Couldn’t tell difference between my cheaper and more expensive rod….

[FishTank]

47 minutes ago, GReb said:

Was the Lariat an FX4?  According to Ford they all use the same suspension depending on package across the full lineup. Tires can make a huge difference 

Don't know for sure.  All I know is, it was smother and the rear end was more stable.  It felt like a totally different truck.  I test drove several prior to buying.  I would say it felt like a Lincoln compared to the other Ford equivalent. 

[GReb]

1 hour ago, FishTank said:

Don't know for sure.  All I know is, it was smother and the rear end was more stable.  It felt like a totally different truck.  I test drove several prior to buying.  I would say it felt like a Lincoln compared to the other Ford equivalent. 

I will say the rear end on mine was horrible and jumped around. Quite frankly I found it dangerous. I replaced the rear shocks with Bilstein 5100s and it felt like 10x better 

[FishTank]

Just now, GReb said:

I will say the rear end on mine was horrible and jumped around. Quite frankly I found it dangerous. I replaced the rear shocks with Bilstein 5100s and it felt like 10x better 

 

I have been thinking about that myself.  It rides better with a load in the back or towing something but I wouldn't say it's dangerous. 

[VolFan]

You can’t buy experience, and for most of us it’s a hobby not a livelihood. If you buy appropriate tackle you can afford and really learn it you’ll come out way better than throwing $6/8/900 at a combo and expecting it to feel bites for you. 

[GReb]

38 minutes ago, FishTank said:

 

I have been thinking about that myself.  It rides better with a load in the back or towing something but I wouldn't say it's dangerous. 

From what I was told they didn’t change the shock package from the old steel body when they went to the lighter aluminum body and that’s why. But I have no way to confirm that. 
 

sorry for hijacking. I’m done lol

[T-Billy]

21 hours ago, bulldog1935 said:

Bass don't care - they have an IQ of 6

Ahhh......So they really are smarter than me. Whodathunkit. ?

[Catt]

8 hours ago, FishTank said:

It rides better with a load in the back or towing something but I wouldn't say it's dangerous. 

 

It's a truck!

 

They are designed to haul stuff.

[Captain Phil]

10 hours ago, Aaron_H said:

 

Did you end up getting it at Bitters? ?

 

I went to Bitters and they had lots of rods and reels, but they didn't have what I wanted in stock.  Going there was helpful as I don't like to buy  something without seeing it first.  I ended up ordering it from Tackle Warehouse and it came in a week.  Thanks for the tip.  ☺️

[bulldog1935]

2 hours ago, T-Billy said:

Ahhh......So they really are smarter than me. Whodathunkit. ?

 

ah, come on - your IQ is at least 12, or you wouldn't be able to operate a Zebco.  

But be careful, carp may out-smart you.  

[Derek1]

When I first started out I bought a couple decent setups to get started. Now I’m slowly upgrading as I realize what I like or would like to do. Do these more expensive upgrades increase my fishing skills, not one bit. Do they increase my overall enjoyment out on the water. To me they do. 
 

so let’s all be honest. You can literally catch a bass  using just fishing line and a hook. Anybody holding any kind of rod in there hand has invested more then they need to, to catch fish. 

[Sam]

BG, great post.

 

 I have a friend that was in our bass club until he moved to Indiana and he used cheap rods and reels.

 

When either broke or wore out he would throw it away and purchase the lowest priced equipment, including off brands, that he could find.

 

So how did he do?  He could wax anyone's behind on this Forum with his cheap equipment. We did great in tournaments and landed some big fish money with his cheap equipment.

 

As for me, I love my Bass Pro Shop Extreme rods (no longer available) when compared to my G. Loomis NRX rods for overall fishing.  I do use the NRX rods now in tournaments, only, using the Extreme rods for all other fishing adventures.

 

Go figure!

[zpelletier]

3 hours ago, Catt said:

 

It's a truck!

 

They are designed to haul stuff.

But if he bought a more expensive truck he would be a better driver! ?

[Derek1]

2 minutes ago, zpelletier said:

But if he bought a more expensive truck he would be a better driver! ?

Lol

 

Obviously 

[the reel ess]

I know there are a lot of pros out there using $100-200 rods. I've seen lots of BPS Pro Qualifier reels on some of their decks too. 

1 hour ago, bulldog1935 said:

 

ah, come on - your IQ is at least 12, or you wouldn't be able to operate a Zebco.  

But be careful, carp may out-smart you.  

If his IQ wasn't at least greater than 6 he wouldn't be able to outsmart a bass. 

[king fisher]

I catch more fish with inexpensive rods  I take the money I save not buying expensive equipment and buy my wife a gift. When my wife is happy I I am able to spend more time fishing which means I catch more fish.

[Mat_ski]

3 minutes ago, king fisher said:

I catch more fish with inexpensive rods  I take the money I save not buying expensive equipment and buy my wife a gift. When my wife is happy I I am able to spend more time fishing which means I catch more fish.

Smart man over here. Take notes everyone, I sure am. 

[roadwarrior]

Hmm...

I don't think the quality of your gear makes a significant difference in your success,

but better equipment is more fun to fish. 

 

[CrankFate]

On 9/25/2021 at 10:31 PM, evo2s197 said:

Only negative of braid or braid with leader is no slack line sensitivity, unless you are actively dragging constant.

I’d rate this as where sensitivity is king, especially over feeling bottom. With a sensitive rod, you literally feel a tick or thump when your line moves. This isn’t possible with less sensitive rods. With softer rods, IMO, this is the hardest thing for manufacturers to get right.

