RichF

I'm not a Wheeler fan by any means but I totally agree with you. Mercer and Dunkin talked about him on one of their last podcasts. Mercer said he's polarizing because he lives in the gray area. He talked about his win at Cherokee ( 1st Elite tourney) and how he took advantage of that obscure rule nobody else knew about. Which, he wouldn't have even been able to take advantage of without his close friend Connell. He basically ran his boat all day. Yes I know, everyone on tour belongs to a "crew" and they all help each other out but this is how I thought about that situation...usually another angler would give up their boat to a friend/other competitor if said angler had a shot at winning and his/her boat broke down (I'm thinking a couple years back to Shin Fukae loaning Wendlandt his boat on the Potomac). In Wheeler's case, Connell stayed on the boat and fished with him. That is 100% an advantage over the rest of the field which is why so many other anglers were upset over it. Again, totally within the rules and good for him for knowing it. So yeah, I don't think he's broken any rules outright, but the size and reach of his network could make anyone scrutinize a little more.

I actually saw this photo. It was of Wheeler and Dustin Connell viewing a map of Ross Barnett with a local. It was shown to me by another Elite Series pro at the time. I'm not saying Wheeler is a cheater but I think he (and no doubt others) push the boundaries a bit. It's kinda hard not to in the sport.

Totally agree with wanting something smaller. I also rarely carry more than a half dozen spinnerbaits since I only use them in a limited capacity. You can take out an entire row from the box which leaves a big open space for other stuff though. I got these strictly to store my overstock baits but since I have a bunch on dinged up ones now; I'm thinking about using one for a day box to store some spinnerbaits, bladed jigs, and regular jigs (I checked and they fit perfectly fine in there, even 1.25 ouncers).

Of those, I would definitely go with the St. Croix. Great company, great customer service, great warranties, and great rods.

Totally agree. I even asked them if they could ensure that the goods were actually packed adequately. That obviously did no good. I hate that I now have a bunch of extra crap plastic lying around.

Update on these suckers... So I ordered 2 more of these from Dicks during the Black Friday sale. They arrived with hardly any packing and both boxes were destroyed. Dicks sent me replacements promptly (I didn't have to return the broken ones). Those came in a box with ZERO packaging and both were cracked/chipped. I opened another chat with them online and they shipped 2 more replacements that I just received today, again, no packing material in the box. The blade krate survived and the krank bank had only one small aesthetic chip. My point for this update is I'm somewhat questioning the durability of these boxes. I totally understand that all of the tackle utility boxes out there chip and crack, etc. but these seem a touch too brittle. It could totally be the packaging (or lack thereof) but I can't help but think these might get banged up good in a boat compartment. Guess I'll find out next spring. Kudos to Dick's customer service though. But now I'm up to my eyes in busted boxes!

I used to be a fan (still have 2 Max cranking rods) but I'm not liking their new website and apparent business model. They're now listing the new Endurances as $299 retail but on sale for $150. They've never been that much. They've also jacked up their replacement cost to $90. Don't get me wrong, they make good rods, but this stuff turns me off big time.

I keep hinting to the wife that I want a new rod. Now the Levantes are back and I want a whole set haha. Hopefully I can offload a BUNCH of gear and retool.

I'm pretty sure they are the same blanks just different components. The Max has fuji sic guides and an acs reel seat where as the Endurance has fuji alconite and an ecs seat.

Sweet. Thanks for the info and great description! I think a few of these suckers will be in my arsenal next season, for sure.

What do you plan to use it for? I also have no experience with the MHR Daiwa taper. Would you say that's somewhat equivalent to a St. Croix medium or heavier?

Pretty much all the jigs I fish have stout hooks so I need to put the berries to her when I set the hook. For that reason, I rarely go under 17lb. I'll drop to 15lb if I'm using smaller jigs. I say go for the 20lb.

I had an old Max 702 glass rod and loved it. The first one I bought was defective but they sent me a replacement quickly. By the time I broke that one (accident) they had discontinued that model so I got a 704 CB as the closest replacement. It's been collecting dust for a few yrs. The graphite crankers just aren't the same. I also have a 755 glass original max that has been fantastic. Super light for glass and great action. Powell just recently jacked up their rod replacement costs though so I'm no longer interested in them.

No prob! Sick deal. Gonna pick one up for my dad and maybe grab another for myself.

They still have the same look as the 2019's though right? They didn't redesign the 2019s again, just addressed the breakage issue?

I was about to grab a new Phenix M1 but now.....ugh. Anyone out there have one that didn't break before they were pulled off the shelves?

Yup, I'm just waiting for the day that Boyd, Gary, or Timmy are in the bottom 5 after the season and are relegated back to the Pro Tour. Bet we'll see ANOTHER random rule change then.

Another reason why BPT/MLF is shady. Why does he get an offer? Because he's a big name and has won a bunch of events. The dude turned down their initial offer but since so many guys are leaving now he gets another chance. And what about the other 4 empty slots in the BPT roster? Luke Dunkin was talking about some weird plan to allow the top 4 anglers from the FLW Pro circuit a "trial" run in the BPT on his podcast today. Meaning...pay an entry fee to fish the 1st event and get no points. Then they're supposed to have the next 4 guys in pts down the list do the same thing at the next event, etc, etc.

I've handled the Sierras in store and they seem really nice. I have a few Ark Snipers that are surprisingly nice. So nice, that I'm looking at adding a few Invoker pros in the future.

Try and swing that 40%. Throw a KLX and an Argon in the cart for $300.

Trey makes great rods but the price hike was a bit much for my liking. I own several and never paid full price for any of them. If you can swing the 40% or 50% off deal, they're a steal. Full price...I'd look elsewhere.

Glad to see the Hack Attack back with BASS. He fishes for 5 bigguns like I do. That style just doesn't mesh with the every dink counts format. Him and Christy will smash'em next season.

Unfortunately, trying to buy a house in the DC area is forcing me to limit my tackle spending. I may pick up a Phenix M1 during the TW sale. Love the look of those rods and looking to expand out of the St. Croix, Kistler, Shimano realm.

Those big swimbaits skip super easy! I was pretty surprised the first time I tried it.