CTS fly blank order

[KevinE]

Good stuff Mike, I'm sure you'll love the rods. I'd choose my Affinity One over any other 5wt I have fished with.

[KevinE]

I did not specify a colour but the blank arrived in a very dark green (similar to the colour of an XP). Beautiful finish. I hesitate to say this but the finish is better than Sage imho. Thr blank is not inscribed in any way (unlike Sage) hence my posting on methods of inscription. How do you personalize your customs rods? By hand, computer cut lettering etc?

Hi Neil,
I just did my inscriptions by hand, using a toothpick and some silver craft paint. Looks fairly rustic, but adds to that custom feel in my opinion. Sorry I don't have a better picture.

[Michael]

Hi Mike,what price are these blanks?? You know why i am asking

Hi Nick

They are not on the cheap side of things...the CTS "Affinity One" 5wt, 4pce is US$ 189.00. The 6wt is US$ 203.00
But they are exceptional blanks...plus you have 17 colours to choose from!

Mike

[NeilRowe]

Kevin/Mike

need a recommendation for a blank. I'm thinking of building a travelling rod. 6 piece. Need a rod for primarily river fishing.

How about a 8'6" 6 piece 4wt? Affinity 1


What do you guys think?

If you had to choose one rod size for river fishing for trout what would it be? Exclude giant NZ trout.

Action I like is medium to medium/fast

[Jasper]

Neil, recently I have been using a 4 piece TFO 8'9" 3wt Finesse, and am starting to really enjoy it.

On Sunday I landed a 3lb river rainbow on 6X tippet in not more than 5 minutes - never felt that I needed a heavier rod. The Finesse might however be a bit soft for your preference (it has a nice full action to it)

[Rendier]

Hi Neil,
I just did my inscriptions by hand, using a toothpick and some silver craft paint. Looks fairly rustic, but adds to that custom feel in my opinion. Sorry I don't have a better picture.

Kevin, the rod is dwarfed by a monster trout in the foreground. cant see the insciption

[Michael]

Hi Mike. Do you get a 10' 3wt blank or what would be the closest. Cause I'm fascinated by any DIY related projects and recently started researching the subject. Would love to build my own rod so your tips would help alot and as you say these are awesome blanks, I'm quite keen to give it a go. And how much would they go for roughly?

Howzit

CTS makes blanks from 0wt to 18wt...and from 6' to 12'
So yeah, they certainly make 3wt, 10' rods.

One of the rods I'm bringing in is for a build I'm doing for a guy in Sweden...he wants a 2wt, 10' rod.

Neil...my ideal river rods are as follows:

Smallstreams: 8', 3wt, 4pce. (Medium fast action)
Bigger rivers: 9', 5wt, 4pce. (Medium fast action)

That's me of course...everyone has their own preferences.

Mike

[SweetLou]

Thanx for reply! What would the 3wt 10' blank go for? Cause I can't find specific pricing on their website. I'm really keen!!

[Michael]

Thanx for reply! What would the 3wt 10' blank go for? Cause I can't find specific pricing on their website. I'm really keen!!

Howzit

The 3wt, 10', 4 piece blank in Affinity One range goes for US$ 203.00

Then you must still add about $12.00 Air Post for the shipping.

regards
Mike

[KevinE]

Kevin/Mike

need a recommendation for a blank. I'm thinking of building a travelling rod. 6 piece. Need a rod for primarily river fishing.

How about a 8'6" 6 piece 4wt? Affinity 1


What do you guys think?

If you had to choose one rod size for river fishing for trout what would it be? Exclude giant NZ trout.

Action I like is medium to medium/fast

Neil, CTS rod models are rather confusing and have changed in the last year or so. Here they are ordered (according to my understanding) from fastest to slowest:
1. Revo Salt
2. Affinity X
3. Affinity One
4. Affinity MX (was Maxim)
5. Quantam
6. Quartz (glass/carbon blend)
7. Vintage

The Affinity One has a firmer butt and softer tip than the MX, so should be better for distance casting. The MX is designed for casting shorter distances so is probably better suited for SA streams. Saying that I haven't cast the MX, only its predecessor the Maxim. I would probably choose the MX for weights 4 and under. Not that the One can't cast short, it can - beautifully.

For a 6 piece travel rod to be used in SA and perhaps for general travel abroad I would lean towards an 8 1/2 ft 4wt MX.

I'd be interested to hear your opinions on the MX.