Has anyone built Dan Craft FT blanks with both wire and ceramic and what (if any) difference did you notice?

Dan Craft himself told me that ceramic guides would make any FT blank perform as a blank one line weight lower and that for blanks 7 weight and above, a person should use wire guides. Every opinion on this board that I have read has the opposite opinion.

My application is throwing a lot of line quickly on the Florida flats and I am using a Scientific Angler Redfish line that is effectively 1/2 weight heavier than its rating. However, I am interested in anyone's practical experience with this blank. Did ceramic guides make it slower, etc.?

Thanks in advance.

i have a 8wt ft and i used ceramics. it casts fine and i like the rod

I don't like ceramics on any fly rod.
I much prefer the quickness and reduced weight of wire guides.

The ceramics I have used over the last 25 years have not weighed any more than snake guides with double wraps would have.

However - take a hard look at the Pacific Bay Minima 4 fly rod guides. The weight of single foot wire guides, the cost of snakes and the longevity of most ceramics when used with fly lines.

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Why are the weights posted on Mike's wesite for ceramic 3 to 4 times heavier for the same ID as a Recoil single foot wire guide. Is there something else out there and what are the weights and ID's for these guides. If they're lighter at the same ID obviously I should be using them for performance enhancement. I see no facts here. Is your thermometer busted ? Has Pac Bay posted the weights?
Can anyone verify this data ?

My thermometer isn't busted nor is this just idle talk. I've weighed them - they weigh about 20% to 25% less than comparable ceramic guides and due to the larger ring opening (no ceramic insert in the frame) you can use a guide that's 1 or 2 sizes smaller and still maintain the same size ring opening. This results in additional weight savings. Yes you should be using them for performance enhancement but unless you stay up to date on the latest offerings you're apt to overlook improvements like this.

I am finishing up a fly rod which utilizes them. At this moment in time, the Fuji ceramics which I've used on all my fly rods over the past 25 years will likely not see the light of day again. Any time I can get the same (or greater) durability, at less weight resulting in better performance, I'm apt to go that route. And, not that it really matters much to me, but these guides cost far less than almost any ceramic guide.

Fly lines, once they pick up debris and dirt, can act as files and can be quite hard on line guides. But from what I've seen so far, the Minima guides will handle this with no problem.

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OK fine. Where can I get them ??

Bill - willierods.com

Good question. The ones I have were special ordered. But any Pacific Bay dealer should be able to do this for you.

As they are still fairly new, there are still unanswered questions about them. But their appearance and construction leads me to believe that for some purposes, these could be an exceptional guide.

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Tom: would I be correct in thinking the rings will be better then even SIC ?

Bill - willierods.com

No, not at all. I doubt they're even remotely as hard or smooth as an SIC insert. The practical question in this situation is, are they hard and slick enough to work well and for many seasons on a fly rod. I believe the answer to that question is, yes.

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Tom
Have you compared them to the weight of Titanium framed guides ?

Bill - willierods.com

No, but I feel certain they'll still be lighter. It's the ceramic ring that contributes most of the weight in these guides.

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Thanks Tom

Bill - willierods.com