GT rods and breaking

[Alex Eastvold]

Hi!

I will start my first post by saying Hi! I'm from Norway, and writing this in 15*below zero. Or atleast outside it is... I plan an Andaman trip in February and have just started tackling up for that. I'm mainly a fly fisherman, but after getting a few GT's in Bali and Kingfish in NZ when I lived there I figured I'd have a go at popping as the takes is just awesome. I have bought a Kaibutsu pencil thingy, and a stella 10000 is on the way. Anyway...

I'm looking at buying a decent rod, and I have been looking at Komodo dragon, and Tokara. I am allso interested in Carpenters and maybe riple fisher. There might be newer lighter rods out there doing the same job? In that matter I was wondering if we have any operators on the board that see many of these rods each year and could tell me honestly which make has the least breakages. If you want to send a PM if you are uncomfortable saying it in public that would be great.

I would allso know what the different companies is doing regarding warranties. Does any of them offer lifetime warranties like the high end flyrod companies do? Or is it more like, if you break it by a new one?

[Mark Harris]

Hi!

I will start my first post by saying Hi! I'm from Norway, and writing this in 15*below zero. Or atleast outside it is... I plan an Andaman trip in February and have just started tackling up for that. I'm mainly a fly fisherman, but after getting a few GT's in Bali and Kingfish in NZ when I lived there I figured I'd have a go at popping as the takes is just awesome. I have bought a Kaibutsu pencil thingy, and a stella 10000 is on the way. Anyway...

I'm looking at buying a decent rod, and I have been looking at Komodo dragon, and Tokara. I am allso interested in Carpenters and maybe riple fisher. There might be newer lighter rods out there doing the same job? In that matter I was wondering if we have any operators on the board that see many of these rods each year and could tell me honestly which make has the least breakages. If you want to send a PM if you are uncomfortable saying it in public that would be great.

I would allso know what the different companies is doing regarding warranties. Does any of them offer lifetime warranties like the high end flyrod companies do? Or is it more like, if you break it by a new one?

A lot of questions there Alex.

First, welcome to the addictive and expensive world of buying GT popping gear  .

As you have ordered a Kaibutsu PI and a Stella 10000 I guess you are looking at fishing PE6 and not heavier for now?  Both the Tokara and the Komodo Dragon are heavier rods suited to PE8-10 fishing and a bigger reel such the Stella 18000 or Saltiga Dogfight. Nothing wrong with either of those Smiths - I own a Komodo Dragon and used to have a Tokara as well. I would certainly plump for the former given a chocie. It is a relatively short rod though and does not cast especially well.

Like quite a few folks here, Carpenter and Ripple Fisher are my two brands of choice. If you are looking at a first popping rod in the medium/heavy PE8 category then the Carpenter DJMH83 and Ripple Fisher GT79R would both be great choices.

I don't have much to say on breakages except that with the top Japanese brands the vast majority of rod breakages will be due to operator error rather than a dodgy product.

I do not know of any lifetime warranties in the popping rod world. GT fishing is so extreme, I can't imagine any manufacturer would do this. Others may know differently.

As an aside I see you caught some fish in Bali - great to hear. I live in Bali and would be interested to know when and who you fished with? Just personal curiosity .

[Alex Eastvold]

Thanks Mark!

The plan is to get a no limits 16000 spool for the stella, and my hope was that it would be sufficient to fish with the komodo dragon size rods. PE8-10? If not I have the wrong reel on order . The Kaibutsu PI is ment for lighter work as you pointed out.

The fishing in Bali was a with different local fishermen. I fished in Lovina and got a yellowfin tuna and some dorado, and out of Kuta I fished with another local and got just heeps of Gt. Nothing big though. I guess the biggest fish would be 15 KG. But is was enough to light the fire hehe. At that time I was a student, so paying to go out with the charters was not an option. After that my tropical fishing has been flyfishing for Tarpon and the other typical flyfishing species, but now I want a decent GT;-) Do Tarpon eat poppers I wonder?

I just feel when you pay 1000 dollars+ for a rod, it would be great to have a rod from a company that backed up theire product with a good warranty. But if none of the big brands have it I just have to go with the ones with the best track record I reckon.

[Mark Harris]

Thanks Mark!

The plan is to get a no limits 16000 spool for the stella, and my hope was that it would be sufficient to fish with the komodo dragon size rods. PE8-10? If not I have the wrong reel on order . The Kaibutsu PI is ment for lighter work as you pointed out.

Good move. The No Limits 16000 is a fantastic spool. You could certainly fish PE8 with a Stella 10000 paired with this spool. Don't think you would get enough PE10 onto the spool though, and PE10 would also be over-stretching the capabilities of a 10000 size reel.

As I said before (and this is just a personal opinion), I think a Ripple GT79R or Carpenter DJ83MH would probably make for a better first medium-heavy popping rod than a KD or Tokara. And they would pair nicely with Stella 10000 with No limits 16000 spool. 

[Brandon Khoo]

the quality of the rod is irrelevant if anglers get their rods into bad positions. Cheap rod, good rod - they will all break.

I just feel when you pay 1000 dollars+ for a rod, it would be great to have a rod from a company that backed up theire product with a good warranty. But if none of the big brands have it I just have to go with the ones with the best track record I reckon.

[Aaron Concord]

Alex,

Being a flyfisherman myself, it does seem a tad unusual at first to see no warranty on a popping rod, yet most flyrod companies offer one.

They are, however, 2 complete different segments of the fishing industry and there is a lot more to be frightened of, when fishing and carting a flyrod is concerned: GT rods are pretty robust in comparison.

Stick to the better know brands and if something happens to a rod that is a legitimate warranty claim, you will normally be looked after.

Aaron.

[Alex Eastvold]

Regarding the warranty, I see the difference in the target species, but the rods are to be honest very expensive. It is after all a stick of carbon with some glue on it. We do not pay for the material, but for the design and the time it takes to test the rods, wich is fine. I still don't think it would cost the companies much to have a good warranty exept for the loss in sale when you breake the rod and buy a new one.

Back to the choise of rod. Is it much difference in fighting and casting abilities between the Riple fisher GT79R ant the Carpenter DJ83Mh? The riple fisher is between the komodo dragon and the Carpenter in length by the looks of it.

[Mark Harris]

Back to the choise of rod. Is it much difference in fighting and casting abilities between the Riple fisher GT79R ant the Carpenter DJ83Mh? The riple fisher is between the komodo dragon and the Carpenter in length by the looks of it.

.

It does not necessarily follow that a longer rod will cast better than a shorter rod. Some rods load up certain lure weights better than others, regardless of length.

Both rods you mention are excellent casters but side-by-side with same lures you would get more distance with the 83MH. 

On fighting ability I suspect most folks would assume the the 79R handles bigger fish better. I am not so sure about that as experience says it would be a close run thing. The 83MH has a lot of power down low for such a long rod.

Another factor you should take into account is ease of use on a boat. The 83MH could cause some issues on that front as it is a relatively long GT rod.

On price, I suspect you will find the 79R a bit cheaper than the Carpenter.

As I said before, I do not think you would go wrong with either of these as a Medium/Heavy GT rod.

Others might have different recommendations for you. If you have not already done so, Brandon's excellent guide is a must read: http://www.gtpopping.com/forum/index.php?topic=1374.0