Hello Everyone,

I fly fish ALOT off the beach down here in S. Florida and I have an interest in budiling a 10-13 foot single handed fly rod for the beach. My theory is that i will be able to hold more line in the air and cast further with a longer rod while being bound on the shore. Im not looking at making a 2 handed rod mainly bc that style of fishing just doesnt interest me all that much, although it does look pretty cool. Normally from the beach I am fishing with an intermediate line either 8wt or 9wt.

now that you are aware of my idea here are my questions.

1. does my idea make sense? that a longer fly rod will enable me to hold more line in the air and cast further, or will i be forced to build a 2 danded rod bc there is no way i could comfortable cast up to a 13' fly rod with one hand?

2. any recommendations on where i could get a blank that might be 10-13 feet, that is not very expensive? I know mudhole carries them but they are QUITE expensive. (figure i dont want to too expensive bc my idea may not work)

3. feel free to drop any input or recommendations.

as always thank you.

only you can tell if you can single handed cast a 13ft rod..i think 10ft no problem..after that who knows...i feel the longer you get you may see diminishing returns...it is like surfcasting..it takes a very talented caster to get the most out of those rods(escpecially the longer ones).. will it be unwieldy for one hand?..the longer rod should help in getting over breakers in fishing the surf...you may want to take a look at the switch style rods and handles..let us know how it works out

I used a two handed beach rod for the first time this past weekend. I too had no interest in them. That is until I cast it. I was able to get 90' out the first time. After a bit of practice I was consistently getting out 100'. I can't cast a single that far. The line speed was incredible. The ability to use both hands to both support the longer heavier rod and to apply power to the cast made me a believer. I'm now thinking of building a switch rod for the salt. It will be used to catch speckled trout under the birds. I can never cast far enough with my single hand rod to reach the birds. With the head out, you can boom a seriously long cast with only one back cast. No false casting needed.

Lane

thanks for the reply everyone. However, i was considering buidling ON a 13' blank, but building it as a SINGLE handed rod. Still having a heck of a time finding a blank than is less than $300.

thanks

You are welcome to try and build a long SH rod but I don't feel you will like it. The amount of torque that 13' of rod plus 400 to 600 grains in the head would, in my opinion, be very difficult and uncomfortable to cast.. If you look at the long SH rods out there, many are in the lighter lines. The length is for mending not casting distance. Just my opinion mind you.

Lane

lane,

than was kind of my fear. I guess i should go try to cast one both with 2 hands and 1 hand and see what what i like. I appreciate your opinion.

anyone know where i might be able to score a reasonably priced blank?

There is a surf fly fisher here that uses a two handed rod. He casts two handed, but overhead like a regular cast, using a shooting head and running line and he launches it! Here is a photo from his site [www.rodbuilding.org]

Greg



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/03/2011 10:54AM by Greg Foy.

Good Morning Grant,

Batson Enterprises makes Spey Blanks in two lines. Rainshadow Spey Blanks range from 13 to 14 feet with nominal line sizes from 7 to 9. These range in cost from about $145 to $155.
They make Forecast Spey Blanks in similar lengths and line sizes that cost between $95 to $145. I believe the Foremost blanks are a bit slower action than the Rainshadow blanks. You might check other manufacturer's websites as well. Lamiglas and St. Croix come to mind. While the spey cast may require effort to master especially if roll casting is not your best cast, you can also cast these rods using a typical overhand two-handed cast. As others have said, single handed casting with these rods may be difficult for the average caster. Good luck.

Mike Blomme

Your post has reignited my interest in building a spey rod for the surf.

Effective surf casting for me entails fishing entire incoming and outgoing tides.

Casting many times over several hours can be quite demanding.

Anything over 9 feet in weights 8-11 would strain my abilities.

A longer rod is great for keeping the line above the waves as you mend it.

I might go to 9'6" in a single handed rod but certainly no more.

If you are particularly strong you might like it.

