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PostPosted: Tue Jul 29, 2014 11:49 pm • # 1 
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Here is the Batson 2wt. 6'6" 4pc. It's a sweet little rod from 0' to 40' with a 3wt. line. This rod is right up with the Orvis Superfine Touch 663-4 that I love so much. For the price of this blank, it is highly under priced. It has the physical lightness of graphite, but it handles a 3wt. line akin to glass, with just a slightly faster recovery speed. I really think that graphite is at its best in the lower modulus IM6 area like this rod.

This was one of the custom seats that I worked out with Joel using the Orvis slip rings. I did three turn white tipping on every wrap. The guides are single foot light chrome with a Titanium American Tackle Titan #7 stripping guide.

It's a really fun rod! Pure lightness and tight loops.

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Colt


Last edited by sagebass on Thu Jul 31, 2014 9:58 am, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: Wed Jul 30, 2014 10:51 am • # 2 
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cool looking build.

Les


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 30, 2014 11:27 am • # 3 
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Thanks Les. I had one of these in a 2pc. configuration about three years ago, but I gave it to a friend who was getting into fly fishing. I loved the rod and always knew I would build another one someday. I opted for the 4pc., which based on my recollection is pretty similar to the 2pc. The rod is awesome with a 3wt. line.


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 30, 2014 3:18 pm • # 4 
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I'm building my self a 2 piece right now. Love the little rods in either 4 or 2 piece. They are remarkably versatile. They will handle a 2 or a 3 weight line; also a 4 weight if you are fishing the little brushy creeks. Ever try the little 7'6" 2 piece 3 weight?. They are special also; really good-p-


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 30, 2014 3:38 pm • # 5 
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Pearow,

I really like the 7'6" 3wt. 2pc.! I've built about 3 or 4 of those now. I have a blank in my closet for this winter. For the money, you cannot find a better bluegill rod blank. Same goes for the 6'6" 2/3wt.

I built my brother in law a 7'6" 4wt. 4pc. rod. I was really surprised at how well it cast too.

Colt


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 30, 2014 4:13 pm • # 6 
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Gentlemen,

Are these the rod blanks you all are talking about?

http://rainshadowrodblanks.com/product- ... y-2-piece/

Thanks and Enjoy,

The Gill Guy


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 30, 2014 5:10 pm • # 7 
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The Gill Guy wrote:
Gentlemen,

Are these the rod blanks you all are talking about?

http://rainshadowrodblanks.com/product- ... y-2-piece/

Thanks and Enjoy,

The Gill Guy



Yes. Particularly the 7'6" 3wt. 2pc. That one is really nice. The 6'6" 2wt. is fantastic with a 3wt. line in my opinion. I opted for the 4pc. (the 6'6" 2wt. is offered in a 2pc. and a 4pc.). I've built both and they are very similar. The 7'6" 3wt. is only offered as a 2pc.

If you watch for sales (see Hook and Hackle for example) these blanks can be found for prices ranging from $19 - $30. If you want to do a cheap rod build, go with one of these for sure.

Colt


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 30, 2014 6:27 pm • # 8 
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Colt,

You have my interest up, becuase I'm looking for another rod/rig for fishing the Gills.

viewtopic.php?f=68&t=9622

Your quote has me interested: "For the money, you cannot find a better bluegill rod blank. Same goes for the 6'6" 2/3wt."

And I believe I can build a rod with the help of the forum?

I think I will start to looking for the F662-2 blank!

Thanks again for the info and posting! :applause

The Gill Guy


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 30, 2014 7:44 pm • # 9 
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My personal opinion only, but I think the little 7'6" 2 piece 3 weight is a better brim rod than the 6'6" 2 weight. It has a little softer tip than the 2 weight, lending itself to better roll casting and playing the feisty little gills. But, at the present time I'm building the 2 weight and am out of the 7'6" 3 weights. I just built two 7'9" 3 weights, which are also fine little rods. I'm basically a glass lover but these little graphite rods are so light and delicate; fun to fish-p-


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 30, 2014 8:29 pm • # 10 
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Colt,

Sorry for high jacking your thread...The rod build is awesome and inspiring!

Great Job and Thanks,

The Gill Guy


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 12:00 am • # 11 
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Very nice looking build! I'm a huge fan of the reel seats you do.


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 12:12 am • # 12 
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Gp .. You built the same rod for me about four years ago, a 6'6 Batson RX6 the
Slip rings are gold, that rod as Colt says is right up there with my Orvis superfine touch 603-1 turns over a 2 or 3 weight Line soft and presents a dry on the surface just as natural as can be ......you cannot beat the quality and price of the blank ..

