Darren.

For me, it would be an Ugly Stik Lite (as another said, the one with the cork handles). Why? For one, USLs have a soft enough tip to work extremely well with crankbaits. Another reason is extreme durability. USLs get a bad rap from many. A lot of folks move on from them to more expensive/sensitive rods, but I've actually moved back to them from the pricier rods. My rationale is due to strength and durability. I stared in disbelief when a brand new rod I bought was stepped on (accidentally) by a kid fishing near me on a dock. A careless, but expensive mistake for me. I'm normally careful with my equipment, but didn't want to have that happen again. I was in the grip of the bait monkey, looking at more and more expensive rods. That event helped me refocus on needs over wants. So the Cabelas rod may not be expensive, but I'd wager it can't hold a candle in durability to the USL. Oh, and the Shimano Voltaeus (their answer to the Ugly Stik) is also nice. They are a *tad* lighter than USLs by my subjective measurement in my local Bass Pro Shop. I compared a 5' UL Shimano V. to a 5' UL USL, both one-piece, both $39. The Shimano was a good deal floppier (noodly) than the USL. It was a tad lighter; however - the Shimano's handle was about 1" shorter - that was a deal breaker for me. Most of the Voltaeus (fresh water) line have too-short handles. Sorry to be so wordy. Just wanted to give my opinion. Buy what you need and can afford and keep the bait monkey at bay! Fish don't care what brand rod you have. : Oh, one more thing - if you're looking at say, a 7 footer, get your hands on one of the new Ugly Stik Inshore Select rods. VERY light and nice looking. I almost grabbed one, but can't use a longer rod so much for transport reasons.

I have been checking out these rods every time I go to BPS. I had a chance to compare the 6'6" M (all spinning rods, fwiw) with a 6'6" M Vendetta, Mojo, Carrot Stix, and a couple more - the CarbonLite is like a feather at the tip whereas the Vendetta and Mojo were quite tip-heavy by comparison; felt quite similar to the Carrot Stix. A BPS guy was cool enough to let me compare a couple rods with my spinning reel of choice (Shimano Spirex 2500 FG) and boy was the CarbonLite awesome. I need to change that to present tense - since the "introductory special" price drop, I jumped on the 6'6" M. Took it out on the water today (dock), and though I didn't catch anything, I did get a good couple of hits from some small fish hitting a tiny tube. The feel was fantastic. Bottom jigging, shakey head worming, etc., was excellent. I could feel everything. Was just a tough bite today. I did have a Berkely Lightning Shock in M power prior to this, but couldn't shake an unsettled feeling I had with the Shock so I returned it and waited until the CL went on sale. Feel is better than the Shock, by a fairly large factor, IMHO. Sorry I cannot compare it to Fenwick, Loomis, Cumaras, etc. Way out of my price league. :-/ (other than in-store comparisons). The guides are very quiet with PowerPro, too. And like MarauderYak said, the guides are not cheapies, they are PAC Bay stainless with titanium carbide inserts. A big thumbs up so far. Anticipate good things from this rod this season! 8-)

Joined the site today. Been perusing the boards for a while now, enjoying the information and friendly debate immensely. I'm in southeast VA, the Hampton Roads area. I fish primarily in freshwater reservoirs in York county. I love bass fishing, but will go for anything that takes a hook whether using plastics, crankbaits, jigs, or live bait. I fish with a Shimano Spirex 2500 on a 5'9" ML Ugly Stick, a couple of Quantum Accurist baitcasters, a couple of Abu Garcia 276Ui underspin spincast reels, and a bevy of simple panfish poles from 10' to 20'. Have a Merry Christmas, all! Darren

First post here. Great site, great resources! If I could only pick one guy: "Uncle" Homer Circle. So many years on the water, so much wisdom, so practical.