I'm adding to my quiver of long fly rods for fishing from my pontoon and float tube. Several years ago I built a 10' 5 wt. Dan Craft Black Canyon. The rod turned out beautiful but the action is too fast for me. Does anyone have experience with the 10' Dan Craft GXT blanks? Alternatiavely, a long blank from CTS (9'6" or longer)? I generally fish larger lakes and reservoirs (Henry's Lake in Idaho, Strawberry in Utah) with intermediate and full sinking Type III and IV lines.

Darin,
You're speaking my language now.
Hand's down the CTS Affinity-X, - or the Affinity-MX for a more moderate action. The affinity-M has a unique action that I do not find to my liking. But you may like it. It had a softer butt than the X or the MX. The tip is stiffer than either the X or MX that facilitates loading the mid section of the blank. I find I generate more line speed with the X or MX.

IMO - the 9'6" Affinity-MX is the perfect blank for your purposes.

Every once in awhile I build on blanks other other than CTS. But I never fish them because they just don't perform as well as the CTS.
Life is too short to not fish the best - especially since you are in the same price neighborhood.

Contact me for more comparative info and CTS pricing.

BTW - I have a #7, 4pc, vintage Dan Craft FT blank in 10'0" that I would gladly sell.
BTW #2 - I have 2 10'0" CTS rods you may test drive
Herb
U.S. Distributor CTS Rod Blanks



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/09/2018 06:15PM by Herb Ladenheim.

Herb, how do I reach you? Also, I was looking on the CTS website and I don't see that they make the MX anymore.

Darin Goff Wrote:
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> Herb, how do I reach you? Also, I was looking on
> the CTS website and I don't see that they make the
> MX anymore.



Herb is the man , really goes out of his way to make sure you're happy with great communication . Don't worry about not seeing a specific blank on the CTS site , CTS discontinued what is in my opinion the best surf rod blanks on the planet a few years back but Herb was able to have them specially built for me so i'm thrilled . He will come through for you also .

Thanks Herb.
Darin and I are in touch.
Regards,
Herb

herb canter Wrote:
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> Darin Goff Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Herb, how do I reach you? Also, I was looking
> on
> > the CTS website and I don't see that they make
> the
> > MX anymore.
>
>
>
> Herb is the man , really goes out of his way to
> make sure you're happy with great communication .
> Don't worry about not seeing a specific blank on
> the CTS site , CTS discontinued what is in my
> opinion the best surf rod blanks on the planet a
> few years back but Herb was able to have them
> specially built for me so i'm thrilled . He will
> come through for you also .

I'll second that. Herb is the man!

Hey Jay,
Thanks.
BTW - your guides went in mail a few days ago.
You might even get them today.
Herb

Darin,
I own two CTS Affinity X's in 9'-6", one is a 5wt and the other a 6wt. I use them for indicator nymphing, the longer length is ideal for line mending. Both of these blanks are awesome casting, while labeled as a "fast" action, they are not very tip stiff, rather an even loading powerful blank.
I also do some of the same style fishing as you, out of float tubes and a pontoon boat. Personally I like shorter rods for this, the extra foot to 6 inches of length does not get me any increase in casting distance, but to each his own.
If I was in your shoes, I'd get the Affinity X 965-4, instead of the MX or N. In the lengths of 9ft or longer the Affinity X is a better blank. In my opinion the MX is awesome in lengths shorter than 9ft, with 8-6 being the best, especially for dries. The Affinity N is a different taper, reduced butt power with strong tip section (like explained above), while a great dry fly taper, I found them to be very good at streamer fishing, especially if you use a "water load" type of cast to get it going.
In Carbon, CTS has the best stuff out there these days, you can go wrong with one of them in my book. I built out a gang of them for customers, never had a complaint on how they perform.

On another note, back to float tubes, I use a CTS Quartz Glass 8-6 5wt for a lot of that fishing, glass with its full flex taper is idea for casting sink tips and intermediate lines, the only thing that hinders glass is the wind, which can be an issue out in your area, but it might be worth a look at.

Herb is the guy to order the CTS blanks from.

