Bait Casting Rod For Missouri Rivers

[SmalltownUSA]

Hi All: We are almost exclusively dry fly fishers when it comes to fresh water. We just returned from spending the month of May at Roaring River. As most of you know, the first several weeks of the month RR was blown out so dry fly fishing was out. However, the last week of May saw some really great fishing.

I make all our rods (both salt water bait casting and fly rod) and am interested in making a light weight bait casting rod we can use for small fresh water streams when waters are not particularly good for dry fly fishing.

Can anyone give me suggestions on specifics of blanks I can look for? I want a multi piece blank for travel purposes.

Thanks,

Harold

[Al Agnew]

As far as I know, nobody makes a multi-piece casting rod blank that's light enough in power to do what I want a stream casting rod to do. However, you might be able to find a spinning rod blank and just construct it as a casting rod. Whatever you find, here's my ideas about a casting rod...

If you fish from a canoe, you will be happiest with a short rod. All my canoe rods are 5 1/2 feet or less. The one that's "less" is a 5 footer. I use it for topwater fishing. What I've found is that with a rod that short, working walk-the-dog type topwaters from a canoe is a lot easier. I've fished with guys who simply can't make a walk-the-dog topwater work right with a longer rod while sitting in a canoe. The other advantage to short rods is that they are easier to stow in the canoe and keep the tips inside the gunwales where they don't get snagged on passing brush.

If you wade fish, you might want a longer rod. But I use short rods even while wade-fishing, because I fish a lot of small, brushy creeks where I'm often in tight quarters.

I like medium light rods for most of my river baitcasting. If fishing with soft plastics and jigs where you need backbone to set the hook, I use spinning tackle and braided line.

[fishinwrench]

St.Croix "had" a 6ft. 2pc. SCII casting blank in a med.lt. action. I had a rod built on one that I was real happy with....until it got eaten by a F2 tornado.

I built mine with a slightly long handle, so the actual length of rod above your hand was similar to what you'd have with a 5.6 short handle rod. If you wanted a short handle, or pistol grip you could cut some off the butt. I only have need for casting gear when throwing buzzbaits and crankbaits on rivers/streams (which is not often, for me).....everything else "riverwise" I do with either a flyrod or spinning gear.

[Wayne SW/MO]

I don't know about specifc blanks, but I like something that tops out at 3/16-1/4 oz, or close to it. I too like rods shorter if I can find them.

[Bassin' Man]

Hi All: We are almost exclusively dry fly fishers when it comes to fresh water. We just returned from spending the month of May at Roaring River. As most of you know, the first several weeks of the month RR was blown out so dry fly fishing was out. However, the last week of May saw some really great fishing.

I make all our rods (both salt water bait casting and fly rod) and am interested in making a light weight bait casting rod we can use for small fresh water streams when waters are not particularly good for dry fly fishing.

Can anyone give me suggestions on specifics of blanks I can look for? I want a multi piece blank for travel purposes.

Thanks,

Harold

Harold go to www.MudHole.com they have a wide selection on blanks and rod building supplies at a good price.