Car Doors, Tailgates, Ceiling Fans, and Walls

[Manifestgtr]

I’ve only broken two rods...both under incredibly stupid circumstances.

 

Years ago...unbeknownst to me, I had loaded an abu vengeance into my car with the tip sticking out a window. Put it up on the highway and *CRUNCH*. That particular incident actually kept me out of the higher end rod market for a few years. I figured the trauma involved would just be too great if it had been an expensive rod. Turns out all you have to do is use rod socks and LOAD THEM WITH CARE

 

The other was a Shimano exage. I hung up on a log and gave it a few jerks...then, for reasons I still don’t fully understand, gave it the full hook set swing and *CRUNCH*. This was even dumber...I have no idea what I was thinking. 
 

But guess what? I don’t swing into logs anymore, I don’t high stick and I load my rods carefully. Haven’t broken one since. I guess these are just lessons you have to learn. Luckily, I learned them while I was still using inexpensive rods. 

[FishTank]

Out of all the rods I have owned over the years, I have broken only a few and mostly by user error.  The most recent was an older G.Loomis CBR rod that I got caught in a car door.  I have broken one with the automatic windows and another got stepped on.   But three have been broken while fishing> St.Croix Triumph, All Star Classic, and a Shimano Crucial.  The Crucial was several years old and had been used frequently, the others were less than a year old. 

 

I think I have seen more rods, out on the water, broken over knees than I have seen broken by fish but it does happen. 

[Maggiesmaster]

Haven’t broken any yet—don’t know why!  1)I carry my rods butt first, like a fly fishermen would. 2) NEVER let my rod tip extend outside of the boat (cost a friend two rods), and 3) made a cheap traveling case from schedule 40 pvc, end caps & sponges.  Then, rods  travel well in truck beds.

[DogBone_384]

On 5/25/2020 at 5:26 PM, Mobasser said:

Have you broken any rods lately?

Over the years I closed my tailgate on one Veritas, and my power windows that go up when I arm my alarm on another.  That's it.

[Columbia Craw]

I've broken more bones than rods.

[Throwafrog]

4 minutes ago, Columbia Craw said:

I've broken more bones than rods.

Doc wanted to put a metal rod in my leg. I said no.... use a st.croix

[king fisher]

        I have broken or seen rods broken every imaginable way.  Here is a partial list.

1. Shipping- Once had a rod I ordered arrive by mail  broken

2. Puppy - I had a lab that destroyed everything.

3. Airplanes- One from a crash, another from a failed air drop

4. Car doors - most common

5. Snags - Very common, don't want to loose the lure, so why not break the rod too.

6. Fish- horsing fish very common.  Once had a client break a fly rod in 6 places, but still landed the fish,

7. Stepped on- More than once

8. Ran over- Car, beaching boat, ATV, even a snow mobile

9. Shot - fools and guns very dangerous

10. Camp fire- Fools and alcohol very dangerous

11. Bears- More than once.  - Don't worry about bears getting your food.  They love rod handles more

12. Porcupines- Don't store rods under a cabin

13. Lifting 5 gallon bucket of water.  - I won that bet, failed attempt to lift a 5 gallon bucket of water from the dock in to the boat. However the FG Knot I tied held

14. Rod defect-  Very rare

15. Stress relief - ( politically correct term for temper tantrum) intentionally hitting rod on side of boat witnessed many times, or one time only I watched a friends dad break a new rod over his knee, while mumbling something about taking kids fishing.

 

Just a few that I thought of right now.  There are many more.

 

[senile1]

I've broken a few over the years though I am pretty OCD about it now.  My wife, for the most part a crappie angler, has been getting into bass fishing with me over the last few years so I bought her three Fenwick HMG rods for that purpose.  They have decent sensitivity but aren't so high-priced that they are a waste if she decides to stop bass fishing.  In the last month she has broken two of those HMGs by catching the tip under a gunnel cleat, so add boat cleats to the list of methods to break a rod.

[JediAmoeba]

I have mostly broken other peoples rods.  I just broke a buddy's this week when I was casting a jig and caught the rod on my backswing...I went to cast heard an awful noise, got a terrible backlash and watched my jig go flying.  I had broken about 6 inches off the tip of his rod.

 

My first phrase wasnt one of apology either - I was completely shocked and said, "why the hell did you put your rod in that rod holder?"

 

I replaced the rod with one of my own when we got back.  Sigh

[Bluebasser86]

Dock post got my last 2, at the same time. Pulled into a covered dock to get out of a pop up thunderstorm that blew over right as I was finishing cleaning some white bass for people I'd been guiding. Forgot about the rods they'd been using that were sticking out the passenger side at an angle, backed out of the dock stall and almost saw my mistake in time, those Lightning Rod Shocks are something else, the Veritas went quick, but the Shock dang near stopped my boat before it snapped.

 

My favorite was when my dad bought his first Ugly Stick, back when the commercial with the guy bending one in a full circle was on TV. He was bragging how you couldn't break them, tried to bend it like the commercial, and promptly broke it.

[Smells like fish]

Back around Christmas a buddy dropped me off a new rod for a present. He dropped it off at my Dads. Of course he didn't make it 10 feet til he slammed the house door on it snapping off 6" of tip. He said he dreaded seeing me that day and threw in his advice to just glue on a new tip lol... Easy come, easy go

[N Florida Mike]

As some of you already know, I broke 3 this year. None for the last 52 years  having rods. I do remember having an old pistol grip bc rod seperate at the reel but it was old and brittle. ( That was the one my wife snagged on the bottom and gave me for fathers day.) I still have the reel.

The 3 this year- One was broke between my office and the first cast- I think it broke when I dropped it in my J boat. Another broke when a fish dove under the boat and the rod hit the boat. The last one was on a hook set- old 3rd string rod anyway .

My middle son lost or broke a lot of my stuff.

My g.daughter broke a rod by shutting a door on the tip.

My mom broke my bream rod by shutting the garage door on it.

My friend broke the rod I caught my PB on , he just grabbed the rod and said “That looks like an ugly stik(while simultaneously bending the rod in an arc) SNAP!!! I didnt have time to tell him it wasnt.

I never said a word - just stared at him with an angry expression. He jumped out and swam to shore until I cooled off... true story. 

 

[The Bassman]

Broke the tip off a Shimano Zodias two summers ago when I laid it down to unhook a fish. Just light tension and the tip broke cleanly at the first guide. Have to believe it was damaged already. I've got four Zodias rods that get used very hard with no problems but I'm always conscious to keep force distributed through the whole length of the rod. That said, I can't count the times I've bumped the ceiling or poked the ground when I'm walking and not paying attention. I've been considering a new Poison Adrena but I know I'm just tempting fate.