I have what could be my first customer,however he threw me a curveball!

He wants a 7'6'' heavy / xtra fast rod built for flipping and frogs.
I dont know anyone who makes those specs..I can find fast,but not xtra fast??

I trying to find the blank for under $100 if possible to stay true to my quote...I told him from the beggining that it would be hard to find those specs....Anyone got a lead,or idea??

Thanks

Walker Nelson

Now you're faced with a subjective term that can mean different things to different people. Just what is "extra fast" and how fast is "fast?" The resolution in a system with only 3 points, or 5 if you want to combine a couple or three, is extremely poor. What you think of as fast may already be what he considers extra fast. Maybe.

Lacking good AA numbers, I'd have him bring in the rod he's using now so you can figure out exactly what he means by "fast." Or have him come over and pull on some rods and blanks you may have in stock and give his opinion of what action he feels they have. That will give you some idea of where he wants to go.

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Thats really good advice Tom and your right!..I'll send him an email and see what we can work out..All my personal builds are fast action,and they all respond differnt (all different blanks) now that I think about it.

Walker

I think the challenge with extra fast, fast, moderate fast... is not the definition, nearly every manufacturer has very similar definitions, it is how to quantify these definitions. How do you quantify a rod that flexes mostly in the top 1/3 (the nearly universal definition of fast)? Any system that quantifies a rod's characteristics should do so. It's imperative for us as custom builders to speak the language our customers speak. After all, it is the same information given on nearly every bass rod sold anywhere in the world.

I like the following definition; "If one standardizes the deflection to equal one third of the rod’s length, the angle formed by the tip top will have the following relationship to rod action.
Action Angle – degrees---------Rod Action
below 59------------------------------Slow
59 - 62---------------------------------Moderate
63 – 66--------------------------------Moderate/Fast
above 66------------------------------Fast"

The only thing I'd add is a definition for Extra Fast, anything with an AA over 70 degrees.

To Walker's original question, you should check out some of the Back Bounce blanks. They are generally faster than many of the flipping sticks on the market. The Castaway Big Show BB1 and Rogue BB796 both have AAs over 70 degrees with the Rogue being a little less powerful.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 01/25/2010 05:55PM by Robert Russell.

Walker,
If after discussing it with the customer, as was suggested, you find that the customer does in fact want a rod that has a faster action then any of the available blanks do not give up. There is a way to build the rod that the customer wants by extending a fast action blank that is available. If you start with a fast action blank that has the power that you want and is about 6' long and extend it 16" you will end up with a rod that is about 7' 6" and extremely fast. The more you extend a blank the faster the action becomes. Extending blanks is one of the things that a custom rod builder can do to build unique rods that are not available from any factory rod source.

The Lamiglas blanks that end in MT (magnum taper) have a very fast tip and may meet your requirements. There are several to choose from.
example from the 2009 blank catalog:
GLB 90 1MT, 7’6”, 1 piece, line 30, lure 1/2-2 1/4, butt .600, tip 6.5, weight 3 1/4, $87.00

Download the blank pdf file from their website and do a search on MT

Don

Don Becker

The CCS doesn't use those terms at all - if you have numbers you do not need subjective terms. When was the last time you saw a thermometer that had corresponding terms next to the numbers such as:

0 to 30 - cold
31 to 6 - cool
61 to 80 - warm
80 and above - hot

The numbers are all that's needed.

Until you have such a thing, however, you'll have to establish a baseline by figuring out what your customer means by "fast." You can work upwards from there.

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Try checking out Calstar []

Bill - willierods.com

Guys I really,really appreciate the help,thank you all....I have a question about measuring the balnk action or degree
Whats the formula for that,or is there a chart similar to the guide spacing charts that Ive seen.

Walker

[www.common-cents.info]

A shorter condensed version was in RodMaker Volume 12 #4.


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Tom Kirkman Wrote:
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> [www.common-cents.info]
>
> A shorter condensed version was in RodMaker Volume
> 12 #4.
>
>
> ...................

Thanks Tom!!...I owe you a kitten!