S Hovanec

Casting: Chronarch 101SF - AmTak Classic 6'8" MXF - jerkbaits Chronarch 101SF - NFC MB703SM - topwater Chronarch 101B - 3C70MM - crankbait Curado 301DSV - NFC FS764SM - flipping stick Spinning: Catana C3000HG - house brand DS610W - dropshot Catana C3000HG - house brand DS610TC - dropshot Catana 2500HG - gen 1 MHX HMDS-8515 - dropshot Catana 2500HG - gen 2 MHX HMDS-8515 - dropshot CI-4 2500 - NFC DS610-7 IM - dropshot TwinPower 2500SHG - 5S610MLXF-B ext. to 7' - dropshot Vanquish 2500SHG - Eternity ETES610MXF - dropshot Stradic 2500MgFB - Rodgeeks C4610MXF ext. to 7' - spybait Stradic C3000XG-L - Rodgeeks C473MHXS - tubes Stradic 2500FI - 3S70MF-2 - travel I think I have a dropshot problem. Also have a box full of other Stradics, Saharas, Sustains, Chronarchs and Curados with no rods.

Start building your own. I've never taken a loss on one of my customs.

I did a 14' StarCraft about 17 years ago. It was nice, but was really heavy.

JDM reel. Next model down from a Stella.

Really? I was gonna order one for a BFS rod I'm planning. And it's not the light weight of the CI4 that gives me that feeling either. My new Vanquish is an ounce lighter and its solid feeling. I know I'm not comparing apples to apples though.

I have one of the original CI4 2500s and this is way smoother. The FL is more solid while the CI4 feels toy-ish.

Never played around with a FK.

I have a C3000XG on a Silver Rodgeeks MH tube rod and got a 2500SHG for the wife's DS rod. I've used the 3000 and I like it. The 2500 is still in the box. C3000XG Wrapped it in navy blue to match the spool accents.

My Dropshot rods have 10, 15 and 20# on them. Both Powerpro and TufLine. IMO, color is if no importance because of the leader. My tube rod has pink Gliss and my spybait rod has yellow Gliss. As my DS line wears, I'll be replacing them with hi-vis line too.

Thank you. Wonder why they're not showing up in the thread. My pics still show up in the other bass site. Yep, officially the lightest bass rod I've ever built.

Ok, so what's up with Photobucket again? No pics showing up.

Finally built the Eternity I picked up over a year ago. It's not nearly as powerful as I expected. To me, it falls more in the Lite/Fast spectrum than Medium/x-fast. It loads up pretty significantly when working a 3/8 weight. Much less powerful than my St. Croix 5S610MLXF. Feels more in line with my NFC DS610-IM. It fishes nice and is super light weight. Balances well when paired with the Vanquish. I need to put it on a scale because I think it may be the lightest rod I've ever built (excluding ice rods) Blank: Rainshadow ETES610MXF Guides: Fuji T2 SiC Hook Keeper: Kigan XLA (TiCh) Slip rings: American Tackle Cork: Natural (Custom Fly Grips) Inlay/accent cork: burnt and light (Andy Dear) Thread: Makoi charcoal without CP Winding checks: MudHole matte black. Butt cap: MudHole. Finish: Threadmaster Lite and Regular. Decals: Decal Connection Don't know where that holey cork ring came from. This was my personal stash of good stuff

I think an added deck would raise the center if gravity making it more tippy than it is already. Not to mention, the added weight will likely make you overloaded once you add yourself and gear.

I love these also. They have made me so much money doing repairs on them over the years.

Those colors worked out well.

Back when I was boatless, i took a float tube trip on a local river. This was back when superlines were pretty new on the scene and I didn't know much about them. I got hung up. I couldn't break off. I actually reeled myself upstream and got over the snag. Still couldn't break it. I had to kick over to the shore and stand up to be able to break it off. That's when leaders became important to me. Then it was for break-off purposes. Now it's for line visibility in clear waters.

I did an experiment while fishing Erie a few years ago. 2 identical DS setups fished side by side, one with straight braid and one with my normal FC leader. The braid only rod didn't get bit, while the leadered braid caught multiple fish. That's all I needed to know about braid.

I'm addition to what's pictured above, In the last 2 weeks I finished 2 house brand DS610s I started about 6 years ago and wrapped another MHX. It's currently on the dryer with the first coat of finish.

My current 17' Mr. Pike will likely be my last. If not, the 2075 Tyee would be what I'm after to retire with.

Yes, the front winding check is crooked. It's just dry fit for mock-up.

Gen 1 MHX HM DS Winn butt grip Kigan XLA weight keeper Alps seat Titanium Minimas A few cork grips. Progress pics. Silver RodGeeks Yellow RodGeeks Eternity

I'm a big St. Croix fan myself. I'm so glad the SCV blanks are still available to custom builders. I do miss the SCIII for budget builds though.

If this was mine, or a SCV, I'd be fixing it as mentioned, but it's one of those fantastic Veritas that people love for some reason. I've replaced so many guides on those over the years it probably paid for my lathe!

Way beyond cosmetic. Those parallel lines are cracks that allow that section to be pushed into the blank. Customer told me to just rewrap the guide on. When I did, the thread tension pushed the guide into the crack pulling it out of alignment. It could not be adjusted because the foot was pressed into the blank.

Good question. When you flex the blank, you can hear the fibers creaking and crackling at that spot.