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tackle talk
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I handed my lightweight rod and reel combination over to Roy; he pumped out a couple of vicious casts and with little ceremony, handed it back with a comment, “I dunno, doesn’t feel right, not very well balanced or something.” I was a bit crestfallen; it was a quality rod and reel and the two had been designed to go together by Daiwa; there isn’t a range of those reels or the rods. And then I began to doubt my ability to evaluate and describe the relative merits, or otherwise, of fishing tackle. I had long since decided that the rod and reel were real quality and that actually they were a very good match. I also regard Roy as someone who also knows a thing or two, hence my moment of self-doubt.
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I began to review my evaluation of the rod and reel combination and again came to the conclusion it was a well matched, quality combo, only this time I had nailed down the specifics as to why I had decided they were a match. Make no mistake, not every rod and reel combo you pick up at the sports store or tackle shop is well-matched; in fact, some are awful. And that comment about being balanced… I realised that few anglers would know or appreciate what exactly that was about. So here are a few considerations to help you understand what makes a good match between a fishing rod and the reel attached to it.
It is most often the matching of spinning reels and rods that create potential mismatches, but there are some considerations that are important for the best combination of overhead reels and rods as well. When a combination of rod and reel is referred to as “balanced,” it means that the weight and the position of the spinning reel on the rod creates a balancing point just forward of the reel attachment. If the fisher grips the rod and reel with two fingers forward and two fingers behind the reel stem, then ideally the point of balance should be somewhere under those two forward fingers. It’s important from the point of view that if the set up isn’t balanced, then, over time the arm’s effort in forcing the rod tip down or holding it up will create fatigue and strain. It may not be noticeable in the short term, but over longer periods, it will tell on the fisher with repeated casting and retrieving. Casting performance is also affected. The simple balance test should be undertaken with the lure hanging from the rod tip ̶ that is, after all, what your arm is going to have to work with as you cast repeatedly. Simply use your index finger to find the point the rod and reel combo will balance and remain horizontal while resting on your finger. Compare that to the angle of the rod when resting on your finger at the point it would normally wrap around the rod while casting. |
The size of the reel and more specifically its weight will determine the balance point and to a lesser extent, the length of the rod will also have an influence. Apart from varying the weight of the reel, there are other ways of shifting the balance point rearward if a smaller or lighter reel is desirable. Adding weight to the butt of the rod will achieve this. Some rods already come with the ability to add a small lead weight in a cavity under a screw-on butt cap. You could engineer your own system in a favourite rod if you were keen. You may be able to locate and purchase a rod-balancing kit consisting of a butt cap and a variety of weights. If you have a favourite rod or a favourite reel you want to buy a matching partner for, don’t be shy about taking it in to your tackle store and trying it on a variety of rods or reels on offer.
Sometimes a reel just looks ridiculously small (or large) on a particular rod. I’d be surprised if they were balanced, but it is possible. I recall being sent a rod to review which was 8’6” in length with a 2000 size reel on it. Not quite what I’d call a good match. Small, low-profile overhead reels on baitcast setups can be a mismatch for the same reasons that are relevant to spinning reels, even though they are held differently. The balance point should still be somewhere under the forward two fingers. Larger overhead reels used for jigging, livebaiting, straylining and trolling are not so critical because casting is not how the combination is primarily used, and the rods are often held under the armpit in operation. Although sometimes cast, it is more usual to feed line from the spool of larger overhead reels.
Another consideration when matching a spinning reel to a rod is the length of the reel stem. The stem is the part of the reel that is between the reel seat and the body of the reel. If it is too short, you may experience the rotating bale arm clipping your knuckles while you grip the rod. I have come across that before, but not in recent times. Conversely, a longer stem may make it difficult to feather line leaving the spool with a fingertip during casting and to use your finger on the spool lip when casting. The fingertip on the spool lip is the favoured method of pinching the line for competition anglers, and for line control rather than pinching the line beneath the index finger against the rod when casting. If you are patient, you could grow longer fingers, but it could be difficult to reduce the size of your knuckles. Seriously though, you can see that for young anglers and children the reel stem length is a relevant consideration.
