PebHmong Discussion Forum
Sports Category => Outdoors & Recreational Hobbies => Topic started by: VillainousHero on May 26, 2019, 05:18:34 PM
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It's not that I need a new fishing pole...I just decided to treat myself to one.
I have been a St. Croix rod fanboy for a while, but I've decided to spread out into the Shimano rods some. I just went to Joe's Sporting Goods and as usual their selection of rods are sort of dismal. However they did have one rod that I've been sort of wanting for a while. 7' ML in baitcasting rod Shimano Zodias.
Originally I was contemplating about the St. Croix Legend Tournament in 6'10" ML casting rod retailing just shy of $300. Compared to Shimano Zodias 7' ML coming in at $200 retail. The Shimano rod is a bit softer compared to the St. Croix. There was a Diawa rod Chronos 7' ML but it was significantly stiffer in flex compared to the Shimano Zodias. Although the Diawa was cheaper in at $169 Joe's retail, the handle component was also drastically cheaper in quality when compared side by side to the Shimano Zodias.
I also played with some of the Shimano Conquest rods, but at #%@# $600 ouch pearls.
The 7' ML Shimiano Zodias came home with me. Now I just need to pair it with a reel.
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I have a Daiwa that I bought for $150.00.
Now I want to sell it for $80.00.
I have never used it. Never learned how to use the baitcasting reel.
It's brand-new if anyone wants to buy it for that price.
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I have a Daiwa that I bought for $150.00.
Now I want to sell it for $80.00.
I have never used it. Never learned how to use the baitcasting reel.
It's brand-new if anyone wants to buy it for that price.
You know I offered to teach you how to use baitcasting set up and that offer is always open. I think of using a baitcasting set up is a lot like a fly fishing set up. There is an art to it and the appreciation of doing it as an art. It's just that I am currently have not much free time to spare nowadays as compared to before.
I used to practice outside, in winter time with the fresh snow and all. I do practice in my backyard just for fun too in summer time.
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I know y'all don't have surf over there but they have surf rods in the 11 footer range. It is good for casting distance so imagine yourself playing a surf rod there and the people there be like... I'm amazed.
Pair it with a Penn reel. My uncle sport fisherman from Narleans be using them heavy duty Penn reels to catch tuna.
Still waiting for the next sale to get me one.
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I remember that offer. We'll have to go out one of these days so I can learn that.
I like spinning reels though. I can cast much farther out and I can reel in much faster somehow.
I don't like being in the cold. That's why I don't ice-fish. And then the lawn has too many snags.
I'm going to sell off that Daiwa pole and reel set.
You know I offered to teach you how to use baitcasting set up and that offer is always open. I think of using a baitcasting set up is a lot like a fly fishing set up. There is an art to it and the appreciation of doing it as an art. It's just that I am currently have not much free time to spare nowadays as compared to before.
I used to practice outside, in winter time with the fresh snow and all. I do practice in my backyard just for fun too in summer time.
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I'm not out there to give people awes. I'm out to catch fish and enjoy the surroundings. In fact, I fish private spots most times.
I'm not a fan of long rods. 7' is already too long for me. I like those in the 6' range.
I know y'all don't have surf over there but they have surf rods in the 11 footer range. It is good for casting distance so imagine yourself playing a surf rod there and the people there be like... I'm amazed.
Pair it with a Penn reel. My uncle sport fisherman from Narleans be using them heavy duty Penn reels to catch tuna.
Still waiting for the next sale to get me one.
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I remember that offer. We'll have to go out one of these days so I can learn that.
I like spinning reels though. I can cast much farther out and I can reel in much faster somehow.
I don't like being in the cold. That's why I don't ice-fish. And then the lawn has too many snags.
I'm going to sell off that Daiwa pole and reel set.
Yea, I can always show you how to use mine. And I can definitely show you the difference in each type of baitcasting reel and how they can perform.
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Ok. One of these days.
The Daiwa is being marketed. If no one buys it, I'll do a lottery on it. Whoever draws it gets it free. We'll see if anyone buys it first.
Yea, I can always show you how to use mine. And I can definitely show you the difference in each type of baitcasting reel and how they can perform.
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I admit to treating myself again.
St. Croix Legend Elite MH 6'8" fast.
To be honest, I thought it was weird that they've decided to put a big fore grip on these versions. The real seat is also a more wider version too. This is one of the first bait casting rod that I am trying that seems to come with the smaller line guides. I'm not so sure about the micro guides fans as it just means smaller line guides and more chance for the line to line knot to catch.
A few backyard tests and it didn't seem to matter so much. Perhaps when spring comes around, I will get to really test out the rod with fish on.
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Anytime now, my new ice fishing rods will be finished. :2funny:
Have to get them Thorne Bros Custom rods. The original real ice fishing rods. O0
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might just be a california thing but any swimbaiters in here, whos willing to pay $400 for a lure :D
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$400 bucks....got damn!!! I just fish for fun, the most I spend on lures(in general) is $10.
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Those guys are already fishing off a yacht...so $400 is still cheap lure for them.
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Can of fresh dug worms
From the backyard
Catch all the fish i need
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Nawh...I ain't payin' $400.00 for no lure.
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dam its $500 now :o
https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Roman_Made_Mother_Swimbait/descpage-RMMSB.html (https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Roman_Made_Mother_Swimbait/descpage-RMMSB.html)
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Ain't gonna buy that for sure now. :2funny: :2funny:
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damn
it's like yall get a new pole every year
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Yes, one or more pole/rod. It's for different kind of fishing...for different kind of lures and stuff.
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I, too, use different poles for different fish.
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I only have two
My ice rod and my shakespears
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Due to the misery of the state of the State. I had to indulge in my sanity and cool my rage a bit.
I bought another useless rod, just wondering what for? Doesn't really matter as long as it gets toyed with.
I bought the
Phenix M1 Casting Rod 6'9" Med Lt
It should toss weights of 1/4 oz to 5/8 oz weight.
I originally was going to go with
Phenix Feather Casting Rod 7'1" Light
for the weights of 1/8 oz to 3/8 oz weight, but somehow the slightly longer length was throwing me off a bit.
All I've done was just some backyard practice casting and it wasn't so bad. Now I just need some time to go fishing, but this whole riot and looting has me not wanting to go anywhere at the moment.
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I've held a Daiwa baitcast rod with the reel for five years now without knowing what to do with it.
Today, I've finally removed the baitcast reel and replaced it with a spinning reel.
Voila! I can use it now.
It's a fast action rod, and should be good for bass and all kinds of fish--anything from the sunny to the cats and carps.
