I thought this might get interesting (if we can stay on topic) and I think it helps to see individual preferences. It gives context on compatible styles when soliciting advice. There are a million topics on blanks and components, but non I found on a recipe. I've settled on the same recipe for all my personal rods, with the variations being the obvious like more guides for longer blanks etc.

Some background, I've been fishing my entire life and competitively for 10+ years. I fish for fun and inshore redfish and bass tournaments, perks of Florida life. I have been building rods for just over a year now and have about 50ish builds complete, many for me (with many rebuilt), friends, tournament partners, and family. I don't run a rod building business. I got into building rods for performance and personal preference. I can build my ideal rod with my ideal materials, layout and spacing, etc during a sale for around half of a comparable factory rod. This site and it's members have been amazing. I finally feel like I've settled on a recipe that I love to fish and I don't want to change. It's been a lot of fun experimenting with all the different options and advice from this site. So thanks, you all have saved me years and helped me a ton!

My favorite recipe:

Alps MVT reel seat (I've tried 7 different casting seats)
Forecast carbon split grip (I've tried all materials and multiple styles of carbon/split/full grips)
Fuji Titanium Torzite Guides in a spiral wrap (size 6 double foot butt guide, 4.5 runners and tiptop) ((I've tried multiple guide brands, materials, sizing, spacing techniques and layouts))

I think this builds a clean, simple and great performing fishing rod across a range of powers and actions. There is nothing on it that will corrode in the salt and all my builds have come in under 4oz! I'm stoked on it.

Yes there are tons of other good components, but this is my personal favorite recipe. Lets stay away from the favorite blank, isolated components, and stick to recipes. I believe you're building a system.

What's your favorite recipe for your personal rods? Do you have one?

Here’s one in pictures.

Good stuff bro, pics of the guide lay out.

You using a 6Kw then all 4.5s to the tip? Kb/kt?

With all power/length/action builds?

Speakin my language overe my man

How are you determining the guide spacing?

How do those 4.5s do with braid to leader?

I wanna cook something just like this, I have purchased a few experimental layouts but haven't had a chance to lay them out yet. Was already planning to try what you said, here's the kicker for me...

Al KT after the butt guide

Building rods in MA, Building the community around the world

El,

I've done a mix of KB/KT and I'm not really sure it matters on a inshore/bass rod. With a good guide layout there isn't much change in pull force on any of the guides from what I've seen during my load testing. I test them with surgical tube holding the guides to the rod blank so if there is they'll move out of place during the test and make it easier to ID. If I put a couple KBs on after the butt guide they may barley be in the bend in the blank when bent to 90 degrees. Especially on ex-fast actions. So I've just gone to all KTs to simplify things.

Yes one TLKWTG 6, then all TKTTG 4.5s. I run straight flouro on most rods, but this has worked with braid to flouro as well. If you were going above 10lbs braid and 15lbs flouro, I'd bump up top a size 5 runner/tiptop. Depending on if your using a small diameter braid like Varivas or Suffix 131, or something larger like PowerPro or another more budget friendly line. I don't run a lot of heavy line or braid to leader, I don't see a need to and with a high quality flouro and a well built system I don't need the extra sensitivity braid would provide.

I've used this layout on rods ranging from light to medium heavy power. It works great for all so far. I do a 45 degree rotation on the guides as pictured above. I lay them out like I would for a normal casting rod, then simply rotate them. Then I load test to check the line path and make adjustments to their angles and positions based on that. Most rods around 7' I run a single 6, then eight of the 4.5s and then the tiptop. You may have to add or subtract a runner or two for light power, slower actions and longer blanks, etc. depending on how picky you are about line path.

I've only been at this for a year or so, take this with a grain of salt, but I've done a lot of experimenting and spent more than I'd like to say to land on this recipe lol!

Sorry for the bad pictures, I'm limited to my cell phone for those, and I don't sell rods so I have no idea how to photograph them.

The pics are just what we were looking for, no need for fancy glamor shots from Sears haha

I feel validated in my concepts

I don't do braid to fluoro often, but I those occasions I'm inclined was curious

Also, I saw your comment about black sharpie on braid instead of leader. I've made that switch in most instances. But if you're using hi vis, don't bother with the dashes- that bright yellow is still bright yellow, a 5-7ft black line has worked just fine

Building rods in MA, Building the community around the world

Personally, I stay away from the Alps seats (too heavy), opting for the arborless designs like the Fuji ACSM's or ECS's, VSS for spinning. I always cut excess reel seat threads off, and rarely use a foregrip. Guides: #7, #6, then all 5's or 5.5's the rest of the way (casting), runner size depending on whether heavier flourocarbon is intended for use or not. If a round (or larger) reel is intended, I go to a #8 for the first guide. Handles just depend, but lately been using carbon (weave, not solid) split grips as they are the lightest, most durable, and, possibly, more sensitive (don't really hold rods by the handles so sensitivity, if there's a difference, doesn't really matter). I have yet to find a casting distance difference between Torzites and Alconites, and the weight difference is negligible on the sizes I use (casting), but I have been using Torzites for my personal builds and for anyone else that wants to pay for them. The weight difference is more measurable with the spinning guides (mostly the first one), but I've noticed that the titanium frames have a lot more flex in them than the stainless (Fuji CC's) and my, personal, common sense tells me that rigid would be more sensitive than flexible (there's a lot of flex in the Fuji KL-H titaniums). The Arowana Torzite tips are a better design, but I'm not sure it matters (I like how the extended insert keeps the line away from the metal frame). Personally, I stay away from fancy, decorative threadwork and painted blanks, but have done it for people that want them. Of course, I've done "fancy", but at the end of the day, nothing functional has been gained and only the cost of the build has been increased. Most of the guys I've come across wouldn't be willing to pay the fair labor compensation for the time involved in a fancy butt wrap anyway. I've only built for serious bass guys, so far, so they're not looking for fancy, they're looking for better. I'd love to do a fly rod, but I'm not an avid enough fly fisherman to have anything to contribute to the build. My inner OCD would probably never allow me to function with a spiral wrap. LOL. Its great that choices exist.

John,

Sounds awesome.

The Alps MVT is a very light seat and is arbor-less, but it’s also pretty pricy.

Hello Robert, is that a Cagey Hook spiral wrap? I’m starting on one.

Kendall,

It similar to the Cagey Hook. I just combined a lot of things from all these different names techniques and did what I feel cast and manages line the best. I tested quite a few.

I lay out the guides like you would a standard guide on top method. The butt guide remains and the next three guides get offset to 45 degrees making the 5th guide in the train at 180. Then I load test to correct line path and try and keep the line at top and bottom dead center of each guide. Bottom dead center is the guide foot for clarification. This keeps the line path straight and close to the blank.

I’m not sure it matters nearly as much as we think between the different spiral techniques. They all test cast about the same. This one just feels and looks smooth and I like the line path when the blank is both static and loaded.

I fish open flats and understand the need for far and accurate casts. Our redfish are spooky and the water is gin clear. I love to fight upper slot reds on light tackle…even my p700 ultralight. That’s a huge part of why I started building. But the line, blank, lure and reel all play equal parts in that system.

I think loads of people get too wrapped up with what others are doing or things are called. Just test a ton of different concepts with some good control variables. I’ve wrapped the same blank/components five plus times to test different layouts etc. I enjoy tweaking things. This is just what I’ve settled on after all my experiments and I really enjoy how it performs.