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picked up two of each from tackledirect.com because they were on sale. fished pensacola last week. The rods seem superlight. never got a king run but hooked a few spanish. I thought the rod look good and seemed ok. Some locals laughed at me, but they had fancy z bass and wire guide rods. I'm a newbie. are these rods worth keeping or go custom?
Thank you for your response.
They're solid rods. I would caution you to not push the upper limit of the rods weight rating because I had an 11' conventional Airwave blow up on me in the surf last year. I take meticulous care of my gear and was an ounce shy of maxing out the rod so it leads me to believe that they are overrating their rods by a good margin. On further rasearch after having the rod replaced I discovered that other surf fishermen have had the same issue when chunking a larger sinker.
On the positive side of things, the rods feel good in the hand for an off-the-shelf rod when balanced with the right size reel. Their light weight makes it a pleasure to cast lures with and still being able to use your arm at the end of the day. And they are fairly sensitive blanks so they do well even picking up bites from smaller whiting. I wouldn't hesitate one second in using either one of the rods you picked up, just be mindful of how much weight you're slinging.
Maybe a little light for kings but will get you by. I have a few with Stradic 4000's and 10# line that will sling a Hopkins lure clear out of sight I use on the beach.
Bubba Feesh
The Florida piers are higher off the water which seems to give fish more leverage. I was surprised that the lighter rods I love on Gulf Shores didn't control big fish at all at pcola when I got 'em in close. Strictly my experience, someone more experienced might do better. Personally never got a king to the gaff on lighter rods.
You should laugh back and ask them why are they paid $900 waterproofed reel on a pier that is 30 ft+ from the water.