JohnnyRebTX

I haven't used it, but I have played with it at Bass Pro. That one and the Lew's Mach II both feel good on initial inspection and have good reviews. I just didn't personally know anyone that used either to say yay or nay. That's all. They look solid. I'm actually planning on selling my Pflueger President combo. I'm using that $ to switch all my bass setups to braid. I'll look at the Mitchell, Lews, and others if I'm not satisfied with my president limited edition, okuma inspira, and shimano nasci when I'm ready to upgrade again. Dick's Sporting Goods does $20 off if you spend $100 with free shipping over $25 fairly regularly. That would bring a St Croix Bass X down to $80, or an Abu Garcia Ike Signature down to $110.

Precisely what I'm going to use it for. I have a plastics setup, general purpose/crank setup, now a topwater. I am at 2 setups for live bait only (Ugly Stik GX2+Penn Fierce & Ugly Stik Lite Pro+Penn Pursuit). Then my lure setups so far. Ugly Stik Elite with a Pflueger President Limited Edition. A standard Pflueger President combo. A St Croix Mojo Bass with a Shimano Nasci, and now a Abu Veritas 2.0 with an Okuma Inspira. Not much compared to y'all, but two years ago all I had was the Ugly Stik GX2 combo.

Is it bad that I picked up a Veritas as well? Dang tackle junky bug bit me again. I'm putting an Okuma Inspira on it to match the pearl white. Anyways, depending on how I like the Mojo Bass+Shimano Nasci & Abu Garcia Veritas+Okuma Inspira will dictate if I pick up a St Croix Bass X, another model Mojo, or Abu Ike Signature later on down the road.

I guess I'll find out soon enough. My setup I was using for soft plastics was a Pflueger President combo. It is the actual Pflueger rod instead of the Bass Pro or Cabela's house brand rod when you buy the combo from them. I was only running mono with that, and to me that cheap rod was way more sensitive than anything I had used before and opened up my eyes that spending a little more on a soft plastics setup would be worth the $. Thank you. I'll be sure and do just that. Dink or not. Lol. I use to have grandparents that lived in Olympia. Beautiful terrain and water.

I haven't used mine just yet, so I can't say anything otherwise. I went off reviews, this forum, the sales clerks, and fishing buddies advice that mostly echoed it is a great rod. I realize there are duds in just about any product as well as differing opinions. My first rod I bought for crankbaits was a Berkley Lightning Rod Shock. I run into people all the time the love that rod. It felt good in my hands vs the even cheaper combos I was use to fishing with. The rod tip broke on a cast on my second trip out with it. I was so frustrated that I exchanged it for an Ugly Stik. The Ugly Stik is still going strong, but I just don't like that model for lures. I use it for live bait only now. The Ugly Stik Elite on the other hand is not bad at all for cranking. (Even though I'd love to upgrade that one)

All I need now is to upgrade my primary setup for cranking, spinners, and every other lure I throw besides soft plastics. That can wait a bit though since I dropped $270 on the Mojo Bass, Nasci, line, and hooks after tax. For the moment, it's an Ugly Stik Elite and Pflueger President Limited Edition. Been fine so far.

Well ladies and gents, thanks to your input I bought a 7'1", Medium action, fast tip, "soft plastics", St Croix Mojo Bass spinning rod today. I also bought a Shimano Nasci 3000 reel, and I had them spool it with Stren performance braid 30lb test. It's my first St Croix rod, Shimano reel, and first time using braid. Is it weird that I'm paranoid with it so far? Lol. It will get used plenty. Thanks again for the advice. I guess next up is learning how to use a fluorocarbon leader.

I planned on putting a Pflueger President on it, but I'm not as crazy about that reel as most people are. I have a Limited Edition which is the same as the XT internally, and I feel that's a much better reel then the regular President. I own a Penn Fierce and Penn Pursuit I use for live bait. Both of those are great reels for their purpose, but they aren't super smooth. I know most of y'all are big Shimano and Daiwa fans, but are any of those decent below $100? If not, I'll take a hard look at an Okuma Inspira and High Speed S as well as a few others.

