Fishing rod Good VS bad

Started by Reel Beaker, January 18, 2018, 10:47:15 AM

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happyhooker

For better-than-average quality on spinning rods, I always take into account the number of guides; rule of thumb (not inviolate) is one guide per foot of rod length, not counting the tiptop; I can even live with one less than this.  Fewer guides not only saves on the cost of material, but the installation cost too.  Newer spinning rods using the NGC technique to place guides will have even more guides.  A 6'6" spinning rod with 4-5 guides is the sign of a less expensive rod.  If you like cork handles, I read an article not too long ago where the writer swore by looking at the quality of the cork as a sign of quality.

Frank

Reel Beaker

Quote from: philaroman on January 19, 2018, 07:37:35 PM

http://anglersresource.net/WhattoLookforinaTopShelfSpinningRod.aspx

good general info., esp. for matching rod to reel -- even a good rod isn't good, if you put the wrong reel on it!!!

if possible, bring the reel(s) you plan to use, when you go rod shopping!!!

Isn't it a bit impractical to try to match a rod and reel this way? I dont think many rod will have guides that can align with the reel shaft of the reel perfectly. Borrowing their counter and swapping out reels just to get a perfect match might frustrate the shop staff there.

Reel Beaker

Quote from: happyhooker on January 20, 2018, 04:02:51 AM
For better-than-average quality on spinning rods, I always take into account the number of guides; rule of thumb (not inviolate) is one guide per foot of rod length, not counting the tiptop; I can even live with one less than this.  Fewer guides not only saves on the cost of material, but the installation cost too.  Newer spinning rods using the NGC technique to place guides will have even more guides.  A 6'6" spinning rod with 4-5 guides is the sign of a less expensive rod.  If you like cork handles, I read an article not too long ago where the writer swore by looking at the quality of the cork as a sign of quality.

Frank

Wait .. the top guide is not considered? That means for a 8-feet long rod we should expect 9 guides, inclusive of the top guide? What about rods with not so nice length like 5'6"? We should have 6 guides, inclusive of the top guide?

philaroman

Quote from: Reel Beaker on January 20, 2018, 10:53:04 AM
Isn't it a bit impractical to try to match a rod and reel this way? I dont think many rod will have guides that can align with the reel shaft of the reel perfectly. Borrowing their counter and swapping out reels just to get a perfect match might frustrate the shop staff there.

well, NO!!!
1. it's impractical to do it the other way around -- i.e., bring your rod to shop for reels
2. it's impractical to buy a quality rod, then get limited performance by choosing the wrong reel
3. it's impractical to worry about what "might frustrate the shop staff", if you're  merely a prudent consumer -- not rude or unpleasant or unreasonably demanding...  obviously, if the shop is busy/crowded, ask for good time to come back -- if it's a REAL tackle shop, they should be ;D HAPPY ;D to divert you to when the shop is slow/empty

Bryan Young

It will be a little difficult to apply American Standars to Southeast Asia type of fishing. I've been fishing jetty's and cliff fishing in Taiwan and Japan and the rods are are very different as is the fishing styles. Not to mention the transportation and storage issues one has to deal with.

In Asia, there are a lot of good quality rods as well as custom rod wrappers. But the prices can get out of hand. For an off the shelf rod, I think Daiwa has some of the best rods anailable but you have to pick the higher end models, like the Ballistics.  Some are interline while others are sectional (not telescoping) into 2-3 pieces. The benefit of these rods are it's length for jetty fishing. It's hard to find a 3 meter or longer rod here in the USA but are readily available in Asia. No have a few 5 meter rods that I use for jetty, surf and cliff fishing in Hawaii.

When I go to a fishing shop in Asia, I always ask them questions. What type of fishing is the rod intended for, line weight, lure weight,...  I have also asked them to take the rod out of its case and bag to look at the bend, feel the strength,...  not always easy when in Asia and many fisherman don't speak English. But I do look interested and will purchase if I can find something within my specifications  so the have helped. I also frequent the same shops so the are willing to help me if I purchased something from them before.

The mounting of your own reels are a little bit harder because they don't want their rod's to get scratched. But if the think you will buy a rod and reel, they are willing to take a new reel off the shelf and mount it. This way you can also see the reel size the recommend for that rod.

I hope this helps.
:D I talk with every part I send out and each reel I repair so that they perform at the top of their game. :D

Keta

Is there a local fishing club in your area or someone that can mentor you?    What country are you in?  Bangkok has a lot of places for you to go to ask questions.
Hi, my name is Lee and I have a fishing gear problem.

I have all of the answers, yup, no, maybe.

A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way.
Mark Twain

oc1

#21
Yeah, you are asking the wrong group here.  Go out to the jetty with whatever tackle you might have and see what others are using.  After spending some time just hanging around and fishing you will get to know the local fishermen and they will be happy to guide you.  Information you pick up here at AT may not be relevant, but it will enable you to ask engaging questions and that is often enough to strike up a conversation.  Every situation is different and the locals probably went through an evolution of sorts to find equipment suitable for the task at hand..

