Rectangular Quadrate ( rQuad ) Tapers
4 Weight
  • RP Taper - 7'6" 2pc
  • RF Taper - 7'9" 2pc
5 Weight
  • RP Taper - 8'0" 2pc
  • RF Taper - 8'0" 2pc
6 Weight
  • RF Taper - 8'3" 2pc
7 Weight
  • RF Taper - 8'6" 2pc
  • RS Taper - 8'6" 2pc

Rectangular quadrate rods (rQuad) are 4 sided rods that are made wider than they are tall. Think of a standard 2x4 with the guides mounted on the wide side. If you put the guides on the thin side, you add stiffness but can introduce really nasty twist into the rod, especially in the tip, as the rod tries to flex along the plane of least resistance. The rQuad is the geometry championed by Mike Montagne.

When you take a quad taper and translate it into an 'equivalent' rQuad you actually end up with a heavier rod (static weight not line weight). Simply adding extra width and removing height makes for a softer rod, so you have to add material back in order to keep the original stiffness. Again though, the difference isn't huge, and is measured in fractions of an ounce. So why bother with a rectangular quad?  In my experience rQuads have two advantages (or perhaps 'differences' is a better word) over a regular quad. First, due to a greater ability to resist twisting, they track even better than a quad and second, they dampen vibrations more than other geometries. Standard casting feels more accurate and more advanced casts like wiggle casts or pile casts seem easier as the extra stiffness from the width magnifies the intended nuances and variations in side to side movement during the cast. Even curve casts seem to be just a little more pronounced. The only cast that I've found that feels a little off is a large, upriver twisting cast (not sure what its called, but if you've ever dead drifted with lead for trout or salmon in Alaska you know the cast), especially with weight, as the different resistance to twisting along the casting range caues you to lose accuracy.

I only have available a limited range of tapers in the rQuad geometrie.  Currently I have 4-7 weights in standard lengths and two different actions, one based off my LL series of tapers and the other the LM tapers. 
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