Share your hidden gems.

[BrianMDTX]

Dobyns Fury 705CB. I bought it as a crankbait rod. It’s great for that. But truth is, I’m not a huge crankbait angler. I got tired of having a decent rod with a Tatula 100H on it that sat idle a lot. So on a whim, I tied on a Gamakatsu 3/0 EWG and a Neko Macho and tried it with a weightless Texas rig (Neko Machos and Fat IKA’s have enough weight compared to a lot of soft plastics). I was shocked/pleased at how well it casted those baits, and even more so how well it set the hook and played the fish. Even though it’s a MH power, it’s a MF action, and personally it’s more akin to a  M than a MH to me. Even so, it set the hooks with power and the action made it easy to work the baits. 
 

I still use it mostly with lipless and squarebills, but it does do a great job with heavier soft plastics. 

[Derek1]

7 minutes ago, BrianMDTX said:

Dobyns Fury 705CB. I bought it as a crankbait rod. It’s great for that. But truth is, I’m not a huge crankbait angler. I got tired of having a decent rod with a Tatula 100H on it that sat idle a lot. So on a whim, I tied on a Gamakatsu 3/0 EWG and a Neko Macho and tried it with a weightless Texas rig (Neko Machos and Fat IKA’s have enough weight compared to a lot of soft plastics). I was shocked/pleased at how well it casted those baits, and even more so how well it set the hook and played the fish. Even though it’s a MH power, it’s a MF action, and personally it’s more akin to a  M than a MH to me. Even so, it set the hooks with power and the action made it easy to work the baits. 
 

I still use it mostly with lipless and squarebills, but it does do a great job with heavier soft plastics. 

Try it with 3/8’s spinnerbaits. 

[BrianMDTX]

18 minutes ago, Derek1 said:

Try it with 3/8’s spinnerbaits. 

I’ll do that! 

[MidwestBassAttack]

Anything in the Halo HFX line. I’ve got 6 of them. Sensitivity and durability are absolutely amazing for their price point.

 

The actions are just as stated. Sometimes rods at the price point have printed specs that don’t match the actions during the tip bend test. The HFX rods actually match and are consistent.

[Cody28]

8 hours ago, LootyDjibouti said:

Scouring the forum for feedback on this rod and glad to see you like it. 

I fish from a kayak and am in the market for a single-hook moving/reaction lure rod so to speak. That 7'0" appeals to me also as I fish mostly small lakes in south jersey. I know it's not optimal but a rod that can handle chatterbaits, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, swim jigs all at least decently would be huge.  

If I can only take out one moving bait rod, this is the one I take. Wouldn’t go real heavy with it but 3/8 oz chatterbaits and spinnerbaits are awesome on it. Holds treble hook baits well too. I personally throw a beefier rod with swim jigs just because of the weed guard, but if you have a nice thin guard it would work for that to. I’ve thrown the 6th sense divine swim jig on it for example. 

[newapti5]

I have this Dick's/Field & Stream house brand rod, Field & Stream Tec-Spec Arsenal spinning rod, 6'8 ML, made with 40/46 ton blank.  I got it before they stopped making them. Even today, if I have to pick a rod between it and a Daiwa Steez for fishing finesse stuff, I'd probably pick it. Ultra light weight but strong, casting 1/8oz jigheads a long long way, and super sensitive.  

[Tatulatard]

I'll add that both the casting 6'8" medium mojo bass sticks have very soft tips that make for a decent finesse casting rod for weightless plastics.  I was skipping 1/16 oz wacky jigheads with floating worms the other day with a tatula sv.  All my other medium rods are too stiff for that.  There is also a medium plastics rod in the lineup that I almost got but got then"jerkbait" instead because it has a similar soft tip and is shorter.  The plastics rod has more backbone with a very soft tip too.  All 3 of those rods are good power bfs esque sticks.  

[Functional]

Again not really hidden since it says right on the rod "spinnerbait" but Dobyns Sierra Micro 703c.

 

Bought it as my first "nice" baitcaster rod hoping itd be sensitive and was let down BUT it worked incredible as a spinnerbait rod. It's now dedicated to spinnerbait use since I use them 50%+ of the time. Sensitive and stiff enough to feel the blades with mono but supple enough to load deep into the blank to keep it pinned very well. 

