I was talking to a friend of mine today that does a lot of kingfishing, including tournament fishing. He is in the market for an extra long gaff. I was wondering if I found a cheap one pier/surf rod blank if I could build it for him. (I know shipping will be expensive.)

What lb test rating should it have?

Would it be possible just to wrap the hook onto the end of the rod? Is it that simple?

Can I wrap it with size D or E thread?

Is there a certain kind of finish I should use?

Is there anything special I should know about?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/19/2008 04:55PM by Peter Olesiewicz.

CK the gaff-kits mud-hole carries

Peter
I have been using VERY long gaffs made from rod blanks for 30+yrs.
( to 18' with Aluminium extensions.)

the key issue to be able to answer your query is:-
how long & how big are the fish anticipated...............as there are a number of ways you can approach this exercise.
1.
it doesn't have to be one piece
2.
Fibreglass is better than carbon for this job ( despite being heavier ).
3.
In general terms the blank needs to be fairly heavy wall thickness & trimmed at the tip...........so you are looking at pretty heavy surf blank types as a starting point.
4.
Yes you can bind a gaff hook on, the Mustad style with a tag on the end is desirable & a hole drilled in the blank for the tag.
- my really long 2 piece gaffs have a piece of stainless steel rod drilled & threaded 1/4" UNC with significant O.D grooves epoxied into the tip and the shank of the gaffhooks threaded & screwed in with a locknut.
- they have gaffed spanish mackerel, cobia, kingfish, & tuna over 40# from the rocks & sharks over 7' quite successfully & the first one I built is still in use.

Wow! Any blank recommendations? I am looking in the 12'+ range. Maybe even up to 15'.

the length you want sort of puts the Mudhole gaff kits out of the question, but you could use their gaff hooks.

You are on the opposite side of the pond to me in Oz , so the blanks I use are not available to you.
The strength you need will be in a 12 ' fibreglass surf rod rated at say more than 30 lb and a casting weight of 5 - 6 oz.plus.
( for blank strength & stiffness )
you will have to trim the tip so getting to 12' - 15' will most probably require an aluminium tube extension .

If transport is not a problem you can epoxy the Al tube to the rod ( with a healthy glued section length )
I machined a male coarse threaded piece of aluminium rod to go in the butt of the fibreglass blank & a matching female threaded piece welded on the end of the Al tube.
Bands of twine bound over wet epoxy onto the Al tube for grip every foot & a half or so.
The stainless rod for the threaded gaff hook to screw into was 3/8" diameter drilled & threaded to 1/4" UNC.
But you could use one of the Mudhole gaff hooks and epoxy it directly into the inside of the trimmed fibregass blank with careful scoring of the inside of the fibreglass blank for adhesion.
Hope that helps.

If I can get a chance I will photograph a couple of my different gaffs & add them to the post.............to give you ideas.

Denis Brown Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> the length you want sort of puts the Mudhole gaff
> kits out of the question, but you could use their
> gaff hooks.
>
> You are on the opposite side of the pond to me in
> Oz , so the blanks I use are not available to
> you.
> The strength you need will be in a 12 ' fibreglass
> surf rod rated at say more than 30 lb and a
> casting weight of 5 - 6 oz.plus.
> ( for blank strength & stiffness )
> you will have to trim the tip so getting to 12' -
> 15' will most probably require an aluminium tube
> extension .
>
> If transport is not a problem you can epoxy the Al
> tube to the rod ( with a healthy glued section
> length )
> I machined a male coarse threaded piece of
> aluminium rod to go in the butt of the fibreglass
> blank & a matching female threaded piece welded on
> the end of the Al tube.
> Bands of twine bound over wet epoxy onto the Al
> tube for grip every foot & a half or so.
> The stainless rod for the threaded gaff hook to
> screw into was 3/8" diameter drilled & threaded to
> 1/4" UNC.
> But you could use one of the Mudhole gaff hooks
> and epoxy it directly into the inside of the
> trimmed fibregass blank with careful scoring of
> the inside of the fibreglass blank for adhesion.
> Hope that helps.
>
> If I can get a chance I will photograph a couple
> of my different gaffs & add them to the
> post.............to give you ideas.


Thanks for all the info!!! I have some ideas now. It would be great to see the photos, especially of the joint between the aluminum tube and the gaff.

Do you think I could get a shorther blank/ longer aluminum tube to achieve the desired length? = Would that make the gaff stronger?

Peter,
you can use more Al tube, but it doesn't make the gaff stronger, both parts are able to do the job, but on long gaffs the Al tube is far more likely to get bent permanently , the longer it is & the closer it gets to the fish.
A nice straight Gaff is a decided advantage in use, especially with long-gaffs.
There is no "must do it this way" .........do what you can with what you can get your hands on.
from observation of other long gaffs I prefer 50:50 or more fibreglass than Al tube in length.
I have seen full length Al tube long-gaffs made from telescoping tubes just bolted together at the join at the fishing spot ,too, but I have also seen them bent like a pretzel.
The only carbon fibre long-gaff I have seen was destroyed by a shark when it rolled after gaffing & the blank just exploded. Fibreglass has been more durable ( in my experience ).

quite coincidental seeing your post , as I had been trying to source a new gaff hook for one of my gaffs for many months & only managed to source a new hook and tapped a thread on it 3 days ago, as the original 30 yr old hook was quite rusty.................but it shows you how long mustad hooks can last............. I have had to use a Stainless gaffhook this time as mustad gaffs hooks just don't seem to be being imported into Oz these days.
Will try & get a photo tonight & post for you.
DenisB

Peter
Gaff images follow
Gaffs overall shows the long-gaff, a wood handle threaded to protect the male thread on the tophalf, and a smaller fibreglass telescopic gaff I use backpacking ( the hook on that one was made from a large stainless steel Game hook & is used just for lip hooking.( has taken fish to 35# ).
Tape is for reference at 6' ( but doesnt show too clearly in the grass )

[www.rodbuilding.org]

The next shot is a closeup of the join & shows the smaller gaff telescoped down

[www.rodbuilding.org]

another shot showing more detail of the thread you wanted

[www.rodbuilding.org]

A shot of the gaff hooks and the stainless insert in the top of the gaff

[www.rodbuilding.org]

If I got the posting right that should show you what you were after


DenisB



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/20/2008 07:12AM by Denis Brown.

Can you unhide your e-mail or e-mail me so I can ask you a few more questions?

Peter ,
you will need to unhide your email address or post your address in this thread & I will contact

email via BD in your inbox ( if I have the right link ).
DenisB



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/21/2008 05:07AM by Denis Brown.