An additional consideration for spinning reels involving design is the angle of the axis of the reel as it relates to the reel seat and rod. This is a little hard to visualise, so we’ve included an image to provide the thousand words. What is ideal is if the rotational axis of the spool and bail arm / rotor assembly points directly towards the first line guide. You will notice that first guide is quite large; its purpose is to gather the large loops of line formed as line leaves the spool during a cast. The more aligned the axis of those loops of line and the first line guide are, the less “choking” will occur and casting performance will be maximised. It may not seem like it would make much difference, but it really does. The way to check that the relative angle is acceptable is to remove the spool from your reel and line the spool axle up with a straight edge, then see if the straight edge aligns well with the first line guide. If it doesn’t, your line is being constricted or choked during casting.
The next principle is applicable to all reel types and the rods they are mounted on.
All rods are line-rated and each reel has a maximum drag rating. Matching the two is important but perhaps not as straightforward as you might imagine. The rule of thumb is a rule of thirds. The number you want from your reel is not the maximum drag, but what its “operating” or “strike” drag setting is. That should equate to 1/3 of the rod’s maximum or indicated line rating. For example, if you have set your game reel drag at 8 kg on the strike setting, you would assume that it’s mounted on a 24 kg rod. The reel is of course likely to have a much higher maximum drag capability, but the rule of thirds indicates to you that the rod will have additional capacity to handle the maximum drag setting. Keep in mind that as the spool empties on any style of reel, more force is required to remove line from it at any given drag setting. The idea is to ensure that the rod has additional capacity to handle increasing drag settings and reducing spool capacity.
Another quite universal consideration over all reel types is the ability to store sufficient line to match the task the rod is designed to perform. A casting rod will need to match capacity to casting distance and line likely to be taken by a running fish. A big game rod has no need to accommodate casting, but will need to take into account the hundreds of metres of line a game fish will take during a run. A deep-dropping combo will need to have a reel that is going to hold sufficient line to get baits to the bottom, often hundreds of metres below. A mismatch between line capacity and the primary task of the rod and reel combo will cause frustration. I recall a fellow fisher who discovered his overhead reel only held 320 metres of line when we were targeting hapuka and bluenose on a pin at 355 metres depth. He’d thought he had the ideal combo for the job.
If you’ve ever picked up an 80 wide or 50 wide game reel on a 37 kg rod, your first impression was probably that the whole setup was really heavy and quite cumbersome to hold and to manoeuvre. Not surprising considering that balance and a good match are not really even a consideration. The reel must hold a lot of line and be capable of standing up to blistering runs from large fish and cope with sustained load under quite a lot of drag resistance. The rod and reel is most often “worn” as part of a gimbal and harness arrangement or attached to a game chair. When not used as part of the fight to subdue and land or tag and release a game fish, the combination of rod and reel is part of a relatively complex system of rod holders and other rigging. Quite a different proposition to a lightweight rod and reel that is cast across the flow of a river hundreds of times in a session. A good match isn’t really something many would think about while setting up a set of game rods and reels. The combinations are quite prescriptive and well-proven.
The last part of the whole consideration of matching a reel and rod is purely aesthetic. Are the two a visually pleasing match? That might be as simple as the colour co-ordination of the finish on the rod and reel being complimentary. Or that a carbon cloth weave pattern is reciprocated on both the rod and reel, or that the brand and model are a match. I would love a Van Staal reel to go on my Van Staal popper rod, but I already have a Saltist reel on my Saltist slow jig rod. In the end, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and a well-matched and aesthetically pleasing combination of rod and reel adds to the fishing experience and the satisfaction that can be gained from its use.
Sometimes a reel just looks ridiculously small (or large) on a particular rod. I’d be surprised if they were balanced, but it is possible. I recall being sent a rod to review which was 8’6” in length with a 2000 size reel on it. Not quite what I’d call a good match. Small, low-profile overhead reels on baitcast setups can be a mismatch for the same reasons that are relevant to spinning reels, even though they are held differently. The balance point should still be somewhere under the forward two fingers. Larger overhead reels used for jigging, livebaiting, straylining and trolling are not so critical because casting is not how the combination is primarily used, and the rods are often held under the armpit in operation. Although sometimes cast, it is more usual to feed line from the spool of larger overhead reels.
