Going south to do some saltwater fishing with my wife, want to build her a 7' 2 piece fiberglass saltwater spinning rod. Medium action, 1/2 oz plus lures and bait. Any suggestions for an affordable blank? Ideas for the components, reel seat, guides etc. Want the rod to be well done but still affordable. I am a rodbuilder but I am not familiar with the saltwater tackle. Thanks.


Tim

A blank is a blank, a rod rated to throw a certain lure weight will do the same in saltwater, or fresh. Guides and components won't be different within reason. Batson makes a 3 pc. Rainshadow blank, composite construction, your length, in varied powers, it's their RX6/Eglass composite blanks.
Netcraft 6' 6", E Glass, 2 pc. 3/8 to 1 oz. lure weight.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/05/2019 03:49PM by Spencer Phipps.

You can probably save a little money if you go with a regular graphite blank. The all fiberglass rod blanks have gotten kind of pricey. Just use whatever blank you are using in freshwater for bass and you should be alright. Something that is rated for 8-17# mono should get you there. Many of the sponsors on the left are closing out blanks, so you should get a good deal.

Spencer - aren't the glass blanks more durable than graphite? I'll check out the Batson e-glass RX-6. Does it make sense to buy the saltwater safe reelseat and guides? Is this important?
Thanks Lance for the feedback!

If you are using a rod a lot in the salt and you don't rinse the off after each use go with the more salty parts, if you usd it less often it's not a concern and cheaper too. The saltier components well cost more than The blank probably.
The Batson Rainshadow composite blanks have a bit more glass in the tip where most are broken, so they have no durability issues.

As long as you take care of the rod by cleaning it after each use in salt, you can use whatever components you wish. Most of the rods you get in the store have cheaper components that will degrade quickly without regular maintenance and cleaning. I normally wash the rod and reel down with freshwater and dry them completely after a saltwater fishing adventure. I use a reel that is meant for freshwater but I use it for headboat trips for the last 10+ years, no corrosion.

I purchased a MHX blank, L904-2-MHX, with an anodized reelseat. Now onto the guides and the grip. Thanks for all the advice, I'll purchase good guides but won't worry so much about the corrosion.

[rodgeeks.com]

If you are going to be casting live/dead bait and large plugs, that should be a great blank and can handle some bull reds. Sounds like a good choice.

Ken: My experience with "fresh water tackle" is the same as yours. After 47 years of chiefly freshwater fishing I switched almost entirely to saltwater fishing for the past 20 years, often using "fresh water" rods and reels. I rinse them now, every time, immediately after fishing [NEVER missing even one time] and they are as good as ever.

Is there any reference info available on the guide sizes for the 7'.5" blank, I am trying to get the guides ordered for this rod? Any recommendations for a type of guide to consider, I'd like to purchase a middle of the road guide thats reasonably priced. Any ideas are appreciated.
Thanks.