Does anyone actually measure arms and wrists for length of handles I see this being done by one builder and wounder about the actual purpose of this or is it just a selling point.

Getting that information makes it possible to fit the handle to the person better.

How is it done Mike

When I fit someone up for an overhead casting rod, I always put the blank under their arm pit, where their hand fits relaxed on the blank with a slight bend in their arm is where the bottom of the reel seat sits. Never fails me.
Cheers Paul.

Different strokes for different folks! Big Bubba Belly Man so the mushroom butt cap fits comfortably in the belly button - Bassmaster Wanna B butt cap a couple of inches short of the elbow in the middle of the forearm muscle (crank, spinner, pitchin) and longer for flippin for balance - Fly Guy Blue Water Man so the gimbal fits in the belt, reel clears flesh and his off arm reaches the lifting grip - Bateau Sitter short short so it will not hit the boat gunwale - Cheapo short - short to save on cork and adhesive cost - Way too long for the surf wave jumpers so they can spread grip - Perfect fit up for serious standup fisherman who know what he is doing, two inches off and the rod performance drops off seriously and Six Shooter Pistol Grip for the ones my age who say they personally knew Lew.

I will modify any of the above for a small additional charge!

April?? Sleeting, wind blowing, Oberto guys on the bank complaining, bassers still sleeping, finish to gummy to work with, colored boiled eggs hidden in the den, tomato plants frozen - no telling what I will type on this board today!

Not Gon Fishn





Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 04/08/2007 07:45PM by Bill Stevens.

The Volume 10 #3 issue of RodMaker will contain a detailed article on human ergonomics for custom rod builders. There are many things to take into consideration, arm length being only one of them. I think this piece will break a lot of new ground for builders who truly wish to custom fit a rod to the individual angler.

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When I am setting up the real seat and the real for a custom rod to establish guide spacing I always set the real seat so the butt end ends at his elbow. This is for a steelhead rod so the butt is always in your arm not your belly when fighting a fish. The last one I did I curved the handle to follow the ark of his forearm as apposed to a straight handle. Workded out very nice and nested into the arm under tension.

The general rule of thumb for surf spinning rods is to fit the reel where it can be comfortably gripped when the rod butt is nestled in the pit of the arm when held out to the side. For conventional surf reels a bit of extra distance works better as the hand does not need to reach ahead of the reel foot as with spinning reels.

I'd be interested to see if this logic is supported in the upcoming RodMaker article.