What makes you cover or not cover your rods?

[swhit140]

I don't cover my rods since my boat is only 14' so I have no storage compartments to put my rods/reels in. I keep them in my Toyota Sequoia on the ride to/from the lake. I do keep reel covers on my reels to keep them clean/protected until I get to the lake.

 

[E-H]

I finally upgraded my gear, and I think it's worth $20 or so for a reel cover and rod sleeve (for a diy pvc tube) for my suv travel and winter storage.

 

I have one for my nicer fly rod (came with it).  Always nice to know that any grime or whatever is kept off it while not using it.

 

 

[MN Fisher]

1 minute ago, swhit140 said:

I have no storage compartments to put my rods/reels.

Ya, storage compartments are non-existent on a canoe. For transport, I strap them in.

Foam under the upper sections as shown, bungee cord across that to hold them down.

Foam on top of the handles, a bungee cord to hold that and the handles in place.

 

Once home, there's a rod-rack hanging from the garage ceiling where I store them between trips.

[FryDog62]

The sleeves are a must if you have rod locker tubes and slide in/out and for travel down the road. The biggest protection opportunity for your equipment though are reel covers whether you have rod lockers or not.  Not only do they protect your reels from clanging together and getting scarred up while traveling in the truck or boat, but if you have your rods out in the open or on the deck of your boat, reel covers keep the line protected from the sun/elements. Line can degrade fast when exposed...  

[NJBasstard]

I don't own a boat so my fishing is done from a kayak or on the bank. Wether they're in a rod rack or I'm transporting them I have sleeves on my rods and covers on my reels. I also use velcro straps to keep them together when transporting in my truck. I do it to hopefully prevent accidental damage to my gear. If I break a rod today I'm not sure I could comfortably go replace it tomorrow.

 

I do the same with my fishing stuff as I do my tools and guitars. I buy the best I can afford and take care of it in hopes that it last me a long time. If something as simple as a $8 reel cover and a $10 rod sleeve can prevent any damage than it's worth that to me.

 

 

[Derek1]

I’m guilty of putting them in sleeves when there new and less and less as time goes by. 

[GReb]

The biggest reason I use them is to keep everything from becoming a tangled mess. The guide protection is also a plus

[InfantryMP]

Same as a lot of others. They all go in the rod socks prior to going in the rod locker for guide protection and an easy smooth way to get them in and out. 

 

They do help with line tangles as well. I think for me it is a cheap protection for my gear. If I have a $350 setup, having a $4.99 rod sock to protect the rod is a no brainer for me. 

 

it just sucks when a hook gets stuck in one...

 

 

[MarkG52]

Like many have said, must have for rod lockers.

[NOC 1]

22 hours ago, huZZah said:

I have never even owned a rod cover. My Granddad that taught me to fish never had them. Fished 60 years. Kept his stuff in his garage. Never even owned a boat so they were always exposed. 
 

Am I missing something?  Or should I even care?  I’m curious what you think currently. I don’t even see them in pro videos much anymore, not that it says much.

Back in the day I didn't cover my $10-20 fiberglass or steel rods either but my bamboo rods always got a padded canvas case. The difference was that the old fiberglass and steel rods were tough as nails and you could beat the snot out them for decades and they'd keep going. The Bamboo rods not so much, they were delicate.

 

Fast forward today, I wouldn't bother covering a $100 IM6 graphite rod, because they are pretty limber and tough, but you can bet that the rods I have that are built of IM8 and higher or Mitsubishi 1100 blanks are always protected. A single nick in the surface of those can result in the rod snapping in two. Now if those rods didn't cost $500 or so, I might not bother with those either.

I can live with ruining an occasional $100 rod, but the loss of a $600 rod is felt deeply and in some cases where that blank is no longer available I might miss it forever. $5 for a rod sleeve seems like cheap insurance.

[Log Catcher]

I use rod covers on all of mine. My boat has one small rod locker that holds maybe 9 setups at most. The rod covers keep them from becoming a tangled mess when you take them out.

[GaryH]

6 hours ago, InfantryMP said:

Same as a lot of others. They all go in the rod socks prior to going in the rod locker for guide protection and an easy smooth way to get them in and out. 

 

They do help with line tangles as well. I think for me it is a cheap protection for my gear. If I have a $350 setup, having a $4.99 rod sock to protect the rod is a no brainer for me. 

 

it just sucks when a hook gets stuck in one...

 

 

Yep. That’s why I switched over to neoprene sleeves. 

[Sir Shamsalot]

I use rod socks to keep the rods from tangling, protection, and quick identification. My cranking rods socks are all orange based. Solid orange for medium. Orange/Grey for MH cranking rods. Spinnerbait rods in red. Topwater in white. Jig rods in Blue (strung with FC ), Green (strung with braid), or Black. Sounds more complicated than it is. Nice thing is that I can tell which rod it is from 40 yards away or just laying on the deck of the boat in milliseconds.

