Deciding between a medium or medium heavy 7ft St Croix Avid Inshore

[Andy Nguyen]

Hi, I’m looking to decide between the medium or medium heavy avid inshore to pair up with my Shimano stradic 3000 fl. I plan to fish in salt water mainly using a 20 lb braid for red drum, black drum, trout, and sheepshead. I also want to start fishing in fresh water for some bass. I plan on getting a bigger setup later on with a 4000 or 5000 running 30-40lb braided line. Which power rod for the avid inshore would y’all tell me to get for the stradic 3000 fl with 20lb braided line? Preciate it a lot

[Andy Nguyen]

I also was wondering if the medium avid inshore could handle 20lb braided line since the website says 17lb max on the medium and 20lb max on the medium heavy. i would prefer to go medium for a lighter setup if I could but am questioning the rods capabilities.

[bulldog1935]

Consider that the max refers to your leader test or drag set - set drag to 1/4 of your weakest link, leader, line, or rod max line rating.  

Most all of my inshore combos are fishing X-braid w/ 25-lb breaking strength, and 15-lb leader, 3-lb drag set.  

Since we don't know where you are, would be tough to pick between the M and MH.  

On the TX coast with 15,000 sq-mi less than 2' deep, I'm most often fishing ML for those species.  

[Andy Nguyen]

Yes, I’m going to be fishing around the Texas coast. Would you think medium would work better with my setup if I want to do around 20lb braid?

[Andy Nguyen]

Galveston and Texas city is where I would mostly fish but I want to start doing some fresh water too.

[bulldog1935]

Andy, I would definitely go with medium rod for TX coast.  

The most productive lures are soft-body paddletails and variants, where fishing heavier weights tends to drag up grass instead of catching fish.  

My go-to lures are 1/4-oz TSL Grasswalker neutral-density soft swimbait - really shallow grass

 

Z-man MinnowZ on 1/8 oz Texas-Eye jighead - a little bit deeper in the column

 

And cocahoe minnow on 1/4-oz jighead on deeper grass you can't see.  

 

I go to MH in the winter for big topwaters and Corkys imitating 5-6" mullet.  

[GetFishorDieTryin]

Probably the M.  The Avid Inshore MHs are fairly stout and get a little weighty.  A 3k will work with the 7', but it needs to be a little weighty to balance.  Once you go to the 7'6 a 4k is better.  

[bulldog1935]

Adding another time to go to MH for inshore - if you fish live bait - Carolina rig on channel slopes, or weighted popping cork on the flats.  

Normal weights on either rig are 3/8 to 1/2 oz.