Hello.  Im looking at building a swimbait rod and was curious if anyone had any feedback on the Rainshadow ISWB 945 or 946 and the MHX SWB967 blend for throwing medium to large swimbaits. Thanks.

i have a ISWB945 , it's got a moderate fast action that i didn't care for as far as hooksets on a long cast . the blank will flex all the way to the handle which , in my opinion , causes a lot of wrist fatigue . i lengthened the rod so it's now 8'7'' , i use it for catfish , which it excells at !!

 if you're looking for a rod that has a moderate action , it's pretty good . it will handle up to ROF16 Hudds ( 5 oz. ) 6 oz. will max it out . i also had a ISWB946 , it had the same moderate action but will handle 7 oz. , 8 will max it out . all in all , the rods are rated correctly and a great buy if that kind of moderate action is what your looking for .

i now only use fast action swimbait rods ....

Define Medium to Large. I've used MHX SB models and the customers liked them. I've also used surf blanks for swimbait applications. 

thanks for your feedback.  I figure the range would probably be around 4-6 mostly with a little varying outside of that.  probably throwing huddlestons and some glide baits. 

a really great blank that will be great for the lure weights you want to throw is the Phenix USB-8000H , an 8' blank that is a heavy power with a fast action , lure rating is 2 - 8 oz. . this blank will throw Hudds no problem and is great for glide baits . the blank is rated correctly as it will handle 8 oz. baits very well . for the power of this blank , it is pretty light also , the ISWB945 weighs 4 oz. , the USB-800H weighs 4.4 oz. look up some reviews on the blank or factory built rod .

My buddy just asked me to build a swim bait with micros on it.  Ill be following this post.

7 hours ago, Josh_Bovaird said:

My buddy just asked me to build a swim bait with micros on it.  Ill be following this post.

 

keep it in mind to check tip sizes on the blanks you are thinking of building on , in order for you to use a micro tip top ( a tip top with a size 4-4.5 ring ) you need to find a blank with a tip that will fit a size 7 tube . some people will tell you to use a regular tip top , but to be truthful , it will look fugly and look completely out of place . there is not much things that look more ridiculous looking than a rod with micro guides topped with a big tip top with a size 8 ring !!!

keep in mind though , some blanks with a tip size of 7.5 will still fit a size 7 , my St.Croix has a tip size of 7.5 but after i removed the finish , a size 7 fit perfect , there will always be litte variances in tip sizes on the blank , that is one of the reasons i chose that blank besides it being a beast for throwing BIG swimbaits ...

2 minutes ago, Big Bait Fishing said:

 

keep it in mind to check tip sizes on the blanks you are thinking of building on , in order for you to use a micro tip top ( a tip top with a size 4-4.5 ring ) you need to find a blank with a tip that will fit a size 7 tube . some people will tell you to use a regular tip top , but to be truthful , it will look fugly and look completely out of place . there is not much things that look more ridiculous looking than a rod with micro guides topped with a big tip top with a size 8 ring !!!

Thanks for the tip I was gonna post and ask guide size when the time comes.  Ive got a few rods I need to get done before I jump  on the swim bait rod.  I plan on building myself one also.

You can either split the tube on the biggest you can find or wrap a running guide on the tip. We do this all the time on float rods for steel head and salmon. 

I am going to build a ISWB945, and I think I am going to spiral wrap it with a BMNAG stripper and rest single foot.  Im thinking about using BLAG (5 or 6) or BKBAG (5 or 6).  Does anyone have any thoughts on those ideas?

1 hour ago, pier_man0909 said:

I am going to build a ISWB945, and I think I am going to spiral wrap it with a BMNAG stripper and rest single foot.  Im thinking about using BLAG (5 or 6) or BKBAG (5 or 6).  Does anyone have any thoughts on those ideas?

I'm interested to see what you come up with.  I've been debating a spiral wrap on my swim bait rod

6 hours ago, pier_man0909 said:

I am going to build a ISWB945, and I think I am going to spiral wrap it with a BMNAG stripper and rest single foot.  Im thinking about using BLAG (5 or 6) or BKBAG (5 or 6).  Does anyone have any thoughts on those ideas?

if i were you i'd use a Fuji BLCAG in size 6 for the stripper guide and 11 size 4 Fuji BLAG

The MHX 967 will handle 4-6oz baits without issue.

I use 10 micro giudes for 8' XH swimbait rod.

Top = #5, 2.8mm

next 3 guides #4.5, 2.5mm, space 4.0",  4.5", 4.75"

next 4 guides #6, 3.75mm, space 5", 5.75", 6.5", 7.25"

next guide #8, 5.0mm, space 8"

stripper guide #10, 6.8mm

Tom