High End Gear

[NathanDLTH]

1 hour ago, Tennessee Boy said:

 

The question that you need to ask yourself is why are you going deeper into rods.  If you are a connoisseur of rods and enjoy collecting fine rods then buy the rods that make you happy.  If you are just trying to catch more fish, spending more on rods is not the answer. 

Thank you. Good question. 

2 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Incorrect . I have personal experience 

The fact we bash people over gear and what we spend is ridiculous. 

[TnRiver46]

3 minutes ago, NathanDLTH said:

Thank you. Good question. 

The fact we bash people over gear and what we spend is ridiculous. 

If that’s the worst thing I’m bashed for today, it’s a good day 

[WRB]

The high end rod doesn’t help the average bass angler catch more bass. So at what point does high end rods help?

I say this from experience fishing custom made rods to meet my performance needs. 30+ years using custom Lamiglas 6’10” 5 power graphite state of the art casting rods. These rods cost between $180 in 1981 used them until 2012.

Caught all 5 PB LMB on these rods. In 2012 decided to update my Lamiglas rods and learned they no longer offered custom rods using their blanks. Lamiglas suggest Alex at ALM who had inventory on their latest blanks. Alex made me 3 custom jig & worm rods that I use today in 2012 for $260 each. Hey weigh 3.8 oz with short fore grip, 9 micro guides, 6’10” 5+ power.

I say this because I have never been out fished using jigs anyone including pro’s. My late partner had 15 NRX rods, the rod doesn’t make the angler. Today anyone should be able to find state of the art jig & worm rods under $350. You can pay $600 but very few anglers can utilize the difference.

Tom

[CrashVector]

23 hours ago, NathanDLTH said:

Bassheads, 

I’ve traveled the road of fishing gear ie tackle, rods, reels, line and short of buying a boat or going hardcore swimbaits a lot of time has gone into gear. 
 

By gear I mean rods more then anything else, I spend more time and money frankly on rods then anything else. Lately, I find myself going deeper into rods. I’ve bought and sold enough to make most people sick. Not trying to justify my habit or desire, but I’m trying ti understand this hole I am going down. 
 

Please help me out here, I’m half tempted to sell off the higher end stuff and be content with the middle of the road rods which perform just as well. 

 

I hear you.  I loooove my Veritas PLX rods.  They're $165.

 

My next rods will be $189.

 

The problem with "high end gear" in my experiences is the law of diminishing returns.  When you upgrade from low to mid grade, there's a HUGE difference in performance.  When you move from mid to high end, the differences are much smaller than the price gap.

 

I tend to hover in the "upper middle end" of the spectrum, where I feel you get the best value for performance.

[Tennessee Boy]

24 minutes ago, WRB said:

You can pay $600 but very few anglers can utilize the difference.

Tom

So for those very few anglers that can utilize the difference,  can you explain the difference it makes for then?  Are they catching fish they would not have caught with a state of the art $350 rod?

[WRB]

There are a very few bass anglers that have developed finger tip response like a safe cracker. I am not in the class. But those who are can benefit for the slightest line movements and light weight perfectly balanced rods may be an advantage to those few who have experience to know the difference.

The best I knew with these skills was John “Zank” Zankowski, not the best jig fisherman but very skilled Finesse angler, by far the best ever fished with. 

Tom

PS, my jig skill comes from 50 years of using the same jig, most strikes are intuitive, I just know. 

[jbsoonerfan]

I have used Steez and Poison Adrena rods, that's my upper end. The hardest bite to "feel" for me is the bite you cannot "feel" and only time on the water can make up for the sensitivity of a rod when sensitivity isn't necessarily needed. YMMV

[DitchPanda]

Most of my gear is budget to mid tier. Most expensive combo I own is under $400. I'd say for me the safe zone is $100-$150 per rod and same for reel. All that stated I've got plenty of budget stuff for non bottom contact techniques. Funny enough my favorite Ned combo is an old $50 pflueger president on an $18 Shakespeare micro series rod. My other Ned rig combo is a dobyns Sierra 702 And a 2500 Daiwa regal. The combo I prefer is $68..the other combo is $230. Don't get me wrong the Sierra combo is a beaut but the other one just feels right.

[JustJames]

You base your combo from comfortable and feel not price. Doesn’t matter how much the combo cost or how sensitive the rod, if you don’t feel comfortable and not connected to the rod, you wouldn’t feel a slight movement/change.

[Junk Fisherman]

On 10/24/2021 at 9:28 PM, NathanDLTH said:

 

Please help me out here, I’m half tempted to sell off the higher end stuff and be content with the middle of the road rods which perform just as well. 

 

Is money the driving force behind this thought?  Why not just enjoy your rods?  If I was starting from scratch, my high-end rods would be bottom contact and finesse presentations.  With that said, using high-end rods on fast-moving baits is nice too.  When I got a Steez rod for finesse, I moved my former finesse rod (Dobyns 741 HP) to the small swimbait role which is an upgrade over the former rod I was using.  It's really nice to use that high-end rod for 3" swimbaits.  You really feel the hits better and the fight is more enjoyable as well.  

[bulldog1935]

If you're inclined to sell, though, it's still a seller's market out there - people are often having a tough time finding the gear they want. 

When I decided I didn't have a niche for Lew's centrifugal brake compared to mag brake, I sold EX condition Tournament Pro and Team Pro SP.  They were 1 and 2 years old, admitted few hours use compared to my preferred mag reels, and sold each for only $15 less than the discount prices I paid 1 and 2 years earlier.  They were snapped up on BR Classifieds in hours. 

[soflabasser]

I have both economical priced gear and mid to high priced gear, they both have times they do best. What is most important is knowing how to locate fish, knowing what lures to use, and knowing how to land the fish. These skills are earned through years of experience so it is best to focus on putting your time on the water.

[NathanDLTH]

Thanks for all the response, these are good and helpful. Much appreciated. 

[Chris186]

So I’ll say this, for what it’s worth. I had purchased a $250 Alpha Angler rod for throwing jigs. Awesome rod, light, sensitive and well balanced. I just recently inherited a $99  Lews TP1 which I began using for spinnerbaits. I decided for the hell of it I would try throwing a jig on it. So I took the reel and jig off the Alpha and put it on the Lews. Honestly, there really wasn’t enough of a difference  at all in any category for me to justify the price difference. That’s me though, everyone has different experiences. That being said I’m really not sold on anything over $150 anymore.