Shultis will have each client try four or five different grip diameters until he finds one that best fits the hand. He can even attach a special ergonomically shaped grip from England. Many of the choices he gives are purely aesthetic. He can add sparkle with glittery MicroFlake. You could have the best fly rod that money could buy, but if you can't cast it correctly, you're going to have problems with it.
Technique is important.
Whatever you do, it's practice. Most people use rods incorrectly, he says. Whenever you lift your rod higher than 45 degrees, the fish is fighting you. This is the sort of tip he gives during seminars for Rodcrafters, an international consortium of custom rod builders. Shultis also instructs people how to find the rod's sweet spot.