What a dilemna

[afishyfish 4]

Boy am I confused on where to start here With my birthday just having gone , Im looking at getting a custom made rod done :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: ( within a budget of course )Its the first time Ive ever had a rod built for me, and I feel pretty daunted by it all :S The dilemna as I see it before I go anywhere with this is, do I get a rod built for that money, and then strap on a reel I can afford ( probably hafta be a cheapish one ) or else compromise and get an expensive pre built combo or put a combo together myself, or what :S maybe I should just save like crazy and get something a bit better in the reel department to match a kick-butt rod .next decision that probably needs to made is reel size/ line weight to balance the rod, and the species I hope to target, keeping in mind smaller higher quality reels these days seem quite capable of stopping some pretty big fish.I'm thinking a spinning reel that could handle 3-6 Kilo braid The only Rod builder I really know of with a good rep is Rob Wilson.Is there anyone else worth their salt here In SA ? Cheers and thanx in advance

[urhookedfish 12]

Can we ask what the total budget is and what you want to use the rod for...ie what your going to fish for with it.I agree about the smaller reel theory being able to stop some big fish. Unless you really want a rod that signifies that its yours and was built to your specifications (And my thoughts are as you havent even mentioned what you want to target with it) you will probably be able to get a sensational off the shelf product.As you mentioned 6kilo...I immediately thought of my Berkley Diablo which sure isnt a black diamond flats but is one of the best sticks I have had the pleasure of fishing with....now at 7foot, you could still catch whiting on it on cockles, you could drop a medium size sinker in deep water with a half or whole pillie for snapps, and you can also cast softies to snapps or even flatties off the beach...In my mind if you got something like the Diablo and had a Sol or similar in 3000 size, you would have an outfit that could do it all.Just some early thoughts....PS, Im not trying to stop you from getting a rod made up, but only do that if your thinking, Gee Ive always wanted a custom rod. These days there is so much choice from Daiwa alone that it would be hard for me to justify having a rod made up.The other key question is do you want Graphite or Glass....cos if its glass then custom is the go...

[DancingBream 1]

Go check out some of the rods from Ross at TheRodWorks. Some of the best quality custom rods I have seen and used.

[afishyfish 4]

Thanks for the other choice DB , I remember them now urhookedfish wrote:

Can we ask what the total budget is and what you want to use the rod for...ie what your going to fish for with it. These days there is so much choice from Daiwa alone that it would be hard for me to justify having a rod made up.

Looking to spend around 300 on the Rod URH, though if I can get what I want/ need for less, the diff could go towards a reel maybeI could go glass or graphite, bit undecided there.And yeah, thats part of it to. seems there's so many kick-butt-off-the-shelf rods, do I need a custom job , even if I have always wanted one

[urhookedfish 12]

I know a lot of guys that get Sabres made up for snapper fishing and obviously the die hard surf fishos get the snyder glass rods made or used to anyway...If its graphite your after then I would go off shelf.If its glass your after then you could get a Sabre made that could handle snapper and whiting...I had a mate that had a beautifull whiting/snapper Sabre made and he loved it. He used to run a calcutta on it. I would handle snapps to 12lb okay but once over that it became a bit of a struggle (pitty I cant tell you what blank it was built out of) but could find out if you wanted....It was obviously one of the lighter blanks. It was built with whiting in mind but could handle something a little bigger if it came along... These are only thoughts too by the way, and Im only guessing that you would fish whiting snapper....I could be way off LOL :dry: :dry: :dry: :dry: :dry:

[rocknev 2]

fishy, there is some quality rods in the specialty shops, and some great rods off the shelf...may i suggest you have a go at building your own rod? far more satisfying IMHO.... i had a great time doing mine, and it IS addictive as THEFUNKYCHICKEN says it is...its not that easy, and takes some serious eye straining, but it doesnt take long to get your head around what works best for each person.. loads of concentration needed, but at least when finished, YOU made it, in the colours you chose, and there will never be another the same.ive re done 3 rods now, all snyderglas', and im waiting for thread to start another...ive spent a few bucks on the motor etc etc, but thats a once of payment ( 40 bucks of so )thread isnt that expensive, some cheap wheels from hardware shop, and a few nuts and bolts, some mounts, and you have made rollers.half the fun for me, is in making the stuff to set up to actually do the threading... there is a couple of dvd's on the market which are excellant to show you the basics... the one i have, is custom rod builder or something like that, and i think the guys name is doc, or something like that. he started doing his rods, using just a cardboard box, with a couple of V's cut in it to hold and turn the rod by hand... primitive, but who cares IT WORKED.tell you what though.. after doing one rod, you will do another its that addictive.

