Guide: How to Select a Better Fishing Rod

Tim Simpson shares a wealth of knowledge that will help you to understand and find the best fishing rods to suit your needs

Fishing rods are as diverse as the fish they are used to catch. Each one is designed to perform one or more of six primary functions: casting, fighting, extending your reach, sensing bites and bottom, and being a shock absorber.

Some rods perform well in more than one of these functions, but if you’re looking for optimum casting distance, or for outstanding fish-fighting ability, you must choose carefully, or you’ll end up with a poor compromise. 

Choosing a new fishing rod is a whole lot easier when you understand what you’re looking for. Even for the same type of fishing, a rod to suit a child should be designed differently to the one used by the parent.

Casting and Rod Taper

You could cast a line with guides strapped to a cricket bat, but you wouldn’t cast it very far. To achieve distance, a rod needs to flex during the swing, loading energy that will catapult the object as it straightens out. The quicker it straightens out, the more the object is accelerated and the further it will go.

A soft parabolic rod — where the rod starts bending in the middle and eventually forms a U-shape — flexes with little resistance to the casting weight and will straighten relatively slowly. There are specific purposes for these slow-tapered rods, such as fly fishing or casting delicate baits, but a faster tapered rod that pulls harder as the bend progresses will make a much more powerful casting tool. 

As a rod’s tip is pulled back, either by the object being cast or the swing itself, the spring is loaded. The more the spring is loaded the further it will cast — to a point. All rods have an optimum casting weight range. Too little and the spring is not stretched, too much and it will bottom out. For example, a slingshot loaded with a pebble can shoot a long way, however, the same slingshot loaded with a cannonball, even if it’s stretched way back, will land the ball at your feet. The spring simply cannot cope with the force holding it back and does not develop the forward acceleration needed to fire it away. 

The length of a rod can assist with casting distance. A short rod travels through an arc when casting, but a long rod will travel through a much wider arc and, with the same movement from the angler, the wider the arc, the faster the tip will be moving — so, to some extent, the longer the rod the longer the cast. The theory has its limitations where the rod becomes too heavy or awkward to swing quickly. 

The taper of a rod will affect the range of weights it can cast. A slow taper will flex nearly as much with a light weight as with one twice as heavy. It therefore lacks the power to accelerate the heavier weight. In contrast, a fast taper — one where a light and flexible tip rapidly progresses to a firm and powerful, almost unbending butt — offers more versatility as it can cast a broader range of weights. Its light tip will flex with lighter casting weights, and as more and more casting weight is required, it simply loads up further down the rod. 

When designing a new rod, the manufacturer can alter its taper by varying the diameter of the rod blank (tube), or by varying the thickness of the material it is made of. For example, a fast taper can be achieved by having a fine tip with a large diameter butt, or the blank could have thin walls in the tip and thick, sometimes nearly solid walls at the butt, or both techniques can be used together.

Graphite or Fibreglass?

Besides taper, the material a rod is constructed from will have a profound effect on performance. Again, casting distance depends on the velocity of the object being flung out. The quicker a bent rod straightens out, the more the object to be cast is accelerated, irrespective of the caster’s skills. How quickly it straightens will vary depending on what material it is made of. 

Fibreglass revolutionised rods in the post-World War II years. It is strong, tough, flexible, and reasonably light. Since then, several other materials have been tried in an effort to increase strength, reduce weight, or quicken the response time from bent to straight. Boron, Kevlar, and others have found success, but nothing compared to the wonder material, carbon fibre. Graphite (carbon fibre) combines the properties most desirable in a fishing rod — sensitivity, lightness, and an extremely fast response time. Advanced generations of graphite and resins now make the original benchmark rods feel like kid’s stuff.

A hollow fishing rod blank is made by soaking a triangle of cloth with a resin before wrapping it under pressure around a shaped mandrel, then curing it in an oven. Whether using fibreglass or graphite, the manufacturer will have the choice of many different grades of cloth and resins. The combination used, and the pressure under which it is wrapped, will substantially influence the rod’s cost, strength, toughness, response time, and weight.

