A few years ago I built myself a cranking rod using a Fenwick Crankshaft blank, the one with the black graphite butt and yellow fiberglass tip. I liked the rod very much, but then it was stolen, along with my other custom rods. I am gearing up to build a new arsenal, and I'm looking forward to trying some of the new techniques that were developed while I was out of the hobby. I bought the Rodmaker Volume 2-9 CD and re-subscribed to Rodmaker. I'm hoping for a Volume 10-14 CD.

I would like to build another Crankshaft, but the blanks do not appear to be available anymore. My question is, does anybody know if these blanks are still available, and if so, where?

Alternatively, are there any blanks currently available with the same style of construction?

I'll be using this rod for medium/deep cranking with lipped baits. I'm also wide open to suggestions about other blanks for this technique.

Thanks,
Joe



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/11/2011 11:57AM by Joe Brooks.

Hi Joe,

Not sure if you've taken a look at them but the Batson GCB series blanks have had nothing but great reviews from our customers. The action in these blanks is absolutely amazing, the glass allows a crankbait total freedom to move like it is supposed to without resistance from the blank. This is a great time of year to crankbait and those blanks get it done.

GCB70M 7'0" 10-17lb 1/4-3/4oz 0.640 .080/6.55 Mod-Fast 3.37 oz Small crankbaits and topwaters,1/4oz spinnerbaits
GCB70MH 7'0" 1 12-20lb 3/8-1oz 0.658 .083/6.5 Mod-Fast 3.94 oz Large crankbaits & topwaters, 3/8&1/2oz spinnerbaits
GCB710MH 7'10" 1 12-25lb 3/8-1 1/4oz 0.660 .076/6.5 Mod-Fast 4.25 oz Large deep diving crankbaits

For some reason these blanks aren't showing on our website right now, not sure what happened but our developer is working to get them online. We do have them in stock and are glad to help in any way we can.

Tight Lines and Bull's-eyes,

Get Bit Outdoors
407-542-7840
www.GetBitOutdoors.com
www.facebook.com/GetBitOutdoors

Depending on your lure weight and line range, plus your desired length, the MHX Blend series of blanks.
My personal favorite is the CB845 but again, depending on what you have in mind will make the final decision.

Depending on your lure weight and line range, plus your desired length, the MHX Blend series of blanks.
My personal favorite is the CB845 but again, depending on what you have in mind will make the final decision.

Seekers CBS S-glass/carbon series of blanks are that soft tip and strong power butt like that Fenwick was. They are great crankbait rods as is the all S-glass BS706S/BC706S. Have not found to many all graphite blanks that can match the action and still have the power of these rods.

I am going to have the second the Batson blanks.

Ron Weber

Thanks for the suggestions. It helps to narrow the field a bit. The Seeker CBS blanks look like they would give me the closest match to my old rod. The Batson looks like it would probably also be a good choice.

Matthew, what does the "Blend" do in the MHX Blend blanks? Is it the graphite equivalent of the Seeker (high modulus butt & lower modulus tip), or something else?

Joe

I am new here, but have built on the CB845 blanks, and my brother has the Fenwick rod/blank of which you speak, and I can say that the MHX CB845 and the Fenwick are not very similar. The Fenwick is a slower action and a heavier blank. The MHX is lighter and crisper.

Emil Rafanan
PainInTheBass Custom Rods

Ah, memories. Those Crankshaft blanks rocked. We used to use the Hotshot series for everything from mooching for salmon in the ocean to catfish in the delta, to jigging for stripers. Very handy blanks. They changed the color, called them Legacy Plus for awhile, then don't know what happened after that.

Good luck on finding any of the old blanks, sometimes its nice to find the original even though there's new technology these days.

Yes, I really liked that rod. It was also my first spiral build; it got lots of comments back in the nineties.

On paper the Seeker CBS blanks look like the closest current match. The description is so similar to my Fenwick blank that I wonder if they got their blanks from Seeker. I'm a bit of a skin flint, so I'll need to think long and hard before ponying up the cost of the Seeker blank.

I suspect I'll wind up building on a Batson GCB first.

Thanks for all the great input.
Joe

Seeker never made Blanks or rods for Fenwick. The only connection between the two companies was the fact that Wade Cunningham, the founder of Seeker, worked for Fenwick in the late 70's. The Crankshaft blank design was the brainchild of Jim Green/Tim Grennan. You'd been very lucky to find a true crankshaft blank because it been over 20 years since any were made.

Vic

Thanks for the history lesson, Vic. Did Seeker base their CBS blanks on the Crankshaft or is it an original design? Just curious.

I've been trying to remember exactly when I build that Crankshaft rod, but it's a little hazy. My earliest memory of using it is from the mid-nineties. That memory is pretty clear because I caught the biggest bass I had caught to date, and I'm really not sure if I've caught a bigger one since. I managed to win a tournament with three fish that day against several five fish limits.

I think I bought the blank as a close-out so that fits with the idea that they went out of production around 20 years ago.

I'm going to build a cranking rod with all micros on top. I've decided to go with a Batson GCB as I explore the technology before trying the more expensive Seeker blank.

Joe