Another consideration when matching a spinning reel to a rod is the length of the reel stem. The stem is the part of the reel that is between the reel seat and the body of the reel. If it is too short, you may experience the rotating bale arm clipping your knuckles while you grip the rod. I have come across that before, but not in recent times. Conversely, a longer stem may make it difficult to feather line leaving the spool with a fingertip during casting and to use your finger on the spool lip when casting. The fingertip on the spool lip is the favoured method of pinching the line for competition anglers, and for line control rather than pinching the line beneath the index finger against the rod when casting. If you are patient, you could grow longer fingers, but it could be difficult to reduce the size of your knuckles. Seriously though, you can see that for young anglers and children the reel stem length is a relevant consideration.
An additional consideration for spinning reels involving design is the angle of the axis of the reel as it relates to the reel seat and rod. This is a little hard to visualise, so we’ve included an image to provide the thousand words. What is ideal is if the rotational axis of the spool and bail arm / rotor assembly points directly towards the first line guide. You will notice that first guide is quite large; its purpose is to gather the large loops of line formed as line leaves the spool during a cast. The more aligned the axis of those loops of line and the first line guide are, the less “choking” will occur and casting performance will be maximised. It may not seem like it would make much difference, but it really does. The way to check that the relative angle is acceptable is to remove the spool from your reel and line the spool axle up with a straight edge, then see if the straight edge aligns well with the first line guide. If it doesn’t, your line is being constricted or choked during casting.
The next principle is applicable to all reel types and the rods they are mounted on.
All rods are line-rated and each reel has a maximum drag rating. Matching the two is important but perhaps not as straightforward as you might imagine. The rule of thumb is a rule of thirds. The number you want from your reel is not the maximum drag, but what its “operating” or “strike” drag setting is. That should equate to 1/3 of the rod’s maximum or indicated line rating. For example, if you have set your game reel drag at 8 kg on the strike setting, you would assume that it’s mounted on a 24 kg rod. The reel is of course likely to have a much higher maximum drag capability, but the rule of thirds indicates to you that the rod will have additional capacity to handle the maximum drag setting. Keep in mind that as the spool empties on any style of reel, more force is required to remove line from it at any given drag setting. The idea is to ensure that the rod has additional capacity to handle increasing drag settings and reducing spool capacity.
Another quite universal consideration over all reel types is the ability to store sufficient line to match the task the rod is designed to perform. A casting rod will need to match capacity to casting distance and line likely to be taken by a running fish. A big game rod has no need to accommodate casting, but will need to take into account the hundreds of metres of line a game fish will take during a run. A deep-dropping combo will need to have a reel that is going to hold sufficient line to get baits to the bottom, often hundreds of metres below. A mismatch between line capacity and the primary task of the rod and reel combo will cause frustration. I recall a fellow fisher who discovered his overhead reel only held 320 metres of line when we were targeting hapuka and bluenose on a pin at 355 metres depth. He’d thought he had the ideal combo for the job.
If you’ve ever picked up an 80 wide or 50 wide game reel on a 37 kg rod, your first impression was probably that the whole setup was really heavy and quite cumbersome to hold and to manoeuvre. Not surprising considering that balance and a good match are not really even a consideration. The reel must hold a lot of line and be capable of standing up to blistering runs from large fish and cope with sustained load under quite a lot of drag resistance. The rod and reel is most often “worn” as part of a gimbal and harness arrangement or attached to a game chair. When not used as part of the fight to subdue and land or tag and release a game fish, the combination of rod and reel is part of a relatively complex system of rod holders and other rigging. Quite a different proposition to a lightweight rod and reel that is cast across the flow of a river hundreds of times in a session. A good match isn’t really something many would think about while setting up a set of game rods and reels. The combinations are quite prescriptive and well-proven.
The last part of the whole consideration of matching a reel and rod is purely aesthetic. Are the two a visually pleasing match? That might be as simple as the colour co-ordination of the finish on the rod and reel being complimentary. Or that a carbon cloth weave pattern is reciprocated on both the rod and reel, or that the brand and model are a match. I would love a Van Staal reel to go on my Van Staal popper rod, but I already have a Saltist reel on my Saltist slow jig rod. In the end, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and a well-matched and aesthetically pleasing combination of rod and reel adds to the fishing experience and the satisfaction that can be gained from its use.