Shopping for a Fishing Rod
By Pescador

There are a few questions that go through one's mind when shopping for a new fishing rod. These questions can also come from a salesperson working in a tackle shop or from a custom rodbuilder. Do these sound familiar?

What type(s) of fishing do you plan to do?
How often do you go fishing?
How long do you want your rod to be?
Fresh water or saltwater?
What kind of fish are you targeting?
What kind of reel do you plan to use?
What size and type of line do you plan to use?
What kind of action are you looking for?
What kind of guides do you want on the rod?
What should you look out for on a factory rod?
What is your price range?

Some of these questions might not have gone through your mind, but are equally as important in order to find the ideal rod for you. My goal in writing this article is to make all who read it a formidable rod shopping machine and not fall victim to the car salesman-like pitches of some rod builders and tackle shop employees looking for a commission. Knowing exactly what you want before even shopping for it is the best weapon you can have against a regretful, and possibly expensive, purchase. I will break this down into categories according to the questions asked and try to explain them in layman’s terms. I’ve read way too many so-called “consumer guides” to shopping for rods that are either nothing but BS, not enough info to make an educated decision, or are filled with nothing but terms that only master rod building gurus can understand. Keep in mind that in order to cover as many bases as I can, this article will be lengthy and in-depth. Bare with me and it just might help you out… big time.

How often do you go fishing?
This is more of a price issue. If you are only going to go fishing a few times a year, most would say there is no need to spend $200 on a rod. But if you just have that much money, then there is no one stopping you. But something of the cheaper variety will suffice, as long as it is rated to the type of line you are using, and efficient for the type of fishing you do when you do get out and fish.

If you fish most days out of the year, sometimes multiple set ups will be of an advantage to you. Especially if you ever decide to join a fishing tournament. Each rod can be tailored to the specific method, species, or location you plan to fish.

What type(s) of fishing do you plan to do?
Of course we all know that there is an almost endless list of “ways” to fish. Be it from a pier, surf, kayak, float tube, boat, surf board, or whatever kind of craziness that can come from the mind of the adventure seeking fisherman. Though many rods can “cross over” to other types of fishing, there are times that a certain type of rod can excel, making it easier for an angler to present bait or fight a fish, or both. For example, a rod designed for fishing with live bait for 20-30lb tuna or yellowtail on a boat off the coast of California would usually be between 6 and 7 feet long and have a medium to medium heavy action. But there is no reason why the same rod can’t be used for shark fishing from a pier. Identifying the type of fishing you plan on doing with the rod you are shopping for is the first step, and will pave the way towards narrowing down your selection.

How long do you want your rod to be?
Rod length is an important factor. There are times when a short rod is ideal, and other times when a ridiculously long rod will excel. Generally (please keep in mind that when I say “generally” it is a VERY loose blanket statement, as there are always exceptions) a shorter rod will give you more leverage against a fish. Think of it like a lever. If you have a 7 foot lever and you hold it at the very end, you will be able to pull it easier than if you were to slide your hand down to the 5 foot mark and try to pull. Now think of yourself as the fish and how much easier it is for the fish to fight you. Generally a shorter rod will result in shorter casts. Again, imagine a lever. The distance traveled by the very tip is greater than at the 5ft mark at the same angle of motion. This extra distance also translates into speed, since the tip would require more speed to travel through that same angle. This speed adds to the overall distance that a rod will be able to cast.

Fresh water or saltwater?
As I stated previously, rods can easily and efficiently cross over to ways of fishing that they weren’t originally intended for. But a 12-30lb saltwater rod will not fish the same as a 12-30lb bass rod. Everything about the two rods will be different except for the line size that they are rated to. There is nothing wrong with using a 12-30lb bass rod in saltwater, but it will not be as ideal (depending on the targeted fish) as a 12-30lb saltwater rod. Confusing? Well hopefully the next section will help explain this.

What kind of fish are you targeting?
Efficiency is the key here. Every angler will have their own special taste when it comes to what kind of rod they want to use when targeting a certain species of fish. You can catch a 20lb tuna with 6lb test under ideal conditions with enough line on your reel, but it just isn’t efficient. Rod blank (the actual rod part) material is important. The 12-30lb saltwater rod made from a graphite and fiberglass composite construction is going to be much better for fighting the 20lb tuna than a 12-30lb bass rod made from high modulus graphite.

