Anyone have any info on building a surf rod for an Alvey type reel? Anything will help such as distance to center of reel seat guide spacing etc.. I am thinking about building a 10'-12' rod capable of tossing a 4- 8oz bait as far as possible.
thanks in advance

Hi Tom.

I do believe you can go to the Alvey Reel site and get build info.

Paul,

I fish therefore I am.
www.hookeduprods.com

I know American surf rods are way different than we do in Australia but my long distance Alvey rod either an FSU5162 or MT8144 where both fourteen footers,my ten foot FSU4120 was fairly useless as a distance casting rod although better with a Penn Spinfisher 750, and yes it had two reel seats. A single BHVLG 40HH followed by normal height BHVLG's is a fairly standard setup.

If/when you build the rod you should also obtain the small "half guide" (trainer guide) that installs near the fore grip. It will make alignment of the line much easier. You can order them from the Alvey site in Florida.

What reel are you using, Tom? I ask because I've built quite a few setups that are very similar to what it seems like you're doing. I have three or four rods that are essentially 3-8 bait rods, all of which have Alvey reels. I went through a fair amount of trial and error when learning to configure Alvey rods, and what I went through might save you from going down a few blind alleys.

The reel model will have a pretty big impact on your setup, because the spools on these reels are huge: 600 model reels have 6-inch diameter spools; 650 reels 6 1/2 inches, 700 reels have 7-inch spools, etc. Post the reel you're using, and what kind of blank you're looking at, and I'll tell you how I'd do setup. You might decide to do things differently, but at least I'll be able to give you a decent starting point. Also post whether you'll be using mono or braid: this will also have large repercussions on your setup.

And one thing I'll add: I love Alvey reels, and the U.S. distributor is absolutely top notch when it comes to service (I say this just to let you know that I'm not looking to denigrate anyone). But I would advise not to look at the recommended rod setup information from Alvey too closely: I've learned, from experimentation, that much of what they say (like having to use huge collector guides and having to place the first guide halfway up the blank) isn't necessarily true.

Post more info and I'll try to help. It's good to find another Alvey fan on the lunatic fringe with me.