Kevin Bogan trolling rod.... opinions ?
 

I purchased two Talica 16 II's. One for me and one for my girlfriend. I put a Shimano Terez 7' rod on mine but do not want to put the same on hers so we don't have the exact same rigs plus it would be fun to try other venues just for fun. went looking and found Kevin Bogan in Jersey. From what I read on reviews he was very good and He has been doing it a very long time, however I believe he specializes in Tuna rods and that won't be me. Just Stripers/Blues and the medium size fish for trolling. the only thing that worries me a bit is he said that his rod would have a softer feel to it and I don't think I am looking for that typical fiberglass type feel. I probably would drive down to get an actually hands on prior too purchasing.

Spoke with him on the phone and he strongly suggests eglass vs Graphite. My girlfriend is not very big and I like the graphite because of the light weight and sensitivity but he highly recommends the eglass composition and also dropping to a 6 1/2 foot in length for her. The prices i thought were pretty reasonable.

Has anyone ever purchased or used his rods (Fish poisen) are his name brand.

He seemed to cover everything as far as quality:

20-50 action (he recommended this one for her, not the 30/60)
eglass construction
machined aluminum reel seat & gimble
hypalon - rear bubber (I don't know what Hypalon is ?)
vinyl on top (prefer a softer foam or rubber ?)

He advised that is 20/50# would handle an accidental 50# bluefin with no problem
6 way H.D. hyaloy guides, Aluminum oxide (he said better than terez)
he advised no rollers for that weight of rod and for a few $$ optional multiple color threads, your name and a hologram of any fish.

any other really good trolling rods that anyone thinks I should look at.
I think 300 would be my limit.

thanks

I don't know about others but i like to keep my boat rods simple and cheap. Ugly sticks rule.

Actually I have two Ugly sticks but they have cheaper reels on them without a lot of line capacity and only spooled with 25# mono so we are going to use them in the spring on the upper hudson when the stripers come up as we don't need a lot of line. I am sure they will do the job just fine but for the boat I want to be rigged with stronger line and more line capacity just in case. If I ever lost a nice fish because I was under gunned I would be kicking myself right in the ars all the way back to the boat launch.

Lots of info missing here. Who makes the blank and number and action. US made or China?

Hialoy guides will be fine but not exactly 'higher end' for a custom rod.

It would really be nice to bend the blank before you by.

He is absolutely correct on the eglass composite for a trolling rod vs the graphite......and no rollers required.

I am sure he builds a nice rod. But if I were ordering a custom I'd make sure I know what blank I am buying and go with a Lamiglas, Calstar or Seeker and not some far east POS.

I have never heard of Hialoy guides prior to talking to him but he stated that are superior to the ones on my Shimano Terez that I just bought that are Alconite. I don't know if the Hialoy is the guide brand or the insert ? I will call him and ask a few more questions. I know that Calstar and Seeker are two other



yes I was going to ask who makes the blanks as that is most important. He is a big fan of Calstar but don't know if that is the one he is choosing for me. I have never heard of Hialoy guides prior to speaking to him but he did say that the guides on this rod would be superior to the ones on my new Shimano Terez which are either Aftco or Fugi w/Alconite inserts. And I will definitely visit him personally to check out the rods before placing an order.

I will check with Calstar, Lamiglass and Seeker both before making a decision. By then I should be pretty close to an xpert.

I don't know if it is best to look for a factory built rod off the shelf or have one custom made. I would like to keep it between 2 & 300 if possible. So much to learn, but it is fun. thanks for the tips

You should also talk to Billy40 in Staten Island, Capt Neil on Long Island and Sean M in New London before deciding.

This is just an opinion and take it for what it is:

Try bending different rods and go with the one that you feel most comfortable with. It seems like you are choosing based on a brand name or marketing or what you are being told.

Go hands on and see how you feel about your choices, at the end of the day yourself or your gf will be the ones using the rods.

I recommend speaking with Billy 40.

I was surprised that I didn't find a lot of contact info on Billy 40. I see that he has a rod buidling shop but for the life of me cannot find a phone number. I did find an email address but it was from an older dated net find so not sure if it's still good.

Could not find anything on Sean M in New London and he doesn't reside here as such.

Working on Capt Neil on Long Island as we speak.

thanks for the leads, much appreciated....

The xl rods at yahoo email address for Billy40 is correct. I think he is anti cell phone and the shop phone and home phone are the same. Email him, he's good about getting back to you.
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Capt. Neil Falconer 631-567-8049

Another vote for Calstar. I have a few from the graphiter series that are graphite/ e glass composites. I think the 600 or 700m and 600 or 700 L would match up well with a pair of talica 16's. Charlie at cms down in New Bedford would have the calstars in stock.
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thanks for the call tar vote. I had CMS build my surf casting rod using
A century blank. I think I'll give them a call and talk.
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