So, now, I have three rods to carry around on each trip. Lots of reels with different line poundage to switch back and forth to.
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I've held a Daiwa baitcast rod with the reel for five years now without knowing what to do with it.
Today, I've finally removed the baitcast reel and replaced it with a spinning reel.
Voila! I can use it now.
It's a fast action rod, and should be good for bass and all kinds of fish--anything from the sunny to the cats and carps.
So, now, I have three rods to carry around on each trip. Lots of reels with different line poundage to switch back and forth to.
What! You really put a spinning reel on the bait casting rod?
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Okay so I need to tweak the rods a little bit.
So I'm adding onto the mix...since I'm such a St Croix fanboy and Shimano fanboy.
One St. Croix Legend Elite 6'10" Medium power Extra Fast tip action.
One Shimano Zodias 7'2" Medium Light power Extra Fast tip action.
I'm familiar with the St Croix rods so that much is a given. I have an old Legend Elite 6'8" Medium power Extra Fast tip action. So it's gonna be very similar but for those instances where I feel like I need that little extra length for that little extra casting distance. I don't know how much two inches is gonna get me, but until it's actually tested out.
Then that brings me back to the Shimano Zodias. The prior model I had was a 7' Medium Light power Moderate tip action. Nothing wrong with it, but I feel as if it's kind of like an Ugly Stick, but with some improvements. Again I don't care so much for just another 2" increase in length as since that's just the way how the fishing industry is going, I am finding that this new rod with it's different tip action might be what I want. Again, don't know until I start to catch fish with it.
There's still ice fishing left to do yet.
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So I went to do some back yard cold casting and freezing my hands in the process.
The St. Croix Legend Elite 6'10" MXF did exactly how I expected it. Just a little extra feel in that two inch length difference.
The Shimano Zodias 7'2" MLXF totally took me by surprise. It's was so light and effortless in the casting that it actually made my St. Croix Legend Elite feel wasted. That's why I say St. Croix rods are over priced. Anyway the updated 2020 Zodias rods with that carbon monocoque handle was the biggest influence to the casting motion. Because the weight is reduced in the butt of the rod the motion to move the rod overall is reduced too. Furthermore there is a reduction of effort to stop the rod at the end of the casting motion. Maybe it all just seemed to work out in this particular model. This is comparing even to the prior Zodias 7' ML rod I have. It really does make it feel like just an Ugly Stick improved.
Whoops...did it again. Went to Joe's and came back with another two fishing poles. Must have a Covid brain fart or something.
I'd figure it was about time to get a Light power spinning rod. What I really wanted was a 7' rod but since the Zodias impressed me that much I had to get a spinning version of. They only have a 7'6" L so I will settle with that. Never had tried a longer rod than 7' length but figure if I will get that extra distance, it will be worth it.
I also came back with a discontinued rod model. Phenix Ultra MBX 6'6" L fast action. Probably will use this one for white bass fishing and all sorts of lures. Even though it's listed with a Light action, it's got more backbone than the Phenix M-1 6'9" ML rod.
All these toys and all I'm doing is tossing bare lures into the snow.
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them rod good at catching fish?
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them rod good at catching fish?
No idea. I haven't caught any fish yet. However the rods are great for casting lures so far, at least in the snow.
I'll figure if the rod is good for catching fish or not when I actually take the rods out to fish with. Then I will compare it against my Ugly Stik rodss.
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So I went outside and did some more practice casting in the backyard. It was still sunny at about 4:20 pm and no wind. I was using the the Phenix Ultra MBX 6'6" L rod and just used my practice lure of 1/4 oz weight. I put on my old Shimano Metanium MG7 and today that rod was casting so well. Really it's because there was no wind so the lure was just flowing correctly. Practice a few side arm casting and all and it was like I've been using this rod for years. Well it just feels right with the right lure weight. I did practice a few overhead casting but kept the arc trajectory relatively low so I don't catch tree branches above. My fingers got cold and I came back inside.
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So I've been practicing casting in the backyard for some time to gauge how the different rods would work out. It's a bit strange when I was comparing my old St. Croix Legend Elite 6'8" MXF with the newer St. Croix Legend Elite 6'10" MXF in casting distance. While I'm only able to use a side arm cast in the backyard it seems that the older shorter rod was getting more distance. I thought that maybe it was the reel and line that was affecting it, so I swapped the reels out between the two rods. Still I got a very similar result and the older rod still got more casting distance. While the actual reel seat handles were different between the two rods, it shouldn't affect it that much or perhaps it does. Since I'm used to the reel seat on the older rod, it may make a difference. The other thing is that the older rod has what they considered by today's standards of line guides, it called standard size. While the new rod has smaller line guides, it's considered semi-micro line guides. Now that would indicate that for my results, the larger line guides are allowing my casting distance to be optimized. That would mean that in opposite results, the smaller semi-micro line guides are reducing my casting distance by how I'm using it.
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So I took some rods out to go river fishing and caught some white bass. The three rods I took out to try were Shimano's of course: Zodias Spinning 7' Light, Zodias Spinning 7' Medium Light, and Poison Adrena 6'11" Medium+ Casting. I grabbed the wrong casting rod, I was planning to take the Zodias 7'2" ML Casting.
Unfortunately I only caught fish on the Zodias Spinning 7' Light rod only so I don't know how the other rods will really handle fish. Well so far the 7' Light rod hooked up and stayed pinned on the fish really well. Being a Light power rod, it did load into the rod quite a bit, but still handled it just fine. Usually I use a light powered rod just for crappie fishing but I decided to give this a try instead. The white bass are still sluggish and didn't put up much fighting so it worked out. Usually I put the hook set into it, but seems like I just crank the reel and they hooked themselves.
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I seen the new Shakespeare Ugly Stick Elite Ice rod and I'm drooling over it. :P
It costs twice as much as the old Ugly Stick GX2 and twice as good looking. >:D
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St. Croix is releasing a Tundra ice fishing series of rods. They look a lot like their Croix Custom Ice series of rods but full cork handles. Still no real seat models. Shame how they price tag @ $100 and can't even put real seats like on their Panfish rod series of open water which sells for about $100 too.
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I've just learned why my largemouths had not been well-hooked: my rod isn't at least medium heavy.
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If you use big hooks with large gauge wire then you may want a more powerful rod to put the hook set to drive the barb into them. If you get hooks like Owner cutting point, they're like suture needles. The point is like those needles used for sewing up skin lacerations and surgical operations. Often times, the fish just hook themselves with Owner cutting point hooks.