Unfortunately, it is a trap to think all rods labelled as ‘graphite’ are equal. The label may say graphite, but it could contain anything from 5 per cent to nearly 100 per cent graphite, with the balance probably fibreglass. Then there is the resin quality, and the manufacturing process, which also make an enormous difference to performance and price. 

Another popular scam for unscrupulous manufacturers is the practice of incorporating a small section of top-grade graphite cloth in a sheet of basic material. The rod is then labelled as high-performance graphite, deceiving the customer as there are no regulations to stipulate what percentage is incorporated. This may explain why two rods that on the surface may seem similar are vastly different in price.

It’s worth keeping in mind that other than increased sensitivity and lightness, there is far less justification for the expense of quality graphite if the rod is not being used for casting.

Fighting

Although a small fish can be hauled in on heavy line with no influence from the rod, a large or powerful fish is another story. The efficiency of your rod as a fighting tool will make the difference between a long fight and a quick one, and in some cases the difference between landing the fish and losing it. 

The rod must work with the angler and the reel’s drag setting to sap the fish’s strength. It must also act as a lever to steer and even lift a fish through the water. The more a rod bends before the reel’s drag slips, the more of a spring the fish can manoeuvre before coming up against the full pressure. 

The most efficient tool is one that flexes only enough to absorb small movements from fish or angler, and otherwise exerts a relentless pressure just under the slip point of the reel’s drag. Anything less is a compromise. Of course, there are often very good reasons to compromise, casting being just one of them.

An Extension and Lever

One of the main influences on rod length is the need to hold the line clear of obstacles, such as rocks, bushes, or outboard motors. The reason beach and rock fishing rods are four metres long has as much to do with holding the line clear of the rocks and waves as it does with casting distance.

However, a rod is a lever, and the longer the lever, the more you are going to struggle to hold it. When a powerful rod is required, you should be careful to consider the length of both the tip section (forward of the reel) and also the butt section. 

The most powerful fish-fighting rods are designed for use in a (dentist-like) game fishing chair. Typically around 2.5m long to reach over the transom so the line doesn’t rub, the best of these rods are levers that barely bend and maintain brutal pressure on the fish. To reduce the pressure against the angler, these rods are fitted with an alloy bent-butt that fits into a gimbal mount on the chair. The pressure generated by these rods would be impossible to fish without the chair.

Other game fishing rods are designed completely differently for use by standing anglers. To reduce leverage to a level able to be tolerated by the angler for perhaps hours, these rods are usually 1.8m or less overall. They are built on a fast-tapered blank with a flexible tip that provides a little shock-absorption, then quickly progress into a sturdy base. As the tip section folds away, it further reduces the length of the lever, making it easier for the angler. However, a well-designed ‘shortstroker’ rod will enable the angler to easily maintain the drag pressure of the line class. These rods should also have a short butt section, which brings the reel lower and reduces pressure against the angler.

Rods designed for long-distance casting need a double-handed (long) butt section so you can spread your hands for maximum leverage. However, when fighting a fish, the closer the reel is to your body the more comfortable you will find it. 

Powerful lure-casting rods of 2.2–2.5m are used offshore for kingfish, tuna, giant trevally, and other gamefish to 50kg or more. As casting distance is the priority function, these rods feature longer tip and butt lengths, even though these make fighting a fish quite an ordeal for the angler!

When lure-casting with light tackle inshore, a single-handed grip may be preferred as you can hold the rod in front of your face and sight along it for casting accuracy.

Shock Absorber

There are situations where a brutal fish-fighting lever is just not suitable. 

A hard rod is not very tolerant of mistakes, so if the angler’s timing or drag setting and fighting technique needs practice then a softer rod, although less efficient, may save the day.

