Need help with rod upgrade

[pondbassin101]

I'm currently toying with the idea of upgrading one of my rods, that being my first casting rod. My first baitcast setup was a Daiwa Exceler paired with a $45 daiwa rod from academy. I have the reel spooled with #12 Berkley Trilene XL, and compared to my other rods with braid, the sensitivity is less then sub-par.My other 2 setups are as follows:

 

6'6" M Berkley Lightning rod shock with a size 35 president pflueger

a 7:3 Daiwa Exceler paired with a 7' M Veritas 2.0 (I find this rod stiff enough to fish heavier baits)

 

My third reel is a 6:3 daiwa exceler and im trying to figure out what I should purpose it for. I need suggestions on what to get this rod for and what rod to buy. My max budget is $100, preferably less

[new2BC4bass]

Nice to see such a young guy posting.  Guess I never checked your profile before.  In my book the original Tatula rods are excellent rods at MSRP (about $150).  I just ordered a 6'10" MHF from jet,com for just under your limit.

 

I also have several Fenwick Smallmouth rods.  Worth more than MSRP ($130).  

 

I've read that Sports Academy H2O Ethos rods are very good for the money, but I have no experience with them.

 

I just picked up a 7' MH Escalade at Dick's Sporting Goods.  It is a $100 rod on sale for $50.  There are no Medium rods left that I could find Online.  It is rated for 1/4-1 1/2 oz.  Light at 4 oz.   I stopped on the way home from work yesterday and was casting a 3/8 oz. spinnerbait with no problem.  I was worried that it might not handle lighter lures very well with that high a rating.  Personally I wouldn't be fishing 1/4 oz. on a MH rod unless that was all I had with me.

 

Putting braid on the reel should give you more sensitivity on a tight line with your current Daiwa rod.

 

[kingmotorboat]

Dobyns savvy on dobyns website for 100

[YaknBassn]

I'm going to go a different direction than everyone else and suggest Ark Rods.  Their Viper series is excellent at the $100 price point.  

 

I have most 4 rods from the Invoker lineup and they're incredible.  I only have one Viper, a spinnig rod, but it's a very solid rod. Look into them.

[moguy1973]

For $100 take a look at the Lew's TP1 Speed Stickss and the Duckett Ghost rods.  Both are really good rods for $100.

[islandbass]

This is what I would do

1) figure out what applications my current rods do

2) determine whether I want my new rod to fill a niche I don’t have covered yet or pick a rod that will be an upgrade or improve over one I already have

 

I cant recommend and rod brands though. I’m out of the loop so to speak. 

[Steveo-1969]

15 hours ago, new2BC4bass said:

Putting braid on the reel should give you more sensitivity on a tight line with your current Daiwa rod.

 

This is what I was thinking too. OP made it sound like he wanted to replace the current rod because of lack of sensitivity compared to his other two rods (which use braid).

 

Trying braid on current rod first would be a cheap experiment to see if you can get the desired sensitivity without buying a new rod.

[pondbassin101]

1 hour ago, Steveo-1969 said:

This is what I was thinking too. OP made it sound like he wanted to replace the current rod because of lack of sensitivity compared to his other two rods (which use braid).

 

Trying braid on current rod first would be a cheap experiment to see if you can get the desired sensitivity without buying a new rod.

That's exactly what I mean. I was thinking of using that rod as a jerkbait/topwater rod, but I just find the sensitivity very bad with mono. It would be very easy for me to switch out the reels and  try fishing that rod with braid, but what applications could I use a 7' M fast rod with braid. 

 

5 hours ago, islandbass said:

This is what I would do

1) figure out what applications my current rods do

2) determine whether I want my new rod to fill a niche I don’t have covered yet or pick a rod that will be an upgrade or improve over one I already have

 

I cant recommend and rod brands though. I’m out of the loop so to speak. 

I use my spinning rod for weightless worms, small spinners, light t-rigs, etc. I use my main baitcaster for jigs, some squarebills, bigger t-rigs, some topwaters, and spinnerbaits. I wanted to upgrade my third rod to be able to fish lures that would work better on a lighter rod and mono. I would also prefer to keep it below $100. I appreciate all the suggestions, but money is tight and I was looking to get a frogging/flipping stick within the next few months.

[WRB]

16 hours ago, kingmotorboat said:

Dobyns savvy on dobyns website for 100

Good suggestion, look at the 703C or 704C series if available. The Colt CL 703C is in your budget. 

Can't braid to mono, totally different feel.

Tom

[tander]

If you can wait, Black Friday sales is 3 weeks away, lot of 20% off sales.

[pondbassin101]

7 minutes ago, tander said:

If you can wait, Black Friday sales is 3 weeks away, lot of 20% off sales.

seems like a good idea

[pondbassin101]

does anyone have any suggestions?