just squirting a glob of paste into a mold. Any fiber lying on the surface has the potential to lift and become a wild hair so there would be extra finishing steps too. It might be easier to make a carbon fiber billet or tube and mill it to size like they do with aluminum.
Graphite (as we're calling it) is not that much different from Bakelite. They are both just a liquid resin with a thickening agent. Bakelite side plates were phenolic resin thickened with wood powder.
Quote from: oc1 on November 04, 2024, 10:36:38 AMOK. Chopped fiber, not powder. As Wilmar insinuates, graphite in the fishing arena is not really graphite anyway. Graphite is the stuff in your pencil. Your graphite fishing rod or reel is made of carbon fiber.
Fron the fracture picture above, you can tell that there are no fibers of appreciable length involved. If it was laid-up with carbon fiber cloth or tow instead of powder it could be made strong enough without increasing weight or mass.
Reinforcing polymers with metal is a common practice, even in aviation and aerospace stuff. They use metal mesh or strand; not big chunks of metal plate.
Yeah, that "graphite" naming had to come from a rod blank marketing guy way back in the day. Maybe they thought graphite sounded more exotic than carbon fiber. But graphite is the molecular structure of carbon that you don't want to use for an engineering material. Kinda shameful if you ask me.
If you are laying up with resin, long carbon fibers and cloth is an option, but once you switch to injection molding melted thermoplastics, not so much. And good luck forming these complex shapes with a fiber cloth layout and resin. So what about embedding a reinforcement layer in an injection molded part?
Insert injection molding is a complicated, exacting and expensive process if you are doing something more complicated than molding a plastic handle on a metal tool.
Injection molded plastic shrinks as it cools and solidifies in the mold. This shrinking has to be uniform or stresses will either ruin the part immediately, or get locked in leading to premature failure. Plus you have to cut the mesh, load it in place and keep it in place while pressurized molten plastic is being forced through the cavity.
And the process still has to be very inexpensive, since that is the point of plastic frames. If the reel price start creeping up, folk will buy an aluminum reel or a competitor's plastic reel.
So hypothetically, could you use insert molding around a mesh to address this particular stress failure? Maybe. Maybe not. Can you do it without adding significant cost?. Nope.
The simple answer is to design the frame for the materials being used instead of trying to make it look like it was made from aluminum. Then the problem goes away.
I will try to post an example of a proper plastic frame design. I made a couple frame prototypes posted here from earlier projects, but some of the Newells are not bad.
-J
Here is a Newell frame with a design that better distributes the load, and uses the real seat cylinder itself as a structural component. The entire foot is Nylon, but when the reel is clamped, the foot ends are not under load. Plus no corrosion to worry about.
The clamp is not stock. It is a (chopped) carbon fiber reinforced plastic job that I 3D printed. I was playing with how thin I could make the clamp. Fun stuff.
-J
Quote from: JasonGotaProblem on November 04, 2024, 11:12:43 AMAre there any reel components being made of "real" carbon fiber?
That's not to say the shredded carbon in graphite is imaginary. But are there any components being made from epoxy-impregnated sheets of carbon that get vacuum molded or press-molded?
Quote from: oc1 on November 04, 2024, 06:33:45 PMI don't think so, except for drag washers of course. Laying up carbon fiber is more challenging than just squirting a glob of paste into a mold. Any fiber lying on the surface has the potential to lift and become a wild hair so there would be extra finishing steps too. It might be easier to make a carbon fiber billet or tube and mill it to size like they do with aluminum.
Graphite (as we're calling it) is not that much different from Bakelite. They are both just a liquid resin with a thickening agent. Bakelite side plates were phenolic resin thickened with wood powder.
There is a process that could be used, but hasn't been used on reels to my knowledge. It is called forged carbon fiber.
Large chopped carbon strands/tape are mixed with epoxy to from a putty that is compressed in a die (equivalent to a mold but for pressure forming) under a ton or so of pressure and then baked. While not as strong as laying up layers of carbon fiber cloth, more complex shapes can be formed that are quite strong for their weight. It is not super complicated, except that I think that you need a way to maintain compression while the part is oven curing, otherwise something that can be attempted with a bottle jack and a household style oven after machining the aluminum dies. The dies are typically much simpler than inject molds. I was tempted to try this myself a while ago, but didn't really have a project that needed it.
And to re-kick a dead horse that has already been beaten: There is a big difference between thermoplastics (can repeatedly go back and forth between between liquid and solid based on temperature) and thermoset resins (goes from liquid to solid one time only). The "graphite" reel parts are made from nylon - thermoplastic, while Bakelite is a thermoset. Fibers can be blended in either, but the manufacturing process and design tradeoffs are different.
