One of my sons is going to be visiting the SC low country often this summer(girlfriend, what else). The island he will be visiting has a fishing pier as part of the nature preserve. I've only fished piers on occasion and always just used my inshore rigs. I know that this would work OK for him, but would like to build him a rod to use specifically on the pier and with the techniques for the most frequently biting species (Spots, Croaker, Taylor Blues, Flounder, etc). Any suggestions for blanks, setup and extra durability is most appreciated.

Where in SC? I'm from SC and vacation a couple of weeks each summer on the coast and fish daily when there. It would help me to visualize the pier if I knew which one and where it is. Having said that, most folk around here to not use really big stuff on the piers. It probably does not need to be too long, would probably never need to throw more than 3 oz and will honestly probably not need to handle really large fish. Tell me where it is and I'll have more in mind.

Hunting Island. [www.huntingisland.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/30/2006 10:44AM by Steve Rushing.

If you can go on the Internet and find out what people recommend in those places you fish, it would give you an idea of what to build.
If there is any casting, ring guides, if just dropping in the water re coils will be lighter with a ring tip top.
Then it depends on the weight of the lure and line being used and fish that are there. One guy wanted a long rod to keep the fish out from under a pier. I'm thinking a 8-9 footer.
Looks like a nice place. Every one will be on the end of the pier ?? They talk shark, maybe a composite might be in order. Another thing, will you pick the fish up out of the water, or use a net ?? The net sounds better.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/30/2006 10:56AM by bill boettcher.

Looking at the park site, I would build him something that could do double duty for pier or light surf, probably 8 or 9 feet rated 1-3oz. The kicker is you usually don't need that much rod for the fish, but you need it to throw the weight. The beaches are basically shallow, clean and sandy but sometimes I use 3oz if the surf is rough (by our standards). Fishing from the pier you probably throw more like 1oz with small bait. The fish are not usually huge, though you do have to lift them to the pier and catch the occassional ray or shark in the surf so I agree with needing durability.
All that to say that I would use a light surf blank or a heavy steelhead blank, both of which are available in 2-piece (if he's travelling I assume 1-piece is a problem). I like the stuff made by Batson or Lami, the latter if cash is not an issue. My two most-used sticks are a Lami PSB 120-2L for the surf (sweet at 2oz, handles 3) and a 1264 steelhead rod I use for lighter stuff. This year I'm also building a Forecast ST1084 to throw light jigs for pompano. If I was ONLY going to fish from the pier I would also look at the heavier St. Croix inshore travel rods which are 7ft and break down into 3 pieces.

Marty makes a good point. The longer rod may help in the surf if the pier is crowed ??

Steve Rushing -- Go to [fishsticks4u.com] and check out the rod specs for the RAINSHADOW RX4-COMPOSITE SWS-540. The model above (5400) and below (597), too. ...

I'll explain later, ... I'll have to leave to get back to work. Rod length & power; and the rod as a fish hoist (not too short); and the pier rail as a rod holder (not too long) is what I'll discuss later. The rest is predicated on the expected size of the fish and how he fishes (leader length).

If he needs to cast into the surf AND use this as a pier rod as well, a 2-piece 9-foot is my recommendation.

Otherwise a nice 7.5-foot, 1-piece quality composite, like the RS-RX4 SWS-540, is my first choice for a PIER ROD.

Bye for now, -Cliff Hall+++,
former Pier-Rat, Surf-Dog and Jetty-Jockey.

Hello if your son will be fishing bait get him a Down East rod holder that will clamp to the railing these are the best !!!!!!!!!!![www.cabelas.com]

Fishsticks4u has two Batson blanks on their site that I think would work:
SW967F - rated to 2oz, 8ft, 2pc
SU1145 - rated to 1.5oz, 9.5ft 2pc
Both are rated at less than 3oz, but I'm guessing you could do it if you were careful.

To follow up on Cliff Hall's message, I got the SWS-5400 from Andy Dear of Lamar Fishing at the Charlotte Show for $10. He may have more of the blanks left so you might want to check with him first if that is the blank you intend to go with.

-John

Thanks for the replies. As is most often the case, I think I need to build out more than 1 rod :) I'm going to look into the 540 for the "punishable" pier rod and a 1145 or similiar for the smaller, but tasty, surf species. Thanks again.

RainShadow Saltwater Blanks (SWS / SW)
[www.fishsticks4u.com]
RAINSHADOW RX4-COMPOSITE SWS-540.
...
RS-RX4 Model #: SWS-540 ... Matte Clear ... 7'8" ... 1-piece
15-25 lb. ... 3/4 - 3 oz. ... 0.765" ... 6.0 / 64ths ...
Fast ... Med ... 5.46 oz. ... $53.00 - Add [FS4U].

The longest one-piece jetty-pier stick that he can stuff in his car or stow in his apartment that is at least 7 feet long but not quite or over 9 feet long is what I would recommend.

For Surf Rods that are 9 feet and longer, when you lay the rod against the pier rail as a "hands-free" device, there is simply too much rod length sticking butt-out into the traffic on the pier for people to trip over. That’s hard on the fishing tackle and builds tension between the fishermen.

Also, having more than ~2 feet of rod tip sticking out past the pier rail is a great way to have your surf rod go flying over the rail, as if it had been spirited away like a witch's broom. A long rod gives a hard-hitting fish too much leverage to send the entire rod & reel airborne, like an ancient catapult. Having more than ~12 inches of rod blank tip extending beyond the rail is a great way to put an abrupt end to an otherwise pleasant day on the pier.

IMO, on the pier, a good 7-1/2' rod blank is easier to deal with than a 9' surf pole.

You are right to build a 2nd rod for your son’s girlfriend? Better to have a possible daughter-in-law who fishes than a fishing widow. IMO, -Cliff Hall+++, FL.

Thanks for the post and email. Thanks for taking the time to provide specs and details. The girlfriend does fish. In fact there is a 3rd order for a rod for her to fish for flounder. That one will be on a IP843 (or maybe 844). One of my "jobs" over the last few years is to be the rod supplier for my sons and daughter. Now looks like may be building for an extending family. My fishing buddies refer to me as the "First National Bank and Rod Building Company of Dad" (and yak loaner company). :) The good news is we all love fishing together and I couldn't ask for any thing better.