I am new to rod building and am purchasing some stuff right now. I am going to order some of the mud hole house blanks to start with. I am looking at the Fuji ACS trigger reel seat. I am wondering how I would know to order the number 16 or number 17? Also since I do not have the blank and can not messure the ID size what should I order for the ID?

If anyone has any good info for a begginer I am open for any. I have read a lot on this site and man this is the best site and people for info. I hope to be able to contribute to this site in the future.

Thanks
Bobby

If you are going through Mudhole for this, you can call them up and help you fit up the right reelseat based on how long of a rear grip you want to make. It is hard to say though, the 16 or 17, which size is best for you. You might need to order one of each and see how they each feel in your hand. But as far as the correct ID, someone at Mudhole will help you with that.

buy the reel seat for your comfort level, not to fit the blank as close as possible.

just as long as the seat is big enough to put it where you want on the blank its ok to use (within reason of course).

Bobby, Mike gave you good advice. Give em a call.

Chuck



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/28/2008 01:24PM by Chuck Mills.

James, if Bobby is purchasing an ACS seat it has to fit the blank snug. A size 16 seat is what the majority of manufacturers install on their casting rods and if you've used rods in the past built by Allstar, Falcon, Castaway and Kistler you may be used to a size 16 seat. A 17mm is just a tad bit larger and you may like it better for your comfort level.

Why don't you ask the sales person at Mudhole to size a 16 and 17 mm seat to your blank and buy both, It won't cost you but a few dollars more to get the extra seat but if you don't like the 16 you'll have the 17 on hand and wouldn't have to order another one in a different size.

Lance

I have built on a few of those Mudhole blanks for cheapy flick sticks and they are great. Slower action than I usually prefer but still, they are nice and have good power in the butt. They are nicely finished too. Regarding the reel seat, have the vendor size it for you or, get the blank, take your own measurements and then order the seat .

bobby. mud hole has some nice rod building kits . you might like to try one to start with ..

The first reply was the best advice. When you order your blank order the reel seat at the same time, and have the dealer (Mudhole or any other dealer for that matter) fit the correct reel seat for the handle length that you want. If you don’t know what handle length you want measure a factory rod that you feel comfortable with from the butt to the rear edge of the reel seat. You won’t get a choice of a 17 or 16 reel seat since the ID will be what is sized to the blank, and they don’t really overlap unless the blank is exactly 15mm at the spot for the reel seat which would be unlikely. For probably 90% of freshwater rods you will end up getting a 16 seat to match the blank diameter, exceptions might be a fiberglass crankbait rod or a very heavy flippin stick.

If my memory serves, Tom K did an article in a back issue of Rodmaker on determining the best fit for a reel seat. But what I took away from the article was you should fit the seat to your hand, not to the blank. You can always shim the seat, and fit the cork to it. I know some of my first rods had 16mm & 17mm seats, and they feel very small in my hand, and I don't have a large hand. I have been using larger seats on all my rods now, and on a customer's build, I use the system outlined in Tom's article for getting a comfortable fit.