How Do You Break All Those Rods?

[ABU is overpriced]

I broke my first rod (the tip) while un-hooking a shad during the american shad run we had in Spring. The first rod i break in about 15 years. Still haven't recovered because i really liked the d**n rod, and warranty ain't covering it.

[Catt]

I've broken 1 & that was 10-12 years ago. Bank fishing, standing under a cypress tree, could only side arm cast & set hook side arm. Caught a 6# bass about 20' from my feet, calmed her down enough to lip her. Should have grabbed the line instead of using the rod. Told myself, not a good idea, self said hold my beer I got this. Problem was I don't drink & I didn't have this. Did land the bass!

[Eric 26]

I know I’ve shared this one before but way back when I kept seeing the ugly stick ads on tv and in my older brother’s fishing magazines and right in front of him and his buddy I grabbed his brand new I believe Fenwick ultra light and proceeded to place the tip to the handle 😬 I started running before the original 1 piece now 2 piece rod even hit the floor 🤪 Another one was a 2 piece St Croix that I broke about 3 inches off the top putting it in a rod sock, St Croix did me right sending me a new top for the cost of shipping only. And finally I snapped a Denali rod by bending it a bit too hard almost like high sticking it which I’m still kicking myself in the rear for.

[F14A-B]

I’ve broke 1 ever.. it was a heavy action Lews built in 84. Best rod I’ve ever owned ever. I use to throw it in any number of Military transport fliers. I fished it in salwater, brackish water and freshwater. I’ve caught hundreds of lmb in central Florida. It broke in the rod locker of my skeeter rig, the tip of the rod and about 6” down the rod was barren of clear coat from saltwater use. The break was 1 inch..

 

What a rod, she broke in 98. Best d**n rod ever 😂rod was built in South Korea.. 

[Mobasser]

I've broken a St. Croix. 2" of the top broke while reeling in after a cast. If I ever break my old Shimano Clarus, I'll be sad for sure. Solid dependable rod for ten years.

[Fishingmickey]

I've broken a few. I try not to count. Some by stupidity (stepped on or door closed) and some by accident.

FM

[bulldog1935]

I'll add about my dad.  He stepped on rods walking around the boat to find the stringer.  

 

Good thing my idle rods were always in the center console rack.  

 

But it did make it easy at Christmas and birthdays, replacing his short Falcon rods.  

[DaubsNU1]

I remember breaking three tips on rods:

1. Daiwa spinning rod that landed my PB in Missouri back in the 1990's. Broke tip off...don't remember how or where...got a new tip glued on. Rod was never the same...it was a great Slug-Go rod until that break.
2. Cabela's 7' medium light spinning rod. Broke tip and glued on a new one in the early 2000's. That rod remains one of my favorite spinning rods to this day. It was pretty wispy prior to break...now it's just about perfect. 
3. Cabela's 6'6" medium spinning rod. This two piece rod was my "car rod," until breaking six inches off the top. It's done.

I've never had a rod blow up on me from a "magnum opus hook-set"....although I keep trying : )

 

Watched a friend fighting a snag...grabbed his rod about two feet from the tip and started to pull....he snapped that rod before I could get the words out of my mouth. Ugh.

[LCG]

I have broken only one rod. 100% my fault. Fell down a rock cliff, landed on the rod, and then eventually into the river. Not my finest moment

 

Recently had the tip top guide replaced due to a crack in the guide. Unfortunately, they butchered the replacement guide at a local repair shop. 

 

Never had a manufacturer related issue. I take care of my gear during storage and transport, but when I am fishing it's a tool that gets used and abused. 

[papajoe222]

On 12/3/2024 at 5:41 PM, A-Jay said:

I am a fan of St Croix rods.

I own and enjoy fishing several different lines of their sticks. 

However, my experience with the (now discontinued) Tidemaster Inshore Travel casting Rods

a few years back on Lake Baccarac was less than positive.

I think the final count was 6, at least one of which was not even mine. 

All blew up on a seemingly harmless hookset.

Boom. 

St Croix took care of them all and I traded them in for sticks I could use state side. 

A-Jay

I remember you posting about that trip upon your return.  If you came up empty fish wise, it would have really put you off going there again.

Only two in 50+ years. The first was a MH cranking stick. A musky hit my crank on a short line. Broke it in half on the hook-set.  The second was a cranking stick I built. I was attempting to retrieve a snagged crank and the wind blew the boat over the snag and the rod went between the boat and the trolling motor shaft.  Before I could hit the spool release, it was too late.  I literally cried as I put about 30 hours into that custom build.

[A-Jay]

10 minutes ago, papajoe222 said:

I remember you posting about that trip upon your return.  If you came up empty fish wise, it would have really put you off going there again.

What are you smoking ?

I guess you don't remember how many 7's 8's 9's 10's 11' and 12 lb bass we've caught there . . . 

So you're kidding right ?

 

  

 

We even got 6 over 10 lb in one trip !

https://youtu.be/UYTzJHDCdMo?feature=shared

 

A-Jay

[Alex from GA]

I usually break a couple each year usually by backing the boat up in the dock with a rod hanging outside the boat.  I also lose an occasional one by kicking it overboard.

[Diggy]

I broke my DVT custom in panic due to a gator coming after my bass. I high sticked the rod pulling the fish onto the bank....the gator was not even interested looking back at the situation.

