I'm making my first split grip spinning rod using a NPS reel seat but haven't decided whether to have it up lock or down lock. Is there a best way or just personal preference? I' m leaning toward up lock. Any help appreciated.

Thanks, Dave

Personal preference.



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Better to have and not need than to need and not have.

Mount your reel in the NPS and hold it as if you were fishing. You'll find it quite comfortable in the down locking position. It (and the fish) don't really care which way you mount it, but I've found that using the larger NPS' and tapering the rear grip to meet the seat's O.D. is one of the most comfortable spinning set ups going.

Mark Griffin
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C&M Custom Tackle
San Dimas, California

Personal preference, but I like it downlocking as well...

David,

It DOES matter.

But, it depends on how the person fishing the rod HOLDS it.

For me, I hold a spinnng rod with the reel stem protruding downwards between my fourth and little finger, or the middle and ring finger, of my right (rod holding) hand (difference is the length of the front of the reel, I need to be able to reach the line with my right index finger).

This puts the majority of my had in 'front' of the reel stem, thus on the front portion of the reel seat. Since I don't want any portion of the locking mechanism under my hand, I build my spinning rods with an uplocking seat.

If you (or your customer) holds the rod BEHIND the stem (some folks do it this way, but it seems unbalanced to me...) then you want a downlocking seat.

You do need to 'know' this BEFORE you mount the seat. I'd never even consider using a spinning rod with a downlocking seat. It's a defintie 'deal breaker' for me. They are uncomfortable to me to hold, and thus not something I'd even try to 'get used to'.

Good Luck!

Buddy

Down locking is my choice. Less chance of your palm moving or loosening the nut or it vibrating loose.

I agree with Buddy, I too like to hold a bit higher in front of the reel stem and find it balances better like he says.

I've built mostly downlocking but just made an IP843 for throwing small cranks. I tried it uplocking since the reel I was using had a very long spool and it "seemed" comfortable in the shop. Well, in actual use I decided I hate it and I'll remove it this winter and go back to downlocking. I hold a spinning rod slightly tip down and with it mounted up locking my pinky finger and back of my palm doesn't like touching the nut or threads.

One other huge benefit of downlocking for me is that you can tighten your reel down tight, mark the end of the nut, and then remove about an inch of useless threads off of the seat. After you're rod is finished you can back off the nut right over your epoxy ramp and attach a reel, then snug the nut up tight with no visible threads. It's a very clean looking system and lets you put your thumb on the blank. It's quite comfortable. After reading the ergonomics article in Rodmaker I've gone to size 20 NPS seats on my personal rods and it's even better. Flocking comes next!

If you're in doubt try mocking it up both ways with masking tape arbors and no glue. Go out and cast for a while and see what you like.

Chuck

Lots of good posts with some of the ideas i'd considered for going either way. The rod is a present for the son-in law of a friend of mine who goes on a once a year trip to Canada and that's all he fishes. Under normal circumstances I'd probably just make a very conventional rod but the guy wants some weaves with a logo and then another with his initials and so the split grip will give me another area on which to work. With all of that stuff on the rod it probably won't work for me to temporarily build it up and test it. Personally I wouldn't want threads under my fingers as I hold the reel with two fingers on each side. I do like the idea of shortening the thread area and will probably do that one.

Thanks, Dave

I prefer uplocking with the NPS and downlocking with the others. I build epoxy ramps or use small "buttons of acrylic/wood to sover the opening,

Mike (Southgate, MI)
If I don't want to, I don't have to and nobody can make me (except my wife) cuz I'm RETIRED!!

Buddy's basically right. For the folks who "hunch-up" on the grip, an uplocking seat is better, and otherwise, a downlocking seat works fine. (there's another aspect to the "forward" grip, where the user might want a slightly longer foregrip becuse that's where his thumb and forefinger end up).

Somewhere in this discussion is the fact that as the user's hand moves around on the grip, the locking ring gets moved and can loosen as a result.

We've got customers who have asked us for both styles on virtually identical rods. The only issue was the difference in the actual distance from the face of the reel to the stripper guide. That's a design issue, easily accommodated.

Uncle Russ
Calico Creek Rods

Wow, it always amazes me just how different people are when it comes to these sorts of things. I have just started building a split grip with NPS seat and have the seat down locking, but I hold the rod the same way that Buddy does, reel stem in between 4th and little finger, and I find downlocking more comfortable.

I also did it this way because I like to get my index finger onto the bare rod for feel and an NPS seat mounted downlocking with little or no foregrip seems to suit what I want perfectly.

Cheers

Jason

I'm doing some rods for my granddaughters using a size 16 NPS with little underspin trigger reels. The best fit & feel for this case is uplocking. That's why we call it custom I guess - customer input.

From a fishing standpoint, I really don't have a preference with up or down locking seats but from a security standpoint, I do. All my surf fishing rods are up locking because when they're being carried in my vehicle mounted surf rack, the reel seat nut is down inside the rod tube. That way, when the rods are locked in the rack with plastic coated wire cable wrapped around the rod, thieves cannot unscrew the reel seat, remove the reel and defeat the locking cable. It's unfortunate that we have to consider things like this but sadly, it's a fact of life.

I agree with Buddy 100% as this is the way I hold the rod/reel.