I haven't seen the new Titan guides yet,but seeing as they have rings that are said to be considerably thinner than SIC or zirconia rings of the same size,are the inside diameters noticably larger in the Titans as well?

If so,how would the inside diameter of a size 5 Titan compare to the inside diameter of a typical size 6 SIC or zirconia guide?

If a person usually uses size 6 running guides for most rods,would he be able to get away with the size 5 Titans for 6wt rods and under to lighten a rod up even more,or would size 6 Titans still be the way to go for 4-6wt rods?

I really wanted to use gold ring zirconia ceramics on a 8ft9 4wt Dan Craft SIG V(a phenominally light and responsive tip on this rod),but after prepping them and shortening the feet as much as I dare,then taping them on,the rod just feels like it has lost all it's crispness and the weight has really taken away the fast recovery that these blanks are noted for.I'm sure that with a line strung on it that these negatives will probably be very difficult to notice compared to just wiggling the rod alone,and that the smoothness of the zirconia guides would still make the rod feel amazing to cast,but it definitely feels like there is way too much weight on the rod and that it is really losing it's crisp feel.

I've actually decided to change the guides on this rod to either REC Recoils(probably SF),or to the new Titans(which are about twice the price of the Recoils).

I'm not sure if the size 6 Titan fly guides will be as light as I want for this rod(they would obviously be much lighter than my zirconia guides,but I'm not quite sure if the rod tip would feel as light and quick as I am looking for),so I was wondering if I would be able to get away with using size 5 Titans for this blank,which would cut a tiny bit more weight(the lighter the better for this particular blank).

Anyways,does anyone know what the inside diameter of a size 5 Titan measures as,and how the inside ring diameter of the size 5 Titan compares to a size 6 zirconia or SIC ring?

If a size 5 tip top to match for a fly rod was available, I might be able to answer your question. Until it's available, I won't order the size 5 guide, personally.

Putter
Williston, ND

I would say the danger of going too small would not let knots go though the tip top. I myself would stay because they are so light with 6 and even 7's.

Hey Tony! The finished wraps themselves are going to impact the crispness of this near-perfect blank (OK, little bit of prejudice, but you're sure right in singing this blank's praises IMO). If you want to keep it as light as possible, the Recoils are it. If you want to find a balance between the lightest-possible and best for shooting line, etc., then the Fuji's or Titans make sense. Personally, I usually go with the H&H standoffs on this (and other Sig V) blank(s) in the DLC finish--they're very light, hold the line off the blank better than any other sf wire guide, and are super-slick.

All the best! :)

The rings on the Titan guides are very slightly larger ID than standard ceramics. Like Randy said, I didn't get size 5 since the smallest tip is 6.
The guide feet on the Titan fly guides are way too long and bulky IMO. I used size 6 fly guides on a spinning rod and spent a lot of time shortening and shaping the feet.

I just cut the feet to how long I want them and then just reshape. They shape easy.

Bill, I did the same. What I meant about spending a lot of time was relative to Fuji Alconite or SiC fly guides.

O - they are harder