BTW, older Bakelite products often used asbestos fibers. No way to that I know of to tell if an old part was using the nasty type of asbestos. Something to think about if you are inclined to grind on an old Bakelite sideplate.
-J
Quote from: JasonGotaProblem on November 04, 2024, 11:12:43 AMAre there any reel components being made of "real" carbon fiber?
That's not to say the shredded carbon in graphite is imaginary. But are there any components being made from epoxy-impregnated sheets of carbon that get vacuum molded or press-molded?
Abu Garcia Eon Pro model, about twenty years ago.
Not sure about spinning reels. Seems like something that would have / could have happened.
.
.
Quote from: Robert Janssen on November 04, 2024, 09:48:53 PMQuote from: JasonGotaProblem on November 04, 2024, 11:12:43 AMAre there any reel components being made of "real" carbon fiber?
That's not to say the shredded carbon in graphite is imaginary. But are there any components being made from epoxy-impregnated sheets of carbon that get vacuum molded or press-molded?
Abu Garcia Eon Pro model, about twenty years ago.
Not sure about spinning reels. Seems like something that would have / could have happened.
.
.
Never heard of the Eon Pro until now. Found some web references and a video.
What an interesting train wreck of a reel design! Looks like it had a very short product life.
I can see ribs and ejector pin marks inside of the left sideplate, and along with the shape, it seems pretty clear to me that these sideplates are not constructed from carbon fiber weave, but are injection molded thermoplastic- i.e., "graphite". I did see one reference to "graphite and carbon fiber sideplates", but not in the official literature. That exposed carbon fiber weave has to be just a cosmetic accent.
-J
I would have thought so too, that was just some cf-look adhesive film or something, but i recall being surprised to find untrimmed cf filaments in mine.
I can look again later today.
Train wreck? Well no, I wouldn't say so. Some of the design elements are absolutely stellar.
However, as I understand it, the design phase was very rushed, and the from-concept-to-store-shelf timeline very short. This may make itself apparent in the execution.
Anyway, I'll look at the CF thing later.
.
So yeah...
The sideplates appear to be of three sections: one black and shiny part, one plain weave CF part, and one black, sort of marbled / random CF part.
Inside however, the sideplates appear to be of one piece of molded something, FRP maybe, albeit with a slight marbling, barely visible. (strangely, also the letter S written with a Sharpie) .
I did find one piece of something similar in size and shape to a chopped-off yarn of prepreg CF. So, I burned it, took a closer look, and tested electrical conductivity.
Yup, carbon fiber.
So, does the reel actually contain real carbon fiber? Yes it does.
Are the sideplates wholly made of carbon fiber? Well, maybe, as a random fill FRP.
Is this carbon fiber enough to actually make some kind of difference in this application? I doubt it.
I think f-15 NItron.
"Carbon fibre" has some marketing advantages, so I'm guessing the fact there is not a reel with a true carbon fibre frame must mean it's not economic to produce one.
But in all fairness, it does seem the consumer is well covered by today's manufacturers. If you want to use a small reel for light to medium work the plastic frames will be fine for that; if you want to use heavy line on them and fish it hard, there are now plenty of aluminium frame options.
Quote from: thorhammer on November 05, 2024, 03:14:50 PMI think f-15 NItron.
Paint job or a faux carbon topping. Carbon fibers are too stiff to stretch much at all. The cloth can flex to follow a simple single radius if it is not too right, but not follow a small compound shape that curves in multiple directions with a single piece of cloth. This is what Steve was referring earlier. Carbon fiber is a bear to work with, even more if you want a showy cosmetic surface.
Note that Akios doesn't mention carbon fiber anywhere.
Photo capture of the inside of the sideplate shows telltale signs of being injection molded. See below.
(https://alantani.com/gallery/39/11927-051124191759.jpeg)
Inside of Akios F-15 sideplate,
Now back to the ABU Eon:
Quote from: Robert Janssen on November 05, 2024, 07:59:33 AMTrain wreck? Well no, I wouldn't say so. Some of the design elements are absolutely stellar.
However, as I understand it, the design phase was very rushed, and the from-concept-to-store-shelf timeline very short. This may make itself apparent in the execution.
Well, train wrecks can be magnificent in their own right. And the more innovative you get, the greater the odds of failure. So I made that comment with a touch of admiration. Those ABU guys tried some innovation.
