I am building a rod on a budget, what is everyone's opinion on the best blank for the money? brand or specifics? looking mainly for saltwater blanks

Rainshadow will ALWAYS get my vote! Great selection too.

IMO, you need to be more specific - saltwater ranges from inshore 8-14# class to 100# grouper sticks. Tell the species, fishing method, etc ... as much information as you can and plenty of folks will chime in.

Sorry for the Vague post.
I am looking for a saltwater blank, around 10-25 #
around 6 to 8 feet
mainly spinning, little casting

John,
Still not enough info. Don't you know what your fishing for, and how? Fishing rods are like golf clubs, you need the right one for the conditions at hand.

Yep ...

Livebait, dead bait or lures? If lures, what type? Crankbaits and topwaters require a different blank than jigs/bucktails for example.
Target Species? Redfish, snook, tarpon, flounder, bluefish, etc.
Fishing Platform? Land, bridge, jetties, boat, kayak, etc.
Braid, Mono or Flourocarbon?

Spinning and Casting are TOTALLY different ... guides, reels and seats. So which do you want?

I am really just looking for brand here, nothing that specific guys.
thanks

John, if your looking for a general line of blanks to choose from, check out the Batson Rainshadow / Forecast stuff! Quality vs. price...I bet these are exactly what your looking for. From your brief discription, I'll bet the Rainshadow RCLB70XL will fit the bill....makes a great general purpose fast action workhorse inshore saltwter rod. Tons of bang for your buck! Check out Rainshadow on the sponsor list to the left.

Go with Sott's suggestion You can't go wrong with the
Batson line of products. They are IMO the best value for the money

i havent build a rod out of a rainshadow yet but i checked one out at a local shop and it looked extremely nice and light...also it was the same price as the same class gator glass...i wish i would have bought that instead of the gator glass(not that im unhappy with the gator glass but the finish was a lot nicer and it was probably half the weight)

Tiger eye blanks are a great value also

Batson, and then PacBay.

Uncle Russ
Calico Creek Rods

Batson/ Rainshadow all the way. Try the SW967 Great swimbait rod or big deep diving crankbaits. Built one for my brother-in-law and he uses his for salmon and halibut, says he loves the the parabolic action. this blank is 8 foot 15-25 lb Check out the Batson line and you'll find something that fits your type of fishing and budget. I've built 8 Rainshadows and love them. Steve

Thank you all for the support. "The Vision Continues" - To supply High Quality Rod Blanks & Rod Building Components at a fair price backed with the best customer service in the industry. We are a copmpnay that molds Integrity, Passion, Quality and Experience into one package to better service the Industry/Art of Rodbuilding.. Be on the lookout for the new models of Spey & Switchrod blanks now avaiable through our Authorized Batson Enterprises - Rainshadow/Forecast/ALPS distributors. Also the new SS316 LXN guides not to mention the other new items by us. Please feel free to contact us for the New 2007/2008 supplimental catalog / price list. We plan on disclosing the Test data that we have done in regards to the Forecast/ALPS product lines. This will disolve any and all miths about the so called competitions components in regards to there superiority. Try them, I garantee you will not be disappointed...
If you ever have any questions please feel free to contact us.We are a US family owned and operated company that is here for this industry..

Bill Batson
CEO
Batson Enterprises
Rainshadow/Forecast/ALPS product lines
877-875-2381
www.batsonenterprises.com
batson@batsonenterprises.com..

I am curious to know which Gator Glass blank you used. I use them almost exclusively, to the point where I have had people ask me if they were graphite on certain blanks.

The 6702, @#$%& and FT models are a whole lot lighter than the GATOR, Unlimited, KC, T and U models. I just picked up a BS586 and next to a Calstar GFX700L they were pretty close in weight.

Rating on Gator BS586 is 12-25# - Mod to Fast Action
Rating on the GFX700L is 15-30# - Mod Action

They are pretty close blanks and weigh nearly the same. I live near Mudhole's store, so I was able to compare them side by side.

On a budget can mean lots of things. If you mean on the cheap, look at the PacBays @#$%& and Donart have on clearance. Mudhole specials I've picked up turned out to be Lamiglas and AmTac, which were good too. There are a lot of makers and a lot of sales outlets, so competition is keen and deals common. Perhaps I'm easily pleased because I like glass for the ocean? From the list of names everyone has already mentioned, I don't see how you go wrong picking one off someone's specials page that meets your action and weight requirements.
Personally I would avoid sticking to a brand. It limits your opportunistic choices and your palette. If I had to pick one for salt, I'd be very prone to say Seeker, but they rarely pop up on specials.