Custom Fishing Rods: Handle and Reel Seat Options

Eastern Rodworks

Mar 25, 2023

1 min read

Updated: Apr 18, 2025

One of the benefits of having a custom rod made is picking the best handle combination for the way you fish. Whether it’s cork, burl, shrink tube, EVA, or carbon fiber grips to match your standard, trigger, aluminum, painted or ergonomic reel seat, there’s no shortage of options for your build. The right handle/seat will help to balance the rod and reel in your hand, allowing you to reduce fatigue, fish longer, and detect more bites…. hopefully resulting in more fish!

We recently updated some of the options in the "Handles & Grips" gallery. All of our semi-custom builds feature handles that match our preferences and build specifications, while custom work is made to your request. Cork and burl are our preferred material to work with and that’s likely the reason we get so many compliments on these style handles. The rings are imported directly from Portugal and individually hand fitted on every rod, offering the ultimate level of customization for your build.