[Guest shagging]

afishyfish wrote:

Boy am I confused on where to start here With my birthday just having gone , Im looking at getting a custom made rod done :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: ( within a budget of course )Its the first time Ive ever had a rod built for me, and I feel pretty daunted by it all :S The dilemna as I see it before I go anywhere with this is, do I get a rod built for that money, and then strap on a reel I can afford ( probably hafta be a cheapish one ) or else compromise and get an expensive pre built combo or put a combo together myself, or what :S maybe I should just save like crazy and get something a bit better in the reel department to match a kick-butt rod .next decision that probably needs to made is reel size/ line weight to balance the rod, and the species I hope to target, keeping in mind smaller higher quality reels these days seem quite capable of stopping some pretty big fish.I'm thinking a spinning reel that could handle 3-6 Kilo braid The only Rod builder I really know of with a good rep is Rob Wilson.Is there anyone else worth their salt here In SA ? Cheers and thanx in advance

To start off! we all no your confused lol, "now" on a serious note you no rob may as well go there mate!

[brenton 637]

pre built there are some good rods out there for reasonable money. cheers brenton

[samantic01 0]

Not that ive done it but i know people who have and all of them ( just like Nev ) swear by building your own. They all talk about the satisfaction. However if you are an incredibly lazy arsed man like me and beleive that as bad as Maccas is to eat, at least you dont have to get outa your car to buy it, then pre made is your best option. With the quality of off the shelf rods for fair money these days i reckon custom made is a thing of the pastJust take your time with your decision and I'm sure it'll be the right 1 for you

[afishyfish 4]

samantic01 wrote:

if you are an incredibly lazy arsed man like me and beleive that as bad as Maccas is to eat, at least you dont have to get outa your car to buy it, then pre made is your best option.

I think you're a lazy bugger Sam

[Piranha 76]

I agree with a lot of the responses here, with whats on the shelf these days it would be hard to beat with a custom rod, if it where me Id'e spend a small amount on a rod and the bulk on a good quality reel cheers wes

[Dylan Pix 0]

I agree with @Piranha, spend more money on a reel... In the long run your reel is most probably going to outlast your rod by a long time.What sort of rod were you thinking of getting built, or whate did you want to use it for?

[afishyfish 4]

Agreewith you Piranah, but I'm trying to get the best of both worlds here Dylan Pix wrote:

What sort of rod were you thinking of getting built, or whate did you want to use it for?

Now there's the hardest bit that always applies hey ! Nowadays with smaller reels that will knock off a bream or a 10 Kilo Red, it seems to change the ideas Ive held on rod strengths, lengths, line classes etc but I guess I'd be looking for something that will handle anything in the 3-6 Kilo range, maybe more, and fishing for anything from big torrens carp to Snapper and smaller sharks.One thing I really want to get is something with that classic working curve, where the top 1/3 or so of the rod has that beautiful arc in it when loaded up Ive got a stack of rods here, all relatively cheap, but most with quality reels, so if Im going to be spending bigger dollars on a rod, I probably want something that will do more than just the one job.I'm thinking a spinning rod, but wouldnt say no to a baitcaster either, though I think spinning reels are more versatile.

[Piranha 76]

afishyfish wrote:

Agreewith you Piranah, but I'm trying to get the best of both worlds here

I understand completly AFF so your mainly after a rod for lure casting plastics/hardbodies? for chasing mid sized fish.Mabey a blank similar to the lighter snapper t-curves 3-5kg 1.8-2m would be suitable? with a decent 3000 size reel?cheers wes