hwright38

aaaand just like that I get a call back haha. Welp, Guess I just had to be patient.

Has anyone been able to contact a person at Abu Garcia for warranty replacement in the last month? I filled out their online form and within a week had a case number and confirmed my rod was eligible for warranty replacement. That was on 05/13. They said in their email to call the number to pay for the service fee. Well, I've called that number a few times, and for a few weeks I would be on hold for hours every time I called. They used to have a "press 1 to receive a callback" option, I've done that, a month later and no call back. I sent an email back two weeks ago, no response. Now when I call and get through the menu, I'm on hold for 2 minutes before they say to leave a message. Did that a week ago over Memorial Day and still haven't gotten a call back. What gives? Am I actually just dumb or is Abu's warranty team non-existent? Do I just need to be patient? To be honest, waiting the whole fishing season for them to honor their own warranty is pretty lame.

I'm not actually looking to ski, I just need more floor space than what's on a typical bass boat for gear and coolers.

Sorry for going AWOL on the thread, I thought I had email replies turned on... Guess not lol. Yes, this is what I'm seeing too. I currently have an '05 Nitro 189 Sport, and it has zero rod storage built in. It looks like that version of the Z19 Sport (that I think was discontinued this year, funnily enough) is basically the same hull just with updated interior. Right now I'm running my rods up the sides of the gunwales with the tips poking through where the wiring goes up to the trolling motor/running lights in the bow. I can cram 6 rods on each side, so I guess it's working good enough for now. I was actually looking at the Pro V GL. The Impact and Crossover look... flimsy isn't the right word, but they look like they'd be beaten up in bigger water. This boat will primarily be used on Lake Powell where it can get pretty nasty in a summer windstorm, and if there's an emergency hiding from the weather may not be an option. I'm also really more of a glass guy. Not had the best experience with aluminum boats (granted, they were all Trackers...), so I'm going to stay away from them for the time being. Those were on my radar as well. I think I'd rather go with a Ranger or Triton for that kind of money, they seem to be about equivalent hulls. Thanks for the advice fellas. It looks like what I want doesn't really exist (and may not even be physically possible, thanks @Vilas15 for pointing that out to me). I'll be taking a long look at the Lund offerings, and since originally posting this I've noticed the Tritons seem to sit a bit lower in the water than the Ranger/Nitros, so I'll be looking into those as well.

Hello, I'm in the market for a new boat, and I have a... weird? Strange? Completely deranged? Set of features I'm looking for, and I'm not even sure this combination exists. In short, I'm looking for a Ranger 212 LS with more rod storage. A Fish & Ski that's leaning more towards "fish" and less towards "ski." I camp/sleep out of the boat for 4-5 days at a time, mostly with 1 other person, so a "pure" bass boat won't work (I need more floor space for coolers and stuff). However, I like the fishing performance of a "bass boat" style hull, and I don't want to go with a true Deep-V. Has anyone made a boat similar to that in the last 5-10 years? Everything I'm seeing is either a bass boat with one bench for seating and no floor space, a Deep V that sits miles above the water, or the exact hull shape I want but has basically no rod storage.

I have the C14 2500 and it's been awesome. That's the one I'd recommend for a general purpose spinning reel for bass. I have it on a Medium power GLX, and it's my go-to for everything too small for my baitcasters to cast. Also, @MN Fisher has a good recommend in the pflueger president. I'd actually recommend that reel over Shimano or Daiwa's offerings until you get to over $100.

The Stradics by themselves start at $180, so they're probably out of your price range. The Revo spinning reels have a major design flaw where if it's cold (I've had it happen at around 60 degrees), the anti-reverse clutch stops working. This means the reel will be able to spin backwards, and this really sucks when you get a fish and your reel handle starts spinning around. I lost a lot of fish that day. This problem exists in all Revos, from the X ($99) to the Premier ($299). Unless you will ONLY be fishing in weather where the low for the day is more than about 70, I can't recommend a Revo spinning reel ever. For $150 total, I would get a Shimano Sahara(either 2500 or 3000, $80 on tacklewarehouse) and a Fenwick Eagle rod ($50-$60 depending on the model). That still leaves you with some extra change for line as well. I would recommend getting away from the Ugly Stik rod and into a better one, especially for finesse techniques. The "glass tip gives it more sensitivity!" is marketing bull, you'd be much better off with a graphite rod of almost any manufacture once you get up into the $60 and up range. You could even go with a Daiwa Regal or Revros and get a better rod in the $100 price range.

Exactly my thoughts. Braid mishaps are almost always user error. I also like that I can really dig at a back lash and not have to worry about kinking the line or flat out breaking it off. I have broke off mid-cast one time, and it was casting a 1oz spoon with 40lb braid. I'm pretty sure that spool was a lemon from the factory, as I had been experiencing a lot of breaks with that specific spool. Once I switched back to my main brand I don't think I've broken off braid since.

