Get Tom Kirkman's Article, Rod Failure

1:11 6:57 4 Tips to STOP BREAKING your Fishing Rods - YouTube YouTube Start of suggested clip End of suggested clip And dinged and mess up this is tip number one very simple very easy and very cost efficient. JustMoreAnd dinged and mess up this is tip number one very simple very easy and very cost efficient. Just grab some of these rod covers. They make them both for casting. And for spinning rods.

Rods rarely just break. Usually there is a ding, scratch or dent in it that creates a weak point that will break under stress. Those come from rough handling.

If your rod breaks at the top, it's probably from a micro fracture, but if it breaks at the bottom, then it was probably overloaded (i.e. you used a weight that was too heavy).

High sticking When you raise your rod to an angle that's great than 90° from the ground, you're putting a lot of stress on the rod and increasing the chances that it'll break. So be sure to keep the rod at an angle less than 90° when you're fighting fish or trying to pull out your lure when it's snagged.

Essentially, it all comes down to putting too much pressure on the last foot to two feet of your rod tip in a vertical position. I thought the fish was bigger than it was, so not wanting to bang it off the side of the boat, I ended up lifting it too high in the air.