Please help me choose a fly rod blank

[JasonGotaProblem]

I cannot find where you ever said what size bait/lure you will be using.  That should be the starting point in rod selection  if you plan to be casting.

Fishermen are not strong enough to break a rod that is made properly and transfers the load correctly..  Fish size is of little importance.  Big fish are fought from low in the butt section.  Small fish are fought from up closer to the tip.

There is little difference in a spinning blank and fly blank.  It all comes down to the desired length and lure weight.  However, fly rods top out at about a 12 wt.  A 12 wt fly blank would be rated for 3/4 ounce lure weight in a spinning blank.  If you are going to sling anything heavier, then you need to look at salmon/steelhead or surf blanks.

If you are trolling, dropping or vertical jigging then it's a different ball game all together.

As usual youre not wrong. I've never broken a rod on a fish but have in car doors. I'd be throwing super light lures (rubber worm no added weight) or free line shrimp primarily with this one. Thats part of why I'm looking to go light on the rod.

I still wanna build a spinner on a fly rod just for the heck of it, but I'm gonna push that down a few spots on the to do list. If nothing else i want that black hole rod first for my BG4000.

[philaroman]

DUH, stupid me -- didn't you mention that you know wood better than metal?
AND you're the guy that likes bad puns, so here's a little topic split 

have 2 old, very light NON-FLY!!! split-cane rods:
10' Spinning 3/1 (zero set; definitely unused, cause ferrules don't fit  )
and 9' Knucklebuster 3/2 (one tip looks straight, other - slight set)
both, about as light at tip as boo gets, but beefier butts than fly

not sure if something like that is worth playing with (dunno    strip/re-impregnate  )
am sure that I AM NOT THE ONE TO DO IT !!!
your challenge, should you choose to accept it...

[JasonGotaProblem]

DUH, stupid me -- didn't you mention that you know wood better than metal?
AND you're the guy that likes bad puns, so here's a little topic split 

have 2 old, very light NON-FLY!!! split-cane rods:
10' Spinning 3/1 (zero set; definitely unused, cause ferrules don't fit  )
and 9' Knucklebuster 3/2 (one tip looks straight, other - slight set)
both, about as light at tip as boo gets, but beefier butts than fly

not sure if something like that is worth playing with (dunno    strip/re-impregnate  )
am sure that I AM NOT THE ONE TO DO IT !!!
your challenge, should you choose to accept it...

Man, that's a toughie. When I get a house, hopefully with a garage, in the next few months something like that sounds awesome. My condo is tiny, so neither it nor my wife could bear a project of that size. That might end up the only thing I'll be re-impregnating.

[oc1]

[I'd be throwing super light lures (rubber worm no added weight) or free line shrimp primarily with this one.

4 WT

[jurelometer]

My post got lost on the site upgrade, so trying again.

Jeff (Riverrrat) is correct.  No need to use a fly rod blank as there are better choices. 

This is why:   A fly rod casting stroke is different than a spinner/conventional.  Most of the stroke is  horizontal, moving the rod in a straight line in order to straighten out the fly line, and then causing the rod to deeply load. At the end of the stroke, the rod is brought to a sudden halt, and only then is the rod pivoted, and only enough to form the desired loop diameter in the fly line.

So fly rods are designed to bend more deeply/ progressively and to dampen vibrations at tip more aggressively than a typical spinning rod.  A fly rod blank will generally be less sensitive, and is more prone to breakage.   If your primary concern is protecting light mono from breaking, it might still be a viable choice, but not too many people fish that way any more.

And for those of you who think that it is easy to avoid rod breakage, try dealing with a large hot saltwater fish on a fly rod next to the boat.  You think you can just do a tiny bit of extra lift,  the fish takes off under the boat. That tip section is bent into a U shape in less than a heartbeat, without any high sticking.   I have seen this happen  plenty, including to myself this guy I know. 

If you still want to go this route, the rule of thumb for max casting weight is fly line size divided by 16. I agree with Steve on this.  I built a (crappy) 12 wt fly rod using a spinning rod blank with a max lure size of 3/4 oz, and it came out about right. 

-J

[oldmanjoe]

  MAN        i am on the fence with this so i went 50/50
  7 -8 of twitchy stick ,  i still have to  guide it ...

I was doing some test casts , all was fine until i horsed 1/2 ounce with only tip top  and a reel on the stick .     Broke off 18 inches .
  The first dozen cast with a spit shot on was great , now its a boat rod 6 foot long .   I didn`t have snake guides to tape on .
I won`t make that mistake again .