It also depends on how large the barbs on the hooks are. It's much harder to drive the hook past the huge barb as oppose to a smaller type of barb. Even when fishing and hooking into a larger walleye of say about 17" and upwards. One needs a harder hook set to drive the hook point in. With my light hook set, sometimes the hook is just caught around their teeth and there is really no true hook set. I've lost lots of fish just at the ice fishing hole and some fish I pull up, they open their mouths and the lure is just there. Some I see the hook bend just around the curved teeth of them walleyes and that's how I pull them in by luck.
As for fishing rods, I prefer to choose a rod for the use of the lure first and foremost, then the power of the rod for the fish second. Unfortunately a lot of Ugly Sticks just come in a medium power but there are some in the Light and Ultralight power rods, just shorter rods. When it comes to spinning rods, there are almost no Heavy power rods as most of them comes in casting rods. When one finds a Heavy power spinning rod, it's one of those heavy weight rod that's very tiresome to fish in hand. I don't power cast, I just moderate cast my lures and let the rod do the work of casting. I sometimes see people power cast and make a lot of casting snapping cutting noise with their rods.
I got lucky that I bought some 7' Cabela's XML spinning rods in Heavy power like 20 some years ago when they were Chinese copycats of the G.Loomis rods. I like these rods for also catfish and pike fishing too. They're too powerful for white bass and easily tames all the largemouth and smallmouth bass I've fished with.
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When putting the hook set on fish, doesn't matter how hard you pull sometimes you just can't get a good hook penetration of fish. Fish sometimes will bite down hard onto a lure or even the hook. When you pull hard and the fish's mouth is clamped down hard on the lure, all you end up doing is pulling the fish.
Take a catfish for example, as you see they have a rather thick jawline bone with a rather wide set of teeth. If your lure or hook just happens to be clamped down by just the teeth of the fish, you won't get a hook point into the more fleshy part of the fish. That's kind of where you get those hooks that have a lot of curve to the entire shank of the hook over that of a traditional straight shank hook. The bend helps to leverage the hook and allows it's to flip to a position where the hook point will upturn to upper lip hook the fish. Also if I have a straight shank hook, I like to bend the hook point slightly offset to one side.
For example purpose. If you put a straight shank hook and clamped it in between a book's pages, you can pull the hook out easy because it's straight. If you have an offset hook point and you clamp it in between a book, the offset point will dig into the pages and you can't pull it out.
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What I really want is a Light power 7' casting rod. Hmmmm.
Phenix Ultra MBX Casting Rod 7' Light that retails for $280
Phenix Feather Casting Rod 7'1" Light that retails for $140
Dobyns Ultra Finesse Casting Rod 7' Light that retails for $190
There's quite a difference in price there. I've held the Phenix Feather in hand before and it sort of felt cheap and was a tad bit soft and flexible. It's not really what I like.
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Damn how many fishing pole u got
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Damn how many fishing pole u got
No idea. I don't count them.
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What I really want is a Light power 7' casting rod. Hmmmm.
Phenix Ultra MBX Casting Rod 7' Light that retails for $280
Okay 20% off Blahque Phrydai Deal and I go order placed... 8)
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So the fishing pole that I ordered...sudd enly disappears from the website. Meaning if they deliver this one and it's broken....SOL. I sure hope it comes intact.
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OMG! It's delivered! Shhhhh I actually ordered two different rods. I did decided that I will order a spinning rod too. Not that I actually needed one but took a shot at it. It's a secret right now. However first is that Phenix Ultra MBX Casting Rod 7' Light power.
Well I have to say, it's a bit dismal in comparison to the prior models. These ones are sold at less than the old ones were and now I see why. The line guides are a bit cheaper versions. The rod blank is also scaled down a bit. The reel seat is a total cheap version compared to the older model. The handle grips are also cheap. All in all, it's not that special of a rod. For sure the rod blank don't have that flimsy feeling in comparison the to the Phenix Feather Casting Rod 7'1" Light. However since it hasn't been fish, nor even cast once at all, that will all be up to unknowns.
And the secret rod is. Poison Adrena UL 6'10" Power Spinning rod. The weird thing is it has an UL tip and the rod transitions into a Medium backbone rod. This is awesome. This is exactly what I've been sort of wanting in a spinning rod version. No flimsy weak rod. It is a finesse type of rod with the intended backbone to control fish once hooked up. Again since it hasn't been fished with, it will be up to the unknowns. However I have good feeling about it.
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Omen Ice casting 32" rod in Medium power retails $60 - new 2021-22
Listed key feature on the product tag:
J36T Blank
Evolve Ported Reel Seat
Portuguese 3A SG Full Grip Cork Handle
Evolve Stainless Steel Guides with Titanium Inserts
So I measured the full length of the rod and it came to 32 3/8th inches. I did pick out the longest one between all the retail rod models and this one was eyeballed at about 1/4" longer. So I'm pretty sure they would normally measure to essentially 32" and maybe a tad slightly longer. The full handle measurement came to 8 1/4" length with a reel mounted on it. I mounted a Shimano CU70HG reel. This leaves a little gap in the reel seat and locking nut assembly. It seems, it a bit off in feel and looks at that spot. The cork handle measure to 3 1/2" in length.
I threaded the line through the line guides and it looks good. The titanium inserts by description just looks like ceramics as there are 4 plus tip. Upon checking for flex, the rod blank loads up well and feels like as expected of a Median power rod. When I check for torsion roll over, there was a considerable amount of line guide rolling over. This particular results may signify for benefiting from an acid rap rod. There was just barely any line rub onto the blank with a full flex load.
The rubberized real seat feels great. After I removed the plastic covering there was a lot of cork putty and quite a bit of dust powder. Closer examination shows quite a bit of pitting filled. Overall the looks are wonderful and assembly appears to be almost top notch. Looking at the current 13 Fishing web site, there is no information on this rod. Yet they have listed all the info on the spinning rods.
Looking forward to it's first field test...
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Since I'm hanging up the ice fishing, here's a recap this past season.
Omen Ice casting 32" Medium rod. A little dull for panfish techniques and lures of 1/8th oz. weights, but works just fine on the larger crappies. Works just fine on walleyes especially lures of 1/4 oz weights. Best of retail shelf casting rods in medium power as of yet. If St. Croix makes a medium power casting rod, there's would be a notch better but that is not the case.
Not once did I feel like I had to baby the rod on any fish caught. Doesn't feel like it would break or fall apart, so construction overall is very solid. Cork handle and rubberized trigger handle helps to reduce the cold feeling. Very good points on that.
