Yudo1

90% of the time I'm frogging in my yak. I prefer a faster reel because I need to get the bass up on the surface as quickly as possible and keep it on top. If the fish digs down in the slop I'm reeling myself to the fish which is annoying and spooking every fishing on the way. My favorite reel is an 8.0 exsence dc. It absolutely bombs frogs, it's plenty powerful, feels like a tank and never backlashes.

4" senko, x rap 8, 3" grub/jig head, tubes, pop x, ned rig.

I've owned the curado 51e, scorpion xt, exsence dc, curado i, met 13 and met mgl. All are amazing reels, but right now the met mgl is my favorite. I switched from lews, bps and abu to shimano/daiwa and haven't looked back. I don't even look at a reel unless it says shimano/daiwa.

I have an exsence dc on my xx perfect pitch and it makes an awesome frog and jig combo. I like the whine personally and the weight doesn't bother me. In the summer I go to sc for vacation and use the exsence for some inshore and it's the only time I fish at night. The dc comes in handy at night with no fear of backlash.

It should work fine. I don't get caught up in the labels that rod manufacturers put on rods. I have an orochi xx "perfect pitch" and it's my full time frog rod.

Glass rods are too slow in recovery for my taste with jerk baits.

I'd go with the 6.3 for cranks and 7.3 for spinner baits, swim jigs and swim baits.

I sold my glass rod and went with graphite a couple years ago. I actually miss the glass and may pick one up on Friday because I like the way crank baits deflect off cover.

What do you plan on using it for? The 842 taper makes it a more versatile rod than the 852. Both rods have different strengths. The 842 is great for reaction baits and treble hooks, but also handles bottom contact techniques well. The 852 is great for bottom contact, but also handles reaction baits well. Both rods have soft tips and surprisingly powerful backbones. The 852's tip gets to the backbone quicker with it's extra fast action. For me, there's always a bit of doubt and buyer's remorse that comes along with a big ticket item. You got a great deal though and I think you're going to love the rod once you use it. On the flip side, if you don't think it's what you're looking for then you could always sell it pretty quickly for about what you paid minus pp fees and shipping.

I have both and they feel very similar to me, but prefer the cosmetics of the MGL. You can buy the MGL from Japan for about $300 shipped and boy do they ship it fast. Japan lure shop and digitaka are some of my favorite vendors.

I don't need anything lighter than a medium/light for bass.

A medium/heavy, moderate/fast would probably be more versatile for those baits. I use a klx 7' mh/mod-fast crank, rip, twitch rod for cranks, jerks, spinnerbaits, topwaters and chatterbaits.

That is a vague question, but I'll give it a shot. If you are interested in a spinning combo, I'd recommend a pflueger president 30 sized reel on a medium/fast rod that fits your budget. If you're looking for a baitcasting combo, I'd recommend a tatula reel on a medium/heavy, fast action rod. You can get a good rod for $100. It's a good time to buy right now with all of the sales.

Medium or medium/light will work for light cover and under 1/4oz. I use ml casting gear personally.

I've become really good at tying the alberto quickly and effectively. I've experimented with the FG, but it's come apart on me.

x2. For me it simplifies things quite a bit when I only stick with these two stellar choices. To reiterate what others have stated, consider how the frame fits your hand and the braking systems. You can't make a bad decision here because they are both quality reels.

I eliminate all other choices and stick with daiwa and shimano. It simplifies things a little for me.

If I'm using lighter t rigs I use an nrx 893 with a metanium mgl xg.

Nice combo. You should be very happy with it.

I prefer casting gear so I'd go with a med/light fast, mh/f and h/f.

It might be psychological for me, but I like 4" for smallies and 5" for largemouth.

I'd rather catch 2lb smallies over 3lb largies any day. They're so much fun.

Make sure you get the new generation with the scIII blank. I wasn't a fan of the previous generation.

1. Higher end reels have a more refined feel to them. They retrieve smoothly and cast with less effort. They may cast further in some instances. 2. They are built with tighter tolerance so they should last longer. I have some high end reels that are 12 years old and still as smooth as new. 3. For me they are worth it. 4. Yes, I'm addicted to nice reels. 5. Any high end daiwa or shimano. met mgl, met 13, met dc, steez, conquest sv 103 etc. 6. The tackle trap or japan lure shop for jdm.

I've never used the 2 power dobyns, but have used a 743 for senkos and flukes that was really nice. I think I'd miss some hook sets with 2 power dobyns, but I heard the new hp has slightly more power than the previous generation.