1-Piece rods! Pro's and Con's?

UmpquaSpecial · 12-19-2003, 09:58 PM

Because I enjoy bank fishing just as much as fishing from my drift boat, I've recently decided to switch out several of my 1-piece salmon rods for 2-piece rods. Unfortunately I can't afford to have a bevy of nice boat rods and nice 2-piece rods for bank excursions. The problem I've run into with my 1-piece rods is the inconvenience of fitting 8' rods into my pickup and other friends rigs. Despite liking the slightly more "solid" feel of my one piece rods, after my canopy door swung down and recently shattered my old trusty Loomis back bouncing rod while traveling between fishing holes, I made the decision to switch to 2-piece rods despite the extra length typically associated with them.

I'm curious of folks opinions on any advantages to single piece rods? Why are so many nice 7'9", 8' and 8'2" rods only available in 1-piece? What are the advantages of single piece rods?
Wishing other ifishers a cheerful holiday.
Chris

DAB · 12-19-2003, 10:40 PM

1 PC have no flat spot in them when under stress and are less apt to break in the middle as a 2 pc rod would. The best rod I have is an old Lamiglass ESPIRT 1 pc rod . It will load up and cast better than a rod of the same action that is made in 2 pc's. If you want to carry the 1 pc rods make a rod tube out os PVC pipe , the tailgate on your canopy will not break it when it falls on it.
DAB

ampersat · 12-19-2003, 10:59 PM

All one piece rods will eventually become two piece rods sooner or later.

I've never owned one because of that so I can't comment on how they are superior to two piece rods.

Sliderite · 12-19-2003, 11:20 PM

I have a DB and a 8'(?) canopy for the truck. In my opinion you would be best served by going to the two piece rod. That is all I have used and they do very well. The thought of a rod extended corner to corner in the canopy bed makes me nervous. Too easy for scratches and broken rods.

Use the shorter rods for the boat but you really do need the 8'6" to 10' rods for the bank.

Don't need to get too techinical about flat spots etc... just buy a two piece rod with good tip..period! .02

crabbait · 12-19-2003, 11:33 PM

The up side of one piece rods are the added strength and the continuous bend. Down side is transporting but that can be overcome. I either let them ride in the boat where the length is not an issue (locked storage) or extending through the sliding window of my shortbed truck into the cab. I cushion them from the window ledge with a piece of clothing and have never broken one.

Love my one piece Harringtons for bobber fishing and plunking, 14' Lamiglas sturgeon bank rod, and 7'9" Buzz Ramsey for salmon trolling.

KingFisher85 · 12-20-2003, 12:31 AM

One thing that seems a little better is one piece rods are more sensitive

riverraider · 12-20-2003, 08:49 AM

1 piece rods are generally more sensetive and stronger.
yes, the downside is they can be a little bit of a challenge transporting.
The 2 1-piece rods I own usually are only used in boats (with rod storage available and separated so they don't rub together in the wind driving to the river.)

troybuz · 12-20-2003, 09:03 AM

Food for thought:
I have a two piece Salmon Rod that I use in the boat for "Keeper Sturgeon".
I hooked an oversized this year and during the hour battle the tip section of the two piece rod turned 180 degrees. I was very concern, however, the rod still performed well.
Bottom line, a heavy, hard fighting fish does have the ability to rotate the tip section of a two piece rod. [img]graemlins/idea.gif[/img]

rob allen · 12-20-2003, 09:52 AM

A two piece rod properly designed, properly manufactured and properly used is as strong or stronger that a 1 piece rod and also has as good or better action that a 1 piece rod.

12-20-2003, 06:56 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by rob allen:
A two piece rod properly designed, properly manufactured and properly used is as strong or stronger that a 1 piece rod and also has as good or better action that a 1 piece rod.

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">Explain further? I'm with you Crabbait. :smile:

rob allen · 12-20-2003, 07:30 PM

****** there are a lot of things that contribute to a rods performance and strength.
The material, the taper, the wall thicknesses
these all play a role in how a rod acts and a 2 piece rod can be engineered to feel just like a 1 piece rod through the manipulation of thoes three things.
For instance the company I work for just made a fly rod 8'6" for a 14 weight line it is designed for marlin, swordfish and the like. It would also make a great bobber rod and i would put it against any one piece bobber rod on the market and it is a 4 piece.
For instance the way we tested this rods strength was for me to hokd onto the butt section and my boss would grab the tip. I would lift up as hard as I could and he would pull down as hard as he could. And he was standing about 3 feet lower than me you could not break this rod by flexing it it you tried.
My only point is you can engineer a multi piece rod to be as strong as ANY one piece rod.
That said if you go high sticking it and only allow the top section of the rod to bend of course it's going to break just like a 1 piece rod but thats abusing the rod and is the fault of the angler not the rod blank.