Longer rods give fish more leverage.

Those are the reasons I definitely plan to build a two handed rod for this application.

Dave Gilberg

dave,

im doing quite a bit of research on this today. so, if i can be of any help, please let me know.

Grant;

I have not really begun to plan my spey rod yet.

When I do my approach will be to find the lightest weight blank of a quality brand

from a sponsor on the left

which fits my budget.

Batson is a great company and their Rainshadow blanks are very good.

Forecast blanks might serve you well, too. They will not be as light in weight or as quick in Action.

I guess the best advice I can offer is to test cast a few spey rods before making any decisions.

That's what I plan on doing.

The Expo is the ideal place to try lots of blanks. Short of that we have to use whatever resources we have to find some rods to cast and blanks to test.

If that is impossible then talk with one of the tackle supply companies. They have great people working there with tons of expertise.

I would think any of them would let you exchange a blank if you didn't like it.

Angler's Workshop is located in the northwest where spey fishing is big. I would think they'd be very helpful with finding good blanks and components.

I found them to be very pleasant to deal with in the past and their shipping is super fast. So the distance from the east coast means nothing.

Good luck on your build. I hope you'll post pics of it when completed.

Dave Gilberg

Grant,
If you've the physical strength you can achieve longer casts with a longer rod.
You will need of course a longer rod that will weighs more.
You will be aerializing more line which will weigh more.
You will be decreasing your mechanical advantage, requiring more torque.
You will need to increase the tip speed of a longer rod requiring more torque.
How much stronger ??
The formulas for torque velocity and time will require approx 40% more effort to achieve a 20% longer cast. You reach a point of diminishing return unless you can add more strength or a longer period of time to sustain that torque. ( Technique )
or a two hander allowing you to generate more torque.
You might achieve more distance under-lining a shorter rod possibly an 8' 10 weight with an 8 weight line. You can also construct an elevated casting platform on your truck to start with an initially higher casting point. If John Law allows.
Maybe you're young enough and have the physical strength. Hope you do. I however don't know if I'd like to shake hands. Just kidding

Eugene Moore

Herb L. on here lives in So Florida and uses two handed rods casting overhead in the surf almost daily. It's important to realize, and I'm sure Herb will chime in, that blanks designed for TH overhead casting aren't spey rods. They have different actions. I've only cast a spey rod a few times but I talked at length with Lee Davison of Snake River Outfitters. Lee distributes CND spey rods in the US and is a great casting instructor. He was very quick to point out that spey rods and beach rods are two different animals. Also I find it very hard to imagine doing anchor point spey casting in the surf. Just my opinion.

Lane

I have been researching this since about 6 am this morning. But i think i now have a better clue what i am looking for. I am NOT looking for a SPEY rod, but i AM looking for an overhead/ switch rod appx 12-13 feet in length.

i found this link, which has some really reasonable prices. i would need something in the 7-8 wt range.
[www.shofftackle.com]

i would of course prefer to use a sponsor of the forum for this order as I have a feeling i may have some more questions.

by the way i felt like an idiot that it took me about 4 hours of research to realize that i didnt want a spey rod, but a switch/overhead rod.
Lane-i think your explanation above says it best.

so any recommendation on vendors that carry either kits or competitive blanks would be great.

thanks everyone for the info.

I know you don't want to hear it but you want a switch rod. Batson makes a 8wt 10'8" switch blank that makes a great beach rod. The two handed casting in question is two hand overhead not spey casting. I have two of these that I use for single hand, two hand overhead and two hand spey casting depending on where and what. Nice blank. About $120

Quinn

Hey Lane -

The following is rambling but it's late and you can sort it out.

Yes - I have been experimenting with OH casting for the past 5-6 years.

The terminology is flawed because long rods were originally, and still, designed for either Skagit or Scandinavian casting styles - with "Scandi" rods built a little firmer in the butt and softer in the tip. The Skagit rods have firmer tips and softer butts. Which would make Scandi rods better for OH casting - but not perfect by any means.

