mottyman Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 Hi Guys, While I own a few graphite flick sticks I've always wondered what the "IM" means when retailers advertise graphite sticks. I know it has something to do with the blank so I imagine it's got something to do with the composition or graphite type I guess... Also.... what does it mean in terms of performance between the ratings, does an IM6 perform differently to an IM8??? I have no idea what mine are by the way as its not written anywhere on the rods. Just curious Cheers David. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharky Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 Im not 100% sure but from what I remember it has to do with the reson/graphite composion in the blank itself. It doesnt have much to do with the performance of the blank. I beleive it has alot to do with the marketing side of things. What rod are you looking at buying? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flattieman Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 (edited) Ahh... here we go - gotta love Google - saved me from trawling through my magazine collection... "The basic rod is made from either fiberglass or graphite. This material is woven into what looks like sheets of cloth. The finer the weave, the faster the action. The weave is measured in modulus. Fiberglass rods have a modulus of 6 to 13 million and graphite rods are from 33- to 60-million modulus (ie: IM6 has 33,000,000 and IM7 has 42,000,000). A high modulus rod would be stiffer, faster, lighter and more sensitive, but will also be more brittle, much like the difference between Plexiglas and glass. All rod blanks are not created equal. A quality blank will be lightweight and engineered for a specific action. Rod designers spend many hours to achieve the right action." Hope this helps, mate, Flattieman. Edited July 5, 2006 by Flattieman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mottyman Posted July 5, 2006 Author Share Posted July 5, 2006 What rod are you looking at buying? Hi Sharky, Not really looking at present mate, I was just curious. I bought a "graphite" rod of Ebay and although I've caught some really nice fish on it (including my PB Bass and Bream) it's a real "Noodle" and quite heavy. I doubt there's much graphite in it My birthday's coming up and I was thinking of replacing it with something in the squidgy range - something like that for fishing the flats with (7', 2-4kg), plenty good enough for my weekend exploits. Cheers, David. Ahh... here we go - gotta love Google - saved me from trawling through my magazine collection... "The basic rod is made from either fiberglass or graphite. This material is woven into what looks like sheets of cloth. The finer the weave, the faster the action. The weave is measured in modulus. Fiberglass rods have a modulus of 6 to 13 million and graphite rods are from 33- to 60-million modulus (ie: IM6 has 33,000,000 and IM7 has 42,000,000). A high modulus rod would be stiffer, faster, lighter and more sensitive, but will also be more brittle, much like the difference between Plexiglas and glass. All rod blanks are not created equal. A quality blank will be lightweight and engineered for a specific action. Rod designers spend many hours to achieve the right action." Hope this helps, mate, Flattieman. Google!!! Where would we be without it. It's the site of answers. Thanks Flattie, next time I'll just google it to save you the trouble.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flattieman Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 (edited) Thanks Flattie, next time I'll just google it to save you the trouble.... Not a problem. May I say, though, that not everything comes from the magical, mystical Google (I'm sure you know that, of course!) - you need people to contribute. PEOPLE are the true fountains of knowledge. That's what makes these forums so great. Flattieman. Edited July 5, 2006 by Flattieman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Iceman Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 You nearly got it flattieman The weave is constructed by strands or the correct word is toes each toe has so many thousands of fibers The toes are measured in modulus ie the more fibers the higher the modulus The higher the modulus in the woven fabric the stiffer and stronger it is therefore you dont need as many plies(layers of woven cloth) to construct the rod making it lighter it is the shape of the plies layed up on the mandrel which will give you the taper of the rod The woven cloth is preimpregnated with resin Hope this give you a better understanding of how it works Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flattieman Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 You nearly got it flattieman The weave is constructed by strands or the correct word is toes each toe has so many thousands of fibers The toes are measured in modulus ie the more fibers the higher the modulus The higher the modulus in the woven fabric the stiffer and stronger it is therefore you dont need as many plies(layers of woven cloth) to construct the rod making it lighter it is the shape of the plies layed up on the mandrel which will give you the taper of the rod The woven cloth is preimpregnated with resin Hope this give you a better understanding of how it works Very interesting, Iceman. Thanks for that. Have you had experience in making blanks? Flattieman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Iceman Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 No I havent its a very speciallised industry making blanks Ive worked with carbon fiber for the last twenty years in aircraft manufacture Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davester28 Posted July 5, 2006 Share Posted July 5, 2006 Hi Sharky, Not really looking at present mate, I was just curious. I bought a "graphite" rod of Ebay and although I've caught some really nice fish on it (including my PB Bass and Bream) it's a real "Noodle" and quite heavy. I doubt there's much graphite in it My birthday's coming up and I was thinking of replacing it with something in the squidgy range - something like that for fishing the flats with (7', 2-4kg), plenty good enough for my weekend exploits. Cheers, David. Mate, I've used one of the Kandji soft plastic rods and the Shimano Squidgy (7' 2-4kg, 2-12g) and they are chalk and cheese. The Kandji has caught me a few fish, but due to the wet noodle nature of the action, have missed heaps of hookups. The Shimano is great, especially for a sub-$100 rod. The fast action and stiffish (yet light) tip allow me to really rip stickbaits (and twitch Gulp sandworms! ). I would thoroughly recommend them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mottyman Posted July 5, 2006 Author Share Posted July 5, 2006 (edited) Mate, I've used one of the Kandji soft plastic rods and the Shimano Squidgy (7' 2-4kg, 2-12g) and they are chalk and cheese. The Kandji has caught me a few fish, but due to the wet noodle nature of the action, have missed heaps of hookups. The Shimano is great, especially for a sub-$100 rod. The fast action and stiffish (yet light) tip allow me to really rip stickbaits (and twitch Gulp sandworms! ). I would thoroughly recommend them. Yep, I couldn't agree more.... Wet noodle is a perfect description of it. Thanks for the feedback. Cheers David. Edited July 5, 2006 by mottyman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BBM Rick Posted July 6, 2006 Share Posted July 6, 2006 And 'tight' is a great description of a quality tip, just like those found on Rohits Sp Max range of rods. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allen glover Posted July 6, 2006 Share Posted July 6, 2006 (edited) You nearly got it flattieman The weave is constructed by strands or the correct word is toes each toe has so many thousands of fibers The toes are measured in modulus ie the more fibers the higher the modulus The higher the modulus in the woven fabric the stiffer and stronger it is therefore you dont need as many plies(layers of woven cloth) to construct the rod making it lighter it is the shape of the plies layed up on the mandrel which will give you the taper of the rod The woven cloth is preimpregnated with resin Hope this give you a better understanding of how it works Iceman. correct me if Im wrong but isnt it the stretch in the toe ?? The higher the mod the less stretch unidirectionally. As opposed to a property of the sheeting which is usually bidirectional and would be greatly affected by the weave density itself. (Im imagining pulling the ends away from each other on a woven sheet of mat as a test of stretch here) Either way what a high mod simply means in a rods sense is that it returns to a static position quicker. but then nothing with blanks are ever simple.. Resin, wrap and taper have a great affect over the rods overall action. IM rating stands for either Internal modulus or Impregnated Matt (been told both) either way its normally a dud measurement in rod terms. To me any company that uses IM ratings have something to hide and that is the rod is prolly not full graphite. it prolly has a "very thick" glass scrim. You dont need much graphite sheet in a rod to call it "graphite". This is the very reason loomis dumped the IM system to rate their rods content due to every chinese hack company bastardising it in there $50 composite knockouts. All labeled IM something simply cos it has an outer wrap of poor quality chinese graphite sheet. IMHO it has only gotten worse since then. any one ever heard of IM 14, Ive seen it on the label of an $80 special Edited July 6, 2006 by allen glover Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 6, 2006 Share Posted July 6, 2006 Modulus is the measurement of resistance to strain expressed as a ratio. In context of fishing rod design, it describes the stiffness of the fiber used to construct the rod. It does not by itself determine rod stiffness, weight or strength. High modulus materials can be used to make soft rods, and conversely, low modulus material can be designed into making stiff rods. Several other important measurements of rod material to consider include fiber strength, elongation, compression rate, resin content percentage and resin toughness, scrim type and weight. The goal of many rod makers is to optimize these variables, achieve the desired action (combined taper and stiffness), high strength at low weight and reasonable cost. ~ Steve Rajef, G. Loomis Thats what G Loomis said about all that Cheers Stewy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mottyman Posted July 6, 2006 Author Share Posted July 6, 2006 Geez, I'm lost..... This is all a bit too much for my little brain to comprehend. It's a bit like rocket science to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Iceman Posted July 6, 2006 Share Posted July 6, 2006 Allan Im not sure that the stretch is in the toe I would say the stretch is in the weave and the direction it is layed up in ie the weave is at 45 degrees to the mandrel which will stretch as opposed to being layed up at 0/90 degrees I would think that by adding a uni directional tape would stiffen the rod considerably but as I said I know nothing about blank manufacture only aircraft parts I think the quality and type of resin used has a lot to do with it as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allen glover Posted July 7, 2006 Share Posted July 7, 2006 I would think that by adding a uni directional tape would stiffen the rod considerably but as I said I know nothing about blank manufacture only aircraft parts I think the quality and type of resin used has a lot to do with it as well That it does a lot of manufacturers use it pac comps do it in some of there blanks and the old silstar traverse x's are a fine example. G-USA's have 2 which allows them to get away without a scrim . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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