My Shop Assistant (15 yr old high school student) is building a salmon rod for his grand pa who lives out in Oregon. He asked his GP some questions on the rod but we need help in picking out a blank. S.A. is paying for the parts so we need to keep the blank reasonable.
Angler fishes baitcasting rod for salmon. Both boat and stream. Uses "pyramid sinkers " unk size (SA said 3 pounds, I think he meant ounces) and large bait (similar to musky baits) Rod length is up to us. Uses mono and braided line.
I am not familar with this kind of fishing. I know that this is a lack of info but if anyone has a blank suggestion please advise. I am thinking Hardloy guides with a titanium tip top and spiral wrap, cork grip.

Thanks
Buzz

BUZZ:

What you are describing sounds more like a Salmon boat rod than shore rod. For pulling herring or plugs. (I think your SA does mean ounces rather than pounds.) I would suggest you look at some of the Rainshadow "Hotshot" rods; the HS1023F, HS962 or similar. Something around 8'-8'6", fast tip, 1/2-3oz., 12-30 lb. range. The 8'6" model can "cross-over" to some shore techniques. G. Loomis makes some nice ones, but costly compared to other quality blanks. Spiral wrap for sure (I'm sold). Might think about a Slick Butt grip, or sleeve you can slide over an EVA grip for boat use. Keep it light for sure, but why the Titanium tip-top with hardaloy guides? Sounds unnecessary, but I could be wrong.

RON.

Sounds like he is plunking KwickFish to me. He really needs two rods because of the length issue. But If I had to choose one for both then it would be the ISA1087 MSRP $89.59...

Karry is right on for the blank, if you are going to have one rod. Choice of guides and tiptop ?, any of the Batson Tich guides with matching tiptop is good to go.

In some of our river fishing we go all the way up to 48 oz's, so his GP may be using 36 oz to shore cast with.

As for the cork make sure you seal it well, we use a lot of cured bait in florescent colors.(messy stuff gets every where)

I am sold on the spiral wrap but not a lot of people out here are warming up to it very fast, Northwest Oregon, the one's that have tried it are staying with it.

If you have any other info or ? email me be glad to help.

36oz holy cow ok thats a diffrent animal all togther and a rod to do that is not a rod you want to use in the boat. I would max cast the 1087 at 3-4oz and a lobb cast max 4-8oz but our cast rating on that blank will not allow that under warranty:)

Why in te world would you use a 3 lb weight for river fishing. I have used weight that heavy for snapper in the gulf but not fresh water.
I am curious on haow you fish that set-up

Thanks
Paul

Paul@soonercustomrod.com

The pyramid sinker makes me think he's using it for plunking. A lot of the guys plunking on the columbia use 11-13' stout rods, so I think a surf rod blank rated for 20-40lb test would be in order.

He said Boat and Stream fishing not sure the Columbia fits in that catagory but if so then a SU model would be better:)

TO Paul:

We also fish sturgeon here and at Cascade Locks we have a fellow that launches up to 48 oz lead out of a catapult system, average cast 200 yards, yes two football fields long. It is the only way to fish the dam no boats allowed in that part of the river and that close to the dam.

As for what people from back east call a stream, we out here call that a creek.

The Columbia from Bonneville Dam to the ocean can all be called early ocean, it is over a mile wide in some places and they have dredged it deep enough for super tankers to get to Portland.

We have caught Salmon as far up the river as Longview , WA that still have sea lice on them.

Didn't mean to steal the thread.

Thanks Tim would love to try it.

Paul

Paul@soonercustomrod.com

Hey thanks everyone. Your input was a big help. I will order the parts so Chris can get started on Grand pa's rod.
Buzz

Buzz;
I sure hope this thread hasn't given you the wrong idea. The only place I know of where you might have to throw 3-4 pounds of lead from ship or shore is up near the spill way of Bonneville Dam (especially on the Washington side) fishing for Sturgeon. To paraphrase what you said: "salmon from boat and bank, on rivers and streams in Oregon". If this is the case, then what Grandpa really needs is an all 'round Salmon rod, one that is versatile and not one meant to just fish the Columbia river in heavy current. There are places along the Columbia you can bank fish with 4-8 oz. of lead-- or less. But, in any case such a rod is way overkill for anywhere else. It would be so heavy you would never be able to use it for other fishing techniques on any of our rivers and streams. And, frankly, not much fun in my opinion. Also, Grandpa may want to fish for Steelhead as well...

I stand by my original post. For a boat rod, something around 8 feet; for shore, 9 feet or a little longer. 12-30 lb. range 1/2 to three oz. weight. Moderately fast to fast tip. Sensitive tip with a big butt for enough backbone to turn a large fish. This range will cover most inland Salmon techniques. If it's in the budget, look at the Lamiglas Certified Pro models or G-1000 series. Lamiglas' Magnum Taper models are great Salmon/Steelhead rods. I built an 8'9" Magnum Taper (10-20 lb., 1/2 to 1-3/8 oz) for my son to use as his all-round Samon/Steelhead rod. It's a pretty versatile rod; spinners, jigs; etc., boat or shore. Good backbone. I think it's one of the best cross-over (Salmon/Steelhead) rods you can get. It may not be the one for Grandpa, but you won't go wrong with Lamiglas. Load your reel with 50-lb. "Stealth" braid, with 10-12 ft. of 12-14 lb. Maxima mono as a shock leader, and you are good to go just about anywhere for Salmon.

Take a look at the Lamiglas and G. Loomis catalog's, or go on their web sites. They will give you some good suggestions as to what rods are necessary for different Salmon techniques.

Hope this helps a little. RON.

Karry Batson's suggestion of the ISA 1087 is a good choice for an all around great rod.

Spencer I agree. In my opinion, the ISA's are a good choice for Salmon, and certainly a really great value for the money. The Batson's are fortunate enough to live in an area where the Salmon tend to run bigger than most of the one's we get in Oregon (that we get to keep anyway). I think the ISA 1086 would be a good choice also. In a pinch, you could fish Steelhead with it, but the 1087 would definitely overpower Steelhead. But then, I always try to go as light as I think I can get by with... After giving it more thought, the ISA 1087 would probably be the best choice for a Samon specific rod for Grandpa.

Buzz, after all this, be sure to post what Grandpa's going to end up with. I'm sure it will be something he's going to cherish.
RON.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/18/2007 10:59PM by RON NIX.