I want to build a 4 piece 12' rod for salmon plunking in the Pacific NW. I'll be throwing 8-12 ounces of lead and 1-3 ounces of lures on 30# braid. Haven't decided whether I'll put a spinning real for casting reel on it.

What blank would you recommend I build on?

four piece might be hard to find i would think a two piece would perform better . casting all that weight and depending where you fish you will may have to dislodge the weight or break it off when you bring it in

I'm always in a search for the ultimate plunking rod and I cannot remember finding a 4 pc blank strong enough for your needs in any length. Lamiglas has some surf blanks the will get close to your needs, but they are 1 and 2 piece.

How well might it work to purchase a one or two piece blank and cut it down into 4 pieces?

Where are you going to be doing this "plunking"? From a riverbank, surf, boat? Why 12'? Most salmon rods in the PNW aren't made for casting 8-12 oz's of lead plus the bait. Where are you going to fish?

I'll be bank fishing in the Columbia or Willamette. Depending upon the river flow, it can take anywhere from 6 to 12 ounces of lead to keep your rig stationed. Otherwise, it is a slow drift into the next fisherman downstream.

12' would give me more leverage to get the rig farther out in the river.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/08/2014 06:08PM by Jeff Hawkins.

CTS might be able to make a 4 piece for you special order. It would be a bit spendy.

plunking for salmon and steelhead from the bank you need enough weight to hold the bottom in sometimes pretty fast current. you will have a spinglow on and maybe a slider with a plug herring ect. sinkers with hooks or railroad spikes, anywhere from foue to 12 oz. sometimes up to 20 plus on the extreme sid. at times you will have to really get it way out there , so the sturgeon and surf blanks work good for this. why a four piece??? small car?? lol we used to have 16 ft sturgeon rods that we tied over my volkswagen haha bumper to bumper.

The main reason for four pieces is portability. We will sometimes hike a mile or 2 into a spot, and 6 foot sections of rod are difficult to maneuver through some of the brush lining the rivers here.

Would cutting the six foot sections in half and installing spigot ferrules work for this kind of an application, or is this type of salmion rod not good for somethjng like fhat?

I'm no expert on this subject, but I would be highly skeptical that spigot ferrules and the blank would hold up to this kind of duty. I would take a well designed-for-the-job factory blank and carry it in a tube to get through the brush rather than have a cobbled rod break.

Why not put the rod in a Case This way what ever size it is nothing will contact it

You can make your own and put a strap on it and carry it like a rifle

Bill - willierods.com



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/10/2014 11:16AM by bill boettcher.