Overall if they produced a medium light power casting rod, they would get a better finesse style out of it. That would be more useful for targeting panfish that only typical spinning rods can do.
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Do you know how to fix a chip reel
The plastic piece on my zebco broke off
I drop my pole pn the cement
I post pictures tomorrow
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Do you know how to fix a chip reel
The plastic piece on my zebco broke off
I drop my pole pn the cement
I post pictures tomorrow
I'm not a handyman. Most of the time, just buy a new reel. Usually by the time my reel breaks down, they no longer reproduce the parts for it. If it's something that can just be glued back together, then maybe some epoxy at best.
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I'm not a handyman. Most of the time, just buy a new reel. Usually by the time my reel breaks down, they no longer reproduce the parts for it. If it's something that can just be glued back together, then maybe some epoxy at best.
just a little chip off the top plastic
my line catches on it now that its not smooth no more
i'm dirty cheap
can't afford to toss it out
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New!!!!!
Fishing license...legi t for spring!
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Walleye are running in my area
Got some big female this weekend
Didn’t keep any
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New fishing pole! Yet again.
Shimano Expride 6'10" ML fast spinning rod.
Actually really no need but all those cold snowing windy rainy days bummed me so much I told myself that after weeks of that rod still sitting on the shelf and no one buys it, I will. So bam! I finally decided that it's coming home.
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New fishing pole! Yet again.
Shimano Expride 6'10" ML fast spinning rod.
bam! I finally decided that it's coming home.
Grats, better quality usually translates to better experience... O0
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I'm tired of buying more rods. I want to know where the fish are only.
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I went down to the local lake just to give my rods a few toss on the lures. So using both the Expride 6'10" ML Spinning and Posion Adrena 6'10" UL/M Spinning rod. Both feels more like using 6'6" rods and under feel, even thought they're just 2 inches shy of a 7 foot rod. Comparing to the Zodias 7' Spinning rod has a more power transfer on the cast.
Casting is very smooth, but I'm not quite used to the light tip feel of both the Expride and Poison Adrena spinning rods. The rods do have a significantly lighter feel overall. Maybe in a week or two I'll hit the river again to see if some fish are biting.
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Give me your unused rod and reel
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Give me your unused rod and reel
Oh I got lots of unused ones. Sometimes they're just there for looks and decoration. Mostly just memory collage.
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I drove an hour up northwest and cast in with a green Gulp minnow. First bite was a rock bass that no one wanted. So, the second was a nice-sized crappie that I kept. Third was a hard thumping that I couldn't pull off. It got away!
I took off after a few more casts without more bites.
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So I got to using the two new rods again the 6'10" PA and Expride. Being a ML rod I was still getting use to it and the tip was a bit softer than I normally expect it. I'm used to the action from St. Croix rods and the feel from those rods. This is kind of where if you never try, you will never truly know either.
I'm used the to St. Croix casting rods that I have, but I am wondering if I should buy into the spinning rods as well. Being that St. Croix rods have increased in price by over 25% from what they used to be, it's a toss up. In addition to seeing that they have also improved technology in blank material and resins, there could be merits to it. So how many full tanks of gas am I going to justify for it?
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I was using both the 6'10 PA and Expride again. Getting a chance to use in both still water of a lake and current water of a river. Both rods excels at casting with ease. There is one advantage to having a slightly softer tip action is that they keep the hook pinned down on the fish. All the fish I hooked up with barely so much as got a hook set put into them. It was easy to unhook them. Both rods have a soft progression from tip to mid section of the rod. This kind of like an Ugly Stik manner. In a way, their weakness is lack of fish control. The merits about these rods are lure casting control and lure control. Both rods are underpowered for white bass fishing. Makes them feel like they're extra strong fish. Then again perhaps I've gotten used to casting gear and spinning gear feels underwhelmed.
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So anyways since I missed fishing all those other times, I splurge yet again on another rod. I had never thought about it this way and apparently justifying it all. So a few weeks ago, I purchased the newly released Shimano Expride B Spinning Rod in 7' Medium power. It's got that sort of reversed handle seat that a lot of rods are being made like now to include St. Croix and G. Loomis. I figure I may as well try it out and see what's the hype is all about. Well it's all hype. Apparently my hand doesn't really like the new reversed seat style as much. For one thing it makes me want to place my fingers up further on the rod. So the reel stem is below my hold position, sort of more like a fly rod holding position. That could be good, but it's gonna take some getting used to.
With the butt handle reduction in weight, also means the rod tip feels slightly more tip heavy. Smaller line guides also means that a smaller reel spool works better with it. At first I had my 3000 sized reel on and it did feel some slight resistance on the casting. Could've just been the Fireline I had on it. But still perhaps I may have to try a few different reel set up to see which one it will pair up best with.
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Damn dude
Give me one of your rod
Im still using my old reliable rod
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But if I give up the rod, I won't have it to play around with. Those Ugly Stiks are always reliable. However if you do decide to upgrade, start with a St. Croix Premiere rod at just over $100 and you'll probably just leave the ugly stick as a back up.
Anyways after some more practicing and changing the setups around. I got it dialed in somewhat. Apparently the Expride B 7' Medium rod is built in likeness to a casting rod. So I had to give it a casting rod fling instead of my spinning rod flick. And also it seemed like the rod didn't like the Fireline or it was a mismatch combo. Either that or it was transmitting too much line vibration feedback. So on it is the Sustain 2500FD reel with 10# Sufix 832 braid and it seems to be flowing smoothly. I guess I'll go with that.
Furthermore in comparison to my old Calcutta 7' Medium power rod, the Expride is a touch more stiffer and more vibration sensitive. Plus it has a slightly more tip forward power load. That's why I couldn't get the smooth casting down at first. Felt just a little different. Still the reel seat is also different, contributing to the overall sensation.
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im poor man
im not spending $100 for a fishing pole
;D ;D ;D
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Well I got to use my Expride B 7' M spinning rod and my only direct comparison is the Shimano Calcutta 7' M spinning rod. Both rods have SiC guides. Mostly just using Kastmaster spoon fishing as it works great on pikes and other species willing to bite.
While the Expride is a touch more powerful blank, the tip is actually a bit softer and more responsive. It is however a little less tip vibration sensitive in comparison to the Calcutta rod. I'm not feeling as strong of a bite vibration response as the Calcutta rod. I will say that the load of of rod is wonderful. Keeps fish pinned once hooked and has enough backbone power and response. Holds as a true fast action.
