A Rod for DD Casting Reels

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Paul Roberts
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A Rod for DD Casting Reels

Post by Paul Roberts »

I've been refurbishing direct-drive casting reels to fish with. It's been a fun ride. I didn't want to put them on a modern rod, and the vintage (glass) rods I've found at good prices leave a lot to be desired as fishing tools. So I decided to work up a few of my own. Here's the first:

I used a CTS 7' Med 1/4-5/8oz S-Glass blank, all the way from New Zealand. 8 to 12lb lines are probably appropriate. Finding acceptable handle components was a challenge, I finally cobbled together something that would suffice. The jumping bass on the butt cap is authentic "vintage" being a Hickok cuff link from the 1950's, spray painted nickel silver.

The finished rod is 6'6" and weighs 4.5oz. The action is progressive, which lends itself well to the somewhat high inertia DD reels (compared with modern casting reels). It'll be interesting fishing with a glass rod again; It's been a lot of years. I'm thinking this'll be mostly a treble hook rod. Will be dabbling further with appropriate rods for these reels, likely some graphite blanks too. Will see what I come up with.

Now, what reel to put on it? :)






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john elder
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Re: A Rod for DD Casting Reels

Post by john elder »

Nice job, Paul! Looks like you have a manly grip for a two-handed toss! What is the flex like relative to, say, a Shakespeare Wonderod. I suspect your rod is considerably faster.

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Specializing in saltwater reels...and fly reels...and oh, yeah, kentucky style reels.....and those tiny little RP reels.....oh, heck...i collect fishing reels!...and fly rods....and lures
Paul Roberts
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Re: A Rod for DD Casting Reels

Post by Paul Roberts »

Hi, John. Thanks! The handle is a 7" full wells. The power is Medium (probably 10lb line would be the sweet spot). The taper is definitely progressive. With say 8lb line it would be considered a Moderate action. It gets slower from there, able to bend deeper down the blank with more strain. At the top end, say 12 or maybe 15lb, it would not go full Slow, but getting there. Such is the elastic nature of glass.

I don't know much about Wonderods, beyond some respectable history, although I own 2 of them, recently acquired. What I remember of them from decades past was that they -or the ones I handled- were heavy, clubby, and rubbery; Just what good glass and eventually graphite got away from.

Of the two I have, one is a one-piece 5'3"ft light power (likely lost 3" from the tip). It's one of the white ones with red wraps. My opinion is that it would not be nice to fish with. It's a real wet noodle. Power is definitely light, say 6lb might be the sweet spot, or maybe 8lb if only bc of the rods physical mass. The power distribution is similar to the CTS S-Glass, but again, much less power, heavier, and more rubbery. I have a Langley Lurecast on it and have been using it with a thermometer to take water temperatures at various depths in my pond.

The second Wonderod I have is a brown one, a 6'6"' 2 piece, weighing 5oz. It's a pretty rod and quite different from the white ones I've held. Possibly an earlier model? Interestingly, it's lighter, crisper, and fishable, compared with the white one I have. It came in with a bent ferrule and I'm in process of replacing it.

EDIT: Looking on Ebay I see that this handle type was used for the Wonderod fly/spin combo line, but the seat accepts a casting reel just fine, which is how I'll use it. Now that I've fitted a replacement ferrule I can say it's a Medium-Light power with a Moderate to Mod/Slow action depending on line weight used -probably 6-8lb being the sweet spot.

Last edited by Paul Roberts on Wed Aug 17, 2022 2:13 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Ron Mc
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Re: A Rod for DD Casting Reels

Post by Ron Mc »

good-looking combos Paul.
Paul Roberts
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Re: A Rod for DD Casting Reels

Post by Paul Roberts »

Thanks, Ron. Sadly, nothing like the rods you've collected up, and built, that are my original inspiration for this narrow path I've embarked on. :) But, I'll keep my eyes open for cool components. Work in progress, and fun work at that.
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