Rods and their colors

[Mobasser]

I used to fish some club tournaments years ago with an older friend, Frank. Frank was a plastic worm fisherman, and very good too. He taught me a lot about fishing. At one point, he ordered a custom rod from a builder in Texas. Since Frank helped coach the local high school team who's colors were black and gold, he had this rod built with a black blank, and gold thread wraps. I was an awesome looking rod. Does rod color matter to you? I've noticed a trend over the last several years of rods in lime green, white, orange, and shades of blue. Even though all will catch fish, I still like traditional looking rods, with understated graphics. And if given a choice, I'll go with a nice cork handle when possible. If you were to have a rod made, what would you pick for blank color, guide wrap color etc? I'd go with black blank, dark red wraps and the best cork I could get. Maybe it doesn't matter to you, any color would work.Any thoughts, or does it matter?

[MickD]

While looks are important to me, more important is that the rod be what I want it to be.  I'm not big for the flash, either, preferring a more traditional, classy, look.  For beauty, it's hard to beat the Quickline blank series from Pac Bay, a smooth, glossy black finish.  It will go with any wrap colors.  Black wraps with fine gold or silver metallic trim is really classy.

 

After that the charcoals (natural graphite) are very nice, again very versatile for wrap colors.  In gloss with no paint the beautiful color of the graphite weave is seen and is very attractive to me.

 

I do prefer glossy blanks, but glossy does mean that an extra coat of finish is required to get that gloss, and while the weight of it is minimal, if you want the most sensitive rod, then matte finish with the lightest guides that will do the job is the way to go.  

 

White is very popular now, but has the disadvantage of showing any discoloration of epoxy due to sun exposure.   Like at the end of wraps or decal areas where the blank shows through the design.  Or over signatures.  

 

To see some very capable blanks in all kinds of colors check out Rodgeeks.com.

 

 

[CroakHunter]

I have a few glossy, matte, and white blanks. The white looks nice until the middle of the first season, then like mentioned above you start to show yellowing. I also love cork handles. Also am fond of Winn grips. 

[Spankey]

I’ve recently got an Abu Revo Winch for the holiday. It is white. If I were to get a Custom built rod for it (highly unlikely) I think I’d go way out on a limb and get a red white and blue rod made up. 

 

I fish with some nice rods but none are custom per my specs. Mix of colors. Majority are cork. EVA foam is not an issue to me. 

 

It will be a bit of a winter project to get the right rod for the Winch. I have two in mind but I have to touch them. I can’t buy a rod sight unseen. 

[Brad Reid]

I have a very strong preference for black rods. White rods remind me of Pat Boone's shoes. Colored rods look toyish to me, or like kid rods.

 

I traded for a really nice St. Croix Inshore rod and its color was sort of aqua-green I guess. As much as I loved the rod, I disliked the color. The same angler I had bought it from called me one day, asked if I would trade it back to him. Jeff took (takes) excellent care of his gear, said he'd trade me a G-Rod graphene trout rod, I think that was the exchange, and I took him up on it.

 

If given a choice, I'd always choose black. Did so recently with two Reign rods from St. Croix where I could have chosen either black or gray. Yep! Black again.

 

Cheers!  Brad

 

[A-Jay]

Never really did like 'Carrot Sticks' orange blanks and white wands don't do it for me either.

The Yellow numbers offer by Skeet Reese by & large, make me a little nauseas. 

That said, I'm currently fishing St Croix's, some blue & some black, plus some Red & some dark brown Quantum's, a few dark green Fenwicks, and silver Diawa's.  There's some older rods mixed in as well sporting various versions of a matted or gloss black.

So for me, I guess it matters - 

What I may never get used to is the colored reels I've been seeing - Neon Green - Really ?

A-Jay

 

[Way north bass guy]

Most of my rods are some sort of black or dark coloured, I have a couple white rods though and like em just fine. For me, I don’t care, the best colour rod is bent!

[FishTank]

I have always fished dark colored rods, either black or gray.  The only color that is a definite "No" is white.  It was considered bad luck growing up to have a white rod on the water.  A lot of the old school fisherman I grew up with were superstitious and a white rod, to them, could change good day into a bad day. 

[LonnieP]

I like black or dark gray blanks, although I do like the looks of the purple of my Mojo Bass. I would never buy a white,silver or yellow rod. 

[KDW96]

All of mine are black or grey. I dont need the attention.

[Hook2Jaw]

I prefer blacks rods with chrome, white, or gold accents.  I like plain jane colors.

