Sometimes when you hook a good one that decides to leave the area in a hurry and before you get him on the reel your stripping hand feels a small tangle headed for your guide train. Lefty has a suggestion for this situation: turn your rod upside-down, which makes it easier for a small twist or tangle to pass through your guide train - but only if your rod is equipped with snake guides.
Forum: rodboard

Grooving of guides is not a problem with full fly lines, but perhaps a problem if you use shooting heads with mono running line and do a LOT of casting. Fishing the surf with a 9 wt. rod is heavy duty stuff. I would go to two-foot guides for durability. Fly casters for distance and some surf fly casters are going to #20 stripping guides for increased distance. Small running guides look nice and s
Forum: rodboard

Robert: Right you are. I suspect more grit adheres to braid than to mono and I know the composition and density of suspended particles varies from place to place. Still, if I built a rod to fish off or near fine sand beaches, lakes, or rivers this fact would influence the type of line and the type of guides I would use.
Forum: rodboard

Robert: Right you are. I suspect more grit adheres to braid than to mono and I know the composition and density of suspended particles varies from place to place. Still, if I built a rod to fish off or near fine sand beaches, lakes, or rivers this fact would influence the type of line and the type of guides I would use.
Forum: rodboard

Robert: Right you are. I suspect more grit adheres to braid than to mono and I know the composition and density of suspended particles varies from place to place. Still, if I built a rod to fish off or near fine sand beaches, lakes, or rivers this fact would influence the type of line and the type of guides I would use.
Forum: rodboard

Good point about the grip transferring energy to the angler's hand. Novice fly anglers have trouble feeling that little "tug" when their backcast straightens out. This prevents them from beginning their forecast at the ideal moment and results in short casts and piles of slack line at their feet. More sensitivity makes good sense here.
Forum: rodboard

The only noisy REC guides I have encountered are the "coil-style" stripping guides. REC running guides are quiet, absolutely corrosion-proof, and unbreakable. Really. The chief constraint to the size of the opening of your guides and tip-top will be the diameter of your line-to-leader connection, especially if you use a nail knot. Make sure your leader-line connection passes freely thro
Forum: rodboard

Gelspun braids seem to be impregnated with some substance. Lines used to fish the surf or off the beach encounter very fine sand on the bottom and suspended in the water, and these sand particles may adhere to the wax or ? filler in braided line. Sand on a string has cut through many prison bars.
Forum: rodboard

Phil: In 60 years of fly fishing I have felt some pretty strong tugs when a salmon or a yellowfin or a pike or a bass hit a streamer or a surface fly/popper. My interest is how I can improve the sensitivity of my fly rod to feel hits on a slack line.
Forum: rodboard

We know some rods are transported inside rod tubes in auto trunks while others are tossed in the back of pickup trucks. That explains why some prefer solid glass blanks, others prefer hollow carbon fiber blanks: form follows function. For some anglers cork or synthetic foam are the most durable, best choice for grips.
Forum: rodboard

We know some rods are transported inside rod tubes in auto trunks while others are tossed in the back of pickup trucks. That explains why some prefer solid glass blanks, others prefer hollow carbon fiber blanks: form follows function. For some anglers cork or synthetic foam are the most durable, best choice for grips.
Forum: rodboard

Among other things I wondered if having the fly line in direct contact with the rod blank would increase the sensitivity of the rod.
Forum: rodboard

Among other things I wondered if having the fly line in direct contact with the rod blank would increase the sensitivity of the rod.
Forum: rodboard

Has anyone built a fly rod with spiral wrapped guides? I wonder how such a fly rod would perform.
Forum: rodboard

Actually, I do not pay the slightest attention to physically balancing my fly rods. I simply try to keep the rod and reel combination as light as possible. I have not spent much time pitching baits, but I have done a fair amount of nymph fishing - which I would classify as "slack line fishing." When nymph fishing I rely exclusively upon visual signals to set the hook and not at all on m
Forum: rodboard