I really appreciate y'alls input. Maybe in the future I'll take a look at the Avid series or higher from St. Croix, or maybe even a G. Loomis. That's a big stretch for my budget at the moment. The only thing that draws me to the Abu Ike Signature is the reel seat and paint job, so if y'all think the Mojo is the better built rod and more suited for worming. Then I'll definitely pick one up. I originally looked at Fenwicks, Veritas, and even a St Croix triumph, but I can see spending a little more for a Mojo if it's worth it. I believe it would be just from what I read on here. Thanks y'all!

I am looking to upgrade soon, but these are my current setups. I own four medium setups for everything from Bass to crappie. Two are for only lures, and two are only for live bait like minnows or worms. Left to right: 1. Pflueger President Limited Edition on an Ugly Stik Elite 2. Pflueger President combo 3. Penn Fierce II on an Ugly Stik GX2 4. Penn Pursuit II on an Ugly Stik Lite Pro I also own three setups for big catfishing mainly. Left to right: 1. Zebco Electronic BiteAlert 2. Berkley Glowstik 3. Bass Pro Shops Catmaxx on an Ugly Stik Tiger My medium setups are spooled with 12lb test Trilene Big Game Mono in solar collector color. My heavy setups are spooled with 25-30lb test Trilene Big Game Mono also in solar collector color with 50lb test leaders.

I don't mean to beat a dead horse here. I've read opinions elsewhere here on this very subject of St Croix vs Fenwick vs Abu Garcia. There's a ton of posts on them, but people compare rods at different price points. The newer addition of the Mojo Bass has an SCIII blank and is at Bass Pro Shops for $129.99. The Abu Ike Signature series is also $129.99. I believe that's a more fair comparison than to a Fenwick Eagle or HMG, Abu Veritas, or even Duckett Ghost which can be found for much cheaper in most cases. I have held all of these rods several times, and for me it's between the two first mentioned. I only use spinning setups, and that's not changing anytime soon. What will it be used for? Exclusively for bass and only with lures. What kind of lures? Soft plastics like worms on the bottom , and only occasionally for cranks and spinners. Sensitivity is key. I also only bank fish. Most of y'all are massive St Croix and G Loomis fans. I do not wish to bump up to higher priced/rated/performance rods then the Abu Ike Signature or Mojo Bass. Now let the opinions begin.

I'm in the same boat. No pun intended. I just got three new rod and reels for Christmas (which I love), but I wanted to upgrade one of my old, first spinning rods. It is the cheapest of cheap.(Shakespeare Durango $9.99 at Walmart, but still caught a 2# & #3 Spotted Bass on it yesterday) I have been looking very closely at a lot of rods suggested here from other posts, and I've narrowed it down to the Ugly Stik Elite, and the Berkley Lightning Rod Shock. Maybe someday I'll look closer at a Cabelaa's Whoppin' Stik, a Bass Pro Shops Carbonlite or Bionic Blade, or an Abu Garcia Vengeance or higher. . I own an Ugly Stik GX2. It handles bass with ease. I also own an Ugly Stik Tiger rod with a Catmaxx reel for the hawgs of freshwater (flatheads, blues, gar, and carp) as well as a Berkley Glowstik. I like them both. Since you have used both the Elite & Shock, do you prefer one over the othet?

$50 range. I've seen the St Croix rods, and I bet they're very good rods. But I'm not sure I want to bump up to the $100 range.

I'm getting my girlfriend a few new rod and reels for Christmas, and I just picked up a Lady Pflueger President. I have narrowed down my choices to pair it with between an Okuma CY-S-701MH Calynn Rod (pink since she loves pink), and a GX2 Lady Ugly Stik. I own an Ugly Stik, so I know it's not a bad choice. Does anyone like/hate Okuma rods? I know very little about them. What would y'all pick?

New member here from Cleburne, TX. (Just south of Ft. Worth) Been fishing since I was little, but I got back into doing it a lot more recently.I'll fish for anything in freshwater. I mainly catch channel & yellow bullhead cats as well as largemouth & spotted bass. All caught from the bank of various fishing holes. Some of my fondest memories are fishing with my grandparents as well as my dad. Anywhoo. Howdy!