Spiral wrap guide placement

[just4fun]

I see this touted by a lot of custom rod builders as the greatest thing since sliced-bread!! (Spiral wrap guides begin on the top of a baitcaster like normal,..but then spiral down to where the remaining guides are on the bottom of the blank...)
Is there any real advantage to it, or is it just hype?

[TTCal]

It's well documented that with guide placement on top of the rod as with conventional casting rods, there's a natural tendency for your rod to want to turn over so that the guides are on the bottom when under load. This twisting torque can shorten the life expectancy of your blank. Spiral wrapped guides neutralize this effect by bringing the guides back down to the bottom of the blank and letting you use all your, and the rod's energy in fighting the fish.

This is more apparent with large game fish and was reportedly first used in saltwater fishing for these bigger, harder pulling fish.

Another benefit to the spiral wrapped guides is the elimination of the line rubbing against your blank while you're battling a fish. The friction caused by this phenomenon can also shorten the life of your blank.

With these benefits, why don't we see more spiral wrapped guides in production rods? Because it's different, looks funny, and, as a result, the rods don't sell as well.

[creationfish]

I loved the spiral wraps. They just tangled rods BADLY on the deck and in the rod locker!!!
God Bless

Mike

[skeeterboy]

[iowascott]

Isn't this what spinning rigs address?

[Chris_Wade]

Not always, there are situations where a spinning rod just wont cut it. The thing I like most about the spiral wrap is that they seem to be just a hair more sensitive. If you think about it, it makes sence too. Since the line in not loosly laying on the blank, there is less buffering of any feeling being transmitted through the blank.

Yes, they are a little bit of a pain when storing them, but my skeeter keeps the rods all stored in seperate tubes so its not a big deal.