 

 

Also 100% agree on the ARK tharp series. I havent found something as good until I got a Expride (which is much better). 

[rekmeyata]

Have any of you compared the Halo HFX with the Daiwa Tatula rod?

[Blaine Donders]

On 1/6/2022 at 11:04 PM, FishTank said:

I have found a few over the years but some more recently have been getting more use.....

 

Quantum Tour S3 of off Ebay.  I payed less than $100 for it.  It has been a fine reel and so far has fished as well as reels I have payed a lot more for.  

 

St. Croix Mojo Yak 7' M Fast.  Great rod for the money.  It's not the most sensitive but in a kayak its perfect.  Every time I use it, it surprises me. 

 

Abu Garcia Fantasista Registra 7' M Fast.  I picked this up for a good price at Sierra Trading Post and its a top of the line rod with sensitivity, balance and power that can be compared to a G. Loomis GLX. 

 

Abu Garcia ALX.   Not the smoothest reel but it sure is fun to fish.  

 

Shimano Vanquish spinning reel.  A JDM only reel that is light and as smooth as the older Stellas.

The Tour S3 is definitely under rated. I use mostly Daiwa, but keep a couple Smoke S3’s around. They really are great reels.

[Mbirdsley]

Okuma evx 7ft cranking rod for $100 bucks your not going to find a better cranking rod. 
 

honestly I’d throw in the shimano slx also. Probably the best $100 reel on the market 

[MickD]

On 1/6/2022 at 7:30 PM, Cody28 said:

This tip is so soft and so fast that it acts like a much lighter power rod when thrown light lures because it never has to even get to the meat of the rod. Just kinda flicks it out there. Plus if you choke up on spinning rods like me, the handle feels like it was made custom to yours hand. Very unique rod. Very impressed. If you only want to carry 1 spinning rod this is the one. 

What you describe is typical of XF actions.  They cast well a larger range of lure weights than other actions.  The disadvantage, if there is one, is that they might not bend as far into the rod, depending on their power, and might make it a little harder to stay hooked to the fish.  This is less of an issue in longer rods.   I get it that you think it is unique, but there are a lot of XF blanks available to builders.  

 

I think the Rapala DT series of crankbaits is a gem.  You can get them for most depths and they have a great selection of colors.  Good quality hooks, and they just work.

[FishTank]

I'll add another I picked up earlier this year.  The Daiwa Emeraldas Air FC  LT.  Just super fun to fish, smooth as any spinning reel i have owned and weighs nothing.  

 

[SproDD79]

16 minutes ago, FishTank said:

I'll add another I picked up earlier this year.  The Daiwa Emeraldas Air FC  LT.  Just super fun fish, smooth as any spinning reel i have owned and weighs nothing.  

 

I was considering this reel for finesse spinning, but could not really find too much info about it.  Based on what your saying, I may go ahead and pick it up.

[J Francho]

Mine is in this video.  It's a preproduction demo of an Avid AC62MXF built in 2000.  I've had the handle repaired twice by Saint Croix.  It's the very best topwater rod I've ever used.

 

 

[FishTank]

18 minutes ago, SproDD79 said:

I was considering this reel for finesse spinning, but could not really find too much info about it.  Based on what your saying, I may go ahead and pick it up.

It's a fun reel. I think it's intended use is for squid. If you get one, pay attention to the model. Some have a light drag. Also, the drag on the one I have starts slow and tightens up, which is great for hook sets.  I paired it with a NRX+ NRR. It's a pleasure to fish. 

[Cody28]

2 hours ago, MickD said:

What you describe is typical of XF actions.  They cast well a larger range of lure weights than other actions.  The disadvantage, if there is one, is that they might not bend as far into the rod, depending on their power, and might make it a little harder to stay hooked to the fish.  This is less of an issue in longer rods.   I get it that you think it is unique, but there are a lot of XF blanks available to builders.  

 

I think the Rapala DT series of crankbaits is a gem.  You can get them for most depths and they have a great selection of colors.  Good quality hooks, and they just work.