With the Sustain 2500FE reel and 10# Sufix braid, there is some barely noticeable line slap feel on the line guides. Casting is still wonderful and smooth. I had tried earlier with a Stradic 3000MgFb with 15# Fireline Braid and there was a definite line slap restriction feel on my casting. My old Calcutta rod has a much larger stripper guide and it has a much smoother line flow on the cast. Reels were swapped between both rods too.
Is it an upgrade from the Calcutta rod? Not really it's different in some areas.
If I had to compare the Expride B to the Expride A, I'll say that the later B model is a touch more responsive. Mostly because they did not put a clear flex coat onto the B model. The reversed handle of the B model still takes a little getting use to for myself. For one thing it does a better job at leveraging fish, but not as good when working the lure and trying to detect a bite.
If I compare the overall rod sensitivity, Cabela's XML are still more sensitive. They are the poor man's version of G.Loomis GLX rods.
If I compare the Exprides to the Zodias rods, it makes the Zodias rods feel like those are soft insensitive rods. Well I did refer the Zodias rods as What an Ugly Stik would be if they put togeter good handles and line guides. Probably why I really like the Zodias rods for what they are. They are really suited for Rooster Tails and any other inline spinners. The Exprides seems to suit jigging spoons and jigs far better. I need to find a place without snagging bottom to fish bottom contact lures and have fish to catch with.
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Finally got around to do some catfishing with the Shimano Teramar Southeast Spinning rod 7' Heavy power moderate fast tip rated for 1/2 oz to 2 oz. weight. On this rod I had the Stradic 5000FL spooled with 50# Berkley X9 braid and top shot leader of 30# Silverthread Excalibur mono. I did tangle with a decent sized catfish and the rod did it's job wonderfully. The tip load and fish fight was splendid. Totally a wonderful upgrade from my old Stradic 4000FG that has done it's duty. Everything about this rod is for sure an upgrade from my Ugly Stik Catfish rod. For sure this is now my dedicated catfish rod.
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Gotta expand my fishing rods again. I decided that since the Shimano Teramar is mainly for big catfish and it's not so easy to detect the smaller catfish. I saw just the rod.
St. Croix Premier 7' Heavy Fast action spinning rod. Rated for 1/2 t0 1 1/2 oz. weights. Well testing the tip flex, it's not as powerful as it's rating. I felt it was more like a MH power rod when compared to all the other rods I've used so far. It's a touch more sensitive that my Ugly Stik Catfish 7' MH rod. I was relying on an old 7' Ugly Stik for that duty but it's flimsy like an Ugly Stik is and not so much control or finesse when I need it so.
If comparing to my old Cabela's XML 7' Heavy Fast action spinning rod, the St. Croix Premier 7' Heavy Fast action is much softer and has more flex. The Cabel's XML 7' H rods has no room for error when it comes to fishing. You detect a bite, you set the hook and full power on fish fight. The St. Croix Premier 7' H rod feels slower and hopefully this will allow me some longer window when detecting softer bites. So now I've moved the reel from my Ugly Stick Catfish rod over to the St. Croix Premier, as I haven't utilized that reel yet. It's the Shimano Ultegra 4000FA spooled with old Berkley Whiplash 50# braid line.
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I like my 7' heavy power, fast action St. Croix Premier for all purposes--cats to crappies except trouts.
But I also keep a something Loomis and two Cabela's Fish Eagle 54 for trouts and an extra fast action 5'9" Daiwa something as a backup. (I'm going to give this last one away to the next little boy I see at the flea market.)
If I buy any more, it will be something that will work on walleyes and bass, fast action.
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Good to know you like the St. Croix Premier 7' H fast spinning rod. I was comparing it just then with my Cabela's XML 7' H fast and the tip actions of both are really close. The St. Croix does have just a smidge softer upper tip section, but both the backbone of both rods do load up pretty much the same. I guess when I hook up with a big fish on, then I'll be able to feel the difference between the two.
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Cats, carps, and buffalos will bring out the differences in them. Otherwise, they probably aren't that noticeable.
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Curios as since I was at Joe's Shimano VIP day...40% off rods.
CDC610MLA
New models for the 2022 starting at $159, and this particular model was just recently added around July. So it pique my interest some as I've been constantly searching for just those lighter casting models. These Curado rods now feature the Hi-Power X blanks, which is an X shape carbon tape wrapped around the blank. This is also a feature that the higher end rods have and it use to be on the Zodias rods for the low end. What's more is these Curado rods are basically reproduction of the 1'st generation Zodias rods. The rods have obtained the Ci4 reel seats with aluminum locking fore nut, Fuji Tangle-Free K guides with Fazlite inserts with Alconite tip, and split grip EVA Foam handles. The prior models actually had the better Alconite inserts, full cork handles, and rubberized reel seats.
The 6'10" Medium Light power rod has 8 line guides plus tip. Only the bottom blank from the stripper guide has a flex coat on it. The other portion of the rod blank is an exposed raw blank. The touch on it feels a bit rough, so no smoothing sanding finishing of the blank. In a way I worry that the rough feeling will eventually wear out any line rubbing on contact. Even one coating of flex coat would do the rod justice in my opinion. Well that's in the long run, so it hasn't happen yet. Perhaps it never will.
So on this rod currently is the Curado BFS reel with YGK SS112 10# braid. As so far with casting 1/4 oz. practice plug it has been wonderful. On the very first cast it was like in harmony. Subsequent casts were confirming how wonderful this rod is. It is performing almost like it's higher end models. On my rather ease of casting I was averaging about 30 handle cranks to retrieve the practice plug. With a little bit more force in the cast it was getting me about 34 handle cranks. The rod rating is 3/16th oz to 1/2 oz lures. Upon flexing the rod for a hand load test, it does appear the rod has a bit more backbone to it. So in other words when the big ones bite, there will definitely be some power to hoist the fish. Since I had just obtained an Expride A 6'10" ML spinning rod, I had to check the load curve side by side. As it appears the Expride has a slightly slower load and bends a bit more into the rod. I also have a Phenix M1 6'9" ML casting rod and the Phenix has a slower load curve in comparison as well.
As so far for my preliminary assessment, I am totally impressed with this rod. This is a rod perfect of the example to never judge a book by it's cover. Yes, there were a lot about it that seemed to not be worth a looking more into. Even the made in Indonesia caught me by surprise as most of the other rod makes are produced in China. Putting all judgment aside and giving the rod it's merits where it deserves, I like this rod far more than the Phenix M1. Furthermore this rod is gonna move up into the first string round.