Let’s discuss the differences between graphite and fiberglass. Graphite is generally stiffer, lighter and more sensitive. Fiberglass is generally heavier, more flexible, and more durable. Combining the two materials can give you the proper balance between action, sensitivity (defined as the transmission of vibrations through the rod being sensed by the angler), weight, leverage, flexibility, and durability. A 12lb largemouth bass will never be able to fight as hard as a 12lb tuna. Thus, a graphite/fiberglass (also referred to as “composite”) 12-30lb rod would be much more efficient than an all-graphite 12-30lb rod when fishing for tuna. But when fishing for largemouth bass, the second rod is more efficient because you are able to sacrifice the durability and flexibility for more sensitivity (achieved by a lighter, stiffer rod).

Now let’s discuss the classifications that are given to graphite and how they can affect your search for the ideal rod. One of the most widely used terms for describing the characteristics of a graphite blank is the “IM” rating. Usually you will see IM6, IM7, or IM8. Generally the higher the IM rating, the lighter, stiffer, and more sensitive the rod will be. Other manufacturers use the term “modulus”, expressed in (#)million modulus. The higher the number the lighter, stiffer, and more sensitive it will be… generally. This is, of course, not even scratching the surface of what each of these terms mean. But a whole different article would have to be written to be able to explain them.

What kind of reel do you plan to use?
This is somewhat of a no-brainer. Of course you are not supposed to put a spinning reel on a bait casting rod. It will work, but it won’t be efficient. The same goes for vise versa. But let’s take two reels, a Shimano Calcutta 400 and a Shimano Curado 200. Both can be used for fishing with 12lb test line. And even though it can still be done successfully, the Calcutta would not be efficient on the 12-30lb bass rod while fishing for largemouth bass. You just don’t need that kind of line capacity. The Calcutta would be better with the saltwater rod, fishing for small tuna (please keep in mind I’m not suggesting you go after tuna with 12lb test on a Calcutta reel). Match your rod to your reel and your fishing experience will be more enjoyable.

What size and type of line do you plan to use?
Another somewhat no-brainer, as on factory built rods, it is actually annotated on the actual rod what size line it is designed for. But for fine tuning, depending on the preferences of the angler, slightly lighter than suggested can be used. For example, I prefer an over all stiffer rod, so I like to use a 10-17lb bass rod with 6lb test line when fishing for sand bass. What you definitely don’t want to do is use a line test rated ABOVE what the rod is designed for. If the drag on the reel is set according to the strength of the line when it is over the intended size for the rod, you risk snapping your rod in half (especially if it is made of graphite).

The type of line you intend to use is also important. Through the years there have been many stories of ceramic guides having grooves cut into the rings because they were using some sort of braided line. But also, through the years there have been breakthroughs in braided and spectra line that virtually eliminate this occurrence. But you still want to beware of cheap guides on your rod if you plan on using these lines.

What kind of action are you looking for?
Now we get to the hardest part of the rod to understand. The reason behind this is because each rod manufacturer has a different idea of what kind of action their rods have. And sometimes action is even synonymous (means the same thing as) with “taper”. But again, generally, the terms, though interchangeable, used for a rod’s action are as follows:

• Light/slow action (D): this is a rod that bends under normal stress (according to line rating) through out most of the rod. This can also describe how easily the rod can be bent. Imagine using a lure like a crank bait. Now imagine jerking the rod real hard. On a light action rod, the lure will not move very much during the jerk, thus it gives “light action” to the lure.

• Medium action (C): this is a rod that bends under normal stress through the upper (towards the tip of the rod) half of the rod. Giving the same jerk on a medium action rod on the same crank bait will make the lure move more, giving it a “medium action”.

• Heavy/fast action (B): this is a rod that bends under normal stress through the upper third of the rod. The same crank bait jerked the same way will move more. It will have a “heavy action”.

The explanation of this also can be imagined through the lever example. The part of the rod that is not bending (also called the backbone) represents the length of the lever. This explanation can also translate into how much leverage the rod will have. A medium action rod, since the backbone is shorter, will have more leverage than a fast action rod (longer backbone). There are also levels of action/taper in between and beyond the three classifications I gave (ie medium-light, medium heavy, extra heavy (A), extra light).

Matching the type of action to the type of fishing you are doing is also important. In bass fishing with crank baits, a medium action rod is favored. With the softer response to the fish striking the lure, it gives the angler a split second to get over the initial surprise of the strike. This extra time, though only a fraction of a second, can mean the difference between a landed or lost fish. At the same time, a fast action rod is usually preferred when fishing slow with finesse to help detect the strike and also get a good strong hook-set from long distances. But like I said, if you switch things around, it will still work. But just won’t be as efficient.

What kind of guides do you want on the rod?
This question is asked more by a rod builder to someone looking to have a custom made rod built for them. Issues like importance of overall weight of the rod, type of line being used, fresh or salt water, and line size can affect the choices of guides recommended to be installed on the custom rod.

