Reference: [www.mudhole.com]

The arborless design on these reel seats is appealing but I'm not certain what inside diameter to order. I can't tell if their ID sizes refer to the size of the overall bore or just the space between the "flaps" on the inside. How do I know what ID size to order if the butt end of my rod is .537" (13.64mm)? Does anyone have any experience with these seats?

Thanks in advance for any light you can shed.
-Mark

The last Rod Maker magazine showed how to do exactly that. You can always have your blank supplier supply the real seat and tip top to ensure you get the right sizes, none of my blank orders I am aware of cost more because a reel seat and tip top were in the tube.

Hi Spencer, can you tell me what issue number that was?

It was the last issue vol 20 #1. Basically you can calculate the drop in diameter/ inch by substracting the tip diameter from the butt diameter and dividing this result by the length of the rod in inches. This give a nice approximation. Some manufacturers like MHX will give you blank diameters every few inches up the blank. Also, you can have the dealer supply the appropriate sized reel seat to fit the blank where you want it to fit. If you have the blank in hand just measure the diameter where you want the reel seat to go. Always better to order a reel seat slightly smaller, because you can ream it to get a perfect fit. Can't make this kind of exposed blank reel seat smaller but you can always make it larger. The ACS reel seat is a very nice, I like it a lot. Hope this helps.
Norm

Thanks again all. I ordered from Mudhole and did ask them to double check the sizes for me but I hate to guess so it was good to get the math formula :)
Tight lines,
-Mark