Old School Refined - Glass Rods For Reaction Baits by Maek Fong

GL A SS R O D S

F O R R EA CT IO N BAITS

Story & photos

old school refined BYMARKFONG

ince the 1940’s, fiberglass rods were the

gold standard for anglers everywhere. This

all changed in 1973 when Fenwick intro-

duced the first graphite fishing rod, the HMG. With the advent of graphite (carbon fiber), the

benefits of this new technology revolutionized fish-

ing rod design. Graphite rods could be made lighter,

more powerful and more sensitive than their fiber-

glass predecessors. As a result, rod manufacturers

and bass fishermen alike became enamored with

graphite and soon fiberglass rods fell out of favor.

This may have been the end of the story; however

astute bass anglers began noticing that they were

losing more fish with their new graphite sticks when

fishing with fast moving treble hooked baits like crank

plugs and topwater lures.

And now, for the back story.

In the mid 1980’s one group of anglers in the Northern California area made this connection. They began buying up all of the old Fenwick glass blanks that they could get their hands on and had them built into custom reaction bait rods. When the supply of these blanks were exhausted, they turned to the Seeker Rod Company to fill the void.

Perhaps no one knows more about the intricacies of fiberglass rod design than does Wade Cunningham. Cunningham has earned the reputation as one of the premier blank designers and rod manufacturers in the world. He joined Fenwick in 1972 and went on to design both glass and graphite blanks for the company. Next, he went on to start Seeker Fishing Rods. Throughout the years, Cunningham