Is the sabre blank the same blank as the ones used on the Penn Spinfisher big game series? I currently own one of these rods. It's a two piece. The "female" section odf the rod is on the butt end. Is this because it is a factory rod or if I ordered a custom rod would the setup be the same.Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Derek.

The Sabre blanks that most of the guys around the Northeast are talking about are the IGSC IM-6 casting rod series. They are one piece blanks, and come in one 8' model, and 3 9' and 10' models. They used to be maroon in color (Sabre called them "plum"). Now they are black. They are not the same as the Sabres by Penn, which are boat rods, in the West Coast tuna boat style. Pacific Bay now owns Sabre, I think they licensed Penn to use the name on their rods. Sabre blanks used to be built for Pac Bay by Cascade Graphite. Who makes them now is a good question. The newer blanks have lighter tips and faster tapers than the IGSC Sabre models of just a couple of years ago, and are not as good in my opinion. The most popular blank in these parts is the IGSC 1088, a 9' rod rated for 1 to 6 ounces. Figure 1 to 3 oz lures as the true rating for this stick. They make a lighter "7" blank in 9' and 10', as well as a stiffer "9".

Another alternative to the newer style Sabre could be the AllStar 1088 which they make the 9' Breakaway rod on and is rated from 2-4 oz. This blank is a little but not much more than the standard Sabre. I am about to build one on that blank in the next few weeks (depending on when the new house is ready). This blank seems a bit stiffer than the 1088 Sabre, more along the lines of the 1089 Sabre so we'll see... I also picked up an original "Plum" 1088 for a future build. The "Plum" blank is the one #^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^& got his 50 on and he swears by that rod...