dodgeguy

yes they are good.

imho it should balance neutral in the middle of your hand where you hold it when you fish.for me that's right where the reel stem meets the rod.i put 2 fingers on each side of the stem.it is acceptable to use balance weights.i balance all my rods.

mh fast tip.

used it but as it got older it started digging in and backlashing.suggest powerpro or sufix braided lines.

from the trion on up they are great.

both bps extreme and cabela's fish eagle 2 are great rods.imho there is no better rod at that price than either of those.i am partial to the extremes.

leigh and i fished titicus saturday after the hurricane the night before.fishing was slow all day.we fished 11 hours and did manage to boat 19 fish.the best 5 weighed 18-4 so we really made the best of it.all fish except one were caught on wacky rig senkos.leigh was using a 4 inch and i was using a five inch.i also caught a nice one deep on a crankbait.most of the fish were so tight to shore you would think they were trying to get out of the water.leigh had a couple of nice blow ups on a frog but no hookups.i had a nice smallie attack my horny toad 4 times and not get it.we also saw gregg and pete who were also having a slow day but were catching decent fish.here's some pictures.

"I have a couple of anglers from this forum that I build as close to a neutral balance as possible, due to arthritis in the hands or the arms/shoulders...." as i have found with my elbow it makes the difference between fishing and not fishing.

"So what I have found (carrying around my small tape measure to different shops) is a rod with a 10" grip has the reel seat at a certain spot, and a rod with a split grip (with the spacing of a 10" grip, sits in the exact same position. So actually the manufacturer isn't really trying to balance anything (they don't have the time to do so), just trying to reduce the overall weight feel and looks of the rod/s." exactly the point i was trying to make!!!

it depends on how you hold your rod.a guy who holds behind the reel would have a balance point even furthur back than the reel center.some guys palm at the front of the reel and put the line between their fongers.some guys hold the foregrip.both of these would move the balance point foward. i have a bad elbow so i want the rod tip to be weightless.this prevents it from straining my elbow at the end of a cast because the weight doesn't keep it going.i also find my cassts are far more accurate.

Greets all..... Let me clarify some things here. My article is on balancing older rods with full length rear grips and with the poly butt caps on them. I DO NOT use lead to balance any custom builds that I do. I use the reel and seat position, and the use of BURL cork (more density) to help in balancing a rod. My rods don't weigh anymore than 3.5 to 4.5oz finished, you cannot add lead to the rod and achieve this weight. I can also add that the majority of the builds I have done in the last 15+ years have had tip heavy request on them. Ask the tournament anglers that request that balance and it helps with accuracy.. To try and answer the original question "what is the point of rod handle designs like this".. It is less weight in the finished build. If you were to measure the distance from the end of the butt on both rods you would find that the reel seat is located in the same position on both rods. So this takes balance out of the equation, and becomes a weight savings move. You could still balance the rods more to the back of the rod buy adding the balance kit or using a heavier reel. All of this is personal preference in what the anglers feel from the rod/reel combo when held. Hope this helps some.. Tight Lines All!!! that's what i was trying to say.and like you stated some guys like a slightly tip heavy rod.i prefer it to weigh nothing so the added weight at the back of the rod doesn't bother me where as somebody else might hate it.it just a matter of what you prefer.

junk the stealth.all braid makes noise but stealth is junk.it produces more drag then other braids.use power pro or sufix.

i've picked up steez combos and they are very light.at the same time they are tip heavy and i would balance them also.if you use the middle of the reel seat as the balance point then reel weight has no effect on balance because it sits right on top of the balance point.

didn't say that.i said it doesn't help balance like some people think.it looks nice but does nothing for balance.if guys like it then that's fine too but don't think it makes your rod more balanced because that's dead wrong.i would buy one and then balance it. If the heavier tip is a bad thing, than don't you think the manufactures would add some kind a weigh to the butt of the rod? no,because not every one likes a balanced rod with a weight in the butt.some manufacturers give you the option.the high end carrot stick has that option.some cabela's rods have that option as do some bps rods.

didn't say that.i said it doesn't help balance like some people think.it looks nice but does nothing for balance.if guys like it then that's fine too but don't think it makes your rod more balanced because that's dead wrong.i would buy one and then balance it.

every baitcast rod is tip heavy that i have ever picked up even custom rods and g loomis rods not just split grips.i'm not saying it feels like 10 pounds but if you use the center of the reel seat as the balance point (because most guys palm the reel)the rods will always dip to the tip on a balance beam.how much weight is needed varies but they are all tip heavy.removing weight from behind the balance point will make this worse.that's why the fat guy on the see saw prevents the skinny guy from coming down.btw,if you balance to the center of the reel seat the rod balances with any reel.

didn't say you shoudn't think about it.reel mech makes rods and has an article on how he balances them .he adds weight to the butt end he doesn't remove it.these are custom made rods by someone who knows a thing or two about rods and reels.

your arguement makes no sense and goes against the laws of balance.btw,the tv star comment was uncalled for and rude.

2 identical rods 1 with split rear grip and 1 without you will not feel more sensitivity with a split grip.it will be more tip heavy then the 1 with a full grip.

which is a bunch of garbage.it would make it tip heavy which would overide any theoretical increase.sensitivity is affected more by what line you have than the amount of cork on your handle.i do understand some people think it looks nice.

if anything it throws the balance out towards the tip which is a bad thing.

a new president is coming.

i have nothing but pflueger and have no problems.i have had bad bps reels.

buy 2 trion narrow spools with the money you'd spend on a shimbindo and be done with it!!! ;D

pflueger buddies forever!!!ROFLMAO!!!seriously folks,the trions at $99 compete with and outcast reels costing twice as much.