PROPERLY SPINED RODS

[Capt Richie]

Richie
I really can not see the line getting into the grip that close to the reel with an angler holding the rod in a belt with out getting taken over the side oth the gunnel... And for the spine issue... I can not figure out what the deal is with that, the line seems to be deepest in line with the center of the reel...

Is the rod a bent butt???? I know I dont off-shore fish as much as I use too...Butt how do you fish a straight butt out of a rodholder..Now that I think about it I can see your point...

With a slow action blank this could happen even stand-up...
When I build super seeker I use a wind-on than a H/D guide..We called seeker & Randy told us not to change the guide set up on there SS blanks for that reason...

We may never know

[LOCALHOOKER]

SORRY!!! I apologize. You're right... A lot of so-called custom rods are not. I know there are a LOT of great rod builders. It's the few who mess things up by passing off junk. I misspoke! The guys who build & sell these call them custom rods. I have all the respect in the World for good quality rod builders here in the US.

In looking at this rod up close (in this case the picture is not worth a 1,000 words...), you'll see it was cut to the side as the spine was off. And yes - the stripper guide was not placed properly...

[ccrods]

Was the rod in a rod holder?? Was the rod not in a swivel rod holder??

[LOCALHOOKER]

CC - It was in the hands of a 10 year experienced fisherman... He fought it for 2.5 hours. The tuna took a run at the stern and got lucky to clip the line on the trim tab... Another one got away.

[Marlinmate]

"In looking at this rod up close (in this case the picture is not worth a 1,000 words...), you'll see it was cut to the side as the spine was off. And yes - the stripper guide was not placed properly."

I'm still confused as to what the spine had to do with this? Many many builders, some custom and many production build on the straightest axis of the rod, not the spine. This means the spine could be 0,134,5,or 93.6 or 270 degrees or whatever degrees from TDC or BDC depending on spinning rod or conventional rod. Spine and straightest axis are two different things.

Maybe the line wasn't wound on the reel properly and was bunched up on the left side of the reel??? Couple the line on the left side of the reel, a slow action blank, a lack of propery placed/sized guides and you have a problem. This would have nothing to do with the spine.

I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure SPINE has nothing to do with this issue.

[Sea Draggin]

"In looking at this rod up close (in this case the picture is not worth a 1,000 words...), you'll see it was cut to the side as the spine was off. And yes - the stripper guide was not placed properly."


I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure SPINE has nothing to do with this issue.

I wasn't going to open this can of worms, but it looks like the rod has "Turned" At least that what I always called it. Either the blank has rotated inside the part that connects it to the butt...or....the little key inside the butt, that holds the insert part straight, has turned inside the butt.

I have seen this happen with the stuart butts that outerbanks outfitters uses in their rods. However it was the result of the pulling of 400lb fish for an hour at 30lbs of drag.

With OBX rods, it was always the insert piece inside the butt that turned. It can normally be turned back and keyed to fix it. That being said, even though they are cheap rods, the line has never touched the blank on the ones I own, even when badly abused and I put the drag to sunset.

I have never seen this with aftco butts however.

[El Gato Dos]

Wait. So the owner of this rod lost a fish on it, knowing other rods he had on board were better, but choose to keep this one in the mix even though it may have been known it was not a well build rod.???

Angler error....

Buy only the best, test at home and never have anything to worry about.

[FAT CAT MX]

It looks to me like the blank was bottoming out. Maybe it was being used with heavier line than it was designed for. I've found that blank makers tend to over rate their blanks to sell more. So, I usually throw out the highest and lowest rating they have and figure the blank is fine for every thing in between. The old saying is: "the right tool for the job at hand."

[Zip Tie Man]

Propper spine location is a key factor when building a Standup or trolling rod. What will happen when battling a big fish standup style if the spine is for say 45' off center, The rod will naturally try to rotate in your hands toward the spine causing great stress to the foregrip and guides. Yes you can be off the spine, but by tiny increments, Not 45,60,90 +degrees away. My.02 cents

[2dogs1949]

To me, if the picture shows the guide alignment before the fight, the guides to reel seat are not aligned properly. IF the spine is off to the right, the rod will want to turn that way under stress. Anyone that builds a heavy rod and doesn't pay attention to spine is asking for trouble. I have put the spine on the bottom and never had a problem. BUT with todays braids and increased line capacity, this could be a 50lb outfit with 80 or 100 pond braid and alot of drag. Stripper guide should be up against the grip, all the guides moved back some and another small guide added to the end. Forget the butt wrap or do it in front of the stripper guide, I've done that. Function function function, chrome don't get ya home.
Static test and pick 25 pound of weight off the ground, see what the rod does. just mu .02