Paul


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 7:07 am • # 13 
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I also apologize sage; we high-jacked a really nice rod presentation. My bad....love the rod-p-


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 9:57 am • # 14 
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No big deal guys, please don't apologize. Thanks for the kind words. Continue on with your discussions. I enjoy it. For the record, I happen to agree with Pearow: the 7'6" 3wt. is probably the better bluegill rod, unless you happen to really like shorter rods. But they are both awesome, and they stand out as being some of the best rods you could find for the money. I think I posted a build I did of the 7'6" 3wt. 2pc. and the total cost was around $75 or so. You could probably go even cheaper if you didn't care about flor grade cork and fancier reel seats.

Gill Guy: I think you could manage to build the rod yourself if you did a little research first. It's not that bad, and you can make most of the tools you need with household items if you want. (i.e. thread tensioner can be a book, rod turner can be a box, and etc.).

I fished this rod this morning (pre-work small stream smallies):

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The rod cast 50' with a #10 bead head leech pattern without issue. 40' casts were possible with a #10 rubber legged popper, but there was no wind. I think the rod would struggle a little with that popper if there was wind. The loops were nice and tight. Roll casting was good to around 25'. The 12" smallie had the rod doubled over. In all, the rod did very well.

Colt


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 1:07 pm • # 15 
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really nice thread; I always enjoy seeing fish caught on rods a fellor made himself. Anyone can build a rod gilley and it doesn't take expensive equipment to do it. My first dozen or so rods were wrapped on a cardboard box with the thread spool in a cup and the thread running through the family bible with a 5 pound weight on top. You can finish the rod with spar varnish or arm-r-seal and you don't need to turn the rod like you would using epoxy. Utmost enterprises is a nice place to get components, including the batson blanks. Ask them for a discount-p-
http://www.utmostenterprises.com/utmost_001.htm


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 1:36 pm • # 16 
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Awesome fish Colt!


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 3:12 pm • # 17 
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Fantastic, Colt!


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 7:36 pm • # 18 
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very nice rod and fishies. Colt , we need to meet up sometime, I get pretty close to you on my costco/bp runs.

I am taking the new boat with the new motor and a thing called blu halo out in am.

Pics of avatar decal on new boat.

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I gave pearow built rainshadow to my best fishing buddy ever. He loved it after years of doing that 5 to 9 wt bassrod nonsense.


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 7:52 pm • # 19 
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Nice rod Colt. I built one of the RX7 6'6" 2wt 2pc a couple of years back. The blank was on sale, and I used the Jann's cigar grip with cork seat and rings and the build came in around $55 if I remember right. These are good rod blanks for the money, and quality control on them is every bit as good as premium blanks, and frankly every Batson blank I've ever bought was straighter then blanks I've paid two to three times more for.

I gave that little 6'6" 2wt to a friend of mine because it was a little faster than I like, and he likes fast rods so I'm sure he has enjoyed it much more than I did. I'm not saying its a bad blank, it's a very good casting rod if you like that action.

My favorite rod these days is the Batson RX6 7'6" 3wt. I call it a poor mans Superfine. I built mine for just under $50 using the same Jann's grip/seat combo.
Having fished this rod for 3 seasons now I have stopped looking for the Holy Grail of UL rods, I just like this model that much. I have another blank coming so that I can build up a much nicer version. I'm building one for Cmound too, he liked mine when he had a chance to fish it.


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PostPosted: Fri Aug 01, 2014 8:23 am • # 20 
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Jeremy,

I agree with you. The 6'6" 2wt. would be pretty fast as a 2wt. rod for sure. I over-line mine with a 3wt. line and it works wonderfully. I suppose some might still consider it fast with a 3wt. line, but I don't. It slows it down and it still performs well out to around 50' which is plenty far for a sub seven foot rod. I would suggest that anyone interested in this rod consider it a 3wt. rod and they will be very happy.

I also agree that the 7'6" 3wt. 2pc. is a killer ultralight rod. A poor man's Superfine is a very good description. It handles a 3wt. line perfectly. Whenever anyone I know wants to get into fly fishing, I suggest this rod, and I suggest they target bluegill with a small spider or popper. It's a rod that you can afford starting out, but really never outgrow. I keep a couple of these blanks on hand as I get them when they are on sale for around $20. I have one that I will be building later this year with some nicer components.

I suppose some might have reservations about the performance of a blank that costs $20-$30, and that's why I am posting this. I've built on a lot of $200-$300 blanks, and these two blanks (the 6'6" 2/3wt. and the 7'6" 3wt.) perform as good (and in some respects better) than the more expensive blanks.

Colt


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