Don's Tackle out of Hawaii is a new board sponsor. Don sells a ton of specialty surf rod blanks. See his link to the left and visit his site when you have a chance.

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Hi Tom,

Thank you for the nice welcome.

Now I will have to update my vintage website. It's long overdue.

It is a pleasure to help support this messageboard. I have witnessed so many experienced people freely helping others.

My skills in rod building are centered around surf rods. Although I wrap all the prototype rods that I test, when I want a really good job done I will take the blank to one of the tackle shops that I frequent. If I can be of help, please give a shout.

Mahalo to everyone for sharing,

Don

DOn, are you the one who can get the Putcast blanks, or whatever tehy are now called? I believ Ken Kiura was teh guy designing them. I know thre was a shop in HAwaii that had something similar, I thought it was a BIke shop or something. Just wondering.

Hi Billy,

You may be referring to Purglas. I do not believe they are available in Hawaii.
Ken Kimura is the owner of Island Rod Wrap and may still be a manager at McCully Bicycle.
Ken is the importer of Outcast blanks that are "probably" made in Korea. Similar to OutCast is BigCast. On a yearly basis, Ken tweaks his blanks to make them a little better. The OutCast blanks are of good quality and affordable. I'm sure they are the most used blanks in Hawaii.

I do not sell OutCast, BigCatch or Purglas blanks. I do support CTS Makoi and Conoflex Makoi surf blanks. I am also a distributor for Breakaway and stock the Breakaway HDX and LDX surf rods.

Please send an email message if you need contact information for Ken Kimura.

Mahalo,
Don Becker

Don, I am sorry for themix up. You guys really have a lt of high end blank options out there. Everyone I know who built a rod on a CTS & Conoflex say it's teh best blank they've ever built on & were well worth the money. Finding a resource for these blanks in stock has been tough, I'll make sure to pass on your shop to teh Ditance Casting guys here' on the North East Coast.

Hi Billy,

"Finding a resource for these blanks in stock has been tough, "

That is changing.

The CTS Makoi surf blanks started development and testing in Hawaii with myself and CTS over a year ago. The Series I was introduced at a two day casting workshop a year ago August. Since then the lineup has grown to six models. I have a seventh model that I will be testing this coming Sunday. If it passes the tests and meets my approval regarding characteristics, it will join the CTS Makoi lineup. If not, it will be modified as necessary to meet my requirements. The blanks have gone through three generations and are now the Series II. There should be a model that meets your needs on the North East Coast.

"I'll make sure to pass on your shop to the Distance Casting guys here' on the North East Coast"

Thank you for the kindness, but it may be unnecessary. Last weekend I traveled to Hilo where I introduced the CTS Makoi and Breakaway rods. I hope to have the CTS Makoi Series II available in your area in the near future.

Breakaway has two relatively new surf rods that may meet your needs. The LDX and HDX (light and heavy). You can call Nick Meyer (in Texas) to find a distributor in your area. Nick's number is listed on the Breakaway website. The HDX is available as either a spinning or casting rod. It can be purchased with a bare handle that has only heat shrink on it. There is also tournament handle that increases the length from 13' to 14'. The only thing on the tournament handle is a decal.

Mahalo,
Don

Hi Billy:

We have been working with Don to bring the CTS Makoi line to the East Coast. As Don indicated there are a number of models on their way out to the East Coast (we are in Connecticut). At the moment we have started with 2 models which are in stock and available. My goal is and has been to bring these excellent blanks to the East Coast, along with Merrick Tackle and Don.

At the moment we have the 2 models listed on our site [www.ackfishing.com] for sale, with more to come as Don makes them available. These are in stock right here in New England.

We will be adding to this section other models, most likely in October, after the Merrick Tackle show on October 18th. People have shown a lot of interest in these blanks up and down the East Coast, but as you mentioned finding a resouce has been tough (on the East Coast), and as Don mentioned that is changing. ACK Fishing & Tackle will be carrying the Makoi line Don has mentioned, and plans to have sufficient stock on the East Coast to prevent out of stock problems, quick delivery, and lower shipping charges. Right now we are shipping the first small batch we have with no charge for shipping, just to get the ball rolling. We are a retailer, so if you are a wholesale customer, Merrick will be the place on the East Coast for that although I do not believe they will have any until the show on the 18th.

If in the meantime, until the show and if you wish to discuss the CTS Makoi blanks, I would be happy to do so. GIve me a call at 866-285-0673, or e-mail me at pmaltby@ackfishing.com and we can talk further about some options.


Kind Regards,


Peter Maltby
ACK Fishing & Tackle