Tywithay

The two best I've used are Tatsu and Shooter. I like Sniper as well. Never cared for much else.

I would mostly agree with that. The only $200 rod that I felt was absolutely an inferior product was the Loomis GL2. Felt the same way about the new IMX for $300. I paid $200 for the IMX, was still disappointed. For the most part, they're all good rods; some certainly perform better than others though.

Have you used many other rods under $300 to compare them to the Avid? I can think of a few off the top of my head that I have that I like better than my Avid, and they cost less than the Avid. My $300 Orochi XX rods are so far ahead of it, it's not even close. I would say they compare favorably to the Legend Elite; even though my Elite is one of my favorite rods. Don't get me wrong, I like St Croix a lot, and have several. They're hardly the best "bang for your buck" rods out there anymore. You're paying for a made in the USA rod with a nice warranty, more so than high performance; though they do perform well.

I use mono and fluoro. They both have their place and both have their benefits. When it comes to abrasion resistance and sensitivity, it's not even close between the two. I'll always use fluoro over mono when that's needed.

Kistler KLX, Daiwa Tatula, ***. They all 3 pretty much blow away anything under $200. I'm sure the Edge EFX will join the convo in October when they become available.

Not entirely true. You're going to feel more with a stiffer rod, all things equal. A very limber rod will absorb a lot of the vibration before it reaches you, even if the material has the same transmission.

An "ultra light" Ugly Stik probably weighs double what a comparable Veritas weighs. The Veritas isn't an overly sensitive rod, but it's leaps and bounds above the Ugly Stik in that department. The fiberglass in the Ugly Stik is essentially a dead material. It transfers very little vibration. If you think of fishing rods in terms of tools, an Ugly Stik is a rubber mallet. Rod power has some, but little, bearing on the weight of the rod. You can buy heavy power rods that weigh less than light power rods. It's based on the materials used and usually comes with a price. Overall weight can have an influence on sensitivity, but it's likely more than 90% based on materials used, with less weight just being a bonus. I'll take a properly balanced rod over a light rod.

The Elite looks good in person and looks even better on paper. It doesn't fish worth a crap though.

It's likely from your line digging in. You also need to make sure the line is spooling tightly when you reel it in.

8lb Sniper or Tatsu; you're welcome.

Do you hold the rod up at 90 degrees, or do you hold it out over the wall and reel them up? Boat flipping and dragging a fish up an embankment are very different things.

I think you can do better for the money, but they're good enough, and they'll catch fish.

If you're willing to cut your casting distance and IPT in half just to eliminate backlashes, I'd recommend a spinning reel or thumb training.

Toray Polyamide Plus or Defier Armilo are my favorite low stretch monos, by far.

They're quite a bit bigger than the Duckett guides.

I'd take the Chronarch, even if the STX was 1/2 priced. It's just a much better reel.

Less weight=less spool speed=less overall distance. It won't hurt anything, necessarily, but you're not going to reach anywhere near the full potential of the reel.

Daiwa SS SV

Did you fish with it, or just tie on a scale and go to town? Not enough drag to pull a scale and not enough to fish properly are very different things. I imagine if you actually put it on a rod and went fishing, you'd find you have plenty of drag.

Depends on the budget. If you're going to spend some money, best to have a really nice rod and a good reel. If you're only budgeting a small amount, get the most out of the reel you can. A $30 reel is going to be a bigger hassle than it's worth and won't last long; while a $30 rod may not be sensitive, but it will be serviceable, and can last a long time.

If it breaks on the first fish, it's the rod. If it breaks after a month, it's you. May be a nick, shipping damage, manufacturing defect, or whatever; those show up early. After that break-in period, a rod will only break if you damage it or mistreat it.

I have the Extreme Mission and Spinnerbait Special. They're very nice rods. You won't find much better for the money. If you keep an eye out for deals, you can find lightly used ones for good prices. I got my spinnerbait special for $200.

Lovely little reels. The SV spool is the real deal. I have mine on a 610M Expride. I can throw 1/8oz jigs, shakyheads, and weightless plastics, with ease. You'd be pleased with it.

Probably needs professionally cleaned, if you put oil on the gears. Don't think that would cause it to seize up though.

The Daiwa Tatula rods are the lightest rods in that price range. They're plenty sensitive, and the build quality is very good. The *** *** is a little cheaper and almost as good. They're far and away the two best out in that price range, at the moment. When the ICast releases hit stores, there may be a couple more good ones.