Then guys figured our that it would be neat to use these long rods on the beach using an overhead cast. So the beach rods were born. CND, GLoomis. But they were (are) more like 11' boat rods - to me at least. And no fun to cast - though they do get the line out. And they are tiring to use.

So casters decided to buy the rods designed for Scandi or, foolishly, Skagit. These were more fun but not efficient in the wind.

I have owned GLoomis beach and stinger. Sage 8110-4 switch and their 8129-4. None were what I wanted.

So I started with CTS blanks building my own. Stephen (CTS) started building elongated Affinity-X blanks that were too stiff in the butt and too soft in the tip. Because of the stiffer butt they could not be loaded deep enough into the butt to access the power there. The soft tip made the tip irrelevant. I still have 3 of these - #8, #10 and #12.

So Stephen redesigned the blank to give it a softer (but still powerful) butt and a firmer tip. To me they are the best of all the blanks for overhead casting. They are his Affinity-Switch line of blanks. His stock blanks are all 10'6" and from #5 -# 9.
But he will build you whatever length and wt you want.
I have the 10'6" #6 which I love for light work in non-windy conditions - but I wish it were an 11 footer. I have used it successfully on the beach and the flats in Cape Cod and have caught stripers up to 35" with no prob. - and a lot of fun.
I have recently built a #8 on an 11' blank. It can handle more grains and more wind but not a heck of a lot more than the #6. The #6 uses a #10 RIO Outbound Short line and the #8 works with the #11 or #12.

My latest build is a 12' #10, also on the switch taper. I had it out today with an Airflo Two Handed Beach sinking line that Tim Rajeff sent me - without markings so I don't know the grain weight. But it loaded the rod enough to lay the line out 60' straight with a tug on the reel. NOAA had the wind in my face from the East today at 20mph with gusts to 30. The rod is so easy to cast - even from my off shoulder. 100+' is easy with no, to light, wind. I am satisfied with 60' dead into a 20 mph wind any day. I think with a little heavier line I would get closer to 70'-80' in these conditions.
The ability to fish these conditions is important to me for Cape Cod to be able to fish the beaches in offshore winds which bring in the bait and fish.

I have an order working with CTS for a 13'6" #11 blank - also on the switch taper. I am hoping that it will work with 550-600gr.

You should know that I have gone to these longer length kicking and screaming - the shorter rods are so much nicer to handle. But you get used to them.

Bottom line is that most of the long blanks/rods out there are designed for some sort of anchor-point casting and not OH casting. Also - there are less and less lines for OH casting. Especially that RIO discontinued their Outbound #13 and #14 lines and Airflo discontinued their two handed beach lines. The market is just not there.
Also - decide what you want these rods to do. If casting into head winds is important - then you have to go long (12'+)and heavy (#10+).
If you want a sweet rod to use in light wind then the 10'6"-11' in #6 and #7 is perfect.

Before these CTS blanks were designed we were just making do with blanks designed to do other things.

I build them to be as light as possible in the tip area - REC recoil guides and tip-top. So as not to rob the blank of any performance.


BTW - I am not connected to CTS in any way.

Herb



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/04/2011 07:36AM by Herb Ladenheim.

Here's a heads up:

Schneiders Rod Shop ( a Forum Sponsor) has the Batson 10'8" Switch blanks on sale for $91.99.

Seems like a great price for that much blank.

There it is in a nutshell. Thanks Herb. Hopefully I'll make it down there this year to catch peacocks. If I do I'm gonna have to go wet a line at the beach with you.

Lane

Last year the snook were on the beach in May. But there prob is more action up there where you are.
Herb

everyone, THANK YOU!

my questions have been more than answered. the knowledge of this forum is always impressive. and YES i am budiling a switch rod. Knew it, but just didnt know what to call.

going to search out schneiderrods now!

best