Gator Glass "Shark" blank opinions

[Dynamo]

Hello, everybody, sorry I haven't been on in a long time, I've just moved and had no time to log in. Anyways, I recently acquired a Gator glass 10 foot shark blank from Mudhole, along w. a variety of other rod building materials. (I was planning on an Avet 30w, but changed at last second.) I had planned to build the rod for my 12/0 and an eventual 14/0, but I was surprised that the rod is really better suited to reels in the 9/0 - 12/0 class  . It truly does not have enough backbone for true 130 class reels. I personally would put a 12/0 on it and a 50w, but not a 14/0 or 80w, IMO. I am confused, all reports on the blank from the web say the rod has no give, no bend whatsoever, and no real action. Plus the people I talked to at Mudhole said the same. And Mr. Barrett as well. I was and am surprised w. the action and overall feel of the blank. I cannot wait to fish it, It is rather springy, it has quite a bit of give on the tip but stiffens up quickly. I can easily put over a foot of bend on the blank, w. no harness of course  . It is kinda fast, so I'm thinking of chopping a foot off of the butt. Their is one real weakness in this blank, and that is the walls. Mr. Barrett told me this and I agree, the walls are just not very thick. I'd feel a lot more comfortable bridge fishing a 130 - unlimited Gator than this blank, but it has enough power for most fish I'd be likely to hook into, I think. For beach fishing, this is all I will ever need, but for serious pier and bridge fishing I'd recommend the 130 -unlimited; its more durable and has a better action for bridge fishing application. Does anyone else have experience on this blank, and if so, would they be willing to share it?

[Dynamo]

Update: just finished installing the grips, butt cap, and reel seat, epoxy is drying right now. Eventually I'll hopefully have pics of the finished rod.

[floating doc]

Share your thought process on choosing a longer rod?

[Dynamo]

Well I'd like to hear that as well, but I originally was asking on opinions on the particular blank. The gator 10 foot shark blank from Mudhole, All reports from other people I've heard of or talked to said the blank was heavy, stiff, and had no action. I didn't find that to be the case however. Im just curious to see if other people like it, and what they think of the rods action, weight, and stiffness.

[Dynamo]

Nobody has experience with this blank? I guess It can changed into a thread discussing thoughts about using long rods for heavy tackle.

[Jeri]

Hi Dynamo,

A discussion about 'long rods' and 'heavy tackle', might need a little more definition on just what those terms mean from your point of view.

We routinely use long rods and heavy tackle for sharks, but then we are casting all our baits, or at worst casting heavy sinkers to then slide baits out to deeper waters. From our perspective, long rods means 14' and heavy might well mean 50lb line and reels the size of Trinidad 50's. Then once hooked up, we don't use harnesses or chairs on the rod, but just human skeleton and muscle to get our sharks to the beach.

I appreciate that in the US, this is not the case in most situations, kayaks or other mechanisms are used to get the bait out to the sharks, then seriously short rods are used to subdue the beasts.

Neither is wrong, it is just that we tend to fish according to match our competition rules; and this has evolved into what we are now using. Rods 14' long, that are capable of casting 20oz of bait and sinker to distances about 150m off the beach. That said, we generally don't have the very big sharks that you sometimes encounter, but still our sharks are up to 200kgs (440lbs), so not small beasts.

In developing rods, downwards in length to try and overcome the 'leverage against the angler' factor that our rods present, we have finally come down to an optimum of 12' long for maximum distance, while maintaining big baits, we did briefly work with 11' rods, but we did at that point start to lose distance, but the leverage factor in the fight was much better.

Trust that this is something to bring some thought to your quest for 'long' rods.

Cheers from sunny Africa

Jeri

[floating doc]

Thanks for weighing in Jeri. I've read several of your very useful and well written comments on the systems that you use for your beach shark fishing. Sliding the baits is a rare presentation here. In light of that, I was wondering why this was the choice for this particular angler.

[saltydog]

The reason for a long rod bridge fishing is that if it goes under the bridge or catwalk you are fishing you can lower the rod and hopefully keep your line from rubbing on the bottom of the road deck.

On the blank, you should have plenty of backbone for 130 class tackle with that rod but you definitely will not be holding it under your arm with a 12/0 at 40# of drag when that hammer or jewfish charge up under the bridge unless you are quite large you might be playing slingshot over the rail, a safety rope 30-40 feet long would be a good idea, at least your rod and reel won't be lost.

[Jeri]

Hi Guys,

As I pointed out, you do your fishing slightly different to how we fish this side of the 'pond'. We have neither piers or bridges, so we have to contend will launching off the sand, or even wading out there with the beasties.

As for dropping or lowering a rod under a bridge with a 12/0 attached, I would certainly want a safety rope, especially if 40lb of drag were being applied. Levertage factor on that would be that the angler with a 10' rod is working with 5:1 against X 40lb, the guys must be pulling about 200lbs with chair or body!!!!

I'll stick to pulling the beasties off the beach, the worst that can happen is that I get wet feet!!!


Cheers from sunny Africa,


Jeri

[Dynamo]

Hello, Jeri, in "heavy tackle" I meant rods 50 lb class to unlimited, sorry, I should have specified. Salty dog, your right, that's why I chose the longer rod, to prevent rubbing on the underside of the pier or bridge. I won't be fishing it at 40 lbs, probably closer to 30, and I will be using the pier for support. Ive thought about a safety rope, just in case, too. Im not really a big guy, (125), but I am having no trouble thus far in handling this setup, I have a long butt for leverage and the rod itself is not like the unlimited, it's rather "flexy" w. a fast tip and it bends further down the rod. For the beach I'm fishing this setup Palm Beach style  . I have a 35 inch butt, so itll be perfect i Think for that application. Saltydog, have you any experience w. this blank? What blanks do you use for these type of rods? Thanks for the replies everybody!

[Dynamo]

It sounds like it would be really difficult to bend and fish, but it really isn't that bad i think w. correct techniques. A lot of people fish 130 to unlimited rods, those are basically the same but with thicker walls, and more glass added to the tip, so they're more top heavy. I have a 80 -130. Plus it helps to have a long butt like I do. The rod itself is surprisingly light. I love it. I would never harness up in this rod, except a shoulder harness sitting down if I hooked a good fish. You wouldn't be putting the rod over the railing at all, you lean the rod just above the foregrip and sit on the rod butt, a lot of power can be applied this way and heavy drag is not so bad  .

[Dynamo]

Those 14 foot casting rods you mentioned sound like monsters! I could never cast anything that big. When i get the guides on I'll weight my rod. Just to avoid confusion my Gator isn't a casting rod at all. The only reason for length is for clearance while fishing structure. (The length can also be used to avoid rubbing sandbars while beach fishing but I havent had much success w. that. The line sags down and rubs anyway.)

[saltydog]

Yes I do have experience with that blank I have built several for friends who bridge and pier fish. It does have a lot of backbone.

[Dynamo]

How do you like its bend? How about it's walls?

[saltydog]

You do want some bend in the rod and the bend in that rod is really good for 80 to 130 pound line when you use it as it should be, at 25 to 35 pounds of drag. You go higher and it will be pushing it