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I was in need of a couple of gear rods for walking skein, so I decided to check out the Batson line of blanks.
I ended up deciding on the Batson Rainshadow RX8 XST 1143F blank. It's a 9'6" blank rated for 8-12 pound test.
For guides I followed the guidelines that Batson had on their site.
Those guidelines are here: http://www.rainshadowfishing.com/showthread.php?t=743
For handles I went with burnt burl and rubberized cork, more durable and more grip than natural cork.
I also had one ounce of tungsten putty insterted into the butt of the rod for counter-balance.
After fishing these rods the past weekend, I can say without a doubt, these are the nicest blanks I have ever used, I like them better than any GLX or any other high end rod I have ever used, period. The Alps guides that were suggested by Batson are way better than the Fuji Ti SIC guides I have always used religiously in the past. By far the nicest guides I have ever used.
By having the tungsten counter-balance, I can use 9'6" blanks and have zero tip weight, which means even though they are a foot longer than most guys prefer, I would be willing to bet these would feel lighter in the hand than their 8'6" rods.
I had Steve Clark of Midwest Custom Fly Rods build them, cannot say enough about the quality of work he did, just truly exceptional work for a decent price. The fact he is a Michigan business makes it even better.
Here is a link to some photos of the rods: http://talkflyfishing.com/index.php?showtopic=21750
When it's all said and done, you can pick one of these rods up for about $350.00 including shipping, when you compare that to some of the high end factory rods which these rods in my opinion are much better than, not a bad price.
Long story short, I am just blown away by how nice these Batson blanks are...
I ended up deciding on the Batson Rainshadow RX8 XST 1143F blank. It's a 9'6" blank rated for 8-12 pound test.
For guides I followed the guidelines that Batson had on their site.
Those guidelines are here: http://www.rainshadowfishing.com/showthread.php?t=743
For handles I went with burnt burl and rubberized cork, more durable and more grip than natural cork.
I also had one ounce of tungsten putty insterted into the butt of the rod for counter-balance.
After fishing these rods the past weekend, I can say without a doubt, these are the nicest blanks I have ever used, I like them better than any GLX or any other high end rod I have ever used, period. The Alps guides that were suggested by Batson are way better than the Fuji Ti SIC guides I have always used religiously in the past. By far the nicest guides I have ever used.
By having the tungsten counter-balance, I can use 9'6" blanks and have zero tip weight, which means even though they are a foot longer than most guys prefer, I would be willing to bet these would feel lighter in the hand than their 8'6" rods.
I had Steve Clark of Midwest Custom Fly Rods build them, cannot say enough about the quality of work he did, just truly exceptional work for a decent price. The fact he is a Michigan business makes it even better.
Here is a link to some photos of the rods: http://talkflyfishing.com/index.php?showtopic=21750
When it's all said and done, you can pick one of these rods up for about $350.00 including shipping, when you compare that to some of the high end factory rods which these rods in my opinion are much better than, not a bad price.
Long story short, I am just blown away by how nice these Batson blanks are...