[fishingram24]

My opinion is they are a must if you own a boat and put rods in a rod locker. Sooo much easier to put into and remove from the locker if they are in a rod sleeve and offers some protection to the guides. 

[cheezyridr]

i use them on all my rods, because i worked real hard for the money i spent on them.

i don't have a boat (yet) so when i go fishing, my rods (one piece)  ride along. they go from the trunk through the back seat, all the way to the front seat.  not using sleeves would (for me) be foolish. 

 

9 hours ago, InfantryMP said:

it just sucks when a hook gets stuck in one...

 

 

 

i have an easy fix for that:

buy your sleeves from 6th sense.  they're waaayyyy better than the mesh sleeves, and they resist getting snagged. they also don't catch on the guides like the mesh ones do. 

if you try one, you'll never use anything else.

[InfantryMP]

11 hours ago, cheezyridr said:

i use them on all my rods, because i worked real hard for the money i spent on them.

i don't have a boat (yet) so when i go fishing, my rods (one piece)  ride along. they go from the trunk through the back seat, all the way to the front seat.  not using sleeves would (for me) be foolish. 

 

 

i have an easy fix for that:

buy your sleeves from 6th sense.  they're waaayyyy better than the mesh sleeves, and they resist getting snagged. they also don't catch on the guides like the mesh ones do. 

if you try one, you'll never use anything else.

I will try them out! Thanks for the recommendation 

[cheezyridr]

13 hours ago, InfantryMP said:

I will try them out! Thanks for the recommendation 

 

any time you buy from 6th sense fishing, you can get 10% off by using the discount code jr10.  it's from a youtuber named justin royal.  i watch a bunch of fishing channels, for the same reason you might watch fishing shows on tv, except i don't watch tv.  i learned about the rod covers from his channel. he likes the smell,  but i like the quality of them. you'll see what i mean.

[livemusic]

On 3/3/2021 at 6:37 PM, GaryH said:

Yep. That’s why I switched over to neoprene sleeves. 

 Do you like neoprene better than the mesh? Does it just do better preventing hooks catching? I am needing more rod socks. (EDIT: I see someone kinda answered it above.)

[fishwizzard]

I cover all my rods and reels as there isn’t a compelling reason not to.  A good rod/reel cover is like $5, so 5% to 1.25% of the cost of the gear it’s protecting. 

[Boomstick]

I only use rod covers when I throw a rod inside the hull of my kayak prior to this year.

This year I have a few rods with AGS guides which are a little fragile, so I've been putting them in a rod sock before throwing it in the rod tube in the back of my truck for extra protection.

[WRB]

I have been using braided expando sleeves* for rod cover for decades. The company I worked for manufactured various metal and plastic braid products to cover wire bundles. 

Expando sleeping protects the rod and guides plus prevents the line from tangling with adjacent stored rods.

Most pros use them when they store the rods and take them as needed for use. If you watch closely you see the anglers pull the line away from the rod like a bow string then spin the rod to wrap the line around the guides to prevent tangling on the boat deck. Good habit to develop, wrapping the line and storing rods in sleeves.

Tom

* never thought of marketing expando sleeves for rod protection, solved my problem...missed a opportunity!

 

[Bubba 460]

Well I learned a long time ago that you don't need a $400 rod and a $300 reel to cast good or bring a fish in. Now that's not to say I wouldn't like to have a $400 rod but I'm not paying $400 to get one. Not gonna worry about getting a finger print, ding or a fish scale on it. I buy "decent" rods like the $100 St. Croix Triumph, Diawas ~ rods in the $60 to $125 range. I don't use tubes or socks because don't have a rod locker so they are not needed in that since. If I had a locker I would use them for smoother access.

 

 I have a older jet boat and my rods lay on either side of the boat and they stay on the boat. Rods and reels are just a tool for me to catch fish, I don't care if they get scratched or banged a bit. I either grab a 7/16 or a 3/4 inch wrench (rod) for the job application. I do keep them clean and oiled and once they have served me well, I replace them. I can appreciate other people taking care of their equipment, particularly "$ expensive $" equipment.

[ATA]

I use sleeves for rod and cover for my reels, I even remove the reels and keep them in separate reel bag, so when I put my rods against the wall the reel weight will not put pressure on my rods. Thats about my 9 high end set ups, The rest of combos are cover as well behind my truck 24/7.

[Denny]

I keep my rods in sleeves and my reels covered while they ride in the bed of the truck everywhere with me 24/7, when I get to the lake I take all that off and put them on the boat.  Just makes sense to me to protect my investments, even though I only have a few medium cost setups.  A lot of time TW runs deals when you buy a reel or rod to get a sleeve or cover for free or at least discounted 

[dodgeguy]

I fish from a rowboat without lockers. I use rod socks and Lews reel covers on all my combos. They also protect them when transporting in my car. No bent guides or other damage. For what they cost it's crazy not to use them.