Is there a preferred standard for how a rod with reel should balance in your hand? Assuming you are holding the rod by the reel seat, should it be level, butt heavy, tip heavy? Is it entirely personal preference? Depend on the type/length/use of rod?

along the same lines, how do you decide where to mount a reel seat on the butt?

Are there any generally accepted standards to start with, and then adjust as desired from there?

Ultimately I need to know how to determine where to mount a reel seat on any given rod build.

How a rod balances in your hand when you are actually fishing depends upon how much weight you are casting. An adjustable (sliding) reel seat could solve this problem, although I don't think I have ever held a rod that balanced while I was fishing with it.

I do not think there are any standards to answer all your questions. Most of what to ask is accomplished by trial and error. Temporarily assembling the components and making adjustments as you go.

How many rods do you own? If you have more than one which is your favorite which one do you fish the most. Note the things you like about the rod use it as a guide and try to match it to the one you want to build.

If you spend a lot of time holding the rod you may consider building with the lightest materials.

There are many programs that determine guide spacing. Search the forum also check u-tube.

Ask a lot of questions. In many cases the preparation takes mush longer than than the actual build.

Have fun

John

My preference is for a rod/reel to have a slight tip up position when i place my forefinger about 8 to 10 inches forward of the reel stem . To me thats a perfectly balanced outfit and it's done with a full spool of line. There are no standards it's all personal preference and what feels good to you . Easiest way to figure out where to position the reel seat is take the reel you're going to use, (Preferably with a full spool of line) and tape it onto the blank and go outside and get a feel for it by going through the motions . You should know right away where you will end up putting it .

My preference is: With the reel on the rod and line running through the guides, but with no weight pulling down on the tip of the rod - I like to have the rod sit level when the rod is resting in my hand at the position where I normally hold the rod and reel while fishing.

Good luck

Since most presentations I do are either tip up, or tip down, not tip level, I balance for that specific presentation and while doing that specific presentation.That means for tip down presentations, I don't concern myself with balance.
I concern myself with presentation above all else. Handle length dictates whether you can present the lure/bait correctly. Rain gear, life jackets, float coats, and other interferences have a hand in grip decisions. Balance is pretty far down on my list.
Want to guarantee a lighter, better balanced, and more sensitive rod? Use the shortest rod that does the job.

To me , there is no presentation if i don't have a rod that is balanced correctly , anybody reading this thread needs to understand that we are not all referring to the same type and length rods , all my rods are typically 9 feet or longer surf rods , balance is everything .

I always try to balance for level to just slightly tip up. Depends on the rod. Some grips and reel placements can be touchy. Seems a level balance will want to tip down at the slightest movement whereas a few degrees tip up and the rod seems to lock in to that balance point. Most all my rods are slightly tip up or butt heavy.I balance holding the rod normally with a slack line so as not to have any weight of tackle altering the balance. This is my preference and found to work very well. I fish 95 percent spinning rods. Rod just seems to float in my hand like an extension of my arm. Mainly drifting live bait or casting lightweight baits that don't have much action or weight to really effect the rod.

Be aware there are other considerations on where to put the reel, like ergonomics. with some blanks to balance them the butt has to get so long that it hangs up on the elbow, especially with inclement/cold weather clothing. Sometimes (most times) there are compromises necessary.

You have to decide what your priorities are. If you build the rod primarily to balance at a particular point, you may sacrifice other attributes that could be as much or more important to what you need the rod to do.

Consider building the rod around handle requirements, casting distance, fish fighting etc., and then build as light as possible and let the balance fall where it may. In many cases, any imbalance may up being so slight that you never notice it in actual use.

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

I assume this "rod balance" refers to a time when the rod is NOT in use, with no sinkers, lures, or bait hanging from the rod tip? I don't think I'll ever manage to build a fly rod that balances, or a casting rod either.

Easy to balance any rod.
Just make the rear grip longer.

Phil Ewanicki Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I assume this "rod balance" refers to a time when
> the rod is NOT in use, with no sinkers, lures, or
> bait hanging from the rod tip? I don't think I'll
> ever manage to build a fly rod that balances, or a
> casting rod either.



I think i'm on to Phil now lol, he knows exactly what the deal is , he just loves to play along and make things difficult . Cut that out Phil , be nice !!!

Every fly rod I've built balanced, and some balanced where I wanted!

Thanks all for the responses. This is a great forum! When I posted this question I was doing so as a sort of followup to my other post where I inquired about my Saltist 4500 on a 7'6" rod. The consensus of responses there, as expected, was that the reel was way too big for that 7'6" rod. I assumed then that the reason it was too big was because that big reel would not balance (whatever that means!) on the rod. But as I read these responses desired balance appears to be very subjective and no consensus on what is proper balance. So theoretically speaking, why would a reel be too large for any given rod? Is there a point where the weight of the reel negatively affects casting performance of the rod? And if so, how much is too much (reel weight to rod length)?

Bob Ginther:

"So theoretically speaking, why would a reel be too large for any given rod? Is there a point where the weight of the reel negatively affects casting performance of the rod? And if so, how much is too much (reel weight to rod length"




It's 100% subjective , that being said, i have yet to run across an angler in the last 30 years that has purposely put a 22 ounce reel on a 7'6 extremely lightweight inshore high performance rod , will it work , sure but it's way way heavier than what most anglers would prefer . Casting distance shouldn't be effected by an overly heavy reel . It's whether YOU mind the extra weight or not . General rule of thumb has always been to choose the smallest & lightest reel that holds the line type and capacity you intend to use , has the drag range to handle the fish you intend to target and the features that matter to you the most .

Doesn't mean that everyone follows that .

Here's what i would do , use your Saltist 4500 spinner on your Mexico trip , build the rod using a high frame KL-H 25 or 20 for the stripper since that will allow you to still get optimal performance even if you decide to go with a reel change after the trip . It sounds like you really want to make the Saltist 4500 to work so lets go with it , it will still perform very well as long as you go with an appropriate size stripper .

Does "rod balance" refer to a fulcrum where weight X distance is equal on both sides, or is "rod balance" one of those touchy-feely qualities impossible to measure and which varies from one person's opinion to another's? If "rod balance" is an immeasurable quality which depends upon individual opinions there isn't any future trying to describe how to build "balanced" rod ?

Your beatin' a dead horse!

Lynn - How do you know the horse is dead? Did you take his pulse or do you on balance, feel he is dead? : )