Which Rod Would You Get Out Of These 3

[BassCats]

g loomis E6X

 

shimano crucial

 

shimano zodias

[shawnmc]

Depends on what you will use it for. I'm interested in both the Zodias and E6X. May get the Loomis for squarebills. Zodias looks nice for bottom baits.

[BassCats]

Why one over other on technique?

[shawnmc]

Loomis offers more technique specific rods in that line then does Shimano in its Zodias line. No real crankbait rod in the Zodias lineup.

[blckshirt98]

Loomis because the one year Shimano warranties are terrible.

[HoosierHawgs]

I really like the look of the Loomis. I held one at a local shop and thought it felt nice. I would be more inclined to buy the Loomis over the Shimano rods.

[sprint61]

Loomis I like the logo better. In all seriousness if I was you I would hold each Rod and put the reel you will be using on it and see how they feel. Both are great companies.

[clh121787]

I have 2 e6x don't use them for cranking but I like them alot. 894 jw and an 843 mbr that I really like. Not as good as my 843 mbr imx but it's close.I've fished many rods in the 100-200 dollar range. By far the best in my opinion is the falcon cara t7 or the e6x. I'm starting to sell off my TFO, abu, and. Castaways. and going straight falcon and loomis.

[IAY]

I haven't fished them, but I am pretty impressed by the Zodias holding one in store.

[Diggy]

Id rather the zodias 

[Cgrinder]

Zooooodias

[thehooligan]

Definitely zodias

[FishTank]

Having not fished any of the rods you picked but I have seen them side by side on the shelves, I would go with the G. Loomis.  As others have mentioned, the warranty would be the factor for me.  I have one of the older crank bait Crucials and it is a great rod.  It works better than the G.Loomis crank bait rod I have.  If the warranty is not the issue, the Zodias hands down would be the pick.  This rod has that it factor.  It balances well and it feels like it would be more sensitive than the others you picked.  

[BocaGrande]

I handled a crucial and man that sucker is like a feather

[stkbassn]

I own the E6X Spinnerbait rod and love it. The Zodias I handled at a store here locally and thought it felt and looked really sweet. I just didn't have the money to pick it up at the time. I think you'll like either. The model I handled was a 7'2 MH-XF if I remember correctly. Crucials are nice rods and I've owned several but they aren't my favorite to be honest. Nothing wrong with them at all and a lot of folks love em'.  I don't think you'll be disappointed in any of these choices. Try to handle them all before buying.

[d-camarena]

I have both the zodias and the crucial, i have to say i usually enjoy using the crucial more. Its just perfect, my favorite out of every rod ive ever had

[rangerjockey]

I own the dsr820 in the e6x and the 7ft ML Spinning and the 6ft 10 m casting in the Zodias.

I think the Zodias is the better rod, better blank and you get alconites with a SIC tip top vs aluminum oxides..

I'm not crazy about the jdm look of the shimano but if your looking for performance, especially for bottom contact baits,that's the way I would go.

The only crucial I have is the 6ft 8 xfast...Great popr and spook Jr.rod and I like it for 1/4 and 3/8 oz. Spinnerbaits.

Also it looks like there may be a new cumara which would mean discounts on the present models..

[Master Bait'r]

Crucial if it's single hook applications and you're getting the XF.

Zodias if it's for anything else, or a variety of techniques on one rod.

[SenkoGuru]

I would get the Loomis E6X

[Silas]

Picked up a Loomis E6X 853 C JWR 7"1" Med/Heavy today and put a Calcutta 200 GTB on it to cast T rigged worms, Rage Rigs, Senkos, and solid frogs (Stanley Ribbit is hot here.

Fished with it about an hour and I'm well satisfied. It is much more sensitive than I thought it would be.

Just happened to be grocery shopping and stopped at a local Mom and Pop tackle store and he had them on sale for $139 OTD! They were flying out the door! Saw 3 others leave the store the short time I was there.

Ok,I like my IMX 852 better for moving baits (1/4 spinnerbaits and small crank baits ) but needed a Med/heavy for a little more backbone for bottom contact single hook stuff.

I'm also a CORK guy and like the grip.

[smalljaw67]

Why one over other on technique?

 

When I need a rod I don't ever just decide on a few different brands and then toss a coin or ask opinions. What you do is decide systematically and if you do it that way you will get the right rod for you. Here is how I do it, lets go with say, a spinnerbait rod but I need a rod that can handle 1/2oz baits with big blades and I also need it to hit specific targets but still allow me to make a pretty long cast. So that is my need, the very first thing is money, how much am I going to spend, based on the 3 you picked we'll say $160 to $200, so now we have need and price range. So the right rod for that would be a casting rod in a medium heavy, target accuracy is important but so is casting distance so something longer than 6'6" and shorter than 7', maybe a rod in a 6'8" to 6'10" MH and the action would follow, do you like fishing open water with a moderate or moderate fast action? To make it easy we'll assume you'll be fishing in and around weeds so fast action it will be. Now we know that we need a 6'8 to 6'10" MH-F casting rod in a $160 to $200 range, the next step is to look through rods either in store or catalogs or online, start with your favorite brand and see if they make a rod that fits your need and price range, maybe they do but you may not like the line in which it is offered so you look to another brand or go online and use the TW advanced search and see what comes up and when you get to see multiple brands, it will make it easier to choose and if you still can't decide, then come to a forum like this and ask for help and ask in a way that you can get help and not just a popularity contest because that doesn't always work. So if you want a new rod and need help choosing a rod, then lay out what your needs are and you'll find out what the best rod types you will need, then finally you can look to each one and see which will work for you.

[Joe H.]

Forget about the crucial, I'd say it's between the e6x and zodias. I have the e6x and I love it for the price. Haven't handled the zodias yet but I've heard some great reports.