St Croix Vs Fenwick

[Jraut98]

In your guys opinion which is better. I'm looking to buy a 6'6 rod med or med hvy power fast action spinning rod and am not sure which bran I should get. I own a st croix premeir and love it but kinda want to upgrade a little. I might get the at croix avid or maybe try a fenwick. In your guys opinion what's better?

[F14A-B]

Avid hands down

[J Francho]

Not sure what Fenwick you're looking at, but the Avid line represents that pinnacle of the "bang for your buck" in domestic built sticks.  I have more than a dozen, and love them all.

[new2BC4bass]

Aetos 6'6" MF 1/8-3/4 oz. 6-14 lb.

 

I'm bias.  No St. Croix rods.  Several Fenwicks.  My buddy fishes St. Croix almost exclusively, but he is hoping I'll sell my Smallmouth 6'9" M-XF spinning rod.  He'll have a long wait. 

[Fishes in trees]

I've got some of each and I think that they are all good rods.  I've got a 7' MC Fenwick HMG MH spinning stick that I like a lot.   It can throw jig worms/shakey heads down to 3/16 as far as I need to.  It can handle 1/2 oz jika rigs.   I mostly use a 14 lb fire line with fluorocarbon leader on it.

 

Why 6'6"?   I think that the only reason to go shorter with that variety of rod would be if the 7' didn't fit into your vehicle easily.  I don't know if there would be significant weight/handling characteristics between a 6'6" and a 7" rod.

[fishballer06]

An Avid is a pretty big step above basically anything Fenwick offers. 

[hatrix]

A 7' rod should fit in any vehicle easily. I can fit a bunch of 8' rods in a little Honda with ease. Go over top of the passenger door and straight in. Fishing rods have perma shottie

[OntarioFishingGuy]

Fenwick offers some great rods at a good price point, but doesn't compare to any of St Croix's rods above the premier line.

[J Francho]

I'd say the Aetos I've handled are comparable to Avids.  Pretty close, and maybe lighter.  I don't care for the trimmings, though.

[smalljaw67]

I'd say the Aetos I've handled are comparable to Avids.  Pretty close, and maybe lighter.  I don't care for the trimmings, though.

 

I've owned an Avid and I have a few Aetos rods, in all seriousness with no bias I'd say the Elite Tech smallmouth is closer to the Avid, the Aetos is much better, in fact I'd put the Aetos up against the Legend Tournament Bass. Now if you are talking the Legend Elite or Legend Extreme then you are at the top of the heap, Fenwick doesn't make a rod to compare with those. I'm an older angler, I have a pretty good size collection and before I got sick I was buying customs, as well as high end rods many of which I still own and I found Fenwick rods work for my new income structure, I can get a rod without sacrificing performance. I still have a G.Loomis jerkbait JBR752C, 2 mag bass MBR753C IMX, a CR721 GLX and 2 SJR722 GL3s. The St. Croix I owned that I have sold to my neighbor and St. Croix fan was a 6'6" MH-F and while it was a really good rod I found that all things equal, I liked my Elite Tech smallmouth more as the rod was lighter and had more sensitivity, I have fished with  my neighbor and fishing buddy, his Legend Tournament bass just comparing rods and it is another good rod but very similar to the Aetos, again the Aetos was lighter but sensitivity was hard to distinguish. If I got better tomorrow and my income tripled, I would still keep buying Fenwick rods, to me they are the best bang for buck I ever used, I'm not saying the best but the best I have used, these sticks work for me, build quality is great, and the blanks are really good, I never fished with a rod of that quality under $200, but that is my assessment. The best way for anyone to make their own judgement is to hold which ever models you want side by side or if you were able to get on the water and use them, that would be the best way, unless you were looking at the Legend Elite or Extreme then it is a no brainer. BTW my neighbor loves his St. Croix rods, he has 3 Legend Elites in both the older and newer models and the same with the Extremes although he is still getting acquainted with the handle, and we went out when I got my first Elite Tech Smallmouth rod, we fished for a few hours and a few days later he sold 1 of his Avids to buy 2 of them himself and he still takes them on every trip.

[IAY]

I was in the same predicament a month ago, and I would have picked Aetos simply because it can handle larger weight range. Then I realized I don't like using spinning reels, so I got neither .

[Jraut98]

Ok guys so the real question is st croix avid or fenwick aetos spinning rod?

[F14A-B]

St. Croix... American Rod Co. Made in America, I believe it's a wise investment in a rod. It will get you years down the road, easily.. Whatever you decide though, I hope you enjoy it!

[Mike2841]

The avid is my favorite spinning rod. I love the handle and it's plenty sensitive, I don't intend to got any other spinning rods except for avids.

That being said I've never used a fenwick and I'm sure it's a great rod, but I love my avid and I plan on getting more.

