The newest wrinkle amongst rod manufacturers is to produce a stick targeted to a particular species of fish.
Like "a chicken in every pot" and "a car in every garage," today's well-stocked tackle store or department probably has a rod designed for nearly every species of fish found in a specific locale.
For example, an angler wanting to slip into something more comfortable to seduce a saltwater trout can find a rod built specifically for saltwater trout. Same for kingfish, tarpon, dolphin, marlin, bream, crappie, salmon, bass, grouper, walleye, musky...you name it.
Techniques are also accommodated with specialty equipment. There are rods and reels currently on the market for longcasters, deep jiggers, stand-up enthusiasts, bug poppers, power trollers, flippers, slip bobbers, ice fishermen, and so on. We might compare this "age of angling specialty" to a golfer keeping a club in his bag for every situation and contingency.
Despite what some old timers may lead you to believe, today's rods are superior in design, function, and materials when compared to what was on the market as recently as a decade ago. Whether shopping for a 6-foot ultralight rod that's thinner than a pencil or a 30-foot telescopic pole that's thicker than a baseball bat, a shopper can be assured that any quality rod he or she buys will probably do the job for which it was intended.
Perhaps next year or five years from now, hi-tech engineers will develop even better materials or components. And, rest assured, whatever they produce will be well built and reasonably priced because competition throughout the tackle industry is as intense and as serious as a heart attack.
Although materials such as boron may come and go, you can bet the egg money that a better blending of glass, high-modulus graphite, Kevlar, titanium, or some other "miracle" fiber will be developed, refined, or invented to create yet an even lighter, stronger, and more sensitive piece of equipment.
Veteran tackle guru Steve Rogers, Daiwa representative for the southeastern United States, assures us that we'll "never, ever again see boron rods on the scene." Boron, unfortunately, simply didn't pan out when used as rod material in the 1980s.
"However," said Rogers, "we can expect to see more blends of current materials in future fishing rod construction. Nor am I ruling out the possibility that a completely new synthetic material might come along that will revolutionize rod making as we know it."
ONE THING FOR SURE, Daiwa, a longtime industry leader in innovative fishing products, won't scrimp when designing rods for specific targets.
"Worldwide, Daiwa turns out more than 5,000 different models of fishing rod," Rogers stated. "For North America alone, we have some 2,000 models to choose from, with many designed for regional or even local consumption.
"With today's modern manufacturing techniques," he added, "it's not difficult to construct rods for specific functions in lots of 500 to 1,000."
As things progress, we can do nothing but stand in awe at the advances made in rod development, especially since World War II.
Chances are the very first "fishing rod" in ancient times consisted of a stick, spear, or tree branch onto which a line made from a vine or leather thong was tied, enabling the angler to launch his bait or lure further out into a stream, lake, or ocean.
The first rods expressly designed and built for recreational fishing were fly rods. These were used by such early sportsmen as Isaac Walton in the 1600s and thought to be in the neighborhood of 20 feet in length so as to get considerable distance, even without shooting lines.
Even today, casual fishermen use cane poles of such lengths, as do surf or tournament casters.
Most of the rods used prior to split bamboo were made from a variety of woods with greenheart possibly being the most popular. When split bamboo came in, Calcutta bamboo was first used almost exclusively until Tonkin bamboo arrived from China. Development of the split bamboo rod is thought to be the turning point in rod development and a few to this day consider a 19th or early 20th century hand-crafted split-bamboo fly stick as the ultimate in fishing equipment.
HISTORIANS CREDIT CHARLES MURPHY of New Jersey with the flowering of the first split bamboo baitcasting rod in 1866, to be used with early level-wind baitcasting reels for bass, salmon, and other popular freshwater fish species.
It's interesting to note that some of the more delicate 19th-century fly gems compared favorably in weight with today's graphite rods. For instance, one of Reuben Leonard's 8-foot masterpieces built in 1894 scaled but two ounces.
Steel rods for both bait and fly casting were around in the 1890s and worked fairly well. Before realizing their potential value to collectors, I owned a couple as a kid that eventually became stakes for tomato plants.
Steel, as well as split bamboo, held on until shortly after World War II when fiberglass arrived upon the scene. In the 1950s, solid glass rods were also popular. Matter of fact, I had a solid glass spinning rod that was a particular favorite because it accounted for my only two record-sized fish, a 26-pound, six-ounce snook and a 76-pound, eight-ounce cobia, both taken on six-pound test line. It was indestructible and was also used to snag bream and yearling-sized bass. Unfortunately, it too ended up as a recycled tomato stake.
Although agricultural endeavors may have claimed several of my early favorites, I can say without reservation that I used to grow some of the finest tomatoes to be found anywhere.