I love jetties but they are hard on fishing equipment.  You can't set something down with dinging it.  Accepting that your new equipment is going to soon get scuffs and scrapes will make you more comfortable and productive using it, and will probably influence your buying decisions.
-steve

happyhooker

Quote from: Reel Beaker on January 20, 2018, 10:57:11 AM

Wait .. the top guide is not considered? That means for a 8-feet long rod we should expect 9 guides, inclusive of the top guide? What about rods with not so nice length like 5'6"? We should have 6 guides, inclusive of the top guide?

An 8 ft. rod spinning rod -- a good one -- will have 8 guides PLUS the tiptop.  Round up on odd sized rods; the 6'6" spinning rod should have 7 guides plus the tip top.  Only a rule of thumb.  One guide less on a long rod probably wouldn't be so bad; but on a 5-footer, I think I'd like to have all 5 guides plus the tiptop.  Besides affecting performance, skimping on guides is a sign in my mind of a builder trying to save a few $$.

I agree that a quality handle is a good sign too.  Look at the wraps (the threads that hold the guides on) and the coating over them; are the threads nice and even, without gaps, with a nice smooth coating of epoxy, varnish, etc., over the threads, or does the epoxy/varnish look bubbly, uneven or have "gobs" of it hanging off the threads?

Frank

smnaguwa

I pier fished when I was teaching in Japan with 3-5M telescopic rods as mentioned by Bryan. The guides were not a problem but in-line rods were better as the line didnot "catch the wind" while casting. They were more expensive. The rods had power ratings(PE rating) with the higher numbers denoting stronger rods. A tackle store could help you choose the right rod. Good luck! They also use telescopic nets so that they didn't need to land the fish with the rod alone, decreasing the chance of breaking the rod lifting a heavy fish.

happyhooker

If you have reels and want to match a spinning rod to them, always account for the fact that some rod reel seats won't accommodate the size of the foot of every reel.  I got a new rod (don't buy them often) last year & when I went to attach my then favorite Shimano ultralight reel to it, the foot on the reel was too small & I ended up shimming the foot with some thin cardboard just so I could fish that day.  So, I don't know about taking your reel along when rod shopping, but you might want to have some measurements handy if nothing else.

Another thing about a quality rod: look at the ferrules, if there are any.  Are they well wrapped?  Do they fit snugly, but not so tight you gotta strain to separate the sections?

Frank

Reel Beaker

Hi guys,

I was browsing around for a rod when i noticed that there are many type of Fuji guides floating around, mainly alconite, SiC and aluminium oxide guides. My question is which is the preferred guide.

Another question to ask is the insert in these different kind of guides, are they all made of ceramic? So the difference in these guides are the material used in the eyelets of the guide, with a common insert, which is ceramic?

I also have some rods with a chipped insert. I dont know how it got chipped, but i dont think i was very rough with the rod. The common thing about the place where the inserts get chipped, is at the back of the guide, so i was very puzzled on why all my inserts are breaking at the same place. Does performing overhead casts with a large sinker damage the back of your guide inserts?

ez2cdave

Quote from: Reel Beaker on February 04, 2018, 12:53:19 PM
Hi guys,

I was browsing around for a rod when i noticed that there are many type of Fuji guides floating around, mainly alconite, SiC and aluminium oxide guides. My question is which is the preferred guide.

Another question to ask is the insert in these different kind of guides, are they all made of ceramic? So the difference in these guides are the material used in the eyelets of the guide, with a common insert, which is ceramic?

I also have some rods with a chipped insert. I dont know how it got chipped, but i dont think i was very rough with the rod. The common thing about the place where the inserts get chipped, is at the back of the guide, so i was very puzzled on why all my inserts are breaking at the same place. Does performing overhead casts with a large sinker damage the back of your guide inserts?


SiC is a very expensive guide . . . Alconite is excellent, very lightweight and reasonably-priced . . . Aluminum Oxide guides are lower in quality, heavier, and very inexpensive. There are a few other ring materials, too.

As for the chipped guides, can you please post some clear, close-up photo's of them ?

Tight Lines !


Swami805

Ceramic guide inserts are brittle and chip or crack but you'd have to hit something to do it, casting shouldn't be a problem unless something hard is going thru them like a swivel. They work well because the material is so smooth. Seems most rod guides these days are ceramic of some kind.
Not a bad idea to check for cracked inserts periodically, the rough edge will fray your line. It's difficult to see a crack so use a cotton swab and run it around the insert. If you see any cotton stuck on the ring time to replace the guide, you can't really replace the ring. If you have one broken guide time to check them all.
Like most things you get what you pay for, but I don't know that SIC is that much better than alconite to justify the extra cost. With fuji I think the gun smoke finish on the frame adds to the cost of the SIC guides too.  That finish seems to hold up better than the black or chrome ones. I use all 3,just depends on the aplication
Post a few pictures when you get a minute

Do what you can with that you have where you are

oc1

#28
Fuji has a lot of different shapes too.  I finally found one that keeps braid from tangling around the small running guides on ultra light casting rods.  KWAG as I recall, but I'd have to look it up.
-steve

Reel Beaker

https://imgur.com/a/gkJng

Hi, as requested this is a url link to a close up of the chipped guide insert