Wanted to get your take on the following two blanks (I know the prices are different, one is for a personal build, while the other is for a buddy whose not looking to spend quite as much). So I was considering the following blanks:

North Fork Composite SM-Flip766-1
Castaway BB1

Looking to use as a pitching rod with fluorocarbon, most weights ranging 3/8-3/4oz, rarely venture over 1oz or 1oz at all. Was looking for a more moderate action, was curios the thoughts on the BB1, I know that this is really more of a fast taper blank. Any thoughts, figured I would start a new thread just on the blanks.

Jay,

I built the BB1 with a split grip and micros (pac bay minima 4s-4) I have loved it. After 2 years of fishing it a ton, I stepped on the darn thing and broke it. It held up to some pretty significant use. I mainly pitch my local lake with 1/2oz jigs and t-rigs using 17-20lb floro. Worked great. It's a fast action and pretty stout.

I don't have experience with the Northfork blank.

Hope that helps

Joe

Hey there Jay. Funny seeing you here. lol

In the other thread you didn't mention that you use fluorocarbon. Personally I'd go with the fast action with fluorocarbon. Fluorocarbon stretches, and since it stretches I personally don't see the need for the moderate or moderate fast action.

Tell ya what ..... if really want to do yourself a favor, you may want to look at the Rainshadow Immortal line of blanks. They're more expensive than the Castaway blank you mentioned, but man what a blank.

My last build was a flipping, pitching, Carolina rig rod, built on the Immortal IMMC72MH blank. It's fast action with a 3/8 - 1 oz lure rating. Extremely sensitive, powerful, and strong. As soon as I can catch back up from buying a new depth finder I'm going to be building another one.

Same to you buddy!!!

I am with you, I am building a couple now, and then around June I plan to upgrade the electronics at my console. Yeah I like Flouro a little better than the braid, I use both. But for this build I have no problem designing to use with flouro over braid, as I prefer heavier flouro anyways. Just easier to deal with.

I will check out the Immortal, great suggestion. Question, how long of a handle do u usually go with on a pitching type rod... I plan to play with it once its mocked up, but was looking for a reference point and go from there.

Thanks buddy.

Jay,

I would "second" the recommendation made by David Baylor above to check out the Rainshadow Immortal IMMC72MH blank. I built that very same blank for a customer and he raves about it. He broke it not to long ago drying a bass through the grass while fishing from shore. I was sure he "high sticked" it; but I sent the broken section up to Batson just to check for a possible factory defect. I also sent along a letter explaining the guy had just had a baby and then been laid off of work...hard times for him. Three days after shipping the rod from So. Cal to Washington State, I received an email from Batson Warranty Dept. indicating they had not found any defects with the rod; but in view of my client's current situation, they replaced the blank at no charge!! I receive the replacement blank 3 days later and Batson did not even charge for the shipping of the blank!!!

The new Immortal and Eternity line of blanks available from Batson / Rainshadow are excellant. They are not paying me to endorse their products. The products speak for themselves and there is no better customer service available in the industry.

Don Campbell
don@sensorfishingrods.com

That is very nice Service with a Hart

Bill - willierods.com

Wow, still some good people out there and quality companies that really care. Great to hear, and I am planning to look into the Immortal!

I will say that I met Mr. Bill Batson a few years back at ICRBE while I was still in the Marine Corps and the following year he remembered me by name!!! I had never met him prior to our first meeting and I was overwhelmingly impressed by the man, and his company. He was showing me a rod that had been built for him by Mr. Steve Gardner as a gift and handed it over to me saying when you are done with it drop it back by our booth. He spent a good amount of time discussing the rod with me and once he had answered my questions he was off to help more builders. Needles to say Steve was a little shocked as I stood in the isle with his gift to Mr. Batson looking it over, however, once explained he fully understood why I had the rod. Understand Steve was not rude nor pushy in inquiring about the rod. I have no affiliation with any company and will say Bill Batson and his company are outstanding and I try to use his products at every opportunity!!

Yes, they are great people and represent a great product and they truly do care!


Tom

Thank you for the kind words.. Our products speak for them selves..our passion for the industry is REAL..
Our commitment to the industry is REAL.. We are a USA owned and Family operated company that has been doing this for over 35 years.
You will never be disappointed with your choice to use our product lines..
we are all fisherman and rod builders just making a living at what we LOVE..
take care and feel free to contact us anytime with questions..
Bill Batson
CEO
Batson Enterprises
Rainshadow/Forecast/ALPS /NFC product lines
www.batsonenterprises.com
batson@batsonenterprises.com
877-875-2381

Now that's what I am talking about! Have always loved my builds with Batson blanks, time to add another.

Jay, for that rod I built on the Immortal blank that I mentioned, I went with a measurement of 10" from the butt end of the blank to the back of the reel seat. So with the butt cap installed I had a final rear handle length of 10 1/4" I went with the 10" number for two reasons. One .. since the blank's length is 7'2" I wanted a slightly longer rear handle so the rod wouldn't feel tip heavy. And two .... I figured that was about as long of a handle I could use without making the rod difficult to use.

I think rear handle length is very important with a rod that will see use for both flipping and pitching, because of the rear handles travel path. When I flip, the rear handle travels outside of my forearm, so I don't really have to worry about the handle hitting clothing. But when I pitch, the handle travels inside of my forearm. For those of us in more northern climes, too long of a handle can hit on bulky clothing that is worn early in the season.

For my physical dimensions, the above mentioned handle length is probably as far as I personally would want to go with rear handle length.

As far as the Immortal blank I and others have mentioned. It truly is an outstanding blank. If Don mentioning that he had a client that broke one gives you concern, I can tell you that as Don suspects, and I agree based on my usage of the rod I built ..... that client must have surely done something extreme to break that blank.

The rod I built on the Immortal blank I mentioned is by far the best performing, and dare I say, the nicest rod I have ever fished. I was so ecstatic that I posted a report on this forum about it. If you care to read it, here's the link. [rodbuilding.org]

I'm just a regular guy, so take the report for what it's worth.

I got the blank from Utmost Enterprises, Carol, Mick and their people are just as good as the blanks they sell. They're outstanding!