I’ve played with 2-3 other XF rods and this one is definitely different than any others I have tried outside of St. Croix. Tip is wayyy softer than all the others, and the middle of the rod does not have that issue of being too stiff. It may sound similar, but it’s not. Just hard to describe in text. 

[Deleted account]

hid·den

/ˈhidn/

verb

past participle of hide.

 

adjective

 

kept out of sight; concealed.

"hidden dangers"

[MickD]

2 hours ago, Cody28 said:

Tip is wayyy softer than all the others, and the middle of the rod does not have that issue of being too stiff.

Sounds like an XF that is lower in power than you are used to.    Learn to do the CCS testing and you can put numbers on it for power and action.  Then do the true natural frequency test to get numbers on recovery and you'll have an objective description that can be used to duplicate it in the future.  I assure you, it is not "one of a kind."  

[the reel ess]

I found a new Pflueger Trion size 20 spinning reel, still in the original package at a pawn shop for $20. Retails for $40. I bought a Falcon Lowrider (made in USA) "big cranker" MH rod from a coworker for $50. It retailed for $130 even back then. Still the most sensitive rod I own. It was my pitching/frog rod for quite a while. It's just about the perfect MH all-purpose rod. Years ago, when I was in college, I worked at Walmart. I would ask the guy over the sporting goods department to let me know when rods were going on sale. Then I would have him hide one or two for me beforehand so they wouldn't all disappear before I got back to work. Then I'd tack my employee discount onto that.

[Cody28]

10 hours ago, MickD said:

Sounds like an XF that is lower in power than you are used to.    Learn to do the CCS testing and you can put numbers on it for power and action.  Then do the true natural frequency test to get numbers on recovery and you'll have an objective description that can be used to duplicate it in the future.  I assure you, it is not "one of a kind."  

I’m not sure where you are quoting “one of a kind” from. I simply stated that the tip is very different than the other medium XF rods I have used personally. I am aware there are other rods out there such as the NRX 872S, that have a similar action, but I have never seen that action near this rods price point. By your numbers it may not even classify as a medium XF, but that’s not really the point. Ask anyone who owns it, it is different than a common XF tipped rod.

This is just a thread of people posting from their own experiences and this is just the rod that sparked the idea for me. If we’re going to be technical, there is absolutely nothing hidden gem about the DT series either, but no one is replying to you with their high sales numbers or examples of other crank bait series (strike king/bandit) to tell you that you are wrong for posting it here. 

[QED]

Not hidden but somewhat obscure - old Fenwick HMG ultralight Tennessee cork handled spinning rods.  Still successfully using them...

[MickD]

6 hours ago, Cody28 said:

I’m not sure where you are quoting “one of a kind” from

When you mentioned that it was very unique more than once.  Unique by itself means "one of a kind."  Something is either unique or it's not.  There is no degree to unique.  I was just trying to bring some clarity to the discussion of the action of the rod.  Getting "technical" might bring some objective descriptions into the discussion.  Sorry if I offended.  

 

It's a good string, good subject, glad you started it.  Again, sorry.

[DaveT63]

Someone else mentioned it already, but years ago after Fenwick discontinued the Elite Tech Smallmouth line, I picked up a 6'10" MHMF casting rod for something like $55 from FFO.  That thing, to me, anyway, is an absolutely perfect Whopper Plopper rod.  Doesn't matter if I'm throwing the 75, 90, 110, or 130.  It will launch them all, and once a fish is on, it stays on.

[Boomstick]

On 1/6/2022 at 9:00 PM, EWREX said:

i scored a brand new 6’10 M tatula elite AGS spinning rod on ebay for $155 shipped to my door.

I got the 7'1" M/F Brent Ehrler dropshot rod last year. Probably overall similar with a fast tip instead of an extra fast. Great rod, can throw about anything on it. I definitely did not score that good of a deal, but if I could only take one rod out with me on many days it would be this one.

 

On 1/6/2022 at 7:30 PM, Cody28 said:

Addition: I'd also like to add that the St. Croix Mojo Bass 7'0" MHMF Spinnerbait Rod is the PERFECT bladed jig rod for your typical 3/8 oz lures and no one seems to give it the respect it deserves. 

 

That is a great moving bait stick