St. Croix Pacemaker - baitcasting rod

While the focus of this site is vintage reels, vintage rods are a natural and logical pairing. The rod collection will remain complementary to the reel archive and serve the larger purpose of demonstrating how vintage reels and vintage rods can be paired to create well-balanced tackle outfits.

Since much of the interest in vintage rods focuses on how they work as part of a balanced tackle outfit with vintage reels, testing and usage will be a major part of these pages. As rods are tested the language in these pages will change to reflect the results.

The St. Croix Pacemaker 400 HD is a 4'6" one-piece teal fiberglass baitcasting rod, made by St. Croix Rods in Park Falls, Wisconsin. It has a deep-blue pistol-grip reel seat and cork rear grip.

St. Croix Pacemaker 400 HD baitcasting rod

This rod's length is at the lower limit of the range for mid-century baitcasting rods - this plus the HD designation place it provisionally in the heavy class — associated with lines in the 18 - 30 lb. test range, casting weights of 3/4 + oz., and heavy-duty reels. Target species include tarpon, salmon, and striped bass, and usage includes heavy duty freshwater trolling and saltwater casting.

This rod's overall length, guide spacing, and short, stout handle represents the compact, close-quarters casting-rod style that paired naturally with mid-century baitcasting reels. This example is being documented initially as a working companion to a vintage Nobby reel, although the Nobby is probably a bit light for this rod. However, while the rod may be genuinely heavy duty, the specific reel pairing need not exploit its whole capacity.

Manufacturer documentation is elusive. St. Croix’s original line and lure specification remains to be confirmed from the complete rod decal or catalog evidence. In the meantime, usage will be inferred from Shakespeare's recommendations and cautious testing.

Power

this section is coming soon - a brief discussion of power vs. action

Action

This rod will likely be slow to moderate in action, flexing well down the blank rather than behaving like a modern fast graphite rod. The short length gives excellent close-range control, especially for plug pitching, bank fishing, boat work, or confined water.

Fiberglass smooths the shock of a cast — useful with an older direct-drive or less-forgiving reel. The four-guide layout (3 guides + tip) is typical of an older short casting rod, but it is sparse by modern standards - line will not track the blank as closely under load.

Specifications, colors / finishes, features

St. Croix Pacemaker 400 HD baitcasting rod - maker decal — Maker decal

St. Croix Pacemaker 400 HD baitcasting rod - name decal

Rod name / maker location decal - Pacemaker - Park Falls, Wisconsin

St. Croix Pacemaker 400 HD baitcasting rod - model no. decal — Model no. / duty rating / length decal

Field	Working entry
Maker	St. Croix Rods, Park Falls, WI
Name / Series	Pacemaker
Model	400 HD
No. of sections / material / type	one-piece fiberglass baitcasting rod
Ferrule material	--
Length	4'6"
Blank color / finish	teal / turquoise
Reel seat color / style	cobalt blue / pistol grip
Handle	cork
Butt cap	hard rubber
No. of guides / size, material	3 + top / HD, steel
Guide wrap color	dark blue
Unusual features	--

Guide details

Heavy duty (HD) rings, 3 + top

Original stamped and formed metal frame guides, likely nickel- or chrome-plated brass or plated steel, ALLAN stamped on both side arms. The rings appear to be solid metal, probably steel, spot-welded to the frames. The inside of each ring appears to have a series of shallow grooves / ridges cut into the surface.

The ALLAN stamp refers to the Allan Manufacturing Company / Allan Marine of Hicksville, New York, a period supplier of rod hardware. The company was promoted in 1956 as the country’s largest producer of fishing-tackle hardware and was later associated with rod holders, line guides, and other rod components.