[JHoss]

Broke 3 this year alone and 2 more in the last few years.

 

Slammed the butt end of a Lews in the truck door. Wrapped it with braid and epoxy and kept using it for a couple years until I stepped on it mid-rod this year.

 

Had a ML Penn Spinning rod hanging out of the front of my kayak and hit it with the line from a much heavier setup on the cast.

 

Had a fish get hung up in a blowdown. When I stuck the 13 Fishing flipping stick in to get a better angle, he took off at a weird angle and broke it about a foot below the tip.

 

 Accidentally dropped the lid of a rod locker on an Abu frog rod this summer.

 

I take full blame for all but the 13 Fishing. I think that one may have been more of defect than anything. 

[WRB]

I broke 1 bass fishing in my life time.

The rod was a 70’s B.A.S.S.signature  Pistol grip graphite casting. I was trying to keep a big bass out of tulies (cattails reeds) and the rod green stick broke in 3 places. Early graphite rods were too brittle..

Tom

[TimTheGearNerd]

Broken a few in ten years. 
 

first rod was broken standing up in a kayak and the rod got broken by a over hanging tree. 
 

then I found one with tip broken off after pulling out of rod mule
 

another rod had an eye pop out of of guide and got a free replacement rod. 

 

I had a Cheap academy spinning rod break twice on hook set. Same rod back to back. Must have been that rod. 
 

I do have a few megabass. I heard those will explode after a few years. Time will tell

[waymont]

Breaks happen different ways. Jigs flying back on a hookset and hitting the blank, trolling motor in the back seat pinning one, a huge pike eating a chatter bait right at the tip in the water (chomped on the rod itself), doors, unforeseen dings in the blink that have happened.... then a hookset break.

[Darth-Baiter]

usually.  from a hookset that sends the tungsten weight into my rod.  I couldn't make that shot in a million years on purpose, but it has happened twice.  

[Gera]

On 12/3/2024 at 6:00 PM, Tackleholic said:

I keep seeing people with broken rods and even more so I hear people talking about them.  I've not broken any since pre-puberty, and that was from shutting a door on two of them;  (my Dad was so happy about that).  More recently a guide shut the rod locker on the tip of a new Loomis rod, but that's it.  Your answers should make some entertaining reading.

It seems hard to brake them, but alcohol makes the task a lot easier. 

[RB 77]

Some of you guys are pretty lucky to have had so few break over such long fishing careers. I broke one "testing" the parabolic action by hand (high Stick). One by boat flippin' a fish (HS). One by snap casting a Swimbait. One by casting an A-Rig. One by jamming it in my in truck cab. One I have no idea, just noticed it was broken taking it out of the rod sleeve.  Those are just the ones off the top of my head and I try and take care of my gear. I don't feel I'm particularly rough or careless with it. 

[king fisher]

I am sure I will some, but here are a few of the ways I have broken rods that I can think of right now.  

1 car door

2 cabin door

3 stepped on by me

4 stepped on by some one other than me

5 Stepped on by some animal bigger than me

6 chewed on by a bear

7 broken tip trying to walk through thick brush.

8 pulling up to dock with rod tip hanging out

9 some other boat pulling up along side while rod tip is hanging out

10 pulling to hard on a snag,

11 pulling to hard on a big fish

12 hitting rod with back cast from other rod.

13 ran over with some form of vehicle, car ATV etc.

14 burned.

15 broke while casting (manufacturers defect.)

16 chewed on by puppy.

17 boat propeller trying to get line and fish out of boat propeller.

18 airplane door

 

I'm sure there is at least 20 but I can't think of any more right now.  If there is a way to break a rod, I have either witnessed some one do it, or have done it myself.  If it walks, bites, weighs more than 50 pounds or has a door, it can break a fishing rod.

 

 

[Bankbeater]

I've broken three rods in all the years I have been fishing.  My dad's tailgate got the first one, an ultralight spinning rod.  The second one happened when I tried to pull a snag loose, and took hold of the line too close to the rod tip.  That one was a m/f spinning rod.  The third one happened on a small pond.  My feet slid out from under me and I took a tumble down the dam.  When I got back up, I realized that I was only holding half of a ml/f spinning rod.

[Tackleholic]

4 hours ago, king fisher said:

I am sure I will some, but here are a few of the ways I have broken rods that I can think of right now.  

1 car door

2 cabin door

3 stepped on by me

4 stepped on by some one other than me

5 Stepped on by some animal bigger than me

6 chewed on by a bear

7 broken tip trying to walk through thick brush.

8 pulling up to dock with rod tip hanging out

9 some other boat pulling up along side while rod tip is hanging out

10 pulling to hard on a snag,

11 pulling to hard on a big fish

12 hitting rod with back cast from other rod.

13 ran over with some form of vehicle, car ATV etc.

14 burned.

15 broke while casting (manufacturers defect.)

16 chewed on by puppy.

17 boat propeller trying to get line and fish out of boat propeller.

18 airplane door

 

I'm sure there is at least 20 but I can't think of any more right now.  If there is a way to break a rod, I have either witnessed some one do it, or have done it myself.  If it walks, bites, weighs more than 50 pounds or has a door, it can break a fishing rod.

 

 

WOW!  You must be the Champ!

[Maggiesmaster]

Broke one of my favorites by setting the hook too hard on a nice bass—rod was too light for frog fishing; found that out the hard way!