I assume that that giant round disk on the outside of the sideplate is housing the planetary gear system, which requires way too much real estate to achieve a 6:1 gear ratio and larger drag disk diameter. This planetary system also makes it difficult to have a well supported handle shaft. So an interesting prototype, but not a good design tradeoff for a shipping product IMHO.
Thanks for sharing the Eon design. I learned something new.
-J
My impression is they wanted to put planetary gears in something just because "planetary gears" sounds so cool.
The way to tame carbon fiber is to use a prepreg (pre-impregnated with resin) material. That makes it malleable, like chewing a piece of paper to make a spitball.
Quote from: JasonGotaProblem on November 04, 2024, 11:12:43 AMAre there any reel components being made of "real" carbon fiber?
That's not to say the shredded carbon in graphite is imaginary. But are there any components being made from epoxy-impregnated sheets of carbon that get vacuum molded or press-molded?
Yeah it's just not popular this side of the pacific. Most common is handles and drag stars. Custom "tuning" shop companies in japan been offering CF parts for about 20ish years now
Quote from: JasonGotaProblem on November 04, 2024, 11:12:43 AMAre there any reel components being made of "real" carbon fiber?
That's not to say the shredded carbon in graphite is imaginary. But are there any components being made from epoxy-impregnated sheets of carbon that get vacuum molded or press-molded?
Oh yeah and i also forgot the abu mgxtreme series which had CF handles and part of the rotor was carbon fiber as well
Quote from: Patudo on November 05, 2024, 06:19:08 PM"Carbon fibre" has some marketing advantages, so I'm guessing the fact there is not a reel with a true carbon fibre frame must mean it's not economic to produce one.
But in all fairness, it does seem the consumer is well covered by today's manufacturers. If you want to use a small reel for light to medium work the plastic frames will be fine for that; if you want to use heavy line on them and fish it hard, there are now plenty of aluminium frame options.
Considering all the saltwater corrosion that we see on aluminum reels and the lack of alternatives in the higher quality/higher strength end of the market, I disagree on whether the reel marketplace is well served today.
But I do agree that if CF was inexpensive and functional, we would probably see it out there by now. My guess is that impact resistance is the problem.
Quote from: Hella Bread on November 12, 2024, 10:04:53 AMQuote from: JasonGotaProblem on November 04, 2024, 11:12:43 AMAre there any reel components being made of "real" carbon fiber?
That's not to say the shredded carbon in graphite is imaginary. But are there any components being made from epoxy-impregnated sheets of carbon that get vacuum molded or press-molded?
Yeah it's just not popular this side of the pacific. Most common is handles and drag stars. Custom "tuning" shop companies in japan been offering CF parts for about 20ish years now
Quote from: Hella Bread on November 12, 2024, 10:19:50 AMQuote from: JasonGotaProblem on November 04, 2024, 11:12:43 AMAre there any reel components being made of "real" carbon fiber?
That's not to say the shredded carbon in graphite is imaginary. But are there any components being made from epoxy-impregnated sheets of carbon that get vacuum molded or press-molded?
Oh yeah and i also forgot the abu mgxtreme series which had CF handles and part of the rotor was carbon fiber as well
Those flat-ish, simple geometry parts are the sort of things that are candidates for CF cloth/resin construction.
Hopefully I am not offending those that acquired these parts, but I am of the opinion that these are also not very good candidates for carbon fiber mesh.
Carbon fiber cloth composite is not as impact resistant as aluminum, so exposed parts like handle arms will tend to break when aluminum will just dent a little. Mechanical attachments, especially for motion (like a handle crank or spinner bail) are tricky to get right, as the openings create gaps in some filaments and concentrate load across others. I see that the newer version of the high end ABU spinner got rid of the CF wings on the rotor and changed the CF handle arm to shaft attachment.
Drag stars only need to not break, not fail when tightening, and in larger reels, conduct and convect heat from the drag stack. CF is not the best material for achieving any of these goals.
I am not sure a very modest reduction in overall weight is worth what is likely to be a reasonably significant loss in durability.
The high performance bicycle crowd is extremely interested in lightweight parts. CF frame parts and handlebars seem to work for them (makes sense) but CF cranks suffer from durability issues around impact and mechanical connection stress failures (also makes sense). As redesigned CF cranks approach the durability of aluminum cranks, the lightness advantage disappears, but the added cost does not. This makes for a limited market.
-J
I think there's about a 15% density difference between aluminum and CF. That's not a lot. Doesn't necessarily warrant the loss off all the above.
