# New take on the DIY sabiki rod?



## Storm27m (Apr 10, 2015)

I can't take credit for the idea but I improved upon what I saw. I used one of the 13ft telescopic crappie rods that Wal-Mart sells for about $10. I took it apart and tossed the smallest section, then extended the bigger three sections. I cut the "tip" end at the point that it looked like it would fit the sabiki rig size that I usually use. I wanted the rod to be 7ft so after cutting the tip end, I measured back 7ft and cut the rest off from the "butt" side. I capped off the butt end with a 3/4" chair leg cap that cost $.50 at the hardware store. It fit perfectly and can be twisted off for cleaning.









I picked a mounting spot for the reel about 16" up from the butt and marked it for reference. I marked another spot about 8" up from that for the "eye" to take the line into the rod. I used a JB Weld epoxy putty stick (any brand is ok). I cut off an inch or two worth, mixed it, and formed the mound for the eye at the spot I marked on the rod. Once the epoxy hardened, I drilled a hole from the flat portion I formed on the reel side down through the epoxy and rod blank at an angle. I cleaned it up a bit with a Dremel tool and chamfered the edges of the whole a little.

















After that I used the epoxy putty again to form the tip. I shaped it the best I could before the epoxy hardened. Once it dried, I cleaned it up and shaped the tip a little better with the Dremel. I made sure to clean all the edges inside the tip so the sabiki could enter cleanly.

















After everything else was done, I attached the reel with two hose clamps and wrapped the butt with some 550 cord. All said, I think I spent about $17 on the rod.

Threading the line through the rod was a little tricky because the line kept catching on the inner lip of the telescoping sections. I ended up using a piece of wire to assist the threading. In hind site, I should have chamfered those edges while I had the rod apart.

After using for a few weeks, I can say that the rod works pretty good. The sabiki hooks do catch on the tip every now and again but if they do, I just let a little slack out and reel back in. A more rounded tip would probably prevent that. The hooks will catch inside once in a while too...but same deal, reel in a bit and then they'll fall right out. The setup casts great but I make sure all the hooks are clear of the tip before I cast.


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## Storm27m (Apr 10, 2015)




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## Storm27m (Apr 10, 2015)




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## NKlamerus (Jan 4, 2016)

Nice!!! Always loved sabiki poles but never end up grabbing them. 

Side note, you can buy 24 packs of Sabikis on Amazon from 14-17$


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## Jason (Oct 2, 2007)

Looks good....I built one out of PVC but never was able to figure out the cup on the end to keep the hooks from hanging... Might have to try molding JB Weld like you did!


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## Sean72 (Mar 31, 2015)

Thermomorph plastic would work too


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## Storm27m (Apr 10, 2015)

The thermomorph plastic was actually my initial idea but I didn't know the durability with the line and hooks coming through it all the time. Plus, the JB Weld was cheaper.


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