Hulkster

stradic FK 3000

Great fish! Which E6X rod is that? one of the jig and worm rods?

my family used to have a vacation home in florida near tampa and as a teen I used to catch 18 pound redfish with 12 pound test monofilament and 4000 size spinning reels. so you don't always need superheavy or huge stuff. just a decent drag. and that was before the age of braids. actually, spiderwire was just coming out but back then a 100 yard spool was $60 so we never bought it lol.

lol I don't mean to rave about the E6X but I am a big fan of the all purpose taper of the MBR843 rods that Loomis has created. I have owned two different versions of this rod, an old school IMX (in the 6'6 length) and the newer E6X and like them both. its not easy to find a great rod made in North America anymore, Loomis and St. Croix are a few of the manufacturers still doing it over here. I own an Avid spinning rod and I will say its an amazing rod as well. I'm sure you will be happy with whichever rod you choose -Hulk

I have the MBR843 E6X as a 'do everything' rod paired with a Curado 200i and really like it. my next rod will be one of the E6X jig and worm rods for bottom baits.

I bought the 5.5:1 gear ratio curado (the PG Version) and love it. only being available in a right handed reel is fine by me because I learned to cast the old school way when lefties were just starting to come out. so I cast and switch. I bought it for 3 reasons over the 6:3:1 version: 1. I wanted to throw big lipped cranks like the Rapala X rap shad (1/2 oz size) 2. I wanted to throw large blade baits like big spinnerbaits and #5 mepps in line spinners 3. I tend to fish too fast anyway, so it was all around a win win situation for me.

that being said, in regards to the St. Croix, there is a noticeable difference in crispness and sensitivity of their SCII (premiers, old mojos) vs SCIII (Avid and new Mojo). The SCIII blanks are well worth the extra investment. like night and day.

I have the curado 200i PG (lower gear ratio reel for cranking) and really like it. light, strong and smooth.

just to throw one more rod about there, for $30 more you can get the G. Loomis E6X MBR843c, which is amazing as a do it all rod. its worth looking into.

if you have ever tried to retrieve a large lipped crankbait (eg. 1/2oz rapala X rap shad) or large in line spinner (eg. #5 mepps) with a high ratio gear reel you get fatigue very quickly and it sucks. you are fighting it the whole time I use a 5.5:1 curado for baits like this and its awesome. it goes double for trying baits like this on a spinning reel.

I have heard many glowing reviews about Sufix Elite, seems to be as manageable as XL but with more toughness. I am going to give it a try for both baitcasting and spinning gear.

I love Big Game too, but it sucks on spinning reels. I tried it in 8 pound test on spinning gear (3000 size shimano), and the first outing it was great. then a week later I went back out and it had taken on spool memory and sucked.

the nasci 5000 size has different drag washers than all the other sizes as its supposedly designed more for in shore use. it has the cross carbon drag washers. I believe this is why it can generate higher drag pressure than the 4000 size.

then the SJR700 is out. a 2000 reel will be too heavy for that one. a 1000 size shimano balances perfectly however. A 2500 stradic FK would balance perfectly on a SJR842 E6X however That would be one hell of a combo

SJR842 E6X or one of my favorites (a little lighter) is the Loomis GL3 SJR700. its a 5'10 extra fast action, mag light power spinning rod for up to 1/4 oz lures. I have this one and its amazing.

I have heard they are good. esp. for the money.

I have the E6X MBR843c and really like it.

I have a bunch of GL3 rods (all spinning) and one E6X Mag Bass baitcasting rod (MBR843c). I find them to be extremely similar. both very good, sensitive and lightweight blanks. The folks who run tackletour have stated that they would take the E6Xs over the GL3s (stated this in their holiday Xmas tackle roundup last year). I think although the GL3 is a more expensive rod in terms of current retail cost, it is also a less modern blank than the E6X. its been unchanged since the 90s. Given this, I would probably go E6X given the choice, esp. since they are offered in so many tapers. I really like my MBR843 E6X. I have mine paired with a Curado 200i:

Even the BPS up here in Canada is the same. there is one near me in Ontario and its 90% bass pro shops house products and very limited everything else. no daiwa at all. a few shimano reels. only loomis rods they carry are a few E6X. highest St. Croix they carry is the Avid, but its mostly all BPS house brand rods.

I have the shimano curado 200i and really like it. but as mentioned the SVS infinity breaking system is slightly upgraded in the 70 model. however, once you get the hang of it, the 200i is very easy to cast.

Thanks -its actually green monofilament on them. at that point in time (last nov) it was berkely big game on the larger reels and the curado, and Berkley XT 4 pound on the smaller ones. Im switching it though. love big game but its a bit too stiff for spinning reels. the XT 4 pound seems fine though. weird. Going to give sufix elite mono a try.

I tend to fish with G. Loomis rods paired with Shimano reels. I have a few St. Croix rods too. love them all.

another option that I use is a three piece travel rod. G. Loomis and St. Croix have some very good ones. the loomis escape series and the st. Croix premier travel series are 3 piece rods that come in hard pvc travel tubes that will fit into the largest size suitcase. that's what I bring down when I travel. I have two loomis escape rods (pricey but worth the investment) and one st. Croix premier travel rod.

I like a 7 foot one piece rod for pretty much everything now. not too short, not too long.

look at it as a blessing in disguise and turn the tragedy into a positive situation: upgrade to the Avid. you won't regret it as there is a significant difference in the blanks. if you loved the premier you will go nuts for the Avid.