Has anyone ever cut down a Seeker CLB 708 by a few inches? I'm building one for light to medium duty trolling, for Spanish and the occasional blue or king, and it seems to me the tip could be a little more stout than it came from the factory.

Thanks

It's soft for a reason - it allows you to use live bait with great success. I'd be careful before I started trimming that tip - I've used the CLB702, 04, 06 and 08 over the years and really, really like those blanks just because of those soft tips. It would not, however, be my first choice for throwing plugs. But for live baiting, it's a hard blank to beat.

Cut a few inches off that blank and you'll have a pool cue. Be careful there.

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I agree it is a perfect live bait rod. This rod was recommended to me as a trollig rod, and will be most likely used to pull spoons with two maybe three ounce weights on them. Odds are slim it will ever be used for live baiting. Did I get a bad recommendation? I've done plenty of trolling and when I look at other trolling rods I worry about the soft tip. I was looking at it last night and it seems like taking a few inches off, probably no more than 6 at the absolute most assuming that didn't make it too stiff, would give it a little more backbone.

I don't happen to troll spoons myself,but there are guys that troll those big Bunker Spoons for stripers. My understanding is that the softer tip aloows the lure trolled to have a more favorable swimming action in the water. I may be wrong so wait n see wait else is said about it. There are other boards for fishing that may be more helpful but iI don't know what they are. I would look for sites relating to the northeast Atlantic.
Good luck,
Chuck

If you remove 6 inches off that blank, you'll have a stick. A very powerful stick. Not much flex at all without a pretty good load on it.

I think you might want to tie your lure or spoon on the blank at various locations back from the tip and then hoist it and play it around and get a feel for what differing amounts of trim might do to it. It's just such a very fact action blank and 6 inches off the tip will really put you back into where real meat of that model begins.

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William,
I would listen to Toms comments if I were you. I do a lot of trimming of blanks and it is surprising how much affect trimming a small amount off a blank will have, particularly a fast action blank. I think trimming six inches off of that blank is going to turn it into a club. Either use a moveable tie on the tip as Tom suggests or trim off small, 1/2 inch, pieces and then try it.

Agreed, 6 inches is too much. I looked again last night and it looks like you could trim 2 inches off and still not change tip size. I promise I won't trim too much! As with any type of rod you build for the first time, I'm learning.

The best thing you could do, is ask a question here for recommendations for a Trolling rod for etc & etc. That's just not the right blank, don't force it to work & be disappointed, just use the correct blank off the bat.

Chuck - there is a difference between soft tipped Glass rods, and soft tipped Seeker 708 (and Calstar 700XL). The Glass rods bend much more into the butt, whereas both of those blanks shut off way up the blank. I consider the tip on those 2 blanks "floppy". I do not live bait fish or troll, but from what I've read they both excel in live baiting, and even light plastic/jig fishing (1-3oz), but I don't think either or a good choice for trolling.

I did get advice on this site, unfortunately I just chose the wrong piece of advice to take despite my best efforts to explain myself. My new course of action is to finish this rod as what it really is, a live bait rod. Grips, gimbal, and reel seat are already on it. I know someone that will buy it and love it.

SO, I will ask the question one more time: Which blank should I use for light to medium offshore trolling, spoons with up to 3 oz. weights? Seeker SM30 series and Calstar 660 Series L have been recommended. Thanks for the help-

I don't know that the CLB708 wouldn't make a nice trolling rod, but I do know that it'll stiffen up quick if you take even a few inches off of it. That may or may not be want you want. I can't say.

I have a buddy that uses the 704's for trolling spoons and plugs for Spanish Mackeral. He loves them and uses them full length.

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