What should I look out for on a factory rod?
• Spline: Hold the rod by the tip in your left hand. Then about a foot and a half down from the tip, take the pointer finger from your right hand and point, then lift up the rod so the butt comes up off the ground. The rod will bend naturally in a certain direction. This is called locating the spline. A properly built rod will naturally bend in the direction that it would normally bend when fighting a fish. So, on a casting rod the guides would be on top. And on a spinning rod the guides will be on the bottom. When checking, if the guides are off at an angle, the rod was not splined correctly. This is less important on a spinning rod, since having the guides on the bottom of the rod adds to the stability while fighting a fish. But on a casting rod, this can cause unwanted twist on the rod, which can be bad for the rod, or cause fatigue in the arm holding the rod due to having to stabilize it.

• Reel Seat: For a bait casting rod, when you want sensitivity, you might want to look for what is called a "blank-through reel seat" (fig a1, arrow points to exposed blank area). This means there is a cut out section on the reel seat where the blank is exposed. While palming the reel (holding the rod with the reel in your hand), one of your fingers will be resting over this spot. Being in direct contact with the blank will give you much better sensitivity, which can be dampened by reel seats that don’t have the exposed section, or reel seats that are made of plastic (not graphite). Some reel seats also have either a plastic or graphite insert in the hood (fig a2). The hood is the part that actually screws down onto the reel foot, clamping it in place. These are called “cushioned hoods” and act as a type of insulation from the reel seat, which aids in resistance to corrosion. Some brands are better than others. But for the sake of being non-biased, I will not mention which ones. Just ask the salesperson at the tackle shop you frequent which ones are better, and I can almost guarantee that they will say the same brand, which I will still refrain from mentioning to avoid any endorsement.

• Guides: You will want to take a look down the rod while holding the butt grip and make sure that all the guides are lined up in a straight line. Inspect the wraps on the guides to see that there are no inconsistencies in the epoxy finish. Look for spots that have the threads still exposed, due to poorly laid out epoxy. Feel the rings for rough spots and inspect them for cracks or chips.

• Grips: Mainly for cork grips (fig c), you just want to look the cork over and make sure there are no pits in it. Cork is delicate. It nicks easily. If you nick your cork after you bought it, that’s your fault. But you don’t want to buy a rod that already has a nick in it… do you? Other grip materials are the foam grips. Generally there are two species of foam used for grips: hypalon (fig c) and EVA (fig c). These two types of grip material look very much alike, but of the two, hypalon is usually the more expensive one, costing sometimes twice as much as EVA due to its higher density and more durability. You may also see cork tape handle material (fig c) on rods. Usually found on specialty rods like jig sticks and surf rods. This is the stuff that looks like a cork bulletin board with all the “cells” and stuff. The material comes in strips about an inch wide and is laid onto the rod blank in a spiral, covering the area which is to be the grip. You will want to make sure that the edges are tightly packed against each other to the point where it is very difficult to see the separation between them.

(fig c) From top to bottom; cork, cork tape, hypalon, EVA foam. The hypalon and EVA look similar but EVA is usually softer in feel and less durable.

What is your price range?
This is the big question. And again I must speak generally. I like to take a range of $50-100. Generally a rod that is intended to be sold at a price less than $50 is going to be mediocre to sad in quality, be it performance or components use to build it. Inside that $50-100 price range is usually where you will see the biggest and fastest changes in rod performance and quality. When you start looking for rods worth over $100 then it becomes very hard to match the increase in quality and performance to the rise in price. It seems as though the price then rises EXPONENTIALLY with the smallest increases in quality and performance. Let’s take the G Loomis Mag-Bass Rods for example. In line from least to best, they have the GL2, GL3, IMX and the GLX. A GL2 costs $140. At $50 more the GL3 of the same class will be lighter and a little more sensitive. At $45 more than the GL3, an IMX moves up to lighter, better guides (again, lighter and more sensitive). And at $100 more (!!!) than the IMX the GLX will be fractions of an ounce lighter, and more sensitive. WOW!

In conclusion…
Like I said, and kept on saying, I kept things very general because of all the inconsistencies of different companies and how they rate their products. I wrote this article more as a tool for the consumer to use while doing their own NECESSARY research in narrowing down the possibilities for their next rod. But YOU as the consumer must make the final decision on whether the rod you are buying will be the best choice for the type of fishing you plan on using it for.

If you have any questions about shopping for a rod that you just can't figure out, please feel free to send me a email and I will do my best to help you out. Don't worry, I won't give you the run-around either. If I don't know the answer to your question, I will either direct you towards someone that I think can answer the question better, or I will just flat out tell you that I DON'T KNOW.

GOOD LUCK SHOPPING!

Pescador (Arvin Reyes)