In today’s Tools of the Trade, we’re going to talk about casting with a spinning outfit and how the size and configuration of the guides on the rod are so important to its performance.
When the line is cast, the loops come off the spool at lightning speed. The job of the first two or three guides is to “choke” or “strip” the coils from the line so it can go cleanly through the smaller running guides to the tip.
The faster the coils are broken down, the smoother and quicker the line is at the tip. The Carrot Stix rods that we’re using, for example, come with the Microwave Guide system. The most innovative part is the choker guide which is really two guides in one. This combination quickly kills 80% of the line’s coils and vibrations.
The rest of the running guides are even smaller, containing the line as it runs with little friction to tip and exits the rod in a controlled cast with greater speed and accuracy.