[S Hovanec]

If anyone remembers the Villain pics I posted a while back....The Aetos has those same high quality guides, LOL!!  I'd never pay what they're asking for an import with components like that.

 

Disclaimer:  I am a big St. Croix fan, so I might be a bit biased.

[J Francho]

The guides are what I was referring to as trimmings.

[kickerfish1]

I've owned an Avid and I have a few Aetos rods, in all seriousness with no bias I'd say the Elite Tech smallmouth is closer to the Avid, the Aetos is much better, in fact I'd put the Aetos up against the Legend Tournament Bass. Now if you are talking the Legend Elite or Legend Extreme then you are at the top of the heap, Fenwick doesn't make a rod to compare with those. I'm an older angler, I have a pretty good size collection and before I got sick I was buying customs, as well as high end rods many of which I still own and I found Fenwick rods work for my new income structure, I can get a rod without sacrificing performance. I still have a G.Loomis jerkbait JBR752C, 2 mag bass MBR753C IMX, a CR721 GLX and 2 SJR722 GL3s. The St. Croix I owned that I have sold to my neighbor and St. Croix fan was a 6'6" MH-F and while it was a really good rod I found that all things equal, I liked my Elite Tech smallmouth more as the rod was lighter and had more sensitivity, I have fished with  my neighbor and fishing buddy, his Legend Tournament bass just comparing rods and it is another good rod but very similar to the Aetos, again the Aetos was lighter but sensitivity was hard to distinguish. If I got better tomorrow and my income tripled, I would still keep buying Fenwick rods, to me they are the best bang for buck I ever used, I'm not saying the best but the best I have used, these sticks work for me, build quality is great, and the blanks are really good, I never fished with a rod of that quality under $200, but that is my assessment. The best way for anyone to make their own judgement is to hold which ever models you want side by side or if you were able to get on the water and use them, that would be the best way, unless you were looking at the Legend Elite or Extreme then it is a no brainer. BTW my neighbor loves his St. Croix rods, he has 3 Legend Elites in both the older and newer models and the same with the Extremes although he is still getting acquainted with the handle, and we went out when I got my first Elite Tech Smallmouth rod, we fished for a few hours and a few days later he sold 1 of his Avids to buy 2 of them himself and he still takes them on every trip.

 

I am with this guy on this! The Elite Tech rods are some of my favorite rods for the money. For the $ I believe the Fenwick line of rods is the better buy. However From the Avid line up the components, warranty, and quality are there but they just aren't to my persona liking. Not saying its a bad rod just not what I look for personally.

 

There are a few of us on here that are pretty strong believers in the Elite Tech series ... www2farmer, new2bcbass, smalljaw, myself and several others that the user names escape me. When I fished my 6"9 ML Elite Tech for the first time I was in shock. Liked the rod so much I bought a second. For the record I do NOT own any duplicate rods of the same exact make and model outside of this one out of the dozens or rods in my arsenal.

[ww2farmer]

I fished St Croixs for 7-8 years. I only switched to something else out of being board with them and wanting to try something new. At first it was Abu rods.......which I liked, but are not what is being asked about, so I'll refrain, then/currently it's Fenwick. I have Elite Tech's, HMX's, and HMG's. Here is my take on a Fenwick vs. St Croix debate. Keep in mind I don't think it's fair to compair US made St Croixs to imported Fenwicks, that's a different ball game IMHO, If you want to compare apples to apples, compare Fenwicks to St Croixs import models (Triumph's, Mojo, Rage) :

 

St Croix's US made rods have the better warranty and use better components than both there own imports, and Fenwick rods (guides, reel seats, grade of cork, etc....)

St Croix's import rods are WAY WAY over priced for what you get, especially compared to Fenwick.

Fenwick  simply has the better "bang for the buck" in import rods..........IMHO HMG > Rage for $50 less, Elite Techs > Rage for the same money..................BUT it's up to you to decide. Like I said with the extra $$ for a St Croix US made rod, your getting the better guides, and warranty, and the made in USA factor if that matters to you, with the import rods from St croix, IMHO your not getting full value for the buck.

[roadwarrior]

I fished St Croixs for 7-8 years. I only switched to something else out of being board with them and wanting to try something new. At first it was Abu rods.......which I liked, but are not what is being asked about, so I'll refrain, then/currently it's Fenwick. I have Elite Tech's, HMX's, and HMG's. Here is my take on a Fenwick vs. St Croix debate. Keep in mind I don't think it's fair to compair US made St Croixs to imported Fenwicks, that's a different ball game IMHO, If you want to compare apples to apples, compare Fenwicks to St Croixs import models (Triumph's, Mojo, Rage) :

 

St Croix's US made rods have the better warranty and use better components than both there own imports, and Fenwick rods (guides, reel seats, grade of cork, etc....)

