This is a very specialized rod, not for the weak and inexperienced stand-up fisherman. Bluefin tuna are the strongest fish in the sea and put unbelievable stress on both the tackle and the fisherman. Strength and durability are paramount in the construction of the rod. These rods have been fished off Hatteras in the winter fishing for 300-600# giants and on the Excel off Baja Mexico on giant yellowfin tuna. These steps can be used in building any offshore rod just by varying the blank and guides for your specific requirements.

My first choice for blanks are from Calstar. I would go for either E-glass or Composite. The following models should been considered:

Calstar Composite GF755XXH - 5.5 foot

Calstar E Glass 655XXH - 5.5 foot

These blanks are mounted into an Aftco UB2SC Uni-butt. The blank should be trimmed from the butt so that the overall length of the rod is no more than 5.5 feet when mounted in the uni-butt.

The preferred guides are the Aftco Wind-On roller guides. WO-47 (1),

SHD32 (1) and WO22 (2). An Aftco large roller tip will finish the set. The larger guides allow the knots to pass through when using wind-on leaders.

The foregrip is either EVA or Customgrip2 by Clemens, 14-16 inches. Taper down the front end of the foregrip.

Construction Steps

Trim the blank from the butt to fit the Uni-butt.

Spine the blank and mark its position.

Lightly sand the butt end of the blank. Fit the butt of the blank to the male ferrule of the Uni-butt.

Take a piece of 30-grit sandpaper or a rasp, and roughen up the inside of the male ferrule.

Thoroughly de-grease and clean the inside of the male ferrule.

Glue the male ferrule on to the blank using a good slow-cure paste epoxy like Kardol, U40 Rod Bond or PC-7. Align the horizontal groove in the base of the male ferrule with the spine of the blank. It is easier if you mount the blank into the uni-butt and align the spine. Clean up any excess glue with alcohol and paper towels. Let it dry overnight. Slide on the locking nut onto the male ferrule and tape it in place with masking tape.

Mount your foregrip. Let dry overnight. Space out your guides as follows. The stripper should be approximately 4-5 inches in front of the foregrip. The first #22 guide should be 5 inches from the tip. Space the remaining two guides in increasing intervals toward the stripper. Mark the length of the guide wraps on the blank with a grease pencil.

Wrap on your underwraps with size "A" thread. The length of your underwraps should be approximately ½ inch beyond the ends of the guide feet. Apply color sealant and a thin coat of high-build finish. Let the finish cure for three days before starting your guide wraps.

Taper grind and polish the guide feet. Seal the bare metal with a black magic marker and two coats of color sealant. Let dry 24 hours.

The guides will be double overwrapped. I use size "A" thread. If that is too difficult for you, then use size "D". Apply the first layer of overwrap. Align the guides with the spine of the rod. This is easily done by mounting the tip into the uni-butt and putting on your reel. First, sight down the rod. Run the line through the guides and make sure the guides are straight by looking at the line as it passes from guide to guide. Make any minor adjustments to the guide position. Remove the reel and butt.

Burnish the guide wraps to remove any gaps. Take 2-inch strips of masking tape and mask off each guide roller to prevent finish from getting onto the rollers. Apply a thin coat of finish to the wraps, being careful to work the finish under the guide foot to fill the tunnel. Wick off any excess finish. Let dry 48 hours.

Prepare the roller tip for gluing by roughening up the inside of the tip with a rat-tail file. Clean and degrease the inside of the tip. Glue on the tip with 5-minute epoxy glue and align it with the guides. Let it dry for 30 minutes.

Wrap on the second overwrap. Apply a thin coat of finish as before. Let it dry 24 hours. Inspect each wrap for any bumps or "fuzzies" and carefully cut them off. Apply a coat of finish with a full brush. As the rod is turning brush lengthwise to level the finish. Use an alcohol lamp to gently flame the finish. Let dry 24 hours. Apply a final coat of finish repeating the above steps. Let the finished rod rest for at least a week, preferably longer, to allow the finish to fully cure.

Setting up the Rod and Reel

For strictly fishing giant bluefin tuna, reels to consider are the Penn International 2-speed 70S, 80S; Fin-Nor Ahab 80 2-speed and the Accurate 80.

For large yellowfin, big eye and school bluefin up to 250 lbs a 50 2-speed is a good choice.

These reels are spooled with 200 lb spectra and a top-shot of 100 lb mono.

Have fun getting your arms stretched!
(More from Al Golberg)