St. Croix Triumph vs. Premeir

[cataligh]

Just recently got into bass fishing and I'm having a blast, it is all I think about.  Unfortunately this new hobby has been putting a dent in my wallet.  Me and my buddy have been fishing reservoirs in our area (Fredericksburg, VA) and unfortunately on our last outing I snapped a cheap $20 Daiwa Strikeforce rod.

I went over to Gander Mountain today and got talked into buying a 7' spinning St. Croix Triumph M power F action rod.  After coming home and doing the research I realized that this is the cheapest rod by St. Croix...

My question is... is it worth spending the extra money for the Premier?  Will it be that noticeable a difference?  

I've been fishing 5" weightless senkos texas and wacky.  Been having quite a bit success with it so I'm looking for a rod that would focus on that type of lure.  If anyone can recommend a better rod for $70-$100 I'm open to suggestions.  Also it will be paired up with an Abu Garcia Cardinal 102.

[ghost]

Premier made in the U.S.A & has a lifetime warranty through St Croix.  Triumph same blank & I guess guides as the Premier but made in China & has a 1 or 5 year warranty (you'll have to contact St Croix or look at their website for that info).

I've heard from other that the Triumph is all the same as the Premier but other have had problems w/ guides coming off.  I had a 7' M Premier spinning rod & did not like the reel seat.  It would loosen after so many casts, I think the Triumph reel seat does the same but not sure.

I returned the Premier & bought a Mojo 6'8" wacky rod.  I prefer the split grip & there is still some issue w/ the reel seat loosening but have fixed that by tightening the reel seat screw till it doesn't loosen.  It will sometimes loosen depending on which spinning reel I use.  

Use the Triumph rod you have & later on upgrade to the Mojo...much better rod & till St Croix gets its new mfg'ing building done in Mexico, the Mojo's are at this time made in the U.S.A.  Or if you can return the rod get the Premier or if your store has it the Mojo.  Costs a little less than the Premier.

[Dan:]

The Premier uses the same blanks as the Mojos so if the Premiers use the same blanks as the Triumphs then they will all have the same general sensitivity and weight (the Mojos are a little lighter and a tad more sensitive because of the split grip).

[adclem]

The Triumph is not made in the USA it is imported I believe from China. It does not have the same guides as the Premiere or the Mojo. The Premiere and Mojo both have Batson Forecast Guides, not sure which guides the Triumph has, it just lists them as being hard aluminum oxide with black frames.

All 3 rods have St Croix's 5 year warranty.

The Triumph is a very good place to start. Would there be that big a difference between the Triumph and Premiere? I would say there would be a little difference. Would the Mojo be better then both? Probably a little better then the Triumph and about the same as the Premiere. The Mojo is offered in a Wacky Style technique specific rod, so that could make a pretty big difference.

But in that $70 to $100 price range there is a huge choice of rods and the list seems to keep getting longer. You have the new Falcon Bucoo rods(5 Year warranty), the Shimano Compre(limited lifetime warranty), Shimano Clarus(limited lifetime warranty) and the list goes on and on. Skeet Reese has his new line of rods coming out in this price range, Lamiglas has also entered into this price range as well.

The best thing to do is to find a store that carries a majority of these rods and just go in and pick them up and hold them and find what feels the best to you. Take your reel with you so that you can feel how the rod will truly feel.

Later,

[.RM.]

Triumph = Premium-quality SCII graphite.

Designed and imported by St. Croix to our exacting standards.

5-year warranty

Premiere = Premium-quality SCII graphite.

Handcrafted in the U.S.A.

5-year warranty

Mojo = Premium-quality SCII graphite.

Handcrafted in North America (Mexico).

5-year warranty

8-)

[bilgerat]

My Triumph is going on five years old with no troubles at all.

My fix for reel nuts that loosen up is to back the nut all the way toward the butt of the rod, then a few wraps of teflon tape on the threads. Make sure you wrap in a clockwise direction so as not to unravel it as you are tightening the nut. The tape takes up the clearance between the nut and the threads. The nice thing about it is teflon tape has no adhesive, so no sticky residue is left when you remove it.

[.RM.]

My Triumph is going on five years old with no troubles at all.

My fix for reel nuts that loosen up is to back the nut all the way toward the butt of the rod, then a few wraps of teflon tape on the threads. Make sure you wrap in a clockwise direction so as not to unravel it as you are tightening the nut. The tape takes up the clearance between the nut and the threads. The nice thing about it is  teflon tape has no adhesive, so no sticky residue is left when you remove it.

Great fix.......

[cataligh]

So all in all... would you guys say the Triumph is perfectly suitable for a weekend warrior fishing weightless plastics and the occasional beetle spin?

Also is this rod (7' MF) to heavy for my reel? (Abu Garcia Cardinal 102)

[Dan:]

So all in all... would you guys say the Triumph is perfectly suitable for a weekend warrior fishing weightless plastics and the occasional beetle spin?

Also is this rod (7' MF) to heavy for my reel? (Abu Garcia Cardinal 102)

You are perfectly fine with what you have.

[guitarkid]

I have the same rod except 6 in. shorter, I like it it seems pretty good. For weightless plastics it's great for the price range. The reel is pretty good, the cardinals are pretty solid.

To answer your question, it is a great rod for weekend warriors.

                        -gk

[Bassoholics Anonymous]

So all in all... would you guys say the Triumph is perfectly suitable for a weekend warrior fishing weightless plastics and the occasional beetle spin?

Also is this rod (7' MF) to heavy for my reel? (Abu Garcia Cardinal 102)

You'll be fine with it, but if you're anything like me, you'll soon want to see what even higher end rods are like.  ;D Once I started fishing with even halfway decent stuff, I just kept on wanting to upgrade.