I am looking into buying a custom made rod. Anyone have any suggestions that would be close to Joliet, IL. I am a big fan of bass pro brand rods, but I am hesitant to venture to the custom side of rod buying. Email me @ awiedmeyer@mail.bradley.edu if you have any suggestions and/or tips to looking for and buying from a good rod maker. Thanks!

Alan

www.tackleworks.org

You can probably find someone in your local area.

..........

Looked on there, unfortunately no one listed for Illinois. Thanks for the help though!

Waite a while and maybe some one not listed will contact you

Bill - willierods.com

Tom Cooney at Rodcraft is great, but his shop is no longer open. He will undoubtedly see this post shortly and respond. I know 2 of his students that still build besides myself, but we all do it as a hobby. Besides that, there's Correns rod shop, who might be able to get you in touch with someone:
[www.yelp.com]

If you're willing to wait, you would have good luck finding 1 or 2 custom builders at the winter fishing shows. Guys usually have booths there. The Tinley show has at least 2 guys who build nice looking stuff, and myself and the other 2 students are always there wandering around or working our club booth.
-j

-jb

I know several people in that area, they all build for themselves though.

Alan,
I'm in Joliet. I'll drop you an email...if I can't take care of what you need I can recommend someone local.

Scott Sheets
www.smsrods.com

Thank you all for responding so far! I got in touch with atleast four or five guys so far, I am getting excited that I could be getting a new custom rod started soon! What I am mainly looking for at the moment is a 7' MH fast action bass fishing rod. So my question to you guys now...what kind of components should I be looking into that would make a light, strong, and sensitive combo. This rod will be paired up with a Johnny Morris Signature Series II baitcaster with braid line.

Alan, that is an easy answer. I would go with all 4mm guides (aka micros) on top and a split cork or hard EVA grip with no foregrip. I would advise a Castaway seat or a modified Fuji seat for full exposure. I am not a big fan of split seats, but some folks love them - until their reel pops off in a tourney ;)

Ask your builder to use Forhan locking wraps on the guides, no color preserver on the wraps, and the preferred place for an open style hook keeper is behind the reel in the split grip.

There are a lot of good blanks out there. Go with what your builder recommends. For a jig rod I don't see a need, nor would I want, a high modulus, high dollar blank for fishing with braid.

Chuck

_________________________________________
"Angling is extremely time consuming.
That's sort of the whole point." - Thomas McGuane

Allan,

Chuck gave some good advice. I would also consider a spiral wrap with micros as opposed to all on top, but that is really a personal preference thing. Now that you are entering the world of custom rods, there are some things to think about. One issue that will help your builder choose the appropriate guide sizes, do you use a leader (how long, type of knot), or tie direct? Guides under 4mm or 5mm may not work well when you need to pass connections through therm. Blank choice, what techniques do you plan for this rod (There are many very good options out there for a versatile rod.)? Handle length, what handle length can you comfortably use, or prefer? Does overall balance matter to you? Do you cast with one hand or two? If two, where and how do you grab the rod with the second hand (This helps with grip size and location for butt grip on a split grip)? How do you hold the rod when fishing (reel seat design options)? Where do you wan the hook keeper (I like mine just above the butt grip on a split grip, offset to the reel handle side of the blank. It makes the lure easily accessible when you pick up the rod to fish.)? Grip materials, and ergonomics, there are lots of options out there to get the ergonomics right.

I'm sure I may have missed a few points off of the top of my head, but if you take the time to think about these topics, your builder will be able to deliver a rod that will be a great tool. Beyond that, there are all kinds of aesthetic things you can do to a rod to dress it up. Whether or not aesthetics matter to you, spend some time looking through the photo forum, to see what some of the builders out there are capable of. If there is anything you really like or want discuss it with your builder.

The beauty of a custom rod is that you can dial it in very specifically to suit your needs. Consider every detail. Your builder should discuss many of these things with you, and more.

As far as components, there are plenty of good options, and there isn't a bad component offered to rod builders. Each builder has their personal preferences, and each has valid reasons for their choices.

Joe