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I'm going to have one customized by Minske in Rochester, MN, for trout. Medium-fast action, not too long--no more than 6'. No ultra-light. (I don't do the traditional fly-fishing setup.)
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I haven't gotten to the point of knowing what I want to customize in a full length rod yet. Still looking at different types of rods and how they perform. Ice fishing is another story, since I know exactly what I want for an ice fishing pole. But that was through using a lot of different ones too.
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With so many kinds of fish and varying sizes, one pole just isn't enough. I need 3 to be complete.
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CDC610MLA
As so far with more practicing and testing out. I swapped the reel out for another Curado BFS with YGK G-Soul Upgrade X-8 in 14# box listed. It worked out very well with the 1/4 oz. practice plug. I decided to test out some lighter weights. First up was a 3/16th oz. brass bullet weight. I was expecting to lose casting distance, but to my surprise I was achieving basically the same casting distance. Obviously if I put more power into the cast the 1/4 oz. will get a further max distance. However for just a low flat trajectory side cast the results was merely identical as for distance. The feel is for sure the lighter weight was lighter.
Now moving onto the 1/8th oz. brass bullet weight. I was expecting to lose a lot of distance but again surprising it wasn't much. On average I was getting about mid twenties to upper twenties on handle cranks for line retrieval. With just a little more power into my casting I was just shy of 30 handle cranks for line retrieval on average. It was very apparent feel with the lighter 1/8th oz. weight as this is below the rod's rated lure weight.
When I went back to do a side to side comparison with my other Zodias 7'2" ML and Expride B 7'2" ML casting rods I was feeling the difference now. The Zodias now feels more heavy and slower. That's in part to the longer length but also physical weight of rod and Chronarch MGL reel and 20# Diawa J-Braid x8 line. The Expride also had the longer length feel but was almost on par with physical weight with Chronarch MGL reel and 15# Diawa J-Braid x8 line. I beginning to get the feel for the merits of the Curado BFS reel with light weight and super shallow spool for small diameter line.
For sure I'm gonna try crappie fishing with this set up as far as inline spinners and other artificial lures.
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I'm still waiting to go to Rochester to get a customized pole.
I learned today, though, that fast action poles are good for flouro or monofilament lines, while braided are best suited for medium action poles. That's how I like it. So, we'll see what I will have Rochester do for me.
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That's why I spool braid and then a topshot of mono. Typically five to 10 feet of mono although I've done like 20 or more before. So like for catfising I would put like 30# mono. For just white bass fishing 20# or 14# mono. Crappie fishing 10# down to 6# mono.
I do have some reels with just straight fluorocarbon or mono still.
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The flourocarbon and mono lines don't give fast enough action/power to the piercing on bigger fish. I keep loosing them as they shake and pull their heads side-to-side.
I've used 15-20# braids with 6-8# leaders for anything from crappies to eyes, and green and white basses. For cats and carps, I hardly use leaders.
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Sometimes the fish bite down on the lure so tight or just lucky where the hook point doesn't penetrate into any flesh. I've caught walleyes where I pulled the fish in and as soon as the fish opens it's mouth the lure comes out. There was one where I remember in ice fishing that the hook bend was just on it's large fang. At anytime if it open it's mouth and did a head shake, it would've unbutton very easy.
Gars are the most notorious for not getting hooked because of all their teeth. The hook is often just caught in their teeth and not in the flesh.
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Even treble hooks can't pierce some times.
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Gotta get those super sharp hooks like Hayabusa or Owner brands. I've replaced some lures with the Owner Cutting points hooks. The first few times I used them, they cut big gashes into fish. So I learned afterwards that I don't need such a huge hook set. Just a wrist flick is enough 99% of the time. Or just let the fish hook themselves and just keep reeling.
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Ok. Thanks. I like that.
But some fish are so smart, even if you let them swallow for a while first, they still spit the bait out. I can't believe that. I don't know how they can tell the difference between a hook and something else when the hook is hold that yummy bait already. I've seen thistle heads and even just weeds in the guts of some fish--that means they eat things that aren't even meaty foods.
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Ooops, did it again.
Shimano Poison Adrena 7'2" M casting rod.
Don't need it, but since Joe's 50% off, I had too. Wonder if I should go back and look again...but from what I saw, people were just hoarding like 5-6 rods in their hands. :D
and they were also holding like 2-4 reels in their hands too...
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I've tried very hard to resist buying any more. But they are so tempting. I go to Cabela's and can't help it but go around those St. Croix pole stands and take them out to feel how they bend...If I don't get myself out quickly, I know I will buy one and another and another each time I'm there.
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I think that some of these people just buy stuff to re-sell it. There's about no way someone will just walk in and pick out like several expensive items. Well there is, but when I see how people re-sell stuff and say never used or used just once and they be asking for like $20-50 below retail price. I'm like nope, it should be more like 1/2 off the retail price. Cuz if I was gonna sell my used stuff that's how it should be, sold as used for 1/2 off or more.
Myself I'm more like if the item is still there after a month or several months gone by, then perhaps it was still waiting for me. :D Sometimes I really want something but then it's sold off when I come look again after several weeks. I know I wanted a St. Croix ML casting rod 6'10" for a long time, but they no longer make it. That's when I started to branch off and look more into different brands. Really at the heart of it, I'm still an Ugly Stik guy.
The brand new Ugly Stik Inshore rod retails for $100 and I'm so tempted to order one. Then I ask myself what am I going to use it for? I've already gotten all my catfish rods covered. My trout and crappie rods covered. My white bass fishing covered. All my ice fishing rods are covered.
Now it's just about trying newer things and that's the only purpose they fulfill.
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So I did dare to go back there to Joe's. As I proposed that sometimes they will go dig up the old rods that they have hiding in storage. They brought them out and tagged them for current retail price of current products.
I found the St. Croix 6'10" MLXF casting rods. It's been off the shelf and out of production for like 5 or so years or more. Last time I saw this rod was at Cabela's cuz I used to work closer to that location and went there after work. That was six years ago. When they were in production the price would've been around $220 retail with price increasing towards $280 on the last year of production. So yeah, I had decided back then I wouldn't pay full price for it and waited for a discounted sale price. They must've just stuffed it into storage. Like usual the lazy people at Joe's had been quite unhelpful because I've asked and talked about this rod for years. They've always said, not in stock. Well it's always been in stock this whole time. In stock in the off site storage location. Well it's a vintage rod - sort of now. Score!
