is there a WEB site I can get some info on casting rod handles like how long should the butt part be an how long the top part be or can some one here stear mealong a little bit , or is it just a personal feeling like a fly rod ?????? is there a ratio on the rod / butt / for end of handle ?? any help out there what I am bulding is a couple of bass rods in the 6 ft range 5.6' / 6.6'
Bill

Bill; Send an E- Mail to the Swampland boys. They'll give you the info you are looking for. There are several lengths depending on what you want to do with the rod.

Bill,

Definitely check in with Bill or Lance. Grip lengths can be very personal, and I'll share my personal preferences. I like to measure my grips from the trigger on a casting rod, or the reel stem on a spinning rod. The reason being that I fish both with two fingers in front of the trigger or stem, and this measurement gives me a much better estimate on how the rod is going to fish. Most of the time I cast two handed with casting rods, and don't care for grips less than 7.5" from the trigger to butt or 7" behind the reel seat. As a max length on rods where an exceptionally long handle is needed, I top it out at 9.5" from the trigger or 9" behind the reel seat.

With that said, for 5'6"-6' rods I usually go with 7.5" from the trigger. For 6'6"-7' rods I tend to go with 9.5" from the trigger. Some like pistol grips on short rods for some techniques. Specialty rods like heavy swim baits or A-rig rods may require a longer grip. For the types of rods it sounds like you are building, something from about 6"-10" depending on rod length and your preferences should put you in the ball park.

Joe

Rule 1: The bigger your belly gets the shorter the handle should be.
There is no Rule 2.

Length of rear grip on casting rods CAN be a very complex subject -

Depends on who is using the rod for what - even the rods set up for "Rigs" are moving to shorter rear grips.

Most production rods are set up to SELL - think about it for a minute

Angler walks in a store and starts picking up rods - shaking them - checking the price - looking at the label generally feeling them up pretty good.

Which one is he going to select and make a buy decision - the one that feels the best that meets his price point!

The production guys are not dummies! What do they do?

They shove the reel seats as far out as possible to insure the lightest tip weight - they simply feel better! The one that feels the lightest to the buyer may be a heavy dog.

How the rods in the store "look" determines what the public assumes to be correct.

They also cost professional anglers pain due to loss of fish control. Top knotch anglers generally prefer rear grips much shorter than the general buying public. Richard Forhan build rods for top bass Elites that were eight feet in length with 8 1/2 in rear grips.

If you fish year round and wear slicker suits, coats, sweaters a rear grip that is too long will cost you many fish!

The first thing we should all do is adopt a place to measure so we are all talking the same thing - most will use the end of the butt cap to the intersection of the reel seat ant the handle.

William,
Let the client decide the handle length.

If you are making the decision yourself, make it the length that you prefer, or the length that feels right for you, with the reel of choice mounted on the rod.

The general rule of thumb is that long rods equal long butt grips to compensate a bit for the rod length in front of the reel. If a builder wants to achieve a balanced rod without adding weight, it is most commonly achieved by increasing the handle length.

Lots of folks could care less about the actual rod balance and just want a handle of a particular length, for a particular body type or fishing style. By all means, do what ever you can to make the tip light by using good building techniques, but in the end; make the handle length that suits the client.

Take care
Roger

thanks for all your input, will work it out an do my best
BILL