I have been doing a lot of wading lately and fishing my home made jigs, problem is i have a 6' st. croix that is too long for the overhanging bushes and trees that i like to skip the jig into. I am looking to build a 5 foot light action rod( spinning) that had enough back bone to set the hook. Any suggestions on guides, cork lengths, ect. would be greatly appreciated. Since this will be my first rod looking to keep price around 50-60 dollars just in case i screw up i do not want to waste a lot of money and get discouraged. However i still want a nice light wieght rod that i can continue to fish with for years to come. Thanks a lot Greg,

Ok i think i have selected my blank...
I want to get the 5'6" st croix sc2 i believe it is. It is 38 dollars which i believe is a fair price. Now i have a quick question i want just a straight cork grip in which i can tape my reel onto the handle. I guess the best way to go about this is to buy cork rings and make it the length i want. Now the rod has a Butt od of .37" and the rings i found come in 1/4 (.25") or 3/8(.375") which should i use. Should i buy the 1/4 and enlarge them or with the 3/8 have a tight enough fit to them. Also for the guides what size guides would you recommend for this rod and how many, most likely i will be going with the fuji hardloy BLVG. I think 6 plus tip would work nicely. Sorry for so many questions but i want to make sure i dont waste money on parts that will not suit my needs as i am on a limited budget. Thanks again

Because of the type questions you're asking here, I really think that the best thing you can do is spend $14 or so and buy yourself a copy of Rod Building Guide by Tom Kirkman. It would answer all your questions and give you all the information you need so that you can be sure of not "screwing up". Message boards like this one are great for filling in gaps or helping in a pinch, but for basic instruction you really need a good rod building book.

I already have a copy of the book and have read through it many times.

Select a fast action blank - tip oriented. You may be able to find the handle type you mention in a kit, St. Croix may even offer one. I would set up my guides per the instructions on the online library page here for the New Guide Concept System.

If you build your grip from rings, I'd probably get the 1/4 inch bore and ream or bore them out to fit. If you go larger, you may be okay but would probably have to shim the forward area on the blank a bit. A spiral wrap of wrapping thread in D might work.

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Jann's has a pre-fab Tennessee handle with graphite slip rings that should work great. 1/4 bore.

Interesting! Greg, my favorite (Use it almost exclusively except when one of my adult boys has sneaked it away for an evening) small pond, lake, trout stream rod is my SC111, 5'6'', Fast action, Ultra light, 2 piece. I built a 10 1/2" "Tenneessee Cork Handle" for it and I tape my Cetus SB500 reel to it with thin strips of waterproof adhesive tape. ( Ive tried several ultra light reels and this is by far the nicest, not real expensive, smoothest, good drag, two spools small reel around)! I even stipped of my old guides last winter and put on new All American Titan guides in a Concept guide spacing manner. I use the 4 lb spool most of the time with Trilene XL. Casts like a charm and the drag is solid and consistent enough to handle bigger fish if you don't horse it. I re-sanded and finished the cork handle and put on three light coats of Birchwood Casey True Oil. Taping the handle can be a little tough on cork and the True Oil tips I got on this forum have been a blessing. I have only one spin rod left that I kept a true reel seat on. ( It is what my wife prefers) I really like the lightness and extra feel I get from all-cork handles. When you couple them with high grade graphite rods, quality reels and good line, you have a winning combination. That is why I would advise you to go up one step (for a lttle more money) and get the SC111 over the SC11. There is a difference and the additional money is just not that significant. I went with 5 guides this time. My stripper is a taller frame #20... then I went #12, #8 and two # 5's. Again, I only planned to use 4or 6lb test and I created the concept spacing specifically for that Cetus reel. I also figured out this winter how to do some nice feater in-lays. (thanks again to marvelous Forum help) The rod is handsome, so light, sensitive but smootly firm with a little backbone to it. I am going to Canada in a few weeks for some Walleye and Northern fishing. I'll put some Fluoralcarbon 6 lb P-line on one spool and 8 lb P-line on the other and use it much of the time for the walleye jigging. Very, very sensitive and lots of fun. Well, I've rambled a lot but as you can tell I am sold on this rod. If you want to know more about the distance on the guide spacing contact me. Good luck. Steve

Thanks a lot for all your help, found a handle that i like that st. croix makes. I really do not want to spend too much more money on a more expensive blank as of right now because this is going to be my first rod that I built. Thanks for the suggestions with the guides it has given me a good idea on what I want, i will most likely be using 6 pound test all the time but i am going with the L because it has more backbone which i need to set the hook.

As far as hook setting goes, you may be surprised to learn that length, not power, is the key to getting a good hook set. It has to do with how much line you move, and how far, moreso than the amount of power you generate.

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Well i am limited to length because i want ot be able to fish in waders therefore i feel i need to go up in power to L.