I read some about this. Would appreciate any other input. I have a 9' 4-piece TFO salmon rod my son and occasionally myself use for Striped Bass in Narragansett Bay, RI and will be using on our 2nd trip to the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska this August. I love this rod. I can't seem to find a similar rod or blank. I found a Rainshadow 9' 10wt (XF9010-4) I am contemplating building and using for the same purpose. I typically throw under 1 oz. and have the TFO paired with a Quantum Cabo 40. I would be staring at $150 for this experiment. Any suggestions? I would probably use the following specs as a rough starting point.

Component Part Number Part Description
Rod Blank Model # SH1081-2 9' 2pc Lt 4-8lb Salmon/Steelhead
Butt Cap: SBC20B Butt Cap 19.8mm ID-Black
Reel Seat: GS16C-B Graphite Spin R/S w/Cushion-Black
Reel Seat Shim: SHIM/16/SPIN .590" OD 3.70" Length
Fore Grip: FG25A-250 2.5" Foregrip Grade 'A' .250" ID
Rear Grip: RGS12A-350 12" Cork Rear Grip Straight 'A'
Winding Check: BWC09 Winding Check ." I.D.-Black
Hookeeper: BHKS Small Black Hook Keeper
Tip Top BPUT06R04.0 P Top 6 Blue Zircon Ring 4.0 Tube-Black
Guides (see below for size and quantity) BVSUG Sgl Ft 'V' Frame-Blue Zircon Rg -Black
Guide order from the tip top Guide Guide Placement - In inches from the tip top
1st BVSUG06 4"
2nd BVSUG06 9"
3nd BVSUG06 14.5"
4rd BVSUG07 20.5"
5th BVSUG07 27"
6th BVSUG08 34"
7th BVSUG10 43"
8th BVSUG16 53"
9th BVSUG25 67"
Forecast Salmon Steelhead Spin
SH1081-2 Spin
The items listed are only suggestions. Batson Enterprises encourages all custom rod builders to find a style that works for them.

Thanks for any input,
Brian

You certainly don't need all those different sized guides. I'd set it up per one of the New Guide Concepts, MicroWave, etc. and be done with that part of it. At the very least throw out the #8 and #7's and get on down to 6's on out after the 10.

Only thing to watch for when using a fly rod blank as a spinning is to remember that a typical "fast" action fly rod blank isn't as fast as a "fast" action spinning rod blank. If that part's okay with you, you'll likely be fine.

.................

If you have the 12 - 25 lb. line salmon rod a 10 wt. isn't going to be anywhere near powerful enough to make a comparable rod. Anglers Workshop used to have a 3 pc. version though. TSP90H3. They also have a 4 pc. 8 1/2 Ft. lighter powered blank. TSH86MH4 I think is the part number. You 10wt. fly blank will make a decent ML to M power steelhead rod in the 6 to 10, maybe 8 to 12 lb. line class.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/25/2016 04:17PM by Spencer Phipps.

This TSH86MH4 now has me extremely interested. Far less of a gamble as to performance. I just find it difficult to believe there is not a market for these 4-piece rods. Soooo much fun on small to decent sized stripers. I e-mailed them asking for any additional info. Does anyone have experience with this line of blanks or company?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/25/2016 07:06PM by Brian Fleury.

Blanks are built by Talon in Woodland, Wa. not far from the G Loomis and the Lamiglas factories. Been around a long time, more popular outside U S than in for some reason. I've used them off and on as needed for 30 years I guess. The finest steelhead float rod I've ever had in my hand was on a high modulus Talon blank. Counting their International stuff, last I looked they had developed around 600 different designs. There are more 4 pc. blanks to be had, but they are a bit more spendy. D Blue to the left is one place.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/26/2016 03:23PM by Spencer Phipps.

Actually the XF9010-4 makes a great salmon/steelhead rod. The action is surprisingly spinning rod-like, nowhere near as actually moderate, as fast fly blanks normally are. It indeed IS a fast action S&S blank. I built one recently and tried it out on Baltic Sea seatrout. The fish did not cooperate (the weather was terrible - blue sky, bright sunshine, temperature 60+, no wind - but my beloved somehow liked it ...), but I did check out the rod. I would say line power is in the 14-15 lb range, while casting weight is an easy 3/4 oz., but you can move up to 0.9 oz. in my opinion. It does make sense to use possibly light guides. I personally used PacBay Minima in titanium frames, with a roughly Fuji KR spacing and sizing layout, but any light stuff will work