NW flyfisher

first off i am not an expert by any means I have only been in the rod making industry for 3 years now and am just trying to help people understand why rods break. In other words i don't know everything yet..

However... "hoop" strength is what keeps the rod tubular in shape. In essence a rods hoops strength is its resistence ro crushing. Hoop strength is determined by 3 basic factors
1. the material used ( most notable the scrim)
2. diameter of the part
3 wall thickness

A rod for instance built on graphite with a stronger scrim will have a stronger hoop strength and will be heavier overall as will one built on a larger diameter or increased wall thickness

Hoop strenth does not effect the performance of a rod in terms of casting or function what it does effect is the durability of the part.

for instance Loomis ( not tryint to pick on they they make great rods) years ago when they first designed the IMX several of the models had very thin walls.. They were very light and sencitive and people really loved them but they were very prone to breakage because the thin walls mean low hoop strength.. So hoop strength is a durability issue not a performance issue.. Hope this answers your question