Sunrae Fishing Rod Sleeve
by Brian King

For the past couple of months, I've had the opportunity to use and evaluate a fishing rod sleeve made by Sunrae Enterprises of Madison, WI. At first glance, this rod sleeve/cover/lure protector is not much to look at - a 48" long piece of clear, durable PVC. However, it is actually quite functional. The sleeve slides onto a fishing rod easily and, when not in use, folds up into a 3" square that will fit in your pocket or tackle bag.

It didn't take long to find out where the Sunrae sleeve shines for me. When I fish from my bass boat I often take a half-dozen or more rods with me. Murphy's Law states that if I place more than two of those rods in the rod lockers of the boat, they WILL be tangled up when I try to take them out. If I get lazy and don't take the lures off before placing the rods in the lockers, it is simply understood on my part that they will tangle. With the Sunrae rod sleeves in place, the rods do not tangle and I can remove them from the lockers easily. The sleeves also protect the lures and rod guides. For me personally, the rod sleeves save me a lot of aggravation when transporting my rods in the boat. Even if the sleeves served no other purpose, that alone makes them a must-have item for me.

I also use the rod sleeves when transporting rods in the back of my vehicle when I'm going wading or floating. The lures don't get snagged on the carpet and, like in the boat, the rods don't get tangled together.

As I mentioned before, the rod sleeves are made of a clear, durable PVC which allows you to see what lures you have tied on the line. Each sleeve is 48" long and designed to fit most rods. There is a convenient flap with velcro closure which secures the sleeve to your fishing rod. Because they are so compact you can use several and simply fold them up and store them out of the way.

At the time of this review, a single rod sleeve sells for $5.50, a 3-pack goes for $15.50, and $25.00 will get you a 5-pack. Not bad prices at all when you consider the damage and aggravation they can save. If you normally use rod protectors or are considering buying some, you should check these out. They are very simple and a great value. You can get more information and/or purchase the sleeves at the site listed below.