Until very recently, I thought the universally agreed rule when fighting a fish was to never, ever grab the rod above the end of the cork grip. Doing so effectively takes the part of the rod below the hand and all of the butt 'out of the fight'. This technique puts much more stress at the point where the hand is gripping the rod.

A couple of years back, I watched buddy Slick turn an expensive four piece fly rod into five piece trying to get some extra leverage on a steelhead. That just about clinched it for me.

Now I'm seeing photos in fishing magazines with experts gripping their rods (especially saltwater fly fishermen) 6" above the cork, and good anglers like Capt. Mondo of Steelheaderz Backroadz video fame are doing the same with light spinning sticks on steelhead rivers. They obviously feel they are getting extra leverage on their fish.

Anyone on the Board a rod grabber?

I was a rod grabber until I broke a Loomis 1082 IMX. That was a valuable lesson.
A simple cure fr grabbing the rod above the cork for leverage is just use a little heavier rod. Yiu can get more control that way. Or learn how to use you rod properly. While playing a fish hold the tip a lttle lower so you can use more of the butt of the rod. I dont know how many times Ive seen people break rods by holding it above the cork or pointing the rod straight up. Its amazing how much lifting power even a light action rod has if you use the butt.

i have always read that you never put your hand forward of the cork because it changes the stress point on the rod. my assumption is these "experts" do this for a couple of reasons. 1 they are filming for a show and can't afford to fight the fish all day, 2 they want to look cool in the magazine picture, 3 they are probably sponsored in part by the rod company and thus have an almost endless supply of rods. if you blow one up its "oh well, i'll just get another one from the company" kindof thing. us average fishers can't afford to blow a rod up over something stupid or because we are pressed for time. especially with what they cost these days. just my thoughts.

Don't ever grab the rod above the cork. I blew up two brand new "seconds" Iron Fetahers on 25 pound kings in Upper Michigan about 8 years ago. I have been a "non toucher" ever since.

There are better ways to fight fish. If you're using lighter gear, you have to expect that it's going to takle a while, so don't rush it. With those Piggie nates of yours, I would jump up a rod, have a little fun, and get those big boys back in the river to fight another day. I'm bumping up to a little stiffer rod for the Spring Zipper trip, as I feel that I dinked around with those nates a little too long. Remember, it took Ali about a week to recover after fighting Frazier.

If you have deep pockets, grab the rod by the first guide, as you get really good leverage, and it's a cheap way to make components for a high performance ice fishing rod.