|
A fine fishing rod requires proper
care. Following these simple guidelines will give you years of enjoyment
from your investment, and insure that
-
General Maintenance
-
Check the guides occasionally for signs
of wear. Worn guides will cause the line to fray, leading to a broken
line and a lost fish. The easiest way to check for grooving or sharp
edges is to run nylons through the guides (use an old pair guys).
If the nylons catch on the guide, its a sure sign of wear.
-
Storage
-
Store your rods in a soft bag to keep
dust and dirt out of your guides.
-
Keep your poles up and out of the reach
of children and pets. Dogs love to chew on cork, cats play with everything,
and children (bless their hearts) destroy anything even remotely expensive.
-
Travel
-
When traveling, place your rods in a
soft bag with additional padding around the tip, inside a hard case.
Vibration actually damages more rods than a sudden impact. A rod
bag will help to dampen the vibrations, and the hard case makes both a
convenient carrying tool and protection from sudden impacts.
-
Use your hard case and rod bags all
the way to the river, lake, or boat. More than one pole has been
broken or had a guide chipped while thrashing through the underbrush on
the way to "that secret spot." It goes without saying not to use
your rod in the place of a machete.
-
Fishing
-
When joining a rod at the ferrule, begin
with the sections at a 90° angle, and twist while inserting.
This will provide a tight fit and prevent the sections from separating
during a cast.
-
Never wind your lure all the way to
the tip to prevent damage to the top ring.
-
When a lure snags, line the rod up with
the snag and pull directly back on the rod. This places the stress
on the reel, not the rod, and the line will break before your rod.
As much as I like repeat customers, I'm sure you would rather replace a
$5 lure then a $150 rod.
-
Put your rod away in a thunderstorm.
Graphite is an excellent conductor of electricity, and the fish will still
be there later.
-
When salt-water fishing, occasionally
rinse the guides with fresh water to prevent salt from building up and
causing wear.
-
After fishing, rinse the rod with warm
soapy water, rinse, and allow to air dry. Wipe down your rod with
a dust-free tac cloth before placing in storage.
rodmaker@hotmail.com
|
