Hooligan

You won't like any of the fast rods for jigs in the Cumara line, really. Just the XFast rods. They have a better feel than the Crucial, but as stated many times before if cash is tight, the Crucial is a darned fine rod, too. The Cumara is definitely worth the upgrade, monetarily, it's much lighter and far more sensitive. Merry Christmas!

They're nice, BUT, the reviews and feedback we've been getting is not great. I personally have had two and had problems with both. The first one I shelled completely, I mean the main drive gear was nearly flat. The second I tor the clutch and ar bearing out after two hours of fishing. I'll stick with a Core or Pixy if I need a light reel for light lures.

Stellar, man. Stellar. I got out for a couple hours today, too. Albeit in full raingear, fleece under-layers, a hat, neck gaiter, two pair of gloves, and 800gram insulated boots. I also didn't catch anything close to that 7-2. Just a 5-5 and a bunch of 18" fish.

Indeed, they're a fine rod for the price point.

It's entirely dependent upon the rod in question. The MHXF Cumara is a beast, where the MHF is noticeably more limber. The jig rods in the Cumara lineup are the only ones I would use as Jig rods, really. If it's not one of those, then no, probably not the best jig rod ever. I have both the MH and M XF Cumara in 6-8 and 7-2 and they're all among my favorite rods.

It's not really about semantics, though. The resins used pretty much make the graphite what it is. To make the comparison that it's "IM 10 like the Cumara" is quite far from the truth. It may be IM 10, but the blanks are vastly different.

Without going into great detail, the resins will affect the weight, the strain rate, hoop strength, density, and compression strength of the finished blank. Resins affect the final product in various ways, from making a rod ultra-durable to ultra-light and sensitive. In some ways they play as much a part of the rod as the actual carbon/graphite.

I fail to see how anything I said is argumentative. I simply completed the statement you made which alone is not completely true. If you're going to put information out there, make sure it's whole and complete.

I upgraded three times last year from a twelve pound fish, all three upgrades were over 14. The first two were on Fork spooning, one on a Friday one on the following Sunday. (Both weighed in bag on certified Boga) A month later I was fishing an unmarked portion of an unmarked lake in an unmarked area of the unmarked state of CA. Ok, the lake is CLEARly marked, but that's another story... We were drop-shotting structure and I laid into a 14-4. The only thing remarkable about it, other than the size of the fish, is that it hit a 4.5" Robo in 19 FOW.

Like I said, don't sweat it if it works for you. I prefer fluoro, not everyone likes it. Not everyone likes braid. Use what works for you, and only you can decide that.

I'm with Roadwarrior, PopMax. The bait will just flat catch fish. The disadvantage of it, though, is that muskies like them, too. I've donated three to the muskie gods this past year. I also like the Yellow Magic when a little more noise is desired; I also don't feel so bad about losing them versus a PopMax, so I tend to fish them in my known muskie haunts.

Partly true, partly not. They are an IM10, but they utilize a different resin, so they aren't like the Cumara. There is still quite a difference. They are, however, a very nice rod for the price point. They have a very good hand, and they have a very solid range of lengths and actions. I've been reasonably impressed with them for someone that wants an introductory higher end rod. They, in my opinion, will kick the pants off the GL2 in terms of feel and weight. The Cumara, though, has a distinct advantage in terms of weight and the use of SIC guides versus Alconite on the Crucial.

The Crucial 7' HXF is a super rod, really. It's very underrated in terms of what it will and will not handle. It's one of the best rods Shimano made prior to the Cumara. It still ranks up there quite high in my book, too. Braid sucks, but if it works for you, don't sweat it.

The vast majority of high quality spinning reels are comparably less expensive than their baitcasting counterparts. It isn't that people THINK they should cost less; it's the reality that for comparable gear they generally DO cost less. Only in the past year have prices really come in line with casting reels in terms of quality, and to say that is somewhat a stretch.

Aww go on, John. Nothing in freshwater can possibly tax your equipment. Not even 45" muskies on 200 size reels. Salt is the only way to catch fish worth catching... @ Op, Stradic is a great way to go. The PQ spinning reel is cumbersome, it doesn't fit on most rods (in terms of balance) and it's got rather low line capacity for the sizes of reel. They're also quite heavy compared to their standard frame and spool sized counterparts. Point of reference, a PQ20 weighs in at 10.4 OZ with a capacity of 80yds/8lb and a 2500 Stradic is 140/8 and 9.4 ounces.

The larger surface area of the Mag Spool also equates to a larger surface area for the drag. They generate substantially higher drag because of this. 19.5 lbs isn't out of the question at all for the reels.

I'll be on Erie in late June if all things hold. I got a laugh out of that. Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of guys that I won't catch fish behind, but those are also the guys that won't crowd me in a tournament. A lot of the guys I fish against, too, are bank beaters, they just don't know how to approach structure. I'm not saying I'm KVD, because I'm not, but I'll fish behind an awful lot of people and fare pretty well, as would, I am sure, a lot of other people here, yourself included most likely.

Yeah, not so much. There's a company in WI somewhere (can't remember it off the top of my head) that does a 9' long rod box that will hold ten rods. It mounts on a Thule type roof rack and is made of welded aluminum. The box is fabricated in a manner that virtually eliminates wind noise and it's padded inside. It is separated on the inside, essentially two divided compartments. I'll try to find the name. I drew a co-angler one time that had it and he loved the thing.

I'm not vastly overstating anything. I'm simply refuting the supposed fact that braid is infallible. It isn't the perfect line for every situation, it will break before causing massive equipment failure, and you can do it on fish less than the five pound marker. Regardless of whether in salt or freshwater, braid can break under normal circumstances and it doesn't take a battleship to do it. If you believe otherwise that's fine, play in lala land.

Well done guys. Well done.

Just heard about this, not ten minutes ago. My thoughts and prayers go out to him and his family.

I don't think anyone mentioned a 7'MHF (I'm partial to the Avid, which no one else seemed to mention, either) and a casting reel of 6-7:1 ratio with something like 12lb fluoro. In all seriousness, 7' MHF of your choice and a casting reel in the above mentioned ratios. My spinning, however, would be a 7-2" MXF with a 2500 Sustain.

I'd guarantee you you're 100% wrong in your assumption.

Wrong. It's about shock and tensile strength. It's not about abrasion, knot slip, or any other factor. It's pure and simple physics. As I stated preciously, in the situations at hand, it was purely pilot error. Braid has ZERO shock absorption, you can generate enough force to break #50 on a short leash quite easily; far too many people that have been fishing longer than 35 years (which includes me, btw) have done the same. Denny Brauer once said as much in a seminar, Robert Montgomery published it in one of the most authoritative writings on bass fishing in recent history. Your insinuation that I can't tell when braid is abraided is quite clever, though...

Not altogether true. There are many, many times that I've lost fish from popping braid boat-side. You can put well over 100lbs of shock on your line in a matter of milliseconds. Yes, that can be cured by setting your drag, yes it can be controlled by using a more progressive rod; the fact remains, however, that braid can, and does, break with fish far under it's break strength. For that matter, it's more susceptible to it than any other line because of the lack of stretch and give. You can put a tremendous amount of pressure on your line without anything else failing.