I have done a few ramps on rods some time ago, but quickly came to the conclusion that the effort was not worth difference, and that at the end of the day, there was really no reason to add the extra weight to the rod.

Does someone have a good reason to add a ramp to a rod?

Roger

Smooth transition = better feel in hand, looks. The weight is minimal at best. Great area to marble as well!

DR



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/12/2011 05:30PM by Duane Richards.

Duane Richards Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Smooth transition = better feel in hand, looks.
> The weight is minimal at best.
>
> DR

All that, plus you can thread wrap it to match guide wraps and it is much cheaper than two or three good cork rings.

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

Like Duane and Chuck said. It makes the rod look finished. I wrap thread up the ramp to the reel seat and everyone of my customers like it!! Any weight at that point is negligible. IMO, it just plain looks good and custom. EVERY think does not have to have a function

Mike (Southgate, MI)
If I don't want to, I don't have to and nobody can make me (except my wife) cuz I'm RETIRED!!

It's just one of the ways to transition from reel seat to blank when not installing a fore-grip.

No ordering of additional parts or extra rings to make that transition if you wish to use epoxy.

Raymond Adams
Eventually, all things merge, and a river runs through it..

I think that all of the above reasons are all excellent ones.

So in general, it can be done, you like it, so you do it.

Outstanding.

Be safe
Roger

I'm one of the few who don't do it on bass rods. No winding checks or hook holders either. Anything we add to the rod can only add weight, damping, and reduce sensitivity, and increase build-time and cost. Additionally, it makes my rods unique and different from all the other "me too" rods out there. Uniqueness can be a great sales calling card.

Gary,
Do you have any thing in front of your reel seat, or do you just have the reel seat and its associated arbor and then the butt wrap on the rod?

Roger

Saving weight on a fly rod is a priority because you have to wave the dang thing around so much, at least 5X as much as a spin or casting rod. You need not worry much over the un-leveraged weight a ramp adds to a spin or casting rod. If you are using nylon monofilament, which commonly stretches more than 10%, you need not worry about the reputed loss of sensitivity caused by adding a 16th of an ounce of ramp to your rod. Ramps are cosmetic, not pro or anti - functional. If you like how it looks, do it!

I do have a fore-grip on my rods and I always grip the rod there.

I also like a definite end to my fore-grip... with no ramp, I think it actually helps with hand placement.

It's true that a ramp does not add much weight by itself, but all the little things we add to a rod - ramps, checks, hook keepers, butt caps, etc., all these things are cumulative and can add up.

I also realize that rods are a compromise between performance, comfort, and aesthetics (and other things). If light weight and sensitivity were everything, I would drop the fore-grip and the short three-five inch decorative wrap on my rods.

turn the ramp from foam reel seat shims and it will weigh almost nothing, can be painted any colory you want, easier than epoxy, same sensitivity, nice feel.