Brian11719

I like a 7' dobyns sierra for mag flukes and similar lures. Weight on it comes out to just under 1oz (same as a mag ultravibe and an ol monster comes out a little less than that) so a 704 is what I've been using and I've been happy with it as it still has some sensitivity but also gets the job done if there's grass around. You could probably get the same rod in a casting version if you prefer a baitcaster but I personally prefer a spinning rod for flukes.

Shimano Vanford, Stradic or Ultegra...2500 or maybe 3000 size depending on how deep the water you are fishing gets. Sufix 832 braid (whatever color you prefer) to an 8lb yozuri hybrid leader. The 7'1" will do nicely for a wacky rig or a texas rig worm / craw or a shakey head or a fluke or a 3.8" keitech. The 7'3" will do nicely for a drop shot or a ned rig...as it turns out st croix makes the only xf action spinning rod that I like and in this case I think their mlxf blank (once you get into the mojos or above) is one of the best ones out there. I prefer the 6'10 but they are about the same and the longer one would be nice if you want to cast further.

Not sure I ever would...one of the things I like the most about bass fishing is trying different things out. Also at this point I probably wouldn't even be able to settle on one brand for a 6" straight tail worm...on one hand I like roboworms for a drop shot...but then I also like xzone deception worms for a shakey head...oh and I also really like a yamamoto sensei in og junebug...so yeah probably not going to be a thing for me anytime soon.

When I started out yes since I figured casting reels weren't worth the backlashes...years later don't really backlash much anymore and even if I do I can usually clean it up. Plus there are some rods like a heavier crankbait / swimbait / flipping / punching setup that I pretty much wouldn't recommend throwing on a spinning setup...even if you could technically get away with it chances are it isn't going to be ideal and your hand / arm might be sore after a bit... I'm actually in the 'both' camp. Own 5 spinning rods and 6 casting rods. Aside from a few exceptions anything over 1/2 oz gets thrown on a casting setup and lighter stuff gets thrown on a spinning setup...haven't gotten into BFS and not sure that I ever will but I do lean heavily towards finesse lures at several of the spots I fish at since they see a lot of traffic / pressure. If you aren't going to throw really heavy stuff you could look at a rod line like the Dobyns Sierra and get away with most things on a spinning rod, but my experience has been as long as it's 1/2 oz or over I don't have much of an issue throwing it on a casting setup...I suppose one exception would be around docks and in that case I prefer a heavier spinning setup sometimes since you don't have to worry about backlashes. ...also if you find yourself fishing in heavy wind...in that case a rod like the Sierra SA 704SF can really come in handy.

I prefer straight fluorocarbon on a casting setup for crankbaits. The lb test depends but I would say most 'not cheap' options out there are pretty good. A lot of people like sunline fc sniper...I personally like YGK G-Soul or Sufix Advance and McCoy Fluoro100 has also done well for me if you are looking for something a little less expensive. Having said that regardless of what brand or even what type of line you choose I would say the two things I would pay attention to are depth and abrasion. For example if I'm only throwing squarebills I don't know that going up a little higher in lb test is really going to make you lose much in terms of depth...but fair chance there are going to be more rocks, wood, etc. so a higher lb test might be better. Alternatively if you think you might get into medium or deep diving cranks at some point then there's a good chance the difference between 12lb and 15lb test will probably be a little more noticeable. Anyway...if I'm throwing a crankbait there are probably going to be zebra mussels around so for me it's usually 15lb test but I also get why a lot of other people typically use something like 12lb test. So my answer it depends on where you are and what you want to do. If you are going to go with fluoro I would also point out that there are some good options out there like McCoy that are a little less expensive, but there is a difference between 'less expensive' and 'cheap' and I'd personally stay away from the cheap stuff as it seems to get replaced quicker anyway so you don't really save much but you do get some bonus frustration thrown in if you go that route.

Looks like Lake Pro tackle takes 15% off these when you put one in your cart right now...haven't ordered from them before but have seen a couple of their youtube videos and they seem like they are probably ok (other than they seem to try to get you to buy route shipping protection but looks like you can just uncheck that).

You're welcome. If it helps at all in my case after trying out a bunch of stuff I've figured out I like different types of rods for different things. For bottom contact finesse type stuff I personally really like carbon fiber handles since they feel a bit more sensitive to me and at this point 4/5 of my spinning rods have a carbon fiber handle. Having said that I personally like the poison adrenas but they aren't cheap / for everybody and I've found the Psycho Stick is a good option if you want something similar but not as expensive... I'm not sure why Okuma is only selling those 2 for 50% off but at that price I think it's a good deal and out of all the casting models those 2 seemed like the best fit for the jig you are using regardless of price...also like the idea of getting it straight from the manufacturer instead of a clearance bin in a sporting goods store where it's been sitting for years...although I can't knock the clearance bin in the sporting goods store too much since that happens to be where I got my poison adrenas...speaking of that and like @Gera said you might also be able to find one of the old casting models for a good price (although if it were my I'd probably opt for the PAD172MA in this case since I prefer a fast action for a bottom contact jig) and if so that might be another option to consider.

