Duckett Rods

[JWOA]

  How great are these rods and is it worth...im told the fish never know how much u spend on rods/reels which is true but...

[Arv]

True, fish don't know how much you spend, but you do. I feel like this statement usually applies to situations where people feel like they NEED to spend 500 dollars on a rod and 400 on a reel to catch fish and enjoy the experience, which is obviously not true either. There are plenty of guys out there that can do damage with a Berkley Lightning Shock. Would a 1000 dollar combo enhance your experience, I'm sure most would say it would. But this is getting into the whole, "how much would you spend on a combo and why?" deal.

 

As far as the Duckett rods, I've never actually fished one, but pick one up every time I'm at BPS and think about walking out with it. They have a good rep and, from what I hear, are one of the "best bang for your buck" pieces of equipment. I'm sure others will chime in that have actually used them, but if you are considering buying one, I wouldn't try and stop you.

[GaterB]

I own two Duckett Micro Magic rods, a 7' MH and a 7'6" H. The 7' is my go to rod. It spends a lot of time in my truck and has handled applications from heavier jigs down to weightless senkos and trickworms when fishing from the bank. I have it paired with a Lew's Tourney Pro. The 7'6" H doesn't get used very much except when I'm down in FL around heavy grass. The sensitivity is great. I'm a line watcher, but usually feel the tap of a fish picking up my lure when I see the line jump (and other times when I don't). The tip on both rods is excellent, and loads a variety of lures well. They are also the lightest rods I own. The 7'6" is lighter than my *** 7'1 MH that I use for open water frogging. If you purchase one you won't regret it. The 20 year warranty is awesome too. I will add that a reel that weighs 7 ounces or more will balance more towards the butt of the rod, where as anything less than that will put the balance point more in front of the reel, and causes it to feel slightly tip heavy. This is a minor issue that I don't notice when fishing, just when I'm messing around with my setups around the house. Hope this helped!

[martintheduck]

I agree 100% with Arv's first half - I feel like this applies to people who want to spend $500 on a loomis rod and $500 on the newest Abu reel... is it going to catch more fish? Not exactly. Will most $500 rods feel better in your hands than most $75 rods? Probably so. Will the $500 rod be more sensitive? Probably so.

 

That being said, all 8 of my rods cost between $125 and $250. All my reels cost between $75 and $275. Also - General rule of thumb (at least for me): On each setup, the rod is more expensive than the reel. Before buying a new rod I try to get my hands on one and just mess around at the tackle shop. If one of my buddies has one I'll borrow it to fish. I read reviews. I read more reviews...

 

NOW - Duckett rods? I've got a 7'6 Extra-Heavy Micro Magic. I pretty much HATE how small the guides are... they are not micro guides --- they are SUPER micro guides. Wanted to use 50lb braid for flipping heavy cover, but the guides are so small the biggest I can use is 30lb. Still using it for jigs and c-rigging, but with a LOT smaller line than I was wanting. I'm really impressed with the ROD and really like it a lot. I would buy another Duckett rod, for sure, but next time I'll stay far away from their "micro guides."

[5fishlimit]

I have a few of them and they are fine rods. Great customer service too.

I have a rod set up with 65lb power pro braid and don't have any issues with the line going through the guides. The knot connecting the leader won't go through (San Diego jam knot), but I only keep a 12" leader so it's not that big of an issue for me.

[AMAC]

The rod and reel part of it is for the fishermen as are all the flashy and expensive lures out there. Now will your $200 rod or reel out perform your $50 rod and reel. I would say yes.....longevity being one of the biggest factors. Quality of materials used that translate to your fishing experience on the water is another biggie. I loved my berkely lightning rods and they will always have a soft spot in my heart! I have fished with a bunch of rods even the Ducketts but I have changed everything I use over to Denali rods. Check them out on tackle warehouse they even have some stuff on sale now I believe....

[ClackerBuzz]

i'm with martin and can't use micro guides. i use braid with 6-12' fluoro leaders.

they have macro but i didn't feel like the rods have a soft enough tip.

tip is one of the most important factors for me b/c you get exhausted casting all day if a cheap rod doesn't have a nice flexible tip. sensitivity is relative. my hands are more sensitive than most. and i use braid which can turn a dead rod into something usable. and i'm good about not having tons of slack out.

i like longer handles to.  ducketts have a decent length handle but i don't like their tips.

dobyns rods are very sensitive, have an amazing tip w/ backbone, ok handle length, but i HATE the guides. i won't buy the rods anymore b/c the guides are static cling when it comes to braid. i spend half my day untangling the braid off my guides (spinning rods; i bought a 7'6" MH champion and returned it b/c it weighted a ton and was wayyyyy to tip heavy).

st croix has everything i like but i'd like the handles to be a bit longer.

i settled on Powell b/c they have everything i like and are at a great price point especially w/ 20% off sales.

lotta info but in the end you just gotta pull the trigger and try new brands. buy them used or on sale so you can resell them w/o losing ur shirt. as said its always best to try and hold the rod in person before buying. i even take my reel into the store to check how balanced the rod it=another important individual opinion.

[TrapperJ]

I bought 1 this spring, then bought a 2nd one right after, now Santy Claus is bringing me two more, so yea i guess there alright. hehe

 

Ive looked at other rods and used others in the past but for me, i keep going back to ducketts, plus customer service is great. Had one break for a mere $15 dollar and shipped off the model number piece of the rod and had a new rod in my hands in about a week. Hard to beat that warranty service like that alone makes me want to purchase more ducketts.

[The Next KVD]

I have the 7'11" XXH Micro Magic.  One would think this would be the best mat punching rod and swimbait rod in the lineup but its not.  The rod has too much of a moderate action for my taste in a punching rod.  HOWEVER, this has become my all time favorite rod to fish buzzbaits on.  I usually fish buzzbaits on mono and with the moderate action this rod gives the fish plenty of time to get the bait before it reacts and drives the hook home.  I can catapult a buzzbait extremely long distances.  I also like this rod for lighter swimbaits AND deep diving crankbaits so long as you are using mono or fluoro with a lot of stretch ( Seaguar Invizx comes to mind).

 

Forget about using braid with a long leader with these rods.  I have also had no problems fishing with 50lb braid on this rod.

 

The only thing I really am disappointed is with the sensitivity.  I expected a lot more in that department when I tried using it for dragging jigs with some quality fluorocarbon.  I'm not sure if this translates to the other rods in the lineup because I'm sure the actions are probably different on them but Duckett doesn't list them so I only assume they are all moderate to moderate/fast.