unbreakable rods and rod testing
- This topic has 5 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated Oct 8, 2009 at 3:50 am by
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was just thinking about rod breakage and testing rods in development.
is there such a thing as an unbreakable rod and if so is that a good thing? in the hydros thread the response was that the 10 wt helios failed and broke above the butt during testing. shouldnt a rod break at some point during testing? If it didnt what would the test prove. you’re looking for the breaking point of the rod. obviously breaking a rod on a small trout is the not proper so i’ll ask: where should a rod break during testing?Hey Chicky –
First of all, please have a look at the names policy on this board.
Now to your question. I have seen the rod breaking facility at Orvis and we did snap a rod. They do a variety of tests, including a lift-break test and a whipping-back-and-forth break test. Most of the latter apparently break when the ferrule unseats, so there’s something to ponder when stringing up.
It would be theoretically possible to make a rod that would not break under any form of normal use; in fact, it’s been done. The old Shakespeare Wonderrod was a fiberglass mid-1950s model that was advertised with a strongman bending it literally into a circle, tip touching butt. The problem with this design, and you can get a lot more info on this by listening to Jerry Siem’s podcast, is that the materials we use to make fly rods (fiberglass, graphite, and boron, as well as resins, in different proportions), get more brittle as they get faster.
Hey Chicky –
First of all, please have a look at the names policy on this board.
Rob Chicky here
great reply. as i was formulating the question I was thinking of ugly stick and that ad precisely. I was also thinking of fiberglass which I love on my old surf spinners for pencil popping but just cant go there with it in a fly rod, who can these days.
So…is the wall thickness of the graphite in the blank the only difference between a 5 and 10 weight?
graciRob Chicky here
great reply. as i was formulating the question I was thinking of ugly stick and that ad precisely. I was also thinking of fiberglass which I love on my old surf spinners for pencil popping but just cant go there with it in a fly rod, who can these days.
So…is the wall thickness of the graphite in the blank the only difference between a 5 and 10 weight?
graciI believe most heavy duty saltwater boat rods are graphite with a fiberglass reinforcing layer for added strength. they are not made to cast however so like zach said, there is a trade off
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