I recently noticed something in my ultralight spinning rods , other than what is generally discussed .
That is , handle length .
I took three rods fishing out of my boat yesterday and each one had a different length handle , the distance between the reel and the butt of the handle .
I don’t notice handle length as much while standing on the shore casting and retrieving.
My 6’ Abu Garcia Mass Beat 3 UL rod has the shortest handle butt end and was the one I fished the most .
My 6’ St Croix Avid Panfish UL rod had the longest butt end and the longer butt got in the way while I was fishing .
It would poke me and was in the way while I was retrieving and working my jig .
Why would a manufacturer build an ultralight rod with a long butt end when most ultralight rods are fished handheld .
Maybe they’re trying to balance the rod . That can be accomplished with a heavier reel .
I’ve noticed , the longer the rod , the longer the butt section , so maybe balance is the factor .
I own a B&M TCB rod but don’t fish it much because of its long handle . It measures 11” from the reel to the end of the handle .
The placement of the reel seat changes how a rod blank fishes . It seems to me a longer handle makes a rod fish shorter .
I prefer the short butt section of the Abu Garcia .
And will be looking at handle length on rods I buy in the future .