To keep things "easy" for a gift, I got a kit... Its a mudhole spinning kit for a 7' American tackle blank. It came with a set of double foot guides: 30-25-20-16-12-10-8 plus a tip top.

The problem is I am not familiar with that guide progression - is it cone of flight? It doesn't match the 27X or NGC or any other system I have become familiar with: there is no obvious (to me) reduction train and guide train. The kit doesn't come with a spacing chart that could serve as a starting point.

What I'd like to do is place the first two or three by the reel by some expected system and static test the rest. Any advice on where I should start? I can't match it to any certain reel, I will use a 4000 I have laying around, and my friend probably will use something around that size. And I recognize the 30 might not be optimal for the 4000.

Thanks,
Jay

Jason,
The nice thing about this guide set on a rod, is that it is generous enough so that you can put virtually any reel on it and it will work just fine.

However, you indicated that this is a "spinning rod". Was a spinning reel seat shipped with the kit, or was a casting reel seat sent with the kit. The primary difference is that a casting reel seat would likely have a trigger as part of the reel seat.

With a spinning rod, there is really no reason to use any double footed guides.

I suppose that if I were doing the same blank I would use a 20, 16, 10, and # 6 guides to the tip, with a size 6 tip. I would likely use 4 - #6 running guides on this blank.

i.e. I would not use any of the guides that came in the kit. Rather purchase new guides of an appropriate size and go from there.

I would also likely use a size 30 reel on this rod as well.

Good luck



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/22/2015 09:23PM by roger wilson.

It is a generic cone-of-flight type set up. It will work fine, although perhaps not as well overall as some newer, more modern systems.

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

I'm not all that knowledgeable about guide trains, but I'm learning. With that said, that is an awfully heavy guide train. What are the characteristics of the blank this is going on?
Heavy power? Medium power? What is the action of the blank? And most importantly .... what is the rod going to be used for?

Is it going to be made into a rod where sensitivity is important, or will it be casting and reeling, trolling, or perhaps a rod used for fishing live bait under a float or weighted and on the bottom?

If the sensitivity of the rod is of great importance, I'd definitely go with a lighter guide train like that that Roger suggested. Even if its primary use was for casting and retrieving lures I'd go with a guide train like the one Roger suggested.

If it's something like a catfish or carp rod where you will be fishing anchored bait on a tight line, then I'd stay with the kit.

Tom knows far better than I, and if he says it will work fine I'd take that to the bank. But you could put together a guide train that is fairly inexpensive that would better fit certain presentations and techniques.

Let me rephrase a bit - Almost anything will work. The guides as supplied will work fine. But that doesn't mean you can't concoct something that will work better.

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

I appreciate the advice, but I just don't want to buy more guides. This was intended to be a simple low cost build, that I was going to personalize (favorite color, air force decal, diamond wrap, etc). Also, he will just be chunking cut bait, in the Gulf for whatever bites, he isn't too picky about rod performance and sensitivity. The blank is rated for 1-3 oz, medium power, mod fast action.

I was hoping someone would give some pointers as to where to start the first stripper guide in relation to the spinning reel. I figure the static test would take care of most of the layout. I am guessing that first guide should be anywhere between 19-24 inches from the spool? And then test casts to tame the line as much as possible in conjunction with optimizing casting distance.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/23/2015 09:00AM by Jason Reddick.

Jason,
you pretty much answered your own question. What size reel is your customer planning on using on this rod?

Regards,
Todd

Regards,
Todd Vivian
Mud Hole Custom Tackle

todd@mudhole.com

Jason,
I checked which kit you purchased and found the rear grip, assuming he will be using a 4000 or 5000 size reel try this spacing to start with.

4"
8 1/4"
13 3/16"
19"
25 9/16"
33 1/4"
42"


Regards,

Todd

Regards,
Todd Vivian
Mud Hole Custom Tackle

todd@mudhole.com

Jason,
I checked which kit you purchased and found the rear grip, assuming he will be using a 4000 or 5000 size reel try this spacing to start with.

4"
8 1/4"
13 3/16"
19"
25 9/16"
33 1/4"
42"


Regards,

Todd

Regards,
Todd Vivian
Mud Hole Custom Tackle

todd@mudhole.com

Jason,
If this is going to be a Cone of Flight, the easiest way is to place the reel on the rod blank with grip and reel seat installed. Remove the spool and tie a piece of line to the spool axle. String the line to the tip top. Now tape the guides along the blank until each guide just touches the outside of the guide ring. Alternatively you could place the guides so that the line is centered for each guide. The goal is to have your guides placed so the line is straight from axle to tip top. Good luck.

Mike Blomme

Todd from Mudhole nailed it.

The spacing that he suggests works with the enclosed guide set, so I would certainly go with his suggestion.

Be safe

Thank you for looking all that up, Todd!

I figured it was probably simple, but I wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything important with the first couple of guides. There is virtually nothing out there on the COF, everything is about the NGC, for good reason I am sure. This doesn't have to be high performance but I don't want it to be dead either.