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1 piece vs. 2 piece rods, does it really matter?

32K views 17 replies 13 participants last post by  FlukeAssasian  
#1 ·
It seems like every time I see a used rod for sale these days the first question asked is "is it one piece?". The seller replies "no, it's 2 pieces" and the buyer says "if it was one piece I'd be all over it". Why? I'd be willing to bet 90% (if not more) of blindfolded people would not be able to tell the difference between fishing both versions.

It's not the 1980's. Rod building as grown in leaps and bounds, there is simply no reason to look down your nose at 2 piece rods any longer.

I do a ton of fly fishing, you'd be hard pressed to fine a 9 foot rod (or any other length) in that industry these days that isn't a 4 piece rod. I'm talking top quality, big dollar rods. If it works fine (and does) in that fishery why this stigma about 2 piece rods in the surf scene?

Yeah, I'm gonna hear all the tech jargon about load pressure & hoop strength, but does it really matter? It's very nominal these days. I'll tell ya what, get the same exact blank, set up the same way. One a 1 piece stick & the other a 2 piece stick. Overload the living snot outta them, (put 50lb pp line & 10 ounces & bait on a set up rated for 30lb pp & 4 ounces & bait). Fish your *** off and see which outfit fails first, pretty soon your one piece WILL be a two piece, way before that two piece becomes a three piece.

The argument just no longer holds any kind of water. If your still looking down your nose at 2 piece rods your just simply not willing to admit the only reason why is because "that's what I like" and there's nothing wrong with that, just admit it. Don't dare start saying you can tell the difference,,,,,,,,,you can't & very, very few people can.
 
#4 ·
#3 ·
All of my surf rods are 2 piece. I mainly toss bait with them so I don't cast repeatedly. I started plugging with a 2 piece rod and it was aggravating. I had a decent TICA 8' rod and no matter how much I tried to keep the pieces aligned, the guides from each of the pieces would have to be adjusted back to straight. The force of casting will cause issues if you really load up the rod. At least this is my experience.
 
#5 ·
we sell ALOT of century rods, they are 2pc, work great and guys love them.
they catch fish and really have no problems if used right,
but
there are still guys that prefer one piece,

with 2 pc rods if not put together right they come apart, or stick together

over the last few weeks I have seen rods fly apart, and have heard stories of rods flying apart, this does not happen with a one piece.


traveling with one piece is tough for some guys.
companys went 2 pc for shipping and manufacturing, it is $$ to ship one piece rods......


the way they are made,when blindfolded, yes most guys wont be able to tell the difference.
but that true with a lot of stuff:D
 
#6 ·
If the rod is going to be over 8 feet then I want it to be 2 piece. I just get clumsy transporting things and I could see myself breaking an 11 ft rod coming in and out of my home.

I think there is a bit of fishing snob in all of us today that has to have the latest and greatest. One piece, 2 piece, 6 piece, fish don't care.
 
#8 ·
the 2 pc rods are really really nice, we still do a lot of 1 pc rods, there are some lamis that the guys "just have to have"..just sold one Friday..

and in the century line, we do 1pc rods with 2pc blanks, they actually sell better than the 2 pc in that model..
but shipping is the problem.

that's why I deliver to shops:D
 
#9 ·
IMHO the only reason to have anything except a 1 pc. rod is for transportation purposes. At the very least the connection is going to thicken the blank for a small portion by say the equivalent of 3X, which common sense will tell you has to impact the overall flex. Can I feel the difference? Yes... in my head. Do I own any 2pc surfrods that I still use? Yes, a Ron Arra that I have been happy with for years. 1pc?, Yes, 2 CTS rods, an 11' Surf and Jetty and a 10'6" Vaportrail (cut down 11') and a no name 1pc glass rod that is about 30 years old.

Then there is the pile of older rods in the corner..... :D
 
#10 ·
The question is do one piece rods catch more fish are they worth the hassle. I do not think they are. The quality of modern 2 piece rods is such that it is not an issue. Cheap rods come apart when casting. I have a 50 year old Mitchell Garcia rod with a brass ferrule connection, that type of two piece rod definitely has a dead spot and loss of performance.
 
#12 ·
How has the fact that a lot of the two piece rods are now 70 / 30 split instead of 50/50 changed peoples minds on two piece rods?. I love my 12 Ft Legend Surf, it is two piece.

GSBB
 
#15 ·
My take is that it's not what is theoretically perfect, but what is out there. And if you restrict yourself to one-piece rods, your options are extremely limited if you want anything longer than 9 feet.

I'll give you one example: a few years ago, I built a heavy-ish conventional rod for throwing Big Wood, stuff like big metal-lipped swimmers and foot-long pikies. I went with a 9-foot blank because I generally prefer shorter rods for plugging, and because I got a good deal on the blank.

After using it a bunch of times, I decided that I wanted to try something longer: these big lures are so heavy and non-aerodynamic that with a shorter rod, it can sometimes be hard to generate enough velocity to get them to go anywhere. I thought that a longer stick might allow me to fish them more effectively.

So I went out and looked, and I found a good 11'6" Rainshadow blank on sale, and nabbed it. I'm putting the finishing touches on it now, and it will be ready for spring. It is, of course, a 2-piece.

If I'd restricted my search to one-piece blanks, I would have had at most a handful of choices: virtually nobody makes one-piece blanks longer than 9 feet anymore, and the long one-piecers you can get, almost all of which are from Lamiglas, do not give you a whole lot of variety in terms of actions, tapers, etc.

Because of this, whether a 1-piece or 2-piece rod/blank is better is largely irrelevant to me: in a perfect world, everything might be one piece, but we live in this world, which is far from perfect, and we have to choose from what's available.

I would much, much rather have a good 2-piece blank than a mediocre one-piece blank, and because of what is available, my rule is 9 feet and shorter, I use 1-piece, and longer I use 2-piece. It's just a lot easier this way, and if your rod is not a piece of crap, and you learn how to seat a ferrule connection properly, you should not have any issues with the pieces coming apart.
 
#16 ·
my 2 piece never flexes all the way down where it connects, and has NEVER come apart in the surf, ive had some of the same old tired cheap surf rods for many many years, I still have a fenwick from the 80's my dad bought me, it can still cast and catch, its like anything else, if you know your equipment and how to use it and take care of it...its all good, don't be so anal go fish and have a good time, god bless
 
#17 ·
Personally I prefer a 1, that doesn't mean I don't use 2pc. I don't believe it that it effects the numbers of fish u catch unless you are realingning the eyes. Most of my rods r Croix's and the 2 PC do well . if your throwing heavy plugs a 2 PC can. My friends that fish suds exclusively use 1pc custom made up to 14 feet. I fish the channel so most of the time I'm using light gear nothing over 7.5. I use 6.5 to 7 90% of the time and have never had any issues with 2 PC. Hope this helps.