On 9/25/2021 at 11:06 PM, Rob St Croix said:

IMHO the 200 dollar price point is the dividing line on sensitivity.

 

 

^ Agree.

[Mobasser]

15 minutes ago, roadwarrior said:

Hmm...

I don't think the quality of your gear makes a significant difference in your success,

but better equipment is more fun to fish. 

 

It's true. High end gear is more fun to fish with, but doesn't always make for a better angler. My old tournament partner, Frank Keller, ordered blanks from Janns Netcraft and had rods made by a local builder. They were mid grade, and never the most expensive.                                                  I remember him taking first place in one tournament, and some guys approached him afterward, and made comments about his rods.                                         Frank said" son, this ain't no tackle show, it's a fishin tournament". " Use what works for you, and I'll use what works for me". I've always thought old Frank summed it up pretty well .

[CrankFate]

On 9/25/2021 at 8:47 PM, fishwizzard said:

 

With a little splash of water to get it down to like ~80p it's very sippable.  

 

I rediscovered my love for Old English malt liquor this past year, so now the beer savings go right into the tackle fund!

OE…nice…..we used to drink that in the bleachers during gym class in High School, instead of putting on the shorts and jogging pants. Those were the days.

On 9/28/2021 at 3:20 PM, T-Billy said:

I caught my PB LM 6lb10oz on a Berkley lightning rod, and my PB SM 6lb4oz on a BPS Pro Qualifier. That ol 7' MH Lightning Rod probably put a literal ton of fish in the boat. It was my jig rod for several years, until I wrecked the stainless guides with flouro. They put aluminum oxide guides on them now. Outstanding rods for their price point. If I were to start with a clean slate today, I'd buy the full line of Ark Tharps + a ned rod and call it a day.

i don’t even know what kind of rod or reel I got my PB on. All I remember was thinking I hate this rod. This rod sucks. I’m never going to catch anything on this.

[CrankFate]

On 9/28/2021 at 10:01 PM, new2BC4bass said:

What?    $200 rods aren't high end? 

Im usually repeatedly informed by the internet that they are cheap and that I should be embarrassed for using such trash. And that I only don’t fish a $500 rod is because I’m jealous that I can’t afford one. All while getting laughed at when I whip out a waste of money $300-400 setup anywhere I go. Which is why I enjoy fishing a Kistler magnesium that cost around $400 and a Tatula CT that was over $500. Those same people wouldn’t know the difference.

[MN Fisher]

3 minutes ago, CrankFate said:

Im usually repeatedly informed by the internet that they are cheap and that I should be embarrassed for using such trash.

Then I'm really in trouble as the most I've paid for a rod is still under $100 - Fury on sale.

[CrankFate]

5 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

Then I'm really in trouble as the most I've paid for a rod is still under $100 - Fury on sale.

Yep. It’s not even worth it to go fishing. You’re never going to catch anything and even if you do, you’ll never be able to enjoy it, because spending tons of money on gear is what makes fishing enjoyable.

 

IMO, in all seriousness, the spending money on gear is just a separate hobby. I’d still take actually fishing over buying gear because I do the most wasteful spending on gear when I don’t have the time to get out and actually fish.

[Bankc]

In my rod collection, the more expensive the rod, the more sensitive it is.  

 

Yet, oddly enough, the cheaper the rod, the more fish I've caught with it. 

 

And I can't say for certain, but I could almost swear I caught more fish as a kid with a heavy, fiberglass rod and a spincast reel.  The sensitivity was so bad on those that I had to keep a finger on the line to feel a bite.  Hmm... Maybe the all that sensitivity is making me a worse fisherman?  

[Spankey]

Over the years I don’t know if y’all ever experienced this. I for the most part for years and years have fished solo. I love to get my grandsons out with me now. But this is a more recent thing. 
 

Anyway over the years I’ve had people men and woman, probably more woman than men approach me about taking them out to catch a fish. These are people I know, I would say not close friends more of an aquaintences that are curious about my obsession and want to experience it. People closer to my wife. 
 

I tell them don’t bring anything but yourself. No need to because I have what we need to catch some Smallies on the river. Rods, lines, reels, baits. What’s worse case scenario loose a crankbait or a couple of worm hooks on me. All ok, all good. I like it if you use my stuff. My stuff is decent, better than average (Not top of the line, but St. Croix and Abu stuff) and it works. I’m not looking for the on the water hassles. We are there to fish. Not fix issues. I had this one gal this time show up with stuff that I told her she could leave her stuff in the car. Everything was ready to go. I take it I insulated her. She insisted on using it. Than I took it as an insult to going against my wishes. We get out to chasing some river Smallies and the stuff she was trying to use was nothing but problems, crap turd line was most of the issues followed by her being a lefty set up with righty stuff and Wally World combos meant for kids and panfish. The crap show started. I let the know-it-all have it her way for about 45 min. I let her ruin the lines and reels she brought. I got the “I should have left my stuff in the car”. I asked her if she was ready to catch her first bass and all went well after that, she caught a decent handful of them that morning. The thing that ticked me off was someone went out and just bought the stuff to go out for a first time. Use my stuff, why buy something that you might not like, may never go again in your lifetime. If you do like it ask me about the things you were using. You don’t need a $300 rod to catch river Smallies, or a $210 reel to put on it or $65 dollars of braid line on the spool but you do need equipment that your are comfortable with and sized to fit you as well. I think your line plays a big part of overall performance and overall regardless if it’s a rod is $100 or $300. I sort of believe your combo of rod and reel need to be balance to a certain degree. I think this effects sensitivity as well. I think it goes deeper than the big $$$. Sensitivity and performance are more than just the rod.