A softer rod provides a cushion that helps prevent hooks from pulling free or straightening. This may be the primary function when using small hooks, such as for whiting or blackfish, or when the fish has a delicate mouth, or when you are using soft baits that easily tear off when casting. 

Strike and Bottom Sensor

A rod will telegraph vibrations from the line to your hands. Once again, graphite will tend to transmit more energy while fibreglass may dampen it.

A good graphite rod can communicate even delicate bites and bumps against the bottom, which is especially important when fishing subtle lures like some of the soft-plastics. When used in conjunction with a super-sensitive, low-stretch line like braid, a quality rod will also transmit the swimming vibrations of a strong-actioned lure. This is a great way of knowing a lure is working well and not tangled or clogged with weed or debris. 

A sensitive outfit will often allow you to assess the bottom structure as well. A bibbed lure that digs along the bottom will give a different feel in sand or mud than it does through weed or over rocks. All this information helps to make you a more in-tune and successful angler. 

Rod Components

The fittings on a rod can vary from state-of-the-art to good looking junk, varying in qualities such as strength, weight, longevity, and even friction-reducing ceramics.

Added weight is one of the most crucial factors affecting a rod’s recovery speed and therefore casting performance. A heavy tip or guides, especially in the top half, will soon bog down a rod’s action, making it feel sluggish and reducing casting performance. 

Six or more guides — in as light and small a size as practicable — will help to distribute the pressure of the line and minimize wear and friction burn. Rods for overhead reels with too few or badly spaced guides will allow the line to rub along the blank causing line damage. Vibrations are transferred to the rod through its contact with the line, so having more guides actually increases sensitivity.

Poor quality reel seats will not hold the reel securely instead allowing the reel to slop about. Under pressure with heavy line, they may even crack.

For game fishing, roller guides and tips are available to almost eliminate line-destroying friction totally. Contrary to some schools of thought, roller stripper guides and tips can be used on heavy overhead casting rods without loss of distance.

The rod’s grips are important as this is where your hands will attach and feel for any vibrations coming through the line. A spongy grip that allows the rod to move within your grasp will deaden vibrations before they get to you. A firm grip provides a more secure hold on the rod and will certainly give you more feel for what is happening at the end of the line — this is one of the reasons why top-quality rods often feature cork grips.

Some reel seats have a contoured cut-away section that allows your fingers direct contact with the rod blank. These give outstanding sensitivity as there is no grip in the way to deaden the vibrations. 

The glues, bindings and coatings used when building will all affect the strength and life of the rod. Underbinding (beneath the rod guides) — and on game rods double or even triple overbinding — will also add strength and longevity.

Multi-piece Rods

Excellent joints can now be designed into rod blanks, and in all except very powerful rods there may be little sacrifice in performance for the convenience of the joints.

Telescopic rods and poles are available with many pieces that concertina into one another. These are even easier to transport, but their guides are weak and as the blank’s walls must be thin enough to fit the other sections inside, they are not nearly as tough as multi-piece rods. 

Check the Backbone

A well-made rod will have the blank’s backbone lined up with the guides to prevent it twisting when loaded. This is easy to do when making a rod, but it is staggering how few manufacturers bother to do it. 

Although annoying on any rod, a misaligned backbone is particularly frustrating on powerful tackle. This should be checked before purchase by bending the upright rod into a fighting curve and then rolling it between your hands with the butt on a smooth floor. If it has a pronounced backbone, it will ‘click’ into position while you do this. Then check the guides are aligned on top for an overhead reel, or directly underneath if it’s for a threadline reel.

Go Shopping

One way to get the perfect rod is to find a quality custom rod-builder. There is also a great deal of quality tackle available off the shelf these days, however, unless you already know what you need it is worth hunting for a tackle outlet that specialises in your type of fishing. 

With what you now know, be a little cautious when shopping — even in specialist stores there may be staff who do more talking than fishing with the gear they recommend.