Most current rods are derived from rod blanks. Rod blanks are constructed in one of three ways: pultrusion, involving the pulling of glue-soaked fiberglass fibers through a die to form solid blanks; the Howald process, a method used to braid or weave blanks; and mandrel construction, the most commonly used mode which rolls rod material onto a tapered steel mandrel or "core" rod.
In the latter method, a mandrel is made of tapered steel and looks much like a radio antenna or outrigger. Its diameter and taper affect the size and action of the blank to be made. Thin mandrels are used for fashioning fly rods, or light baitcasting or spinning rods, while heavier and thicker mandrels are utilized for such things as surf or offshore trolling rods.
MATERIALS USED IN A ROD can be fiberglass, graphite, or a composite of these and other materials. Coming in sheets or rolls, these materials are cut in a trapezoid or pennant shape and the straight edge is attached along the length of the mandrel.
The sheet's outside edge is usually cut in a particular design such as an S-shape which allows for different thicknesses of the sheet as it is wrapped, butt to tip, onto the mandrel. Different thicknesses allow for a rod's "action," which can be parabolic (bending well down into the handle area) to fast tip (bending only in the upper tip end), or other actions between these extremes.
Naturally, the width of the fiber sheet will determine the number of wraps around the mandrel. Thus, a thinner sheet allows for more wraps which, in turn, means more power, or the rod's resistance to bending.
Templates, similar to cookie cutters, allow rod builders to continually cut the same size and shape from the fiber sheet, allowing for a continuity when making a series of a particular rod model. When cut, the sheet is glued to the mandrel which is then placed onto a rolling table where the top surface of the table presses down on the mandrel and then rolls the fiber material around the steel form.
After rolling, mandrels are then hung onto a rack and baked in tall ovens. Once out of the oven and cooled, the mandrel is removed and the hollow blank is trimmed at both ends and prepared for assembly.
Some blanks remain in one piece while others may be split with a ferrule or ferrules being added. Other multipiece rods may be fit together with the tip sliding over butt section(s) forming a two, three, or more piece rod.
After the rod blank is complete and trimmed, the guides and reel seats are placed, followed by the handle assembly which is usually made from cork.
WHEN EVERYTHING IS IN PLACE, guides are then wrapped by motorized rod wrappers using threads of varying thicknesses and colors depending on the rod's size. Other wraps may be added which are both decorative and functional in providing hoop strength and reinforcing a rod joint against breakage or splintering.
Following the wrapping process, guides and wraps are coated with protective finishes. Once the protective coating is placed on the wraps, the rod goes onto a rotating drum which assures the epoxy will dry evenly. After curing for six to eight hours, a second coating is applied.
Completed rods are then placed in a rod bag, sock, aluminum or plastic tube for storage or shipment.
When selecting a rod, an angler should consider several factors.
Nobody, for example, would choose a baitcaster designed for largemouth bass to troll for a blue marlin, just as no hunter would select a .22-caliber rifle to bring down a charging rhino.
From an angler's standpoint a rod's "action" is of prime importance. Rod action simply means how much, how little and where a rod bends.
Should a rod bend in the upper one-quarter of the blank, it is described as "extra fast." If bending in the upper third, it's said to be "fast." If bending at the halfway point, "moderate" is the term, while if it starts bending at the butt and runs through the entire shaft, it's said to have a "slow" action.
OTHER KEY FACTORS IN ROD SELECTION include castability, sensitivity, weight, hook setting power, durability, and pleasurability.
In choosing a rod with good "castability," consider the lure or natural bait you plan to use. It's difficult to toss a 1/16- or 1/8-ounce lure with a rod designed to cast lures in the 3/4- to 1-ounce range. As a rule-of-thumb, remember that longer rods usually cast a lure or bait farther than shorter rods.
One of the better qualities of today's fishing rod is its ability to transmit signals to the hands of the angler, particularly when a fish strikes. Most consider that graphite rods offer maximum sensitivity or "feel."
In bygone days many a fisherman would tire after an hour or two of casting baits and lures. With current technology, many manufacturers produce lightweight equipment that can be used all day without fatiguing the angler. When selecting a rod, be sure that it feels more like a feather than a barbell.
Maximum hook-setting force requires a certain stiffness in a rod, not only to drive in the hook's barb, but to take up slack line and remove excess line stretch. In other words, make sure the rod you plan to purchase has plenty of "backbone."
Most rods currently found in the marketplace are reasonably and competitively priced. But, even so, a quality rod can set a purchaser back some impressive bucks. Therefore, he or she will want one constructed of materials that provide long life with a minimum of care. We'd suggest that most tubular glass and graphite composite rods meet this requirement.
And, finally, will the rod that you are considering be fun to use? Fun, after all, is why most of us go fishing in the first place and if the stick you're holding doesn't feel right, why not continue shopping until you find one that is satisfactory?
Copyright (c) 1996 Herb Allen. All rights reserved.
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