For applications where weight is an important determinant of performance or efficiency, like in sports equipment or airplanes, shaving off 10 to 15% is a big deal. The marketing hype is just a bonus.
Quote from: jurelometer on November 12, 2024, 09:09:55 PMThose flat-ish, simple geometry parts are the sort of things that are candidates for CF cloth/resin construction.
Hopefully I am not offending those that acquired these parts, but I am of the opinion that these are also not very good candidates for carbon fiber mesh.
Carbon fiber cloth composite is not as impact resistant as aluminum, so exposed parts like handle arms will tend to break when aluminum will just dent a little. Mechanical attachments, especially for motion (like a handle crank or spinner bail) are tricky to get right, as the openings create gaps in some filaments and concentrate load across others. I see that the newer version of the high end ABU spinner got rid of the CF wings on the rotor and changed the CF handle arm to shaft attachment.
Drag stars only need to not break, not fail when tightening, and in larger reels, conduct and convect heat from the drag stack. CF is not the best material for achieving any of these goals.
I am not sure a very modest reduction in overall weight is worth what is likely to be a reasonably significant loss in durability.
The high performance bicycle crowd is extremely interested in lightweight parts. CF frame parts and handlebars seem to work for them (makes sense) but CF cranks suffer from durability issues around impact and mechanical connection stress failures (also makes sense). As redesigned CF cranks approach the durability of aluminum cranks, the lightness advantage disappears, but the added cost does not. This makes for a limited market.
-J
It's primarily for bass/trout tackle or light jigging reels at the heaviest. Outside of the abu which came that way it's done mainly just as a way to personalize/customize your reel because japan has a bigger market for that kind of thing where people like to make changes for aesthetic reasons more than performance. Here in the states our mentality is more so of upgrades for the sake of some kind of functional performance gain vs just because we can and it looks cool. The term over there is "dress up" parts and it ranges from big stuff like handles/drag stars, spool tension knobs to as small as colored screws just to personalize your stuff. Different culture and different markets.
It's primarily for bass/trout tackle or light jigging reels at the heaviest. Outside of the abu which came that way it's done mainly just as a way to personalize/customize your reel because japan has a bigger market for that kind of thing where people like to make changes for aesthetic reasons more than performance. Here in the states our mentality is more so of upgrades for the sake of some kind of functional performance gain vs just because we can and it looks cool. The term over there is "dress up" parts and it ranges from big stuff like handles/drag stars, spool tension knobs to as small as colored screws just to personalize your stuff. Different culture and different markets.
[/quote]
You should talk to Tom (Cortez Conversions.) Hi opinion of the US market is a bit different, and I quote "we're becoming girls!"
The Man
My take is that the differences are mostly in degree. Here on this international, but USA centric site, aesthetics definitely does not take a back seat when it comes to customization. If you think of your custom reel as something other than a tool, you are either a collector or at least a little bit of a reel bedazzler.
And I also don't understand the use of "girl" as a put-down. What's so bad about being a girl? Wish we had more female fishers here on this site...
To get back on track: I think I just found the perfect color matching customization for those. Ice-blue frames and sideplates.
-J
Sorta frustrating. The ladies can be whatever they want. Men won't let each other get away with that kinda freedom. Try fishing on a charter trip with a pink reel/rod combo. So now and then we can say stuff like that. And no, I don't have any pretty fishing tackle, clothing, etc., etc. An overly feminized bathroom can cause me constipation.
I have often thought that a hot pink rod/rods would be unlikely to be stolen!
Ahhh, the age old discussion of form vs function, or form AND function. Myself, I'm more fixated on function first and foremost, but nothing wrong with having some form along with it
Nothing wrong with a sense of style
I didn't go as far in the car modding world as some of my friends, and definitely not as far as some on here. But a lot of the same principles apply. Namely a mod that hurts performance for the sake of appearance is a bad mod. An appearance mod on something with no performance mods are similarly bad.
Big rims on cars started as way of getting bigger brakes. But if you have big rims and small brakes you look silly, Etc.
But that's just me. Parallels to tackle are easy to think of. I have some fancy looking rods. All are first and foremost performance driven.
Quote from: Patudo on November 14, 2024, 09:12:38 PMI have often thought that a hot pink rod/rods would be unlikely to be stolen!
Oddly enough, that is exactly how I identify all my Long Range gear: A strip of pink electrical tape on the rods, around the handle of jig bag, etc. While theft is what it is (if somebody wants something bad enough and is a dirtbag they will take it regardless) I do it to help in a potentially fast paced environment where there might be 8 United Composites Vipers, 10 SKB tackle boxes, etc. - john