St Croix's import rods are WAY WAY over priced for what you get, especially compared to Fenwick.

Fenwick  simply has the better "bang for the buck" in import rods..........IMHO HMG > Rage for $50 less, Elite Techs > Rage for the same money..................BUT it's up to you to decide. Like I said with the extra $$ for a St Croix US made rod, your getting the better guides, and warranty, and the made in USA factor if that matters to you, with the import rods from St croix, IMHO your not getting full value for the buck.

 

Very nice review.

 

I think St. Croix's reputation is built on the Avid. At the pricing point this series is a great value.

 

 

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

I don't like to say any whole brand is better or worse than another across the board. Many times each will have standouts or duds at certain price points. For example, the Elite Tech Smallmouth rods were pretty nice at the price. St Croix really shines from the Avid level and up IMO. On some level I understand the standardization of tackle collections, you know pretty much what to expect from a purchase, but some mixing and matching can go a long way especially if you're really into fine tuning technique specific setups. 

[xxmurrxx]

Get your hands on each and see how they feel.. Either of those rods would be great im sure.

I have an avid I use for walleye jigging and really like it.. I also just got an Elite Tech bass rod for my bass jigs and it also feels great.

 

Just saying I would not sweat this decision too much... either way you will get a good rod.

 

 

I have never dealt with fenwicks customer service but have went through st croix several times once for a broken rod and once for an upgrade and was very happy with they way they handled everything.

[Jraut98]

I think I might go with the st croix avid. I have a couple questions though. I live on the chesapeake bay and want to know if the rod will be fine fishing in brackish water? Also what kind of reel should I match it with?

[lmbfisherman]

 

I've owned an Avid and I have a few Aetos rods, in all seriousness with no bias I'd say the Elite Tech smallmouth is closer to the Avid, the Aetos is much better, in fact I'd put the Aetos up against the Legend Tournament Bass. Now if you are talking the Legend Elite or Legend Extreme then you are at the top of the heap, Fenwick doesn't make a rod to compare with those. I'm an older angler, I have a pretty good size collection and before I got sick I was buying customs, as well as high end rods many of which I still own and I found Fenwick rods work for my new income structure, I can get a rod without sacrificing performance. I still have a G.Loomis jerkbait JBR752C, 2 mag bass MBR753C IMX, a CR721 GLX and 2 SJR722 GL3s. The St. Croix I owned that I have sold to my neighbor and St. Croix fan was a 6'6" MH-F and while it was a really good rod I found that all things equal, I liked my Elite Tech smallmouth more as the rod was lighter and had more sensitivity, I have fished with  my neighbor and fishing buddy, his Legend Tournament bass just comparing rods and it is another good rod but very similar to the Aetos, again the Aetos was lighter but sensitivity was hard to distinguish. If I got better tomorrow and my income tripled, I would still keep buying Fenwick rods, to me they are the best bang for buck I ever used, I'm not saying the best but the best I have used, these sticks work for me, build quality is great, and the blanks are really good, I never fished with a rod of that quality under $200, but that is my assessment. The best way for anyone to make their own judgement is to hold which ever models you want side by side or if you were able to get on the water and use them, that would be the best way, unless you were looking at the Legend Elite or Extreme then it is a no brainer. BTW my neighbor loves his St. Croix rods, he has 3 Legend Elites in both the older and newer models and the same with the Extremes although he is still getting acquainted with the handle, and we went out when I got my first Elite Tech Smallmouth rod, we fished for a few hours and a few days later he sold 1 of his Avids to buy 2 of them himself and he still takes them on every trip.

 

I am with this guy on this! The Elite Tech rods are some of my favorite rods for the money. For the $ I believe the Fenwick line of rods is the better buy. However From the Avid line up the components, warranty, and quality are there but they just aren't to my persona liking. Not saying its a bad rod just not what I look for personally.

 

There are a few of us on here that are pretty strong believers in the Elite Tech series ... www2farmer, new2bcbass, smalljaw, myself and several others that the user names escape me. When I fished my 6"9 ML Elite Tech for the first time I was in shock. Liked the rod so much I bought a second. For the record I do NOT own any duplicate rods of the same exact make and model outside of this one out of the dozens or rods in my arsenal.

 

I'm one of those Elite Tech fans and Aetos.  I've owned Avids (past tense, well down to 1 the 6'6" Medium is the best jerk bait rod ever!) and own 2 Elite Techs and 2 Aetos.  I concur with these two.  The ET is at Avid level and I personally will state the Aetos kicks LTBs.  Please note I'm not saying Avids suck, I just think the ET performs equally and better bang for your buck.  The Aetos is an even better buy. 

[Jraut98]

I think I've made up my mind to go with the st croix just not sure whether to get an avid or a tidemaster anyone have any opinions?

[F14A-B]

The locked thread elite tech.