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I don't have any nostalgia for any pole or reel. All I want left is a trout fishing pole. But I don't care about a fly-fishing set. I have that and I don't like it. But I'm also not sure of what to do with it. I just keep it with me to look at. It's too light and long that I find it myself hard to like it. So, the customized one from Rochester will be good. Just haven't had the time to make it down there. Now that hunting is starting on September 1st, it likely will be next spring or January before I get to Minske in Rochester.
I thought Joe's has some incredible Hmong employees. There's a guy who spooled my reel with braid that I've liked a lot. Not sure if you ever ran into him, "cuz" he would go the extra yards to find anything in stock for you.
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Yeah, back when Roger used to work there, he would definitely take the extra time to look, but he retired. I'm not familiar with any other people at Joe's even though I'm there often. Plus one has to be a tackle junkie to really know there stuff. I've had people look at their inventory system and they didn't find what I was looking for. Meaning they did not know what I was looking for. Alas, I've finally found it.
The line guides are micro guides in the upper tip section. I couldn't get my Spro #10 swivel to pass through. I need to find a smaller swivel maybe #14 size to try out later.
So some backyard practicing with the 6'10" MLXF LTB rod and comparing it to the Shimano Curado 6'10" MLF rod. The St. Croix is designated as a dropshot rod. So checking the rod tip load and it's a drop shot rod. It has the extended tip section as similar drop shot rods will load up as. Kind of like an Ugly Stik extended tip load. In comparison the St. Croix has a softer tip. The full load is a soft progressive load typical to normal ML rods. It's is almost identical to the Shimano Expride 6'10" MLF spinning rod at this load. So back to the casting motion the St. Croix rod has a softer load to it as well or rather a lighter load. I can feel that familiar feel of a tip section snap when I put a little more jerky motion into it. When I slow down just a bit, it's very smooth. In part it has that same familiar feel of the 6'10" MXF LE rod that I benched. In mostly because of the reel seat is wider and this LTB rod has that similar wider reel seat. That's what most throws me off because I must be putting the fulcrum of my cast right there and the wider reel seat hinders my feel at that point. If I use a more traditional pistol trigger grip hold for my casting, that wider reel seat is perfect for that feel. Which is fine if I revert back to that method, but that means switching hands after the cast. Which is also the typical holding position for power overhead casting. It's better for the trigger finger to hook onto the trigger.
The current handle reel seat designs of the Victory/LTB rods are much much better. They just don't produce this particular ML rod in casting anymore.
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Pole makers always test new ideas. So, new ones are always being made and old ones are discontinued.
I have sampled enough kinds out there to see which ones are top. But the few I've come across, I like what I have so far. It's also just a matter of getting used to the poles. Once I'm there, I can swing them in any way and feel good about them. It's usually how they perform when a fish is caught that concerns me more. Can a pole handle the fight of a big fish? Can I get to enjoy the vibrations if the fish is too small, like a crappie or white bass? Etc.
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For sure, I've been very satisfied with my Ugly Stiks for a long time. Since most of what I used to do is bobber fishing or bottom rigged fishing. So a lot of just waiting for a fish to bite. A lot of useful experience with the individual too. There's always that one person so seems to catch more fish than the rest.
I'm not as experience as those, so I need all the help I can get. I will rely on better tools that helps me. I'm just happy to get that experience. That's why the first St. Croix 6' Light spinning rod I bought really means a lot to me with lots of sentimental value. All other rods I purchased afterwards really do get compared to that one.
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So after a few days practicing with the St. Croix 6'10" MLXF casting rod and getting used to it. I'm beginning to see why this rod is very good, well at least the rod blank action and power. The direct comparison is the Shimano Curado 6'10" MLF casting rod. I also still have the Phenix M1 6'9" MLF casting rod too.
Overall component assembly has to go with the Phenix M1. It has Alconite ring inserts and the reel seat is very functional in design for both traditional trigger grip and palm grip.
The Curado rod does a better job at casting lures over that of the Phenix M1. Partially due to the design copy filtering down from the Zodias rods. It has the feel of it can take a lot of use and still provide good performance.
The St. Croix being a $300 retail rod, does edge out just a little better as far as performance. The tip section of the rod is just a tad bit more sensitive and has a much better load progression. At first I thought it was kind of like an Ugly Stik tip load but actually not. I went and double check with the older 6'8" MXF and when I line up the tip sections according to tip, they were identical is the extra fast tip load. Before that I had the rod reel seats aligned and misjudged the tip load while in comparison. It gave the false visual impression of the longer rod having a longer tip load forward. Still the heavy and bulky design of the reel seat and grips is what kills this rod. It was designed for people with Xtra Large hands. Especially the foregrip on the design is really bulky.
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I like a cork handle for any size pole at all. There's just a better grip with the cork than with rubber or other synthetic materials. Not that cork is more real. But it just holds better.
I've come to one decision on poles: no long than 6' but not shorter than 5'5". With this length, I can point the pole anywhere and swing with accuracy. Great for distance as well as narrow corners and spots that the bait just has to sneak into. The feel is just as great, too.
So, still waiting to go to Rochester for that trout pole that would be customized.
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Secretly my 6' Light spinning St. Croix the tip broke on it and I fixed it up so it's actually 5'11" and has worked better than it's original form. I could say mine is customized. :D
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That is customized!
I would have just had St. Croix give me a new one and then they will tell me I can keep that old one. Customize it and you get two poles! lol
The shorter ones can be controlled more. That's my experience.
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That is customized!
I would have just had St. Croix give me a new one and then they will tell me I can keep that old one. Customize it and you get two poles! lol
The shorter ones can be controlled more. That's my experience.
Simple mechanical engineer logic. The distribution of weight plays in your favor with a shorter pole. If the pole is longer than the fish has an advantage despite weighing less than you do. If you only had to work with a long pole then I suggest holding it more in the center than at the end handle in order to get the same control as the short pole.
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Simple mechanical engineer logic. The distribution of weight plays in your favor with a shorter pole. If the pole is longer than the fish has an advantage despite weighing less than you do. If you only had to work with a long pole then I suggest holding it more in the center than at the end handle in order to get the same control as the short pole.
Yes. Indeed. That's logical. That's why I don't want a long pole if I want control.
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The more I use and play around with these rods, the more I feel the nuance difference amongst them. At first I really like the Curado 6'10" MLF casting rod. That's in part where it had an edge over that the my older Phenix M1 6'9" MLF casting rod. After using the St. Croix LTB 6'10" MLXF it's beginning to grow on me and seems to be much more refine.
Perhaps it's just that the St. Croix rod suits me or my style. The rod blank has just the right specs for how my casting motion induces lure flight. In addition is just how St. Croix built these rod taper where there is almost no recoil from the casting motion. Or rather I should say that the recoil is very controlled.