Bill,
Thanks,
Herb

Bill Hickey Wrote:
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> Darin,
> I own two CTS Affinity X's in 9'-6", one is
> a 5wt and the other a 6wt. I use them for
> indicator nymphing, the longer length is ideal for
> line mending. Both of these blanks are awesome
> casting, while labeled as a "fast" action, they
> are not very tip stiff, rather an even loading
> powerful blank.
> I also do some of the same style fishing as
> you, out of float tubes and a pontoon boat.
> Personally I like shorter rods for this, the extra
> foot to 6 inches of length does not get me any
> increase in casting distance, but to each his own.
>
> If I was in your shoes, I'd get the Affinity
> X 965-4, instead of the MX or N. In the lengths of
> 9ft or longer the Affinity X is a better blank. In
> my opinion the MX is awesome in lengths shorter
> than 9ft, with 8-6 being the best, especially for
> dries. The Affinity N is a different taper,
> reduced butt power with strong tip section (like
> explained above), while a great dry fly taper, I
> found them to be very good at streamer fishing,
> especially if you use a "water load" type of cast
> to get it going.
> In Carbon, CTS has the best stuff out there
> these days, you can go wrong with one of them in
> my book. I built out a gang of them for customers,
> never had a complaint on how they perform.
>
> On another note, back to float tubes, I use a
> CTS Quartz Glass 8-6 5wt for a lot of that
> fishing, glass with its full flex taper is idea
> for casting sink tips and intermediate lines, the
> only thing that hinders glass is the wind, which
> can be an issue out in your area, but it might be
> worth a look at.
>
> Herb is the guy to order the CTS blanks from.

Thank you for the helpful descriptions of your CTS Affinity X rods. That generally describes the action I am looking for but I want to have one in hand in order to know for sure. You referenced an Affinity N--I assume that was a typo and you meant the Affinity M.

I'd be interested if you could offer comparisons between the Affinity Xs you own and any currently available factory rods or rods in general circulation (Sage, Orvis, Winston, etc.). Common Cents comparisons would also be helpful. I've been looking at that but don't see a lot of data available. I've been aware of CTS for many years (I looked at a Meiser spey rod five years back) and have no concerns about the quality of their product.

My lake fishing is generally not a finesse game, taking place as you correctly guessed in windy places where the goal of the cast is often to simply get a big bugger into the water as far away from me as possible so I can strip it back. My experience is that longer rods do cast farther, and longer is better up to the point that swing weight makes it unpleasant or worse (a friend of mine saw most of a steelhead season ruined by a sore elbow attributed to a 10' 8wt. Sage XP--He fishes switch and spey rods now). I think that can be accomplished in a 9'6", but have my doubts about 10's although the modern 10' rods I have cast are better in this regard than the older 10's I own.

I have scoured rod racks in search of ideal factory rods for the stillwater fishing I do. My suspicion is that the rod-makers' market research is telling them that when a customer asks for a 9'6" 6wt. rod, especially with premium components, they want a very fast action, probably for nymphing, streamers or light steelheading with lake fishing thrown in as an afterthought. I don't get this thinking. I find medium actions much easier to nymph with (they open the loop). A fast action 9' rod is my preference for pound-the-banks streamer fishing from a moving boat, but when wading and strip/swinging flies with a sink tip I have all the time in the world to make the cast, and a longer rod with a more deliberate action is my preference. The shooting-type heads on the lines I use are going to get the fly out in the water to an appropriate fishing distance or beyond with a "fastish" but not FAST action. My steelheading reference books (dated for certain) also discuss using more moderate action rods for casting sink tip lines.

Most of the 9'6" 6wt rods that I have cast were too stiff for my liking and hard to load, even when over-lined. Of the various rods that I've cast my favorite was the C.F. Burkheimer Searun which is a 9'5" Standard action trout rod with salt water components. I have ordered a 9'5" 6wt. in that model with freshwater components and a full-wells grip and fighting butt. The grip on the Burkie is perfect for my paw and will serve as a template if I pursue custom builds on CTS or other blanks. It was remarkeably light, with a thin blank. Swing weight is not an issue. The action is not medium (I think Winston IM6, Scott G2 or Sage SP/SLT when I think medium action), but not Scott Radian or SageOne/ X fast either. It easily throws an intermediate and Type III line down to the last few turns before the backing. This is remarkable for me because I do not consider myself a particularly proficient distance caster. Price is comparable to other high end factory rods, but IF CTS offer similar performance I would jump all over it for the simple reason that I could have two CTS custom rods for every one Burkie.

