crablante
Member
Hey guys and girls,
I'm new to the forum (hello), not new to fishing, and up until last year I've only ever used sand-spikes. They're light and simple but you're also at the mercy of the ground (too soft, too hard, etc) so last year I bought the Shakespeare Salt Beach Rest. I've really enjoyed it and it's very practical but it's a tad heavy compared to the sand-spikes, so this year I bought an Ian Golds rod rest - it's 1kg lighter and the brand seems to be universally loved (at least that's the impression I have).
I definitely don't love it and here's why...
The quality and design of the plastic parts - especially the one encircled in red - are awful. The plastic is soft so bends under load, and the design is poor because the surface area that encapsulates the aluminium V-section is relatively small so it slides under load. The plastic components on the Shakespeare version are so much better - hard plastic and maximum surface area - so no bending or sliding under load. Also, the aluminium that the cups and heads mount to is too thin, so again it bends under load (the Shakespeare aluminium is thicker and hardly bends).
In the end I made a hybrid - Ian Golds tripod married with the Shakespeare plastics, double head, and double cup (see picture). I really like this setup and it's a shame I had to do it because it should be a relatively simple task for Ian Golds to update the components (maybe I'll write to them?).
The reason for this post is not only to vent the issues I had, I also want to hear from your experiences: Do you think I'm talking nonsense? Are their rod rests universally loved? Could it be they used to be good but not any more?
Happy fishing.
I'm new to the forum (hello), not new to fishing, and up until last year I've only ever used sand-spikes. They're light and simple but you're also at the mercy of the ground (too soft, too hard, etc) so last year I bought the Shakespeare Salt Beach Rest. I've really enjoyed it and it's very practical but it's a tad heavy compared to the sand-spikes, so this year I bought an Ian Golds rod rest - it's 1kg lighter and the brand seems to be universally loved (at least that's the impression I have).
I definitely don't love it and here's why...
The quality and design of the plastic parts - especially the one encircled in red - are awful. The plastic is soft so bends under load, and the design is poor because the surface area that encapsulates the aluminium V-section is relatively small so it slides under load. The plastic components on the Shakespeare version are so much better - hard plastic and maximum surface area - so no bending or sliding under load. Also, the aluminium that the cups and heads mount to is too thin, so again it bends under load (the Shakespeare aluminium is thicker and hardly bends).
In the end I made a hybrid - Ian Golds tripod married with the Shakespeare plastics, double head, and double cup (see picture). I really like this setup and it's a shame I had to do it because it should be a relatively simple task for Ian Golds to update the components (maybe I'll write to them?).
The reason for this post is not only to vent the issues I had, I also want to hear from your experiences: Do you think I'm talking nonsense? Are their rod rests universally loved? Could it be they used to be good but not any more?
Happy fishing.