A MH should be just fine for cranks like that. I fish a MH for 5XDs (which are in that 15ft range) and it works awesome. The 6XD straddles the line, but I don't think I would even try an 8 or a 10 on a MH. OP, 6.4:1 will be just fine. I fish my 5/6XDs with a 7.3:1 Curado DC, and I have no problems with fatigue cranking all day, you'll be golden with a 6.4. Yeah, I've never heard of specifically using a fast reel for crankbaits. It's always a "if it's what you have it will work" thing. Conventional wisdom is higher gear ratios are for taking up slack/reeling up to cast a soft plastic back into the strikezone, not for getting cranks down faster.

This is pretty much exactly what will happen. Even if you don't have proof of purchase, they'll usually give you one mulligan and accept a warranty claim and give you credit towards whatever you want (you still pay shipping though). I had this happen with one of my Villains, the eyelets all got flattened somewhere in transportation, and when I asked them about it they basically said they'll give me one freebie. I decided I would try to straighten them myself since I was currently on a fishing trip and never cashed in though (I still have the rod and it works fine now). YMMV on all of this though. The only people I've heard have trouble are the ones that refuse to contact Abu Garcia themselves and go back to complain to the store they bought it from, and even then most of the time it's about having to pay shipping and a small warranty fee.

Bumps are fine, it's crushes that are bad. So long as you don't squeeze the blank into anything (and obviously don't be slamming it into trees) you'll be fine. I would bet dollars to donuts anyone that's broken ANY rod, either got a lemon from the manufacturer (very rare in this price range from one of the "big 3" of bass fishing) or they crushed the blank either by stepping on it, throwing their tackle boxes on it, rolling stuff over it, etc (99% of the cases). Rods simply don't break by themselves, and you'll know immediately if it's a lemon because the first time you flex it it will snap. I've been going full clip in my Pescador Pilot 12 (about 3-4 MPH) and had a low hanging branch hit two of my rods, and literally stopped my forward momentum. Granted they weren't the rod you're looking at, but one of them was a GLX, and the other was a Phenix Feather. Both very "light" rods, and they are both completely fine (I do not recommend doing that, as the sight of them bending further and further until they whip back up on the other side of the branch was terrifying). If you're on the fence, just buy it. They're excellent rods and there really isn't too much of a reason to go with anything more expensive until you get into GLX/NRX territory. With concerns to warranty, if you bought a truck and 2 years later wrapped it around a tree, would you go complaining to the manufacturer for a new one? No, because you broke it due to abnormal use. Same goes for rods, if it works the first time you take it out, then 2 years from now you set the hook on a fish and it snaps, tough luck, it wasn't the manufacturers fault at that point. ps If you're unsure you damaged a rod doing anything, flex test it on something soft like grass or carpet. NEVER grab a rod and try to bend it with your hands, they aren't meant to put under load from anywhere but the tip, and I've watched many people pick up rods in a store, "flex test" them in their hands and they snap 6" of the tip off. Don't be that guy.

Shimano Zodias would be my recommendation. Good sensitivity, and they've got enough power in the M to handle casting a 110 plopper. Can't go wrong with a Champion XP either.

The main reason I wouldn't tie it through the holes is if you do get down low enough, you could end up cutting the braid as it rubs against the edge of the holes. Most of the reels with holes in the spool have pretty sharp edges, so beware of that. I personally have never gotten close to low enough to worry about that, but I still don't tie it to the holes because connection knots or electrical tape are easy.

You're right, but they usually use flouro, not braid. The line isn't what's making them choose a slower rod, it's the technique.

I don't know what you're doing, but I fish braid on fast and extra fast action rods and have no issues with losing more fish than I did before switching to braid. In fact, I prefer braid with a fast or extra fast rod. With braid you're gaining the ability to make hooksets at the ends of long casts, and you gain so much sensitivity compared to mono/flouro. A moderate action rod diminishes both of those characteristics heavily (especially in such a low end rod like an Ugly Stik). Braid is also "bad" for the techniques where you'd want a slower action rod (ie treble hook baits), though I do sometimes use smaller crankbaits with braid just because that's what's on my reels at the moment, and I haven't noticed anything too bad as long as I'm paying attention. There really isn't too much of a reason to use braid with a slow rod, they're both made to solve opposite problems and you pretty much end up back at square one because they're fighting each other. If it works for you, then I guess keep going, just don't be too surprised when you don't convert many people haha. You called? lol. You're definitely in the minority for wanting a moderate rod to use with braid, which is why every line of rods doesn't include a moderate. However, there are plenty of options in the mid-high end market for a slower action, even glass rod. Dobyn's has a Champion cranking rod (both a graphite and a glass option), Loomis has a cranking version of their IMX, and Phenix has a line of glass rods too. Can't forget Powell just introduced a new Max line that has fiberglass rods as well. Those are just off the top of my head, there's options if you look around.