In terms of palm holding position and grip, my hands still prefer the reel seat of the Curado rod over that of the wide reel seat on the St. Croix LTB rod. The reel seats on St. Croix rods are more of weird design in my opinion. I still like the old Fuji ACS reel seats over that of current Fuji PTS reel seats. Again PTS great for trigger finger hold while casting, but not as secure for palm holding position where the ACS excels over. It is truly a shame that St. Croix had stopped producing a ML casting rod in these specs. The only current mode is a Premier in 7' MLF.
Honestly, I would still fish a spinning rod inverted with a casting reel going forward. That's where the Shimano Expride 6'10" MLF spinning rod really shines, and secretly my old St. Croix Legend Elite 6' MLF spinning rod outperforms everything I've been chasing in a casting rod set up.
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Oh wow. Tackle Warehouse suddenly has some old St. Croix LTB 6'10" MLXF casting rods in stock. :D That's amazing how the old no longer manufactured rods suddenly reappears.
Still a shame that St. Croix didn't reproduce the rod in the newer Legend Tournament style grips and reel seats. They made a spinning rod model but not a casting rod model.
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New fishing pole. 13 Fishing Snitch Pro 32" length. No reason just wanted to try something new.
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There is a never ending sale to lure you. The more you buy, the question remains. What are you going to do with that big pile of older fishing gears? You can't give it away because you are still attached to it. You can't sell it because people want to buy it for cheap.
This is why I stopped buying my gears until I really needed a set. Then again, we have too many varieties to catch here in california. The mountain for trout is light tackle. Landlock salmon are giant trout so bigger gear. Salmon season run. Bass gear, striper gear, catfish gear, sturgeon heavy duty gear, Right now big ugly stick for crabbing snare from the pier or beach. Different gear for halibut and lingcod for the ocean. Lighter gear to catch their bait fish. Then you got some pan fish and crappie gear. There's also tuna coming into the california coast as well. Those are the biggest of the biggest gear and the most expensive. If you are into your hobby, what I just said is a store in your garage already.
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I passed by that Rochester fly-fishing store but didn't have time to stop in. I had my hunting equipment in the truck. So, didn't feel comfortable checking out fishing stuff yet.
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I probably won't even get time to go fishing this year but am thinking of a new fishing pole. :idiot2:
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I have enough fishing equipment now. I just need to know good lakes and streams.
I've decided not to buy a fly fishing pole. I don't like to keeping dealing with an
extra dangling line with my left hand.
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I have enough fishing equipment now. I just need to know good lakes and streams.
I've decided not to buy a fly fishing pole. I don't like to keeping dealing with an
extra dangling line with my left hand.
In a way good thing because you will need more than just the pole. You may need the hip basket to catch and hold your fly line. You'll need an assortment of fly tippets or leaders just to get the right presentation for each fly lure. You will need a creel bag. A handy hand net to carry around too. Then a fly vest for all your other essentials. Lures, tools, more tackle, and other hardware.
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I did go to Joe's during their little Spring Fishing sales week event thing. Typical 20% off and rep samples @ 50% off. I didn't see any St. Croix rods on the rep samples like they typically do have some. Saw a bunch of Diawa's, 13 Fishing, and others that I didn't pay much attention to.
Like usual, Joe's put up mostly old stuff from last year on the racks. They did get some new stuff, but mediocre and not really what I'm looking for or at least like to play around with. Anyway, I did splurge on another rod. Not that I needed it, but more like to have something similar yet more updated.
Shimano Poison Adrena 6'10" M casting rod. It was the only one left on the rack of it's kind. So I guess it will become part of my collection on the wall. Comparatively it is similar to my St. Croix 6'8" MXF Legend Elite in performance and function. The St. Croix 6'10" MXF Legend Elite is so much slower and heavier in feel due to the bulky handle grips.
A few backyard casting test and it feels so natural and flows really well with 1/4 oz. practice plug. Again that carbon monocoque handle design works with such a functional dynamic on the rod that my reel palming casting just works in such a balance. I am now appreciating the no hook keeper on the rod. Nothing to catch on and the casting just flows. I still like how some St. Croix rods comes with their hook keeper positioning and that does not interfere in anyway either. I use to think that not having a hook keeper was a cheap out method, but not anymore. It's more like a trade off. If the need is so serious, some velcrow ties works wonders for hook keepers. I already use those things for heavy sinker keepers on my other rods to prevent the sinker from banging around.
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I had avoided Joe's Customer Appreciation Day sale this year. Seen on FB that it was a J4 zoo. Anyway I did the pre-shop and didn't see any really good stuff out. So it appears that the good stuff was tucked away and wasn't on their Customer Appreciation Day sale.
I guess pre-shop for Blaque Fryday Syber Monday...maybe . Shackle Warehouse may get the online sale again this year.
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So it's been a long time awaiting that baitcasting rod in the light power fashion. Hopefully they have actually mark the line guide spacing in such a fashion that it becomes functional and properly aligned in esthetic sense too. So I've been eyeing a few rods but the two that interests me most are the following two:
Phenix Classic BFS Casting rod in 6'8" @ $189
Shimano Expride B Casting rod in 6'8" @ $279
Seems like as soon as they got some in at Shackle Warehouse, they're sold out. Must be a high demand and/or high interests in them. Something to think about for Blaque Fryday Syber Monday sales.
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Ugly Stik Carbon Catfish Spinning Rod
Here's one to think about and almost unheard of for catfishing. Normally people want the fiberglass poles that bends for catfishing. Well this one is graphite so it's more like just for normal lure fishing and stuff. Unfortunately they gone back to using just stainless steel line guides with no inserts. Sure it's more reliable for tough treatment, but that also means it will shred your braid lines more so too. Guess what also, the price hike on these rods. They expected you to pay a retail of $90.
Weird lengths available in MH 7'6" and H 9'6" are gonna be different for comparison of other rods.
Compared to the old Ugly Stick Catfish rod in white that retailed for $50. The old one had ceramic inserts plus glow inserts in the upper tip section, while current model went to trash with plain stainless steel line guides and no inserts.
Ugly Stik Catfish Special Spinning Rod
Which is kind of a duplicate of the standard white Catfish rod, only they expanded with additional longer lengths available in 9', 10', and 12' lengths and it's orange colored or copper orange. While getting an increased price tag of $60.
I was thinking about checking out some updated products but with the cheaper stainless steel line guides, nah nope. Unless one wants to replace their braid lines often.