I did like the Sage Pulse, which although marketed as a fast action, was easy for me to load and cast. The only reason I haven't bought one was the grip is bloated and did not fit well in my hand. The "Hot Wheels" green color was a turnoff as well, but I could have made that work.

I'm in contact with Herb and look forward to test-casting some of his rods.

Darin,
After reading your posts I think your associating a blank's power into your discription of rod action. My Sage SLT rods are fast actioned, but lower powered when measured with the Common Cents system. My Dan Craft 9 1/2 ft. 6 wt. Sig V rod is med fast actioned and dead center as far as power on the Common Cents system and feels very similar while casting.

Spencer Phipps Wrote:
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> Darin,
> After reading your posts I think your associating
> a blank's power into your discription of rod
> action. My Sage SLT rods are fast actioned, but
> lower powered when measured with the Common Cents
> system. My Dan Craft 9 1/2 ft. 6 wt. Sig V rod is
> med fast actioned and dead center as far as power
> on the Common Cents system and feels very similar
> while casting.

I agree that it is easy to confuse power and action. I associate action with the rod's flex profile and power with the amount of line weight required to properly load the rod, regardless of the flex profile. Perhaps that is simplistic, and in real fishing situations the distinction can blur as both power and action have a role in dealing with longer casting scenarios. My assessments of my various rods' actions are based entirely on casting and flexing the rods and its possible that power creeps into my subjective assessments. I do know that I do not enjoy casting tip-flex (fast action) rods as much as mid-flex (medium to medium-fast action) rods. Thus, when confronted with wind or the need for distance I prefer to jump up a line weight (more power) and let the increased mass of the heavier fly line overcome wind resistance rather than fish a very fast action rod of a lower line weight. Maybe I'd approach the problem differently if I were a more proficient caster. Fortunately there is more than one way to skin a cat. The Burkheimer and Sage Pulse I described above are probably "juiced" in terms of power (i.e. a 6.5 wt) with a medium fast to fast action, if that makes sense. These actions were right in the middle of my sweet spot and suit my casting style well. I also find manufacturer's descriptions of rod actions to be wildly divergent and unreliable. But generally, "Winston fast" is within my sweet spot. "Sage fast," not so much.

I recently acquired a Sage SLT 9' 6wt. It is a sweet caster. I cast it against my Scott S3 of the same weight and line rating. I can cast both of these rods well. The S3 is undoubtedly the faster action, but doesn't strike me as extra fast. The SLT flexes deeper into the blank and strikes me as somewhere between the S3 and a Winston WT/IM6 action. The SLT does not like the Rio Grand line, but casts a Rio Gold nicely. This would seem to corroborate your assessment of the SLT as lower powered--the Rio Grand 6 wt. line is technically a 7 wt. line (the Gold is juiced as well, but not a full line weight heavier). I know Sage considered the SLT to be a medium action, but medium action for Sage is probably at least medium fast for many other manufacturers. Regardless, I think its a pretty sweet casting rod, particularly for the distances I encounter when wade fishing. What CCS numbers did you get for your SLTs? As for the S3, I consider the S3 to be slightly juiced. The S3 easily casts the Grand line, but casts the Gold nicely as well. I used to use a Wulff TT, but I don't know the grain weight on that line. The S3 is a benchmark rod for me. I've been fishing it for fifteen years. The action is at the upper end of my casting sweet spot. This is the rod that I have been using for most of my stillwater fishing, streamers on sink tips, and fishing with big dries or nymphs from a drift boat. I rarely use the S3 when wade fishing, unless I am fishing streamers or the wind is up. I have not been able to find CCS data for this rod, but it would be useful, particularly for comparing it to blanks that I do not have an opportunity to cast. The blank I am looking for would have flex and power characteristics similar to the S3 in the 9'6" length and hopefully lower overall weight. The S3 is a bit long in the tooth and newer premium blanks are noticeably lighter.

Do you use the Sig V on stillwaters? I read a lot about that blank when I was researching what became my Black Canyon build, but they were no longer available. From the website, it appears that the Dan Craft offerings are more limited than they used to be. When I talked to him he indicated he had 10' rods in the GXT blank, but I don't recall him having any 9'6" rods. I think 10's are off the table for me.

Thanks for your comment.