I just got an Epic Fly Rod 12wt fiberglass blank. Its a blemish kit and I don't like the reel seat that came with it (kind of a cheap feel, I think they were out of the nicer Epic branded reel seats, hence the blem). What kind of reel seat can I put on a 12wt fiberglass rod? I've never built anything this heavy duty before. Do you need to factor in reel seat twisting fighting big fish? I was thinking a REC RFTS reel seat. Or seeing if I can find a titanium reel seat that will fit on a 12wt. I like the Alps triangle seat but their website says for for 6-8 wt fly rods. Any thoughts or suggestions? Thanks in advance.

What's the O.D. of the blank where the seat will be?
Herb

The butt diameter is 13.4mm. I dug through my stuff some more and found an alps triangle seat and its too narrow and internal diameter. Another REC RFTS I found will fit though...

You wouldn't have to take the diameter of the blank down much to fit the Alps R-CAH LX2 onto it. Is .012 inches too much to take off the blank? Glass experts?

Daren,
I use REC stuff exclusively.
IMO the RFTS doesn't hold the reel foot as well as the RSLL.
But check the I.D. with Ryan before.
Herb

I have built hundreds of heavy line weight saltwater rods over the last thirty years. Put a Fuji #17 pipe seat on it and do not look back. It will never fail and will hold a reel better and more securely than anything else on the market. No slip no wobble,

Fuji pipe seats can,t be beat for spin, fly or casting

While the pipe style will suffice, they are not designed around the AFFTMA specs for the hoods to hold the reel feet design such as the REC's and Bellingers



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/12/2021 08:21PM by Tom Kirkman.

The nylon lined hoods on the Fuji and similar are flexible and will perfectly conform to any reel foot shape. This means they make better and more uniform contact the reel foot and allow for contraction and expansion during temperature changes and long term use. NO aluminum seat will ever hold a reel as securely as the Fuji seat. Impossible. And the Fuji type will never corrode or jam. It is a superior reel seat from a performance standpoint.

While I am a Fuji fan, I have never had a wobble or click or any indication of a lack of security with the Alps R-CAH with the jam nut. It is a handsome and very robust/secure seat for fly reels. A bit pricey, but you only go around once. With regard to the Fuji and corrosion resistance, it does have metal hoods, right? "Never corrode" ? Never? The Alps is well worth the price. I am not familiar with the other options being presented.

Big fan of Lemke seats. High quality and made in the USA.

Lemke has very good looking seats that will accept this large blank OD. Promising.

Michael Danek Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> While I am a Fuji fan, I have never had a wobble
> or click or any indication of a lack of security
> with the Alps R-CAH with the jam nut. It is a
> handsome and very robust/secure seat for fly
> reels. A bit pricey, but you only go around once.
> With regard to the Fuji and corrosion resistance,
> it does have metal hoods, right? "Never corrode"
> ? Never? The Alps is well worth the price. I am
> not familiar with the other options being
> presented.

The Fuji seats will never corrode. Correct. I have them on rods over 25 years old fished almost daily in the salt and they have not corroded so far. I think my statement is fair. If there was a better seat I would use it but have not found one so far.

Thanks for the advice everybody.