In short ferrules do NOT weaken a rod they strengthen it. When was the last time you saw a rod break through the female end of a ferrule? The male end might break if it's not put together properly but again thats the fault of the angler not the rod blank..

sencetivity is a non-issue as was stated above if you know how to feel a fish bite you will feel it. How did we ever feel the fish bite before graphite came along???

Rakkasan · 12-20-2003, 11:22 PM

I have only owned one 1 piece rod and it was ok. I build rods and I can tell you in my opinion that I have never had a problem, hooking, feeling the bite, or having them break in over 10 years. As far as a one piece being more sensative I think is a bunch of you know what. Either you have a good blank and you know what a fish biting feels like or you don't. If you know what you are feeling then set the hook.

If you think G. Loomis is going to catch more fish because it is a G.Loomis and it costs more, more power to you.

I can tell you that I have stoof next to a G.Loomis in a river with a blank (if interested e-mail me) half the price and put the whoopin on the fish.

You have to know what the bite feels like. Simple as that.

Sorry if I hurt anyones feeling about G.Loomis, but for the money no way. I would go Lamiglas before that, However I found a better blank and I am sticking to them.

Silver Hilton · 12-21-2003, 07:54 PM

I have several one piece boat rods. As far as I can tell, there is no perceptable difference between one piece and two piece rods. A one piece rod should be a bit cheaper, due to lower manufacturing cost. They are certainly a little more difficult to transport and store. I have not had a usage issue that I could identify as being the result of how many pieces that rod contained.

If I was choosing between similar one and two piece blanks/rods, I'd pick the two piece, because it's often nice to be able to break the rod down. However, the backbouncing trolling rods I have are only made in one piece, so one piece I get.

buckfish · 12-21-2003, 11:21 PM

I just have to say that after being in the fishing rod manufacturing industry for over 10 years, multi-piece rods are the way to go. I know lot's of guys that use 2pc. Hot Shot rods for sturgeon angling with great sucess (even on oversize!).
If I could have my choice, all my rods would be minimum 2 if not more pieces.

3527766 · 12-22-2003, 05:49 AM

I own both 1 and 2 piece rods and have struggled with the issue of transportation like everyone else. I personally don't think either one fishes better than the other, but here's a practical consideration that I've found to be important. If you need to ship a rod for any reason (sell it or send it in for repairs), the cost of packaging and shipping is signifcantly more expensive with a 1 piece rod as the major carries consider it "specialty package". Also, I've found the resale value of 2 piece rods to be better because of the much higher number of people that don't have the ability to transport a 1 piece rod. Just my opinion....i could be wrong.

Uglygreen · 12-22-2003, 06:44 AM

7 foot or less I use one piece rods. 7.5 foot or more I use 2 piece. Works for me.

UG

onebadfish · 12-22-2003, 01:03 PM

i'm with crabbait.

just a couple of questions for rob.

how could the way the male end of a 2 piece rod is made be the fault of the angler?

how can a ferrule or two possibly improve the action of a rod?

cosmo · 12-22-2003, 03:00 PM

I like one-piece rods and prefer them over all others. Why? Because I think they're cool. And when it comes down to it, few of us fish as much as we'd like to, so cool, fun, or whatever else is plenty of reason to use whatever will make the outing more enjoyable to you.

rob allen · 12-22-2003, 04:47 PM

one badfish..

what i meant was that the male end of a ferrule is prone to breaking if the tip isn't firmly put onto the butt. if it is loose it causes all the pressure on two spots one inside the female end the other on the male end, because the female is fully reinforced the male end will break. This is the fault of the angler for not properly assembeling the rod before fishing.. breaks like this however are rare because rods are built so well..

having a rod built in more than one piece gives the designer the opportunity change materials or taper from section to section to enhance the action..

Norski · 12-22-2003, 06:38 PM

I have 2 one peace, and 4- 2 peaces rods all lima's and yes it's a pain in the neck to transport but, I find it nice to switch out when out fishing as the conditions change, I have some how busted the tip about 6 inches down from the canopy hitting it, got it fixed, but I like all my rods.
Hat's off to lamiglas.

onebadfish · 12-23-2003, 03:18 AM

so much explaining. so little time. i'm on my way to zih. fish pics and stories later.

Pyramid · 12-23-2003, 05:31 AM

All of my salmon rods are 1 pc. Most of them are 9 ft Harringtons. When I bought my new silverado, I had a slider and a canopy put on it. I open the slider, throw a small piece of that black pipe insulation with the slit in it on the bottom of the opening, and let my rod tips lie on it. Not a problem

One pc rods RULE!!!