Cgrinder

Nah, I'm with you. CXX gets my copoly money. Hybrid is really stretchy and doesn't float well enough to fish a Sammy. No me gusta.

6'10" ML *** Black A casting rod. They're made for the Australian domestic market but you can get them direct from *** for ~$115 shipped. It handles light baits well and is not outmatched by big Smallmouth or Trout in current.

Yep. 1/4 oz Lipless all day.

15 lb. CXX is what I use. You might want to bump it up to 17 lb. or so.

I gotta get a couple new ones. The one I bought last year caught a fish on its first cast and is now cursed.

Yeah, tackle store options up there are pretty slim. I ran out of Baby Rage Craws up there last July and was very upset to find them $8 at Gander Mountain. However, they sold me some clearance Yum Craw Papi's that worked . . . in a pinch.

Troy near Oakland Mall, right off I-75. Probably an hour and change from Ypsi.

Smoked Jelly.

That Cabela's is so worth the drive though. That Great Lakes bar near it has super good food and you can take your wife/girlfriend to the Russel Stover outlet store across the street to make up for all the tackle purchasing. I'm going to check out the F&S when it opens. I've heard good things from some members here.

They're the Jedi of the sea!

My guess is that OP is looking for input on purchasing a rod in the $250+ range but doesn't want to spend Megabass X7 money. You may have missed it where he added the $400 cap, which is unfortunately just short of X4 money. Also, no reason to stir the pot. If you don't like expensive rods, don't buy them.

The Auburn Hills, MI Bass Pro is lousy for high-end stuff but the Rossford, OH store is sweet. They had lots of St. Croix, Daiwa, and some Megabass rods.

Lexas are solid reels. If it was a gift, I'd consider fishing with it.

Metanium for Shimano. OG Zillion for Daiwa.

I bought a pack of those Xcite Raptor Tail chunks in Green Pumpkin. They look ridiculously good. My girlfriend bought me something stupid for our anniversary. I'll post pics when it gets here.

Custom is a good way to go above $250. Mike @ DVT does nice work and he's a lot of help if you're new to the process.

Veritas. Abu's customer service cannot be beat if you're on a budget.

That thing about the brake drum is a mistranslation from the Japanese manual iirc. Don't worry bout it. Also two SVS brakes seems like a lot. Try one and mess with the dial. Also check the bearings. Lots of bros were reporting over greased bearings from the factory. I was also underwhelmed but that's not a fair statement because I fish Conquests and some pretty wild stuff.

Price range?

Should take a week or so. I had a Veracity with a bad guide and it was handled quickly.

No shipping necessary. Warranty claims involve lots of pictures.

Youtube is awesome. There's some stupid stuff for sure but there's also a lot of great instructional videos, not to mention some very entertaining fishing channels.

I wouldn't worry. Abu's customer service is crazy good.

Considering you can find sub $100 Tatulas, that's certainly some bang and not a lot of bucks. Omens are solid rods and the blank is one of the best you'll find sub $250. However the build quality is inconsistent but that's not unreasonable at $100. The Phenix Maxim has good components but it's new and I have not seen any reviews. I'd probably buy an *** for jigs and a Tatula for jerkbaits, depending on your preferred power, taper, and length. I do a lot with a MH ***.

Epic Meal Time, mostly because my girlfriend is a vegetarian and it's fun to harass the herbivore.