Lol just noticed this thread is a year old...ha. Anyway in my case (for @10000LakesFishing since I'm guessing the original author may have figured out a rod by now) it' a Lew's TP1-black. I don't feel like I need anything fancy for this setup and although it's probably my least expensive rod I like it a lot for what I use it for (frogs and light flipping / pitching). That said, I feel like it would take a lot of effort to actually snap that rod, but I agree it's not ideal for a magdraft freestyle with a texas rigged beast hook. In that case I actually use a sierra 766 flip. Thing is I wouldn't prefer to use this same rod for the treble hooked version (or any treble hook swimbait), but I like it for single hook swimbaits like this where it takes some force to get a good hook up. It seems like some others default to fast / mod fast swimbait rod regardless of what the swimbait they are throwing actually looks like, but IMHO single hooked lures (and especially ones where you are going through a considerable amount of plastic) are going to be a different experience than something like a chad shad with 2 trebles under it where you just sort of lean into them and then want a more moderate action to keep them from shaking off the treble hook(s). I also got that sierra 766 flip on midway for $104 on clearance so for that price I figured it was worth trying out and ended up keeping it and really liking it for this type of thing (and punching heavier stuff). I also am noticing that with larger swimbaits I tend to like single hooked lures like the shadtron over lures with treble hooks since I'm usually around some amount of grass.

a 6" magdraft w/ a beast hook came out to just about 1.5oz last time I checked. I've tried one on my frog setup (also rated up to 1.5oz) and I'd say it can technically handle it, but if you can find something rated up to 2-3oz it will probably do a little better.

I own a couple of Victory models for this but I also have an Okuma Psycho Stick that I really like. It's a spinning rod and I'd want a casting rod for this type of a setup. That said, I was on their site the other day and noticed the PSY-C-721MH and PSY-C-721H were on sale for $130 or so...honestly if it were me I'd be taking a serious look at one of these as the action and sensitivity on these rods seems like it would lend itself to this sort of thing (IMHO)...and you could use the money you save on the rod to get a nicer reel if you wanted to...

To make matters worse she only used chicken nuggets and hot dogs. Now if you try to throw a senko the bass just gawk at it in disgust...

Thanks for sharing that @NoFroFishing. I actually looked into these a bit after ALF mentioned them in one of their videos a while back. The warranty seems a little iffy since the policy basically says if they determine it's your fault they'll 'give you options' but don't specifically list out what those would be...but honestly that's not a complete deal breaker for me and at least they are willing to offer some kind of discount in that situation. Having said that what actually put me off about these more than anything else was the rod lengths and actions. I actually really liked the grip design on the spinning rod and it was cool to see something unique get introduced for a change, but to your point about what techniques go with what rod I generally do not like extra fast spinning rods and could not (and still can't) figure out why I'd want a 6'10 medium fast spinning rod but then a 7' medium light spinning rod. The only other fast option in the Elite spinning series is a 7'6 and in my case I fish out of a kayak and only have 1 rod that's even that long and that's my heaviest casting rod that I use for swimbaits...the lure weights also seemed a bit off and in my case that was enough to get me to write them off the last time I looked at them. Just out of curiosity did you end up getting any of the spinning models? If so what which one(s) and what for?

Yeah but they make moderate and moderate fast graphite rods that aren't composite or glass and it might be looking into one of those instead of something with a fast action. For example after trying out a few different brands / options I figured out I like the action that Dobyns rods have for crankbaits. This doesn't mean they are going to be the best for everyone, but in terms of what I throw and how I want the rod to perform they do very well for me. Having said that I've got 3 now. The first 2 are in the Kaden series (6104cb and 735cb) and both of these are just graphite rods. They do fine for lighter stuff (3/8-3/4oz range) but for bigger baits I have a champ xp 736cb. Ironically Dobyns has this one labeled as a fast rod, but it's also a composite so it bends more. I personally don't prefer glass rods after trying a couple as I felt they were too heavy for my taste, but for heavier crankbaits (and bladed jigs) I've found that I like a composite rod like this one. So to answer your question I would say yes but generally speaking I would still at least consider a mod or a mod fast rod for crankbaits as an option, and while every rod manufacturer is different and mod fast from one is not going to equal mod fast for another I've found that I personally like a mod fast action in a graphite rod for lighter crankbaits and similar type lures.

The consensus seems to be that wet braid casts further but I do remember one time when I went fishing in the rain and then for the next couple of days after that I noticed I would cast with that reel and it didn't go as far. I've got a kayak so I ended up emptying the entire thing into the lake and then reeling it back in and that seemed to fix it...it's almost like the line was caked onto the reel or stuck together before I did that...anyway that has only happened once so doesn't seem like it would be a common thing but either way if it might be worth emptying some / all of it out and then reeling it back in again if you can.

@MontanaBasser thank you for making me feel slightly less guilty about buying 2 rods within the last 24 hours. Also just a heads up copperstate sent an email about their spring sale (20% off) a couple of hours ago...some items might not be included from the looks of it but Dobyns rods definitely seem to work...