I am noticing a higer rod breakage rate with Bass baitcasters than the walleye and even the muskie rods I build. Anyone else see this? Any ideas to curb it? I don't believe it's a blank issue as it's not the same failure every time. The blanks are mostly MBC783's and 843's used for plastics.

Thanks,
Marc

Bass fishermen overall, are much harder on their equipment than other anglers. The fishing shows are partly to blame for this - fishermen emulate what they see the "pros" do and the pros really don't handle their rods very carefully.

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Marc,
I've never seen another type of angler treat their rods like some bass anglers. Those rods really take a beating, they do just about anything to get just a few more casts in. Picking the fish out of the water with the rod isn't good for either the rod or the fish, but they do it all the time. Doing a high stick hookset on an immovable object they think is a fish doesn't help either.

Are you spiral wrapping the rods? That will make a difference because of the torque on the rod during hooksets.

AC
FishinFreaks
Rogers, MN

Marc I don't build many bass rods, but if you do some searching here bass fishermen and ladies are probably the hardest fishing people on equipment than all the others, exception maybe ocean party boats. I remember a TV show from some time back and the host was just about yelling at what a great time they were having then described their equipment and the thing that stuck out was they were using 80lb braid. Thats tougher than most bass blanks.

Hey - glad to know it's not just me. I can't get too many guys to buy the spiral wrap yet, but do it when I can due to torque factors. I am really starting to think these guys should be using a lot more fiberglass or glass/graphite composite blanks. Any suggestions on those type of blanks?

Thanks,
Marc

Marc your observations are probably right on target. There are logical answers to most of the failures of bass casting rods. Very few failures of rods are caused by defective blanks. The selection of the wrong blank, for a specific technique, by the builder or the fisherman can easily be the cause of an unnecessary rod failure. There is a lot of truth imbedded in Tom's answer of "people emulate what they see the pros do". An understanding of the durability and task specific use requirements for a long list of bass rods can not be gotton on a TV screen watching film clips of a tournament winner yanking a bass into the boat. The custom builder must fully understand the anticipated requirements of each rod he builds and effectively communicate the proper requirements to the fisherman. If this is done properly the building of custom bass rods can be quite rewarding to the builder and the fisherman.

Bill Stevens

I agree that bass fishermen are tougher on their equipment. Taking into consideration that there are more "bass rods" in use than any other type-the percentage of breaks may not be that much higher than other types.
In all of my years of bass fishing the only one I have broken was trying to lift a log off the bottom with a rod whose reel was spooled with line considerably outside the manufacturers recommendation for that rod.
I think the guys emulating TV bassers quickly realize that when they break a rod they usually pay to replace them while the TV stars dont. That fact more often than not stimulates behavior modification. I have not tried to pull a log off of the bottom since because I had to buy a rod to replace that one. Competitive bass fishing at its highest levels has become a much more lucrative sport than what it was only a few years ago. A lot of
bass pros would tell you they would break all their rods and ruin their boats if needed for a win. Again , they often are not paying to replace them. If they had to pay or had to spend time BUILDING another one their behavior would change. Similarly , if you are replacing these rods under warranty their owners will be less inclined to take care of them. As has been said here so many times-cost of potential replacement must influence the original purchase price.

marc, listen to Aaron. On HARD used Bass rods - only the spiral wrap will stop the breakage from tip torque. Build eyes up if they want - but no warranty - warranty only on the spiral wrap - they will get the idea, I am one of these die hard bass anglers (hard on equipment ) and have built for and advised the best. Best course of action is to know what you're doing and cut them no slack - high sticking, abuse, etc. - no sympathy! Fiberglass IS the best option for some techniques (tight line moving lures) and higher level bass anglers (but not novices).

I would listen to Richard and Aaron.
If I have a client that insists on a conventional wrapped rod, I insist he go to another builder.

Richard;
It is good to see you posting again! You bring a lot of wisdom and knowledge to this board it has been missed



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/24/2008 05:22PM by Steve Gardner.

Depending on where the breakage is locaed, andthe method used to break teh rod, the Spiral wrap will not cure every problem. I've broken a few spiral wrapped rods, tehre is no cure for stupidity. IF peopl insist on high sticking, swinging fish up onto the boat, tehy have to realize that they WILL break the rod at some point (graphite). Imade 2 mistakes last season swinging fish,used both rods about 40 times, and it was the only mistake I made with thsoe 2 rods. And the final mistake I made.