Looking at building a casting rod and can�t find good info on rod guides. Can you explain differences and application. Thanks

I can only tell you that Fuji alconite guides are pretty good.

The micro guides give you more sensitivity, but will give you trouble on heavier line. Most will only use it for fluoro and don't erecommend braid....tho I have done it before.

look up Mud Hole. they will help you pick out the right guides.They supply all material for building rods.

In my experience the very small micro guides give you problems. Find a happy medium. Literally tons of variations available

Just like anything in life you pay for what you get. Ring material has come a long way and different quality materials with differing material characteristics obviously have differing price points. All of that can be researched online.

Also placement is a key factor in performance of the guides. Check out the Fuji KR concept. It's more geared toward spinning applications but also is legit on casting rods as well.

I have micro guides on all of my builds and have never had any problems with knots coming through the guides or any other issues. I fish braid to flouro leader exclusively and have no worries. Tie a low profile knot and go to work.

Here is a great resource

http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/forum/22-rod-amp-reel-building-amp-repair/

This is who Derek Grier uses. The guys are correct about getting what you pay for. One of the rods Derek built for me was a drop shot rod. He used the best of the best stuff for it.

I don't know all the specifics but the first & largest guide for the rod was $50 Bucks for that one guide! I think it was made from Unobtanium.....

When he was done he had $350 in materials in it. Plus it probably took him at least 20 hours to build it. How much would you ask for a rod like that?

Unobtanium ? As Dick Enberg would say, OH MY.

Yes they mined it from under the Tree of Souls on Pandora

May have also have been Vibranium. That stuff will even cure illnesses.
I agree though. Don�t skimp on the guides. It will break your heart.

Just exactly how do micro guides give you more sensitivity? I think that is just sales hype. They also say that you get longer casts with micro guides. More sales hype. Neither are true.

LOL Be careful taking something from Pandora. They don't like that much at all. You could get banished from there.

My understanding on micro guides and added sensitivity is this. The are lighter, so they do not dampen the vibrations as much as a heavier guide. This translates to a livelier transmission of vibrations .....and more perceived sensativity. Also, the micros with harder inserts transfer the vibrations from the line to the rod more effectively. SiC guides are pretty hard to beat, however, Torzite tip top inserts are becoming more common. Torzite, currently , is the hardest, lightest guide insert readily available. It is pretty much impervious to the "sawing" of braid and keeps line smoother and lasts the longest. They do cost a LOT more money.

Another benefit of micros is that there are more of them for a given rod length. More guides placed along the rod allow the rod builder to really get all the action the rod has.

Fuji has recently started making carbon fiber guides with various inserts. These, supposedly, are even lighter than micros, allowing for even more transmission of vibrations.

When you load a rod with micro guides the line will touch a lot more of the rod blank since it is so close to it to begin with, thus causing more friction on the line than it does on a rod with standard guides. Added friction could weaken your line sooner.

Rod sensitivity mostly comes from the quality of the materials the rod blank is made out of and that is why a graphite cranking rod will be more sensitive than a glass cranking rod.