I recently gave away a nice 4'6" Browning spinning rod to a friends son. I want to replace it with a build. I am looking for some blank suggestions. My critieria is that I want the same small size, as light as I can get away with for 3 to 4lb Brook trout. I had a quick look on Mudhole but didn't see much except a one St. Croix blank. I already have several St.Croix blanks and I like them but am always looking to build rods with different makers to feel the differences they offer myself.

Does anyone have a suggestion for me. I like my ultra light rods to provide me a sense they are being use to their maximum limits. Again I am not looking to break the bank on this blank I use it twice a year.

Thanks

Steve Lynas



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/15/2012 04:54PM by Steve Lynas.

You can try these i have had a 5 1/2' St Croix UL and found it to stiff for very light bates I had to add weight
If you have the space and can go longer i would suggest 6'6 or 7'
[www.mudhole.com]

have not tried any yet They read Fast ???

Even a fly blank

Bill - willierods.com

If it were me, I'd try a much longer rod. The longer the rod, the more leverage you give the fish. Try it - you might find you really like it.

...............

Check out the Phenix Elixir range. I don't think blanks get any smaller or lighter. Great blanks and pretty much tick every box you've listed.

"3 to 4 lb. brook trout?" The shipping costs to wherever you live (or fish) must be immense.

there are also 2 pc Cut on the shipping costs

Bill - willierods.com

I own a LOT of rods and my favorite for trout fishing ... Forecast SB720-4. It is a 6'0", 4-piece pack rod. VERY handy for travel, hike-ins, etc.

I guide in Northern Quebec, Canada but live in Toronto. The resort I guide at are known for a their particular strain of Brooke trout specific to that area's lake. They routinely get to be 3 to 4lbs with records getting into the 7lb range. I am fishing off the beaten path where bush constantly gets longer poles hung up during hike ins and walks along stream sides. The streams are small and the bush/trees are dense making casting longer poles a chore. I know it is not an ideal situation for a trout pole but I just find these small ultralights easy to move around with the gorilla style fishing I do at this Resort. Multiple piece poles are an option but once I set up I just like to move around without having to break the set up down and then re-set it up every time I come across another nice spot on the stream.

P.S. When you live in Canada shipping is always an issue along with duty, taxes and whole host of other additionbal costs. I have not been able to find a Canadian retailer of rod building suppiles. The only one I dealt with went out of business many years ago.

steve

Steve Lynas



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/15/2012 05:59PM by Steve Lynas.

maybe this will help

[search.yahoo.com]

Bill - willierods.com

Steve -

Unless her policies have changed, Karen @ Bingham will ship to Canada AND the postage on a multi-piece rod will be considerably lower. She is also a full-line Batson dealer. I really enjoy my little pack rods, you should definitely consider it ... especially since you mentioned the hike-ins, that's where these little pack rods become worth their weight in gold. I carry a pair of them in a small tube, along with lures, etc. and put them into a pack ... nothing in my hands while getting to/from the water. I couldn't be any happier with the product. I have owned them for several years and they have endured many fish in many waters without letting me down.

Jim -

HI STEVE...MIDWEST ROD AND REEL WILL SHIP TO CANADA...SHIPPING ON MULTI PCS RODS ARE NOT TO BAD COST WISE...WE ARE A FULL LINE BATSON DEALER...DROP ME A E-MAIL WITH WHAT YOU ARE LOOKING FOR AND I'LL SEND YOUI THE PRICES AND SHIPPING COST

Bill@midwestrodandreel.com
www.midwestrodandreel.com

I just built out a St. Croix AS46ULM for a friend and he loves it. If you're interested in a different manufacturer, I would recommend trying Batson. I have used both the IS600 and the SP600 for builds that I intended for myself. Went fishing with friends who borrowed the rods and I no longer own them.

definitely would go with at least 6' 6" for small trout ... cant build enough of the Batson Forecast RX6 4 pieces' ...work great with brookies up in the canyons and wont cost you your first-born either.

On the subject of Canadian Retailers, I use Rodbuilder Supplies out of Victoria, and Angling Specialties in Toronto has a supply of rod building components.

Chris Richer
Iroquois ON

Steve, sounds like the environment is a chilly version of the nasty stuff around the oxbows off the Miss Delta and Talahatchie rivers.
A shorter rod will sometimes allow you to fish otherwise unfishable waters.
Try an IM6 in 561L ( maybe a little light) or 601L from CRB at Mudhole or the Amtack equivalents. I think they even have the same model number in Amtack.
Ignore the rating for lures on the 601l it has to be a printing error.
The blank will happily load and throw 1/16 oz lure to bream but also a 1/2 oz jig with bullminnow on for flounder in the gulf.
Tough blanks: i have over 12 in cutomers hands fishing all kinds of terrain and only ever 1 break . Plus at around $20 in any color you could dream of you can afford to add shipping etc without it breaking the bank.

Steve here is my rod building supplier: [www.freewebs.com] . He carries a LOT of stuff, website is out of date but drop him an email. He usually has some good sales and discontinued stuff cheap.

MHX s6010, you could always trim a few inches off the butt if you needed it to be shorter.