I need an all purpose catfish blank in 7'

I was looking at the mudhole value eglass SPSWB7M or the ATX live bait AXLB70ML.

Customer doesnt want a pool cue, but it needs to be able to handle 40+ lb fish. He wants a somewhat moderate action for use with circle hooks as well being able to drift and bottom bounce. I know its alot of techniques with one rod thats why I stated an all purpose rod.

The rod he is using now is a......you guessed it, Ugly Stick "catfish series" its the MH white rod. Something along those lines would be perfect.

Has anyone built on one of the above blanks or have any other recommendations?


Thank in advance!

Mitch

I guide for these Monster Catfish and the best rod we have found to catch these 40-60lb blues is the Ugly Stick Mh Catfish series rod. For its price you will not be able to duplicate it with another blank. There are other blanks out there but they cost more than a complete rod. This is a tough area to make a sell in my opinion.
I haven't tried either of those blanks so I can't help in that area.

Dan Grulke

Take a look at the gator glass U686H. Rated 15-30, but is more than capable of what you want to do. If that one is to light bump up to the XH in the same model. They are listed as fast action, but by far are a moderate action blank.

Dan is right also.

I understand the price issue, but its not a concern. The customer like the Ugly Stick blank butt hates the grips and wants it spiral wrapped so he willing to spend some money to get what he wants. Im just tring to find a blank that is close to the "stick" as far as performance. I mentioned the gator glass blank to him as a first choice and he said he wanted nothing to do with gator glass..... wouldnt say why but, his money. his choice :)

I have received several emails in regards to the Forecast TS100H 10' 2 piece from consumers loving this blank for large catfish and Garr. I realize the line and lure recommendations for this blank is not in your perimeter but personally I feel that they can hold much more than what we recommend. I would be happy to shoot you an email with there praise reports for your review. Please drop me an email and I would be happy to fire them out to you. Best Regards,Karry Batson

Karry Batson
Batson Enterprises Inc.
Ph: (877) 875-2381
Fax: (360) 683-3579
karry@batsonenterprises.com
www.batsonenterprises.com

Mitch, Talk him into rebuilding his ugly stick, or go buy another one and rebuild it to his liking.
When it come to price verses product, there is no way to beat the price of some manufactures rods, if your custom building one from scratch, but that is why we are here and do what we do.
I have a customer that wants a couple "ice rods", well no problem you say, ah there in lies the problem, he's ice fishing in Alaska, they go out set up their rods and then leave come back the next day, you have to build it heavy enough for Lake Trout and Grayling that go about 10 lb's, so you have to build some kind of ring into the butt so they can chain the rod to a log or something the fish is not going to run off with. (Sorry can't make it BEAR resistant)

I mentioned doing a rebuild on a current rod, he was open to that, but being so new to this craft i question my own ability to do such a job without damaging his current blank. That might be the best way to go, time to stat practicing.

IMHO, sometimes rebuilding or modifying his present rod is the only way to satisfy him.

Rebuilding a rod isn't brain surgery by any means. You just have to take care not to create damage. Avoid the use of sharp bladed tools as much as possible.

After it's completely torn down and the blank refinished, the process is no different from building a new rod.

I wonder why his aversion to Gator Glass? I have had success wrapping on these blanks for 'combat' fishing applications. C2

Hi Mitch,

I wanted to give my opinion here, don't fish catfish but based on your descriptions and given the 2 choices you mentioned, I would go with the SWB7M instead of the AXLB model. The AXLB is too fast and light for this purpose. The SWB has a more moderate action and a larger top. I would even go with a SWB8M and if he doesn't want an 8' rod it could be cut into a slightly heavier version for larger fish or heavier weight/bait applications.

Best Regards,

Darrin Heim
American Tackle Company

Does anyone by chance have the tip/butt dimensions for the MH Uglystick in the catfish series?

I've made several rods on these blanks and they are GREAT! I pulled in a 30lb boat anchor with one a few weekends ago. These are some great blanks for the money. Plus, you can make them look a lot better than any ugly stick. JMHO. If you have any other questions email me at sanders43@live.com

~Jon

There is certainly something in angling that tends to produce a serenity of the mind

what blank are you speaking about... a few have been mentioned

I have built a bunch of heavy Cat rods. The one my customers like best is the Rainshadow RCLB70 ML, 20-40lb. It is an RX6 Graphite & E Glass Blend. Does a nice job of handling 50 - 60 lb Blues.

J.B.Hunt
Bowling Green, KY

Mitch, shoot me an email, Catfish rods are about all I do, mostly 7 and 8 footers. I have builet on every blank you mentioned.

www.blackhorsecustomrods.com

Mitch, I was referring to the Mudhole eglass blank. I've built rods out of 5 of them and they've all been great. I have yet to catch any big fish, but I did catch about 30lb boat anchor and it handled it like a pro.

~Jon

There is certainly something in angling that tends to produce a serenity of the mind