Hey all..

I am building a rod now, for myself, for kayak fishing. I have grown fond of the 7' length, or less, for kayak fishing, and for trolling off the yak, and especially fond of the old S-glass blanks, like Sabre and Kencor. I like being able to clear the tip without having to put the rod down, and the S-glass blanks feel great, almost indestructible, not too noodly. (Is that a word?) For chinook, sockeye, and Kamloops trout on the kayak, the Sabre 1970c rods are killer.

This rod is for Washington coast Halibut and Ling cod, built for kayak. The blank is a Kencor Magnaglas. The line ratings are long gone from this rod, guessing 20-40, but it worked great for sturgeon, a ton of backbone and as much flex. It is too heavy for chinook.

It is all stripped down now, and cleaned up beautifully.

Please feel free to 'poke holes' in my plan, and let the critique rip, that is why I am posting.

The plan is for an 8 tip top, 7 guides, a spiral wrap, Fuji 'K' titanium guides. The stripper guide will be a 16, all the rest, size 8, with an 8 tip top. I have built a few spiral wrapped rods, and like them.

I am up in the air about reel seat, between an Alps aluminum seat, and the deluxe Fuji plastic seat. I want this rod to be as light as possible, but I also do not want to ever feel a wobbly reel while fishing for halibut.

One of the issues I am facing right now, is finding a tip top in size 8 that fits on the blank, which is now just over 4mm, 3.6mm at the bitter end, and 4.13mm where the tip top would end. The tip top i.d. is listed as 3.6mm or less. I would like to use titanium guides. They are expensive, yes, but if this rod breaks, or I do not like it, I can use them on another rod. They will be used by me, regardless, until they wear out or are damaged. There are not many options for an 8 ring size, and a tube size that fits this blank. I would rather not use the original guides. This rod will likely have a Tekota 500LC on it, or a Calcutta 400, depending on the fishery, with braid.

Can I carefully sand the blank tip down to 3.6mm from where it is now, without ruining the blank? It is possible that I may be able to 'relieve' the i.d. of the tip top with a small round file, also. The amount of material that needs to disappear is not much. The tip top has a tang, to help hold it.

Any thoughts on which reel seat to choose? The heavier, but much more secure and better feeling Alps aluminum? Or the lightweight and inexpensive plastic Fuji seat?

The grips will be EVA foam. I may make a foam /CF tube/ epoxy fore grip, but I am not sure I want to be that careful with this rod, and, it is likely that this rod will see use on piers in Florida. I love them on my fly rods.

Are the slanted K guides a poor choice for this spiral wrapped rod? I am thinking basically, a lightweight 'boat/pier' rod, for the kayak.

There are other tip top options in size 10, but I do not need size 10 guides on this rod.

The biggest question is, can I sand the tip of the blank down from 4mm to where a 3.6 tip top will fit, maybe also touching the i.d of the tip top with a file?

I could use the original tip top that came with this rod. It is heavy, and I am not sure if the braid will be a risk factor in damaging the ring. I think it may be mild steel?

All input is welcome.

Another possible solution is to make a small extension for the tip. Right now, the size 8 tip top will slide onto the blank about .3". I could carefully make a 'splint' that epoxies into the hole in the blank at the tip, and extend the tip of the blank somehow.

Sounds like you are close with it already going on .3 inch. I would try to open the id of tip top guide first a little bit then see how much do you need to sand the tip right at the spot where it wants to catch.A little sanding on a fiberglass tip shouldn’t be much of an issue.

I built a Rod Geeks XC 733 very similar to what you want to do, Spiral wrapped going from a high frame 16mm to 8 mm and it does well with a Okuma 350 reel.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/18/2019 04:42PM by David Miller.

That sounds like a cool rod.

I was thinking of a taller frame 16, but I do not see any available in Titanium. I built a Super Seeker pier rod, do not recall exactly which blank, but it is rated at 20-50, it has a 16 stripper guide and 10's for the rest. It is spiral wrapped, using the American Tackle 'heavy 'Virtus' guides. I think the stripper is about 26" from the reel. That rod will cast an 8oz lead about a half mile or so... almost. ;) And a 3 piece Tarpon rod I built on a NorthFork Composites blank, it uses a 12mm stripper with single footed 6's for the rest, spiral wrapped, that rod is a pleasure to use, casts like a rocket. It mostly sees a Calcutta 400 on it. A taller frame stripper guide might be better, but the standard height frames are working pretty well.


Does anyone see any issues in using the 'K' guides on this kayak halibut rod?

I have put in some time in thinking about all of this, and been pleased with the rods I have built so far, but I am a complete newbie at it all the same.

I used Alps MXN guides but used the heavier frame XN for the stripper just because is was just a little taller. As long as the stripper guide is tall enough to keep the line off the front grip while fighting a fish that is the main thing. The Fuji K guides are a little higher than most standard guides and should work very well for you.

For the reel seat any of those mentioned will work fine.I like the Fuji graphite seats with the backstop lock nut. Very comfortable,light weight, doesn’t feel cold like aluminum and holds the reel very solid.

Turns out that the size 16 'K' guide is too short for this layout. I think the LC 16M surf guide will do the trick.


I went back and forth about the reel seat, and opted for the Alps. This rod will be great in Florida, also, and the Alps seat gives a little added height, as neither of the reels that are going on this are particularly tall. I had not thought about the cold factor of the Alps seat, but I have a feeling that I am going to notice it when it is cold out.

Grips will be carbon skinned foam. I could not find 1.5" diameter foam, so pourable foam, some mold components, and some stainless rod to make mandrels with in the lathe, are on the way.

Thanks for the thoughts.

Turns out that the size 16 'K' guide is too short for this layout. I think the LC 16M surf guide will do the trick.


I went back and forth about the reel seat, and opted for the Alps. This rod will be great in Florida, also, and the Alps seat gives a little added height, as neither of the reels that are going on this are particularly tall. I had not thought about the cold factor of the Alps seat, but I have a feeling that I am going to notice it when it is cold out.

Grips will be carbon skinned foam. I could not find 1.5" diameter foam, so pourable foam, some mold components, and some stainless rod to make mandrels with in the lathe, are on the way.

Thanks for the thoughts.

Just like copper tubing, the end of the tip top is smaller than then actual tip tubing because of a small inner burr. Turn the tip top while you lightly insert a knife tip, or turn an 1/8 inch drill in the end till it goes down the tube. Could be all you need.

WIll definitely be aware of the i.d of the tip top. Any burrs will be removed.


Thank you.