Putting aside appearance, what type or model of spinning rod guides performs the best?

Microwave...

True answer- they may be.. it really depends on what you are building. There are many choices and styles. If you need help finding what is perfect for your build please do not hesitate contacting me direct.

_______________________________
God Bless, Don Morse

800-516-1750 ext. 1207 / don@americantackle.us

Rod Building..... It's What We Do.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/17/2021 08:39AM by Don @ American Tackle.

I really like the Microwave Finesse sets from AT for anything up to and including a medium power rod. Amazing casting distance and sensitivity. The A-Frame Microwaves for anything bigger. I've been building a lot with the TiForged guides lately as well and have been very impressed with performance. Best snagless design on the market.

Good luck!

Go with the American Tackle TiForge titanium guides and you don’t even have to set aside appearance! Great profile on a high-quality, affordable guide!

I use mainly MicroWave guides for all my spinning rods. The 20s have been a favorite lately. The MicroWave Airs are economical and good for bass rods that take a beating. The 25s are great for larger applications. You've got options for all your needs.

On the spinning rods that I build I use microwaves. For the bigger saltwater rods I use microwave 30’s double foot and they will handle yellowfin tuna with no problems. As far freshwater and inshore airwaves are used. You can’t go wrong with these guides.

In my opinion, there is no doubt in my mind that the Fuji KR concept guides are the best. I’ve tried them all, and have settled on the KR guides.
Norm

Phil,
Virtually all of the guides on the market, when set up correctly work very well on rods.
You have a ring that lets the line pass.
On a cast, the composition of the guides as well as the guide ring is really irrelevant.
On a well designed guide train, the line typically has virtually no contact with the guides, where friction could play a part in slowing the line.

However, reeling in a fish is a bit different.
Again, for small fish or fish that have very little fight - again the guides really make little difference.

But, if you are catching very heavy fish - and or if the fish make very long blazing fast runs - you are now concerned with the guide rings where the material may indeed have an effect on the performance and or durability of the guide ring itself.

Best wishes

The smallest lightest guides that stand up to the fishing application (and abuse depending on the angler/application) and also put the ring in the right location relative to the reel and the blank while passing the line and any required connections. The same can be said for guides on any type of rod.

to me it,s just about useless to talk about guides without mentioning the type of line(braid or monos) you use..all the above comments have very little meaning for that reason but that,s probably just me..lol.

Ben, I agree with you, so it's not just you. lol I've never used Microwave guides so I have no personal experience with them. With that said, the design leaves me questioning how well they handle stiffer lines (i.e. fluorocarbon) compared to a KR concept guide layout.

Based on the small size of the center ring in the stripper, I believe they all use a size 6 ring in their center, please correct me if I'm wrong, I can't see them handling stiffer lines as well as a KR concept guide train with their larger I.D. stripper guide. Of course I've read that the Microwave system was designed with the use of braided line in mind, so I am sure that plays into it. But .... the KR Concept was also developed with the use of braid in mind, so .....

I know how well a KR concept guide train on a spinning rod handles fluorocarbon line up to 10# test. It handles it beautifully.

Can the same be said for the Microwave system? I'm curious to hear from those that use the Microwave system. Does it handle fluorocarbon line well?

David, isn,t it interesting that so many systems are designed for braided lines, when in fact braided line makes all systems look like they were designed for braided line..i have made up so many weird guide trains that only work with braided line and i try to use this fact to my advantage..lol..the latest brain storm has been to replace the tall reduction guides used on spinning rods with the running guides and using a small Y guide (#8 or 10) fo replace the stripper..it works great if you use braided lone #10 or less maybe 15 or 20#..guide train weight is greatly reduced as well as cost and overall sensetivity is increased..it,s designed for braid..lol.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/18/2021 11:12PM by ben belote.

I really like the build quality of the American Tackle Microwave, any series. I love the way they cast, and look!

There are so many different applications and priorities with builders and fishermen that there is no "best guide." Sort of like "what is the best car?" Well, what do you want it to do? What are your priorities? handling, comfort, capacity, acceleration, economy, styling, country of origin, size, fit/finish, price, resale, available colors????

The best guides will differ based on the application and target species. For my spinning applications, I really like the MicroWage guides in all of their configurations. The have never let me down, and I absolutely love the Black AirWaves!

In one of teh threads above, there was a question regarding how Microwave Guides handle stiffer lines - I can answer that. They do a superb job! I ran a scientific test when the MicroWave Guides were first introduced, using two identical blanks, building one with the MicroWave Guides and the other with a standard "Cone of Flight" set of guides. I then used three reels. One was spooled with 6lb FireLine Crystal, one with 6lb Suffix Mono (a very soft version) and the third with 17lb Stren Extra Tough. I then recorded 10 casts on each rod with each reel. The MicroWave Guides outperformed the standard guide train in every respect, including the Stren Extra Tough, a very stiff line with tons of memory.

When I don't use the MicorWave Guides, I use the Ring-Lock A-Frame guides by American Tackle, I love their Nanolite ring material! When I use double-foot spinning guides, I like the Black Titamium guides - I use these in a variety of inshore and nearshore situations in the salt water.

Hands down best performing guides are the Microwaves imho, greater casting distance and more accurate. If we're talking roller guides then that's another story.

I still really like Pac Bay Minimas for price and performance.

I started with American Tackle and Micro Wave due to the selflessness of Don Morse and staff. After 2 years of reading this forum every day, I've gained respect for several participants. This gave me the courage to try other guides and methods. All of them worked. But, at days end American Tackle still has the best. Thank you too all who share here.

I started with American Tackle and Micro Wave due to the selflessness of Don Morse and staff. After 2 years of reading this forum every day, I've gained respect for several participants. This gave me the courage to try other guides and methods. All of them worked. But, at days end American Tackle still has the best. Thank you too all who share here.

Pac Bay Minimas. With a Fuiji SIC tip.