Hi
I am going to build a light saltwater rod . I will use braided line on this rod. I would like to know what is the best guide to use. I was told to use Fuji silicon nitride ring guides, can give me your advice. Thanks in advance

Aconite, SIC,SIN, Cermet, even Hardaloy works. Depends on what you are doing, and what your budget is

The Silicon NItride models, I believe, were originally intended for wire line use. They are likely overkill just for braid. Any of those Billy mentioned will do fine. Braid won't groove any of the quality rings from any of the well known guide makers.

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TOm, actually SIC is overkill for braid, with teh price of SIC vs SIN, and the fact that you can get teh SIN in black or chrome frames, as opposed to Grey - tehy are actually a better choice imo. The biggest difference is people can't brag tehy have SIC gudies on their rods any more, lol.

From what I have been told about Spectra Braid from Blackwater and Izorline is that braid will never cut a guide alone. It will be the dirt, sand, or the crystallized salt that gets into the weave that does the cutting. So most any quality guide will work.

Thad
Dutchman's Creek Tackle

Hi Nick,

As these guys said most ceramics will hold up just fine with braided lines and as Billy said it can depend on your budget. More importantly what other requirements are needed for the intended application. Obviously, I prefer our guides and we have many unique options for every budget but if your primary concern is ring wear from braided lines you should be fine with most guide offerings.

Best Regards,

Darrin Heim
American Tackle Company

What are the specs of the rod you are building. I just got a order of American tackles btrlc's and realy like the look and feel of them, but time will tell with everything else. I have been using bmnags or blnags exclusively on my surf rods until I got to see the ring locks in High Point, so I am putting them on my CTS now