i am a 400# animal that lifts 100# boxes for a living!
still, i have to wonder about the "added weight" some people talk about on this board. could ANYONE tell, with their eyes closed, if a rod is heavier than the next, due to "underwrapped or not"--"one brand guide from the other, or two or three cork rings extra?? i am not concerned with this extra weight. should i be? is it really even a measureable difference??

I don't know about the rest, but I learned with the first few rods I built, just how much half an ounce means when building a rod. The first rod I built was only 1/2 oz. heavier in the blank than the rods I had been using. The rod was beautiful, but the added weight really affected me. It was a 7' casting rod for worm fishing. I tried using the balance weights, which just made it worse. I think in shorter rods, it wouldn't have been as noticeable, but in the longer rods, you will be able to tell very subtle differences in weight and balance. I now use that rod for live bait fishing.

Ray Alston

Chuck,
I don't know what kind of fishing you do but I am a big guy myself and I take great care in keeping my rods as light as possible. I fish 99% saltwater. Usually bottom fishing for grouper and snapper. I can hold my rods all day long because I buy the lightest, most durable reels that I can afford and outfit a rod to match it. Once in a while I'll switch rods with a fishing buddy (who has a store bought rod and reel combo) and its heavier than all get out. In fact, I've even missed a few fish while holding my buddy's rod because I couldn't set up fast enough with it. Once I go back to my own...look out! I can get my larger, lighter rod in a hook setting position much faster than his. It's almost like a baseball player using a donut on his bat while on deck. Once he goes to the plate and removes the donut he is able to swing that bat twice as fast.
...just my own thoughts.....
nick

Chuck,

As a matter of fact, you can tell the difference yourself between a blank with no surface finish and one that has been coated! I have tried this with quite a few people and nobody has yet to select incorrectly.

The bottom line is that everything we do is a compromise. If we can get rid of a little weight and have the rod still do the same job then it's likely worth it. By the same token, if we have to add an extra guide or something to make the rod do what we want it to do, then the small extra weight increase may be offset by having a tool that does what we want it to do. But for any two rods with all else equal, the lighter one will be more sensitive and more efficient. How much more so depends on exactly how much lighter we are talking.

We are very fortunate today to have such light and strong components that allow us to build rods that cast well, fight a fish and fatigue us as little as possible. Compare to rods made from the best stuff just 10 years ago and you'll readily feel the difference.

................

Chuck,

I look at it from a "cumlative" point of view. Save a gram here, same half a gram there, find where I can save few grams ... All of a sudden your talking weight savings. In the overall picture, the lightest rod possible is my goal. I can only do that by saving weight in small amounts anywhere I can find it. A guy picked up one of my 7 ft. baitcast rods last month. He had never held a custom rod before, he freaked out over how light it was. I guess I am used to my own rods. I don't compare them to factory built ones. This guy reminded me why I try so hard to build a top notch rod in every respect, light weight being a part of that.

Bill Doherty