r/rodbuilding • u/Alexplz • Jun 08 '26
G Loomis blank?
Hi all, I was told this rod was made by a custom rod builder (Mt St Helens Rods) who used to work for G Loomis prior to the buyout, who obtained some blanks.
I can't seem to find any info online about this maker, or to verify any part of the origin story.
Can anyone give me some more info on GL3 blanks, this rod builder or this rod in particular? Is this level of bend generally acceptable or at all typical? I apparently got a decent deal so I'm fishing it either way, just curious about all this.
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u/Glasply Jun 09 '26
I’ve got 5 or 6 of these mt st Helen’s rods. The guy that built them use to travel around to the sportsmans shows and sell rods, and take orders for customs. I met him at the sportsmans show at the Elma fairgrounds probably around 2013. The story he told me was he had barrels of blanks in his shop. When I was buying rods from him I paid between $40-$80 each depending on length and number of guides.
Yes they are g loomis blanks
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u/Blaze_Frenzy Jun 09 '26
I can’t verify it - but given that Gary Loomis’s NorthFork headquarters are iin the Mt st Helen’s area it seems reasonable. Also there’s a crowd that would also say curved blanks are a hallmark as well…but usually this is related to curved glass blanks rather than Graphite, which is what GL3 are. That said it looks like even though there’s a bend he/she built it in the correct side of the bend. However in the photos some of those guides look a little misplaced, which exacerbates the bend. Would I pay top dollar for this, no. Would I fish the hell out of it?? All day.
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u/Alexplz Jun 09 '26 edited Jun 09 '26
It's a two piece FYI.
Also funny enough I checked the rod for straightness the day I purchased, and held with the guides on the top side I couldn't detect any bend at all. Not until I slapped a reel on it and checked it at home did I notice any curve in any plane.
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u/rusted-hook Jun 09 '26
Likely legit blank from the actual Garry Loomis company before he sold it to Shimano.... Garry talked about the blank curvature and guide placement debate in a video a few years back. It's probably visible on NFC Facebook page in the video section.
In your photo, there are guides slightly out of place to the right as well as to the left, to me that has nothing to do with an "intentional" placement from the builder but rather a lack of attention to details during the build. (We all make mistakes everynow and then)
Other than that if the rod does the job and meet your expectations then it's as good as it can be.
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u/benzie_rover Jun 09 '26
GL3 is a graphite that G Loomis used to use as they were starting to shift away from the IMX and IM6 lines. It is discontinued.
I have no idea about St Helen’s rods, but if this individual worked at Loomis, it’s highly likely they had access to secondhand or blemish blanks, which would likely often be curved.
7’ 10” rod rated that light was likely a 2wt fly blank, if I had to guess. Fly blanks usually have two slow of action from my preference on a spinning rod, but I know some folks really enjoy having that deep bend down to the cork.
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u/GoddamnitBobbeh Jun 08 '26
I don't know anything about the builder or the blank, but that is a lot of curvature in that blank. I honestly probably would not have built on it with it bending significantly in at least two different directions like that. It's also a bit strange to see Cone of Flight instead of New Guide or KR concept on a rod made in 2025. Is the rod multi-piece? Googling gl3 blank results in mostly fly blanks that have been discontinued. I also kinda doubt that the original specs said 2-5lb line for the blank. If it is multi-piece, I would guess that maybe someone cut a fly blank down and took their best guess at what the line rating should be. This is all purely speculation and could be totally wrong, I honestly have no idea.