David: I always try to integrate all the elements in my fishing outfit, lure-weight, line, rod, and reel - whether flipping, fly casting, jigging, trolling - whatever. I have never actively considered balancing my fishing outfit by adding weight to any rod, although perhaps I should. When I hear "balance" I think "equilibrium" and assume when weight is added on one side of the
Forum: rodboard

"Fashions" in rod building seem to endure, regardless of changes in technology. Forty years ago many if not most rod blanks had a pronounced spine - enough to alter the direction of the flight of your line. Today quality blanks have little of no detectable spine. The straightness of the completed blank has become a more significant factor.
Forum: rodboard

Is it possible some way to quickly add or subtract weight to restore the balance when you put a lure or weight on your line?
Forum: rodboard

I would strongly recommend using a slightly flexible purpose-made epoxy such as Rod Bond for securing the reel seat. I would not worry a bit about adding weight there because it is located so close to the caster's hand, which is the fulcrum of the rod during the cast. This means added weight will have an infinitesimal effect upon the rod's swing weight, which is really what savvy fly anglers worr
Forum: rodboard

A significant number of bamboo rod repairs are strictly cosmetic and about decoration, not fishing. What is the purpose of this repair?
Forum: rodboard

Mike, when you put a plug or a jig weighing several ounces on your line and add the "weight" of water resistance as you retrieve the balance point of your rod has to move forward quite a way. Would it be beneficial to add enough weight to your rod butt to compensate for this added weight and drag? That would put your balance point several inches behind the reel stem.
Forum: rodboard

Excellent question. My guess would be leverage for fighting fish and leverage for casting distance should determine grip lengths. If you do not expect to catch fish over 15-20 pounds in weight and you weigh over 100 pounds the leverage for fighting fish is not too important.
Forum: rodboard

I don't think distance surf casters worry whether or not their rods balance at the reel stem. What specific, measurable advantage do you foresee by having your rod balance at the reel stem?
Forum: rodboard

Russ: I concur about detecting baitfish nervousness. I see it often while my rod is in a sand spike. I wait until rod movement tells me my circle hook has done its job and the fish is taking drag, mosey down to it, lift the rod and tighten the drag. Works for me. I know some freshwater bass fishermen use fluorocarbon monofilament because they feel it is more sensitive than nylon, and apparently g
Forum: rodboard

A chain is no stronger than its weakest link, and the connection between a reel and a fish is no more sensitive than its least sensitive component. What specific type of fishing lines transmit the most sensitivity and under what conditions, or is there no appreciable difference between lines in terms of sensitivity?
Forum: rodboard

Since you will be trolling live mackerel casting performance is incidental and the yellowtail will hook themselves. You want a fish-fighting tool that will move and land fish quickly, much the same requirements as anglers fishing for groupers near structure. A short, stiff rod with a lot of power best fills these requirements. You might try lifting a weight with rods featuring different length g
Forum: rodboard

Since you will be trolling live mackerel casting performance is incidental and the yellowtail will hook themselves. You want a fish-fighting tool that will move and land fish quickly, much the same requirements as anglers fishing for groupers near structure. A short, stiff rod with a lot of power best fills these requirements. You might try lifting a weight with rods featuring different length g
Forum: rodboard

Fly rods work the same way. The blank doesn't know whether it's casting a sinker or a fly line. Many anglers using J hooks avoid fast-action rods because they rely upon touch to hook fish, and they are convinced slow action rods provide more sensitivity.
Forum: rodboard

Fly rods work the same way. The blank doesn't know whether it's casting a sinker or a fly line. Many anglers using J hooks avoid fast-action rods because they rely upon touch to hook fish, and they are convinced slow action rods provide more sensitivity.
Forum: rodboard

Using a light rod to pull a large, strong carp through the water while you pull a half-pound sinker along the bottom does not sound like a lot of fun.
Forum: rodboard