". . .Therefore, to achieve maximum efficiency and power in your cast the spine should be on the bottom of the rod regardless if it’s set up for spinning or conventional." - Al Goldberg

I copied this from another website. I want to build a 6'6" - 7' Light - Med Light spinning rod (III,V - Croix or IMX,GLX - Loomis blank) to fish for shallow,swift river smallmouth bass. Please advice this novice on the advantages/disadvantages of building with the aforementioned method, as well as your opinions/experience on the matter.

Thank You,
Rob

Well if you are using a casting reel I'd put the spine 90 degrees to the guides. Most people use a casting motion that puts the wrist in a position where the reel handles face up, and the guides out to the side horizontal. So this would put your spine in the casting plane if it was 90 degrees to the guides.

For most casting power you want to use the stiffest axis of the blank which is neither on nor opposite the spine. It will be along the concave axis of the blank.

Hate to disagree with anyone but the idea that putting the spine on the bottom of the rod gives you the most casting power is just not true. If the stiffest axis was opposite the spine it would be, but it's not there.

That doesn't sound right. If you want the most power in your cast you need the stiffest part of the blank and that won't be the spine or its opposite. I think you will have to set up either for casting/spine or power/stiff axis. I know they vary in relation to each other.

William brings up a good point, most casting rods are cast in a plane that puts the guides at 90 degrees to that plane. So if you want the rod to track well on either the backcast of forward cast, you need the spine at 90 degrees to the guides, one side or the other.

There are really 4 positions to consider - guides on or opposite the spine, and guides on or opposite the stiffest axis. I say this often, but it is too much forgotten - the softest and stiffest axis's are not opposite each other. So it not just a matter of flipping the rod 180 degrees to get one performance characteristic over another.

Personally, I have never put the spine (outside of relaxed curve) on top of any rod. Most times it is on the bottom, or on light casting rods 90 degrees to the guides. On rods where I need max pulling power, I set the rod so that the fish pulls against the stiffest axis. This is usually along the natural bend of the blank, butt and tip pointing "up" and mid section "low". Whether it is concave or convex depends upon how you view it, so I may be confusing people with those terms.

Remember that stability has little or nothing to do with spine location, and everything to do with guide location.

All in all, you have to decide what you desire the most and set the rod up in the way which will give that to you.

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Rob, I would have to agree with Tom (not that that's hard! LOL). You should build it with with the guides on top of the spine (or below if your building spiral wrap), especially for the application your building for. In the light and medium light power you would definately want the spine working for you in the fight. Besides I just don't thing you will "feel" the difference if set up opposite for the cast. In building the the perfect custom rod we want all the advantages we can get - including utilizing the effective spine. BUT I think the effects of spine placement are overrated and most anglers would be hard pressed to tell the difference between two identical rods with one built with guides on spine and guides opposite. As for stability, it makes no difference if your building a spinning rod but definately consider the spiral wrap if your building a caster.

Okay, you guys are making my head hurt.

I just found this site. I've been looking around because I have started building a rod (I only build one once every year or so) and I am trying to decide where to put the guides.

I thought I knew about the spine and where to put the guides in relation to it, but now you have me wondering.

Please tell me what is the difference between the spine and the stiffest axis?

I saw a gizmo called a vertical spine locator advertised. I ended up using one of those things you buy in the hardware store to check the balance of your lawnmower blade. I think I accomplished the same thing. I marked the 'spine' as the outside of the curve when I put pressure on the end of the blank section.

Please excuse me if I'm asking dumb questions.

By the way, I am building a spinning rod for bobber and jig fishing for steelhead here in the northwest.

Thanks,
Bill Peeples

Bill, maybe I can help.

Sometimes it is easier to get back to basics rather than trying to define terms.

Outside bend = stiffest axis = spine = theoretical 'hard' side that resists bending.

Inside bend = weakest axis = theoretical 'soft' side that doesn't resist bending.

The side that gives the most resistance to bending gives you more fish fighting power and you want that side facing the fish. The side that gives the least resistance to bending allows you to make more accurate casts and you want that side facing you.

For a spinning rod, guides go on the outside bend. On a casting rod, the guides go on the inside bend. This keeps the side of the blank that resists bending towards the fish all the time.

I try to look at things as simply as possible. That is as simple as it gets.

Thanks Mike, that did help.