Is it worth it?

[Baseball 'n Bassin]

If you go with the cheapest materials, is building your own rod cheaper than buying one at the store? Also what are some pros and cons for building your own rod?

 

Thanks!

[MickD]

If you go with the cheapest materials you'll most likely get a cheap rod.  That would be bad quality cork, no-name real seats of questionable quality, and blanks probably not consistent with their specs, possibly crooked.  The name brands have survived because they provide and back up good stuff.  I would not purchase from Ebay unless you know the source is good.  A guarantee is only as good as the person or company standing behind it.  And what good is a warranty when you've put many hours of labor and many bucks into tools to make the rod that just broke.  You might have a good warranty, but it still means you have rebuild, probably replacing some parts on your dime.  The best way to avoid this is to go with sources that have a great reputation, and there are a lot of them.  But they may cost you a few bucks.  

 

Rod building is about getting what you want, right down to the minute details.  It is not about saving money, although you can, with good choices, save some money at times.  it's also about having innumerable choices in design, color, components, guides, blanks.  

 

About the only down side to making rods is that it is addictive.  Which in my view is really not a problem.  One can not have too many rods.

[S Hovanec]

I can't bring myself to use cheap components.  Why put forth the effort to build a rod using cheap stuff.  By cheap, I'm not talking about discounted discontinued top quality stuff.  I'm talking about no-name, unknown origin junk 

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

If saving money is the objective rod building is not for you. If you consider your time worth -0- when your learning curve flattens out and you invest in high end components, you can end up with a rod better than off the shelf at a higher price point. 

[S Hovanec]

21 minutes ago, Delaware Valley Tackle said:

If saving money is the objective rod building is not for you.

I never saved any money, but I did acquire a bunch of cool tools and developed an unhealthy obsession.

 

I don't even care what parts cost for my personal rods anymore.  I just build a couple for other people, do a few repairs and order whatever I want! Lol.  

[MickD]

4 minutes ago, S Hovanec said:

unhealthy obsession.

I would call it a healthy obsession.  When I first hold that finished rod in my hand, I get a very good feeling.  Has to be healthy.

[roadwarrior]

1 hour ago, Delaware Valley Tackle said:

If saving money is the objective rod building is not for you. If you consider your time worth -0- when your learning curve flattens out and you invest in high end components, you can end up with a rod better than off the shelf at a higher price point. 

Why would anyone build a "cheap" custom?

 

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

The acceptable terms are “budget friendly” and “financially prudent”. Lol

[Westcoast]

Lots of cheap budget rods available off the shelf. If I’m going to put in the time to build it myself, I’m going to build something quality with quality components. 

[MarkVA]

21 hours ago, MickD said:

If you go with the cheapest materials you'll most likely get a cheap rod.  That would be bad quality cork, no-name real seats of questionable quality, and blanks probably not consistent with their specs, possibly crooked.  The name brands have survived because they provide and back up good stuff.  I would not purchase from Ebay unless you know the source is good.  A guarantee is only as good as the person or company standing behind it.  And what good is a warranty when you've put many hours of labor and many bucks into tools to make the rod that just broke.  You might have a good warranty, but it still means you have rebuild, probably replacing some parts on your dime.  The best way to avoid this is to go with sources that have a great reputation, and there are a lot of them.  But they may cost you a few bucks.  

 

Rod building is about getting what you want, right down to the minute details.  It is not about saving money, although you can, with good choices, save some money at times.  it's also about having innumerable choices in design, color, components, guides, blanks.  

 

About the only down side to making rods is that it is addictive.  Which in my view is really not a problem.  One can not have too many rods.

I would have to agree 100%. Addictive is, in my opinion, an understatement regarding building your own rods! Custom rods are not less costly, but, if you want cheap, why put the effort into building it yourself? By cheap, I mean low quality.

[Fallser]

Saving money was what got me into building my own rods.  A couple of my friends had just brought boats and were getting into shark fishing and trolling inshore and offshore.  I brought a cheap rod and a cheap Penn reel.   They lasted a few trips, but a small mako shark took out the rod.  I priced rods at the big tackle shop in Atlantic City, and the  rods were $300 to $400.  I found a place up in Allentown that sold rod building components.  Made the trip up and was able to pick up a quality blank, guides, reel seat/butt for around $175.  You don't have to go top of the line but there are quality components available out there that won't empty your wallet.   I've got two projects waiting for me upstairs.  Rebuilding a spinning rod and stripping the snake guides off a fly rod and replacing them with single foot spinning guides.  I was looking through a couple of catalogs and decided I was going to pay $2 or $3 for a single guide.  They weren't expensive rods to begin with.  So I settle for Fuji SIC guides.   

  Pretty much agree with what else has been said.  There's nothing like catching a fish on a rod you built with a lure, fly or jig you made.  

[Michigander]

I plan to get into rod building once I move to a new house that has room for such things. The limited space I have now is dominated by my other hobbies. My entrance into rod building isn't about saving money but rather spending my money on rods that are exactly what I want. I have yet to find a production rod I am 100% happy with (though I have a couple 95%+ rods) but I believe I could build one. My preferences are not "marketable" enough for a real company to make. 

[BrianMDTX]

Reloading ammunition (after recouping cost of the tooling) saves money over factory fodder. 
 

Handloading ammunition improves accuracy and terminal performance over factory ammo. 
 

I would think one would take the time to build a rod to exactly match the end use the angler is looking for, with upgraded materials and the ability to ensure everything is done 100% correctly and to their specs. 
 

Building fishing rods just to save money just doesn’t sound logical to me.  I doubt the cost is all that much cheaper in the long run. 

[RoLo]

 

It's pretty much like reloading your own rifle cartridges, where saving money offers little incentive.

After the cost of my RCBS reloading press, resizing tool, priming tool and RCBS powder scale,

I'm deep in the red.  You might say, in both cases it's about "Pet Loads"

 

Roger