Which rod for all around finesse bass

[Ctjoe]

Dobyns 702sf or St Croix mjs610mlxf  I hear both are good finesse rods. What are your experiences with these spinning rods and what do you use them for ?

[MN Fisher]

I have the Fury 702SF and it's been great. Dropshot, light shakey or finesse jigs, weightless wacky, Ned rigs...though I usually do Neds on a lighter rig. Handles it all.

[Fishes in trees]

I have numerous finesse rods - none of which are the brands you speak of.  My only thought is that there are numerous finesse techniques, some of which might require different actions.    I know it is a slippery slope, once you get into finesse style fishing,  you aren't going to want to stop & retie.  Therefore, my advice is to jump ahead of the curve and buy one of each of the rods you mentioned - it will save you time & anguish later and that's my best advice.

 

Now as far as finesse rods that I can attest to - a St Croix Mojo - 7' Med Action makes a decent finesse drop shot/shakey head rod for me.   I have a 6'11" Kistler Argon (rated MH but it isn't close to MH) that  works as Neko rig for me.   I wondered about how it would handle big fish, but I've  caught several in the 4 pound range and it worked fine and I wouldn't be worried about the rod should I catch a bigger one. (I'd be more concerned about operator error). I have a few 5'9" Fenwick HMG rods that I use to throw unweighted or lightly weighted plastics on braid.  My favorite Shakey head spinning rod is an old ( late 90's era ) Diawa LT.   It is 6'3" Medium to Medium Light with a very stiff butt section.   Back then, Diawa was marketing spinning rods with larger than normal guides as distance casting rods and I've never hadn't any issues with how far I can throw a quarter ounce shakey head with this rig.

 

So IMO there are lots of decent to great finesse rods out there and good luck in finding the one for you.

When you do find it - don't break it.  It will be a challenge to find another one - you might consider buying duplicates of the two different rods you're considering now.  Is a way you're pretty lucky on this issue in that this is a fishing dilemma that can be solved by throwing money at it.  Not all fishing dilemmas can.

[Junger]

Daiwa Tatula Elite 7’ M/MH.

[QED]

For finesse bass fishing, I'm using: spinning - Shimano Poison Adrena 267MLA (US) and casting - Shimano Poison Adrena 163L BFS (JDM). Both are 1-piece rods that are a joy to use.

 

Model      Weight   Line Range  Length 

267MLA    3.25 oz     4-8 lb          6'7"

163L BFS  3.35 oz     6-12 lb         6'3"

[TOXIC]

CastAway Skeleton or Quantum Smoke both spinning 7ft, medium action, fast tip.  I can rig numerous techniques on either one.  The CastAway is better for the heavier side.  But realistically any spinning rod with the same action would work.  The only determining factor is how deep your wallet goes.  

[new2BC4bass]

Here's a sweet deal.  A $265 rod for $157.

https://majorcraft-america.com/speedstyle-casting/

 

EDIT:  I personally prefer longer rods or I'd already have one on the way.

[GetFishorDieTryin]

8 hours ago, Ctjoe said:

Dobyns 702sf or St Croix mjs610mlxf  I hear both are good finesse rods. What are your experiences with these spinning rods and what do you use them for ?

Dobyns makes good rods, but the absence of a fore grip is a deal breaker for me.  The 6'10 Mojo can do just about anything you would want to do on a spinning rod.  Its good with JBs, small swimbaits/little ktechs, lighter shakey heads, lighter nekos, wacky rigs, shad raps, floating worms, neds, DS and more.  Its rated 1/8-1/2, but I would say it fishes a little lighter, feels more like 1/16-3/8 or 7/16.

If you can get your hands on a Tatula, take a look at it.  The actions are a little slower compared to the SCs but its the overall feel and way the Tatulas fish that makes them special.  Both rods are roughly the same sensitivity, it just comes down to personal preference.