Hi Mike B,
To add more confusion. Do you count thumb as first finger, pointer as first finger, or pinky as first finger?

Technically the thumb is not a finger........ It is one of five digits on the hand, but on a hand you have four fingers and one thumb. At least I think that is correct. At any rate if I am referring to the thumb I use the term thumb. So first finger is your "pointing" finger and no not the middle one!

Thanks MIke.

This is a timely topic for me.

I throw topwaters (Super Spook down to SS Jr. sizes) almost always with a baitcaster.

I acquired a nice spinning rod, threw a reel on it, and have enjoyed using it for soft plastics. I'd like to try a spinning rod more for topwaters.

The way I work topwaters with the spinning rod makes the butt end of the rod hit me on the underside of my arm, mid-forearm, which I don't like.

I was thinking about building or modifying a spinning rod so I can have a super short butt behind the reel - so it won't hit my arm as much.

I'm old enough that I don't care that if it looks goofy, and I'm thinking the loss of the weight of that short section of the rod in a "normal" length of butt section won't really affect much of the balance.

I've read plenty about taping guides on to try out different spacing, I assume I can make a tight fit tape arbor to get a reel seat to stay on well enough for testing.

Any thoughts/warnings/suggestions?

Many thanks,

Tom

Tom Harrigan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> This is a timely topic for me.
>
> I throw topwaters (Super Spook down to SS Jr.
> sizes) almost always with a baitcaster.
>
> I acquired a nice spinning rod, threw a reel on
> it, and have enjoyed using it for soft plastics.
> I'd like to try a spinning rod more for
> topwaters.
>
> The way I work topwaters with the spinning rod
> makes the butt end of the rod hit me on the
> underside of my arm, mid-forearm, which I don't
> like.
>
> I was thinking about building or modifying a
> spinning rod so I can have a super short butt
> behind the reel - so it won't hit my arm as much.
>
> I'm old enough that I don't care that if it looks
> goofy, and I'm thinking the loss of the weight of
> that short section of the rod in a "normal" length
> of butt section won't really affect much of the
> balance.
>
> I've read plenty about taping guides on to try out
> different spacing, I assume I can make a tight
> fit tape arbor to get a reel seat to stay on well
> enough for testing.
>
> Any thoughts/warnings/suggestions?
>
> Many thanks,
>
> Tom

Well, a very quick update. Just seconds after posting the above message, I looked at the real seat and butt section of a fly rod I had laying near my desk, and just went and stuck a spinning reel on it.

It feels like the length of that short butt section on the fly rod will address my "arm bumping" issue.

"The way I work topwaters with the spinning rod makes the butt end of the rod hit me on the underside of my arm, mid-forearm, which I don't like.

I was thinking about building or modifying a spinning rod so I can have a super short butt behind the reel - so it won't hit my arm as much."


If you can fight the fish (small fish) with just your hand and wrist, bracing the rear grip on the underside of your arm isn't necessary.

There really isn't any need to guess, you could put a bunch of tape arbors on a blank, enough to hang well over the length of your reel seat so you can move things around, tape on some guides, they don't need to be perfect, install the reel you are going to use and test cast and mess around with things till you get what you think works best, then take your measurements and build your rod to those specs. I have no idea how many times people have stood on chairs, etc. in my shop or yard, climbing in my boats to get a feel for or choose a length of rod that will fit their specific needs mimicking their boat's deck height, gunnel height if fishing from the bottom like in a john boat, drift boat, jet sled, etc.

Al - Half joking but my method is to divide the rod length by 6 for a general purpose rod. For rods I’ll impart action too (walking, popping, twitch, etc.) I’ll divide by 8. This gives me pretty much perfect placement.

Tom Harrigan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Tom Harrigan Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > This is a timely topic for me.
> >
> > I throw topwaters (Super Spook down to SS Jr.
> > sizes) almost always with a baitcaster.
> >
> > I acquired a nice spinning rod, threw a reel on
> > it, and have enjoyed using it for soft
> plastics.
> > I'd like to try a spinning rod more for
> > topwaters.
> >
> > The way I work topwaters with the spinning rod
> > makes the butt end of the rod hit me on the
> > underside of my arm, mid-forearm, which I don't
> > like.
> >
> > I was thinking about building or modifying a
> > spinning rod so I can have a super short butt
> > behind the reel - so it won't hit my arm as
> much.
> >
> > I'm old enough that I don't care that if it
> looks
> > goofy, and I'm thinking the loss of the weight
> of
> > that short section of the rod in a "normal"
> length
> > of butt section won't really affect much of the
> > balance.
> >
> > I've read plenty about taping guides on to try
> out
> > different spacing, I assume I can make a tight
> > fit tape arbor to get a reel seat to stay on
> well
> > enough for testing.
> >
> > Any thoughts/warnings/suggestions?
> >
> > Many thanks,
> >
> > Tom
>
> Well, a very quick update. Just seconds after
> posting the above message, I looked at the real
> seat and butt section of a fly rod I had laying
> near my desk, and just went and stuck a spinning
> reel on it.
>
> It feels like the length of that short butt
> section on the fly rod will address my "arm
> bumping" issue.

Another update. Cured the "arm bumping" issue, created an "impossible to cast accurately or for distance" issue.

I'll do the trial and error method to determine the best length for me.

"Cured the "arm bumping" issue, created an "impossible to cast accurately or for distance" issue"


Ha ha ha ha ha

Very very funny ha ha

Everything you do in custom rod building is a bit of a compromise.

..........

Still laughing, argumentative post! We measure in inches rod or forearm. I hand the guy a rod set up as I said and ask him how the butt length feels. If he likes it that's how I make it. If not I adjust accordingly, longer or shorter in inches or centimeters. Still measured in the same "new rule" fashion. Can't nobody say it ain't easy. Of course we could measure the Kings forearm and work off that. LOL Mike, I always ask the guy which finger he puts where.

I would not think so, I always build my split grips 7 Inches to 7.3 Inches from the back rear grip to the start of the fighting butt, but if it works just use it.

Glenn McMurrian

By the way, I learned a long time ago from my good friend who was out casting me by a good distance to always cast with two hands.
By using two hands to cast, the tip velocity of the tip top is increased by a great deal and as a result, the cast of the lure or bait will travel much further.

With respect to who don't I like split grips:
A couple of reasons.
The first reason is that I always make a grip with a swelled palm to fill my hand to give day long comfort.
Also, after fishing for a long day, I will often move my hand down the reel to give the hand a rest or a change of pace. By having the comfortable grip run to the butt of the rod, it is easy to do.
Also, when casting with two hands, the use of a full rear grip makes it really easy to grab the rod as needed for the 2nd hand to assist with the cast.

Note:
Do an experiment some time and put a 20 inch tennessee handle on a rod that you build. Use material of your choice to make the 20 inch continuous grip for the rear of the rod with no reel seat.
Then, simply keep a roll of plastic tape with you and you can put your reel at any location you wish from the butt of the rod up to 20 inches in front of the butt.
This setup, gives you a great base for testing and it also gives you a great feel for what really works for you with respect to overall grip length as well as reel position - with respect to the butt of the rod.

Just another way to help one learn about ones personal preference in reel position on any particular fishing rod.

Best wishes.