Some of you guys might recognize the handle on this one... I finally got around to putting finish on my one piece, 8' XH rod. (for swimbaits, matted grass and other heavy applications) Blank rated 2-8 oz but the tip is fairly light (relatively speaking) and casts pretty well with anything over 1/2 oz. It's black on black so wrap pics would be boring. ...lol

To tell you how long I have been sitting on this rod, the reel seat was glued on before fuji offered ECSM seats over a size 15. :

To complete the set up (and permanently retire an old Abu) I bought this rod a new Revo Winch.

That looks awesome!

what kind of blank did you use?

Nice Keith,

Those beefy 8 footers are whole new experience when throwing 5 oz Huds. Looks like your usual classy workmanship. Keep on keeping on.

I built myself an 8' swimbait rod on a Loomis GL2 Back Bounce blank. GL2 is the only choice in the backbounce. I used a premade 15" grip with a Fuji "soft touch" seat. That grip has enough cork in it to float a Shimano Calcutta 400B reel. I threw it in the water at Guntersville. It floated for 20 or 30 seconds until I got on my arthritic knees and reached down and picked it up. Great rod and combo for heavy baits though, spiral wrapped of course.

Ronnie

Nice rod Keith, I don't remember that grip....

Looks nice.  From the way you described the blanks action it sounds like a salmon blank like Alpster used.  Those things load nicely with swimbaits, unlike my quantum PT swimbait broomstick.

Nice Keith,

Those beefy 8 footers are whole new experience when throwing 5 oz Huds. Looks like your usual classy workmanship. Keep on keeping on.

I built myself an 8' swimbait rod on a Loomis GL2 Back Bounce blank. GL2 is the only choice in the backbounce. I used a premade 15" grip with a Fuji "soft touch" seat. That grip has enough cork in it to float a Shimano Calcutta 400B reel. I threw it in the water at Guntersville. It floated for 20 or 30 seconds until I got on my arthritic knees and reached down and picked it up. Great rod and combo for heavy baits though, spiral wrapped of course.

Ronnie

LOL, I remember that like it was yesterday.  As soon as I saw that it was the rod and not you going overboard, I could laugh about it.

That think looked like a marker buoy bobbing in the water   ;D

lookin good, but that abu is messed up, the handle is on the wrong side!!

Thanks for the compliments!  I bought this blank about 2 years ago so the details are a little rusty.  If memory serves me correctly, it's a BB968, made by All Star but I can't recal if it was their's or a private label blank.  I remember what I paid for it (Andy's wholesale price)  and thinking "someday I'll need that" so I better get it.  

That think looked like a marker buoy bobbing in the water

 

Ronnie/Wayne- I wish I had been there to see it, I bet it was a laugh!  Oh yeah, this on is spiral wrapped also.  

Red-  hold a mirror to your screen and it will start to look right.   ;D