I have been wondering about the distance to use between the butt cap and grip on a build I am starting. The rod is 6 foot and I have been doing some geustimates on how to space them, any
input appreciated.

Thanks
Joe

Joe,

On a 6' rod, it is tough to execute a split grip that fills the hands and have any sizable gap. Personally on 5'6" to 6' rods, I want about 8" from the trigger or reel stem to the butt of the rod. I also like a rear grip of 2.5" to be able to fill the hand somewhat for two handed casting. On a casting rod, this only leaves about 1.25" with a rear grip that fills the hand. On a split Tennessee handle for a spinning rod, I get between 2" and 2.5". You can get more of a gap by trimming down grip sections, but you must consider how much you can stand to lose.

Split grips are a great way to save a bit of weight on the rod, but if the ergonomics are wrong, it can be uncomfortable to fish. If you let the ergonomics of the butt section dictate how much space you leave, you will end up with a handle that feels good, looks good, and fishes good.

Joe

You could go as fare as to tap the seat on and some guides - go out side an play cast and see where the seat seems - To You - feel the best then you can make your split grip from there

Bill - willierods.com

Joe, I am working on a 7 foot casting popping rod. The butt piece including the cap is 2 3/4 inches long. The grip behind the reel seat is 3 3/8 inches long. That is how wide my palm is and I didn't want it resting on the bare blank. The overall length of the rear grip is 10 inches which is what I like on my popping rods. That leaves me an empty space of 3 3/8 inches. The rod balances out very well with a Shimano Curado reel. On a 6 foot casting rod I would probably go with an 8 inch rear grip. I put a photo of my rod in the photo section a couple of days ago. Check it out and it wil give you an idea of what my rod grip looks like. You could even make the butt piece smaller to give you more space between the pieces. Hope this helps.

Personally I wouldn't look at the distance you want to make. I would look at where you want position the reel and then you can see what's left to work with.

Why the position of the reel - I would be concerned about the working length of the rod. Part two of that is does the remaining handle length match to the amount you need for the given technique?

What are you going to be doing with the rod?

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/01/2010 02:42PM by Alex Dziengielewski.

Alex Dziengielewski Wrote:
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> Personally I wouldn't look at the distance you
> want to make. I would look at where you want
> position the reel and then you can see what's left
> to work with.


YEP ... that's the idea I run with on ANY length of rod. For the record, the little 5'10" skipping rod that I use for pulling bass from under docks has a split grip with an open space of 5". Of course, that distance was determined by reel position and the length of each cork section of the split butt.

Joe,

The most important thing about the split grip is feel. The rear grip just behind the actual reel seat should be comfortable in your hand. Once that is accomplished the distance between the first section of the butt grip and the actual end cap section of the rear grip is your call. Rod balance and aesthetics need to also betaken into carefull consideration. How the rod looks is important after all.

Tight lines,

JH

One thing to keep in mind, is whether this is a spinning or casting rod. Grips behind the reel seat can be shortened on spinning rods, since you are mainly holding the reel seat instead of just the grip behind the seat.

Bob McKamey
bobm@mudhole.com

I forgot to mention that it was a spinning rod. I am making this as a surprise for one of my nephews, his hands are nowhere close to the size of mine so I will be winging it. To top this off it's my first build, I got the cork work done, was easy enough I used a round rasp in a cordless drill them used 3 drill bits by hand to finish it out. I'm sure that is not the way to do it, ( no taper) but after all this is my first go around and it's all about learning. I am trying to figure out what is wrong with my method other than the taper factor if that is even an issue.

Thanks, all input appreciated.

Joe

When I'm building a rod for someone or myself, I have them hold the blank in their hand, where the butt rests against the forearm and where the hand is placed on the blank will tell you where the reelseat should go.... omho?
Works for me.
Jeff

The important thing about a spinning rod is how the customer holds the rod relative to the reel stem, 4 fingers in front, 3 fingers in front, spilt 2 in front 2 behind, 3 fingers behind, 4 fingers behind. All of these are possibilities and if they use any of the exaggerated grips with 3 or 4 fingers on one side of the reel make the grip longer on that end. If the customer holds the rod with 2 in front and 2 behind there is no reason to have more than a single ½ inch ring on each side of the reel seat, and I haven’t built any spinning rod where I see the need for more than 3 rings on either side depending on which end of the grip he uses. Since this sounds like a pretty light rod 2 inches for a butt grip would probably be plenty.

I would be careful locating a reel by having a person hold the blank and putting the reel seat where the hand is holding the blank when the butt hits the biceps, if that is what is suggested. You have to make sure the finished butt will clear the clothing over the arm when the rod is used. Shirt? Raincoat? Insulated coat? If building for the south it's not as big an issue, but you should understand what you will have for the person intended, with the clothing they are likely to be wearing. If not, the butt can get hung up on the clothing. Like the one I did a few years ago, then went back and cut off an inch which made all the difference.