 

If my Daiwa Fuego casters weren't such an amazing deal I would have never bought them because they have that tacky red "FUEGO" on the top of them.  It matches nothing.  I don't like it.

 

I prefer my entire life to look like a black and white TV.

[MickD]

1 hour ago, CroakHunter said:

he white looks nice until the middle of the first season, then like mentioned above you start to show yellowing.

The yellowing usually takes a lot longer to develop than what you mention, based on my experience.  I'll bet the white rod you mention was a cheap rod?  Maybe the manufacturer used inferior epoxy.  Some of the products available to custom builders are pretty good for quite a while.  But I wouldn't leave any rods, especially white, exposed to sun any more than that required to fish them.

[Dens228]

Most of my rods are about the same color. I wish they were a different color because when I'm in the kayak throughout the day and am reaching behind me to grab a different rod they get placed in different holders than I started at.  It would be easier for me if I knew to grab the white one, or the green one, or the black one............other than that I don't care......

[junyer357]

I prefer the more traditional graphite color with cork, but i do own some blue ethos rods from acadamy, and a grey enigma. Overall the performance matrers most to me still, so if anyone bought me some pink lady avids, i would fish them. 

I do fish witha former bama player who wont allow any orange in his boat, period.  No carrot stix back when they were the hottest thing, said they were good rods but no orange. He even made me remove my orange rod glove before he let me put my rods in his  boat. 

[Bluebasser86]

I prefer plain black, but very few of my rods are plain black so I guess color matters little to me. I have a lot of light blue, some orange, some dark red, dark blue, along with the black. They'd all have EVA foam if it was my choice but it's not so a lot of them have cork.

[drew4779]

I go with function over form.  Sure there are colors (black) I prefer over others, but my gear doesn't have to match if it performs.  My favorite rod I own is white.  I wish it were black but it feels better in my hand than the others. 

[YaknBassn]

I like my gear to match up in color.  Most of my rods are matte black with red trim (Ark Invoker & Shimano Zodias).  My reels match. 

 

I struggle in finding reels to match with these new Dobyns Fury and Colt rods I've got.  I refuse to buy those gaudy Lews reels.  

[MN Fisher]

While I don't care one whit whether the rods are the same color, they just happen to have ended up that way.

 

All are black in the main, but the old Berkley Enforcer for my Cardinal has some red and blue decorative piping near the reel seat and the Ambassadeur rod for my Ambassadeur reel has some red near the reel seat.

 

We'll see if the Aird-X I ordered is the same when it comes in - hopefully tomorrow.

 

As long as the rod functions, I really don't care what color it is...except hot pink...I wouldn't use a rod that color.

[Scott F]

Several years ago, when Quantum Energy spinning reels had that titanium/ rainbow finish, I had a custom rod made that had the guides, reel seat and thread wrap that matched the reel body. the rod was still black.

[Mobasser]

4 hours ago, A-Jay said:

Never really did like 'Carrot Sticks' orange blanks and white wands don't do it for me either.

The Yellow numbers offer by Skeet Reese by & large, make me a little nauseas. 

That said, I'm currently fishing St Croix's, some blue & some black, plus some Red & some dark brown Quantum's, a few dark green Fenwicks, and silver Diawa's.  There's some older rods mixed in as well sporting various versions of a matted or gloss black.

So for me, I guess it matters - 

What I may never get used to is the colored reels I've been seeing - Neon Green - Really ?

A-Jay

 

Agree! I don't need a "bling" reel either.

[Dens228]

1 minute ago, Mobasser said:

Agree! I don't need a "bling" reel either.

I glue little rhinestone's on all my reels........lol

[Mobasser]

I work with a guy who says it doesn't matter what color his rods are. Green, orange, yellow, red- to him all are fine. Funny thing is all his rods are charcoal grey

[NorthernBasser]

I prefer black rods I guess. Most of mine are black, minus a Croix Mojo, a Fenwick Elite Tech and a Cabela's Tourney ZX (which is black and white).

 

Those bright green rods by that company we can't talk about is one of the most hideous-looking things I've ever seen. 

[CroakHunter]

4 hours ago, MickD said:

The yellowing usually takes a lot longer to develop than what you mention, based on my experience.  I'll bet the white rod you mention was a cheap rod?  Maybe the manufacturer used inferior epoxy.  Some of the products available to custom builders are pretty good for quite a while.  But I wouldn't leave any rods, especially white, exposed to sun any more than that required to fish them.

Not cheap by my book. $100. 

[A-Jay]

1 hour ago, Dens228 said:

I glue little rhinestone's on all my reels........lol

Way to Go ~ Cowboy !

A-Jay