Interview with the Raise Fishing team, a great bunch of enthusiasts!
Hi Thomas, you and the other guys in the Raise Fishing team joined the Rodhouse team a few months ago now. Tell me where you got the idea to build your own rods?
Hello everyone, so first let me introduce myself a little. My name is Thomas and I'm the youngest member of the team. We're a team of 4 enthusiasts with Franck, Benoît, Yohann and me.
We've created a website for fun and we make no pretensions about the technicality of our articles, I feel it's important to stress. The primary aim of the site is to make fishing accessible to everyone and to give our opinion, in complete objectivity, on the products we test.
But back to the question. For my part, I discovered rodbuiling at CNPL 2015 and immediately embraced the concept. The following week I started my first rod.
For me, assembling your own rods means being able to create without limits and being able to meet specifications drawn up following our own needs. Everyone's needs are personal and depend on a number of important factors. The way you fish, the way you hold your rod and your body type. Each of my mounted rods is unique, with its own history and a precise objective. The aim is to catch a record fish with the technique for which it was built.
[caption id="attachment_627" align="aligncenter" width="960"]Let's get back to your site. You test a lot of equipment and your articles are always relevant. Just for fun, give me feedback on one of your favorite blanks.
Without any hesitation I'll answer the EFX MB 703 from North Fork Composites. For me the specifications were simple, the objective being to reconcile myself with light fishing. I needed a 4x4 blank, something that could do everything. Ideally capable of fishing from shore and in float tubes, a good caster was a key criterion.
So I opted for this 7' blank with a power rating of 2 - 10 gr. Featuring a fast action, this blank is capable of coping with a good number of situations. Of course, there's no such thing as an all-purpose blank, and it's often said that a blank capable of everything is good for nothing. Of course, this blank won't be perfect in every area. However, thanks to this rod I can go with a whole range of lures and just one blank.
I now take this blank with me on all my fishing trips, especially when the perch are playful. I almost forgot to tell you, this blank is no exception to the NFC firm's rule. You'll have fun with small fish and still have plenty of power in reserve for bigger fish, all things considered of course. To try it is to adopt it...
[caption id="attachment_624" align="aligncenter" width="3024"]You talk to us about light fishing, tell us what's your favorite fishing, what fish do you look for the most?
I don't know if I look for one fish more particularly than others, I adapt my fishing according to the seasons and the activity. I fish for Pike at the beginning of the season, then when the heat arrives I'll favor Asp fishing in the evening. Towards the end of summer, the Perch start to get very active, as do the Pike. Then, as winter sets in, I switch to Zander / Pike-perch fishing. However, my favorite of all these types of fishing is shad fishing for Pike. The technical aspect of this type of fishing lies in the choice of fishing spots and the approach to be taken according to their typology, rather than in the fishing technique itself.
[caption id="attachment_625" align="aligncenter" width="3024"]Which blank did you choose for this technique?
To cast 15 to 20 cm shads I opted for the 809 "Weapon Shad" from North Fork Composites. With a power of 20 - 80 gr and a length of 2m43 it's the ideal tool for this fishery. I've fitted a heel slightly longer than my forearm to maximize my leverage arm without getting in the way when float-tube fishing. Its long length allows me to cast far and therefore increase the efficiency of my power-fishing. The lure's roundness makes it a pleasure to use on smaller fish, but it's also a good match for Catfish. What's more, once again we find the North Fork Composites spirit with a big reserve of power.
[caption id="attachment_626" align="aligncenter" width="3024"]Now let's talk a little about the future, what are you planning to ride?
Always with a view to seeking out Pike I'm thinking of fitting a rod specifically for Drift and lift (to the Divinator not to mention). The key point of the blank, apart from its length, will be to have a nice roundness. The aim is to be able to give strong drifts and lifts and also to have a reserve of power to be able to strike effectively if the bait is hit on the pull. The "fastitude" of the blank should be moderate, as we know that a blank that is too fast will result in too high a stall rate. Mod-fast blanks are to be preferred.
The technical point of the Assembly lies in the balancing, or rather here the unbalancing, of the rod. The aim is to make the butt heavier to reduce physical effort during the Drift and lift. I'm already thinking of using the new butt Alps "Balance System Butt Cap" equipped with inertia blocks to weigh the whole thing down to 48gr if need be.
Find the Raise Fishing team on their blog: https://www.raisefishing.com
Leave a comment
All comments are moderated before being published.
This site is protected by hCaptcha and the hCaptcha Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.