Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => General Discussion => Topic started by: KarateKick on September 07, 2015, 10:39:26 PM
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I just saw a rod with a line weight rating of 4-20 lbs. It seems like a big range of line weights. Does that mean it will work well with either a 4-lb line on a size 20 reel or 20-lb line on a size 40 reel? What other factors determine whether or not a reel is a good match for a rod?
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I've done more reading but I am still confused. The example I m looking at is a Whuppin Stick spinning rod with the following rating:
length = 10'
power = medium
line weight = 4 to 20 lb
Does the "medium" mean I should be using something like a size 30 reel with 10-lb line? Can you really trust the manufacturer's line weight rating?
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--I do not have one of these rods so can only generalize.
--This is a fiberglass rod... the reason there is such a broad range of line weight is that the rod will be limber some will say floppy.
--The medium designation means a smooth bend throughout the rod...yet with enough power to turn a fish when using heavier line.
-- This smooth bend also allows use of light line as the rod is going to bend rather than having your line break.
-- As to size of reel... I would say use a larger reel to help balance the rod... with a small reel the rod is going to feel tip heavy
--The issue you may have is using light line will be the drag on a larger reel. Smooth drag...usually more money...however as this rod has a lot of flex it will help reduce line breakage due to drag not being smooth.
--Generally these fiberbglass rods are work horses and can take a bit of abuse.
--Some will not like the slower action others will love it.
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Thank you so much Skaha! I think I understand now:
- The line weight's lower limit depends on the "action" of the rod; the slower/softer the rod is, the lighter the line can be.
- The line weight's upper limit depends on the "power" of the rod; the heavier/stronger the rod is, the heavier the line can be.
The large range of line weights means a bigger fish will bend the rod a lot but will not break it.
Even though the rod can handle lighter lines, you'd probably use a heavier line, because you need a heavy reel to balance the weight of the rod, and big reels tend to require heavier line.
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Even though the rod can handle lighter lines, you'd probably use a heavier line, because you need a heavy reel to balance the weight of the rod, and big reels tend to require heavier line.
yep
4-20lb means any line weight from 4 pound test to 20 pound test is suitable for the rod.