Stephen B

There is no true power ratings but they fish at least a 1/2 power stronger than most brands, not quite a full power. But definitely a M Mojo Bass from St Croix has more power than a Shimano Zodias, etc.

The hardest part lol. Goodluck!

Shimano Curado

Agreed!

The max drag of reels around 11-13 lbs is plenty. It's all you need.

The Chronarch MGL is amazing! I love the 8 gear ratio Chronarch MGL

Agreed. I love the Oneten Special from Megabass. Its a great versatile rod for shakeyheads, topwater, jerkbaits, and even weightless senkos. It's versatility is impressive and sensitivity is ??

Those are all good options! I like the Tatula and Curado rods at that price

The IMX Pro are great rods!

Great rod as well that should be considered.

It can do the 3/8 oz jigs but at the bottom of the rods capability. You figure after you add a trailer it should be fine. The rod shines with 1/2 oz jigs and up. You can always add rods but the FMJ is an amazing for jigs and definitely a must have!

You will be happy with that setup. Very jealous haha. Very sensitive and overall great setup. Metanium MGL is an awesome reel.

GLX or MB easily. Kistler is my last vote.

Agreed!

Agreed. The Spec R will handle the smaller texas rigs and the FMJ or 844C GLX will be perfect for the bigger texas rigs, 3/8 oz jigs, and 1/2 oz jigs.

100% agreed plus from my experience with all the rods mentioned above the Z Bone is my least favorite. I found them from my experience to be the least sensitive of the 4 rods mentioned and prefer the tapers from Megabass and G Loomis.

I agree. I have a similar outlook on their rods. Kistler angered just about everyone in the industry years ago which is why Cabelas and other dealers stopped carrying them. They had blank breakage issues and they wouldn't warranty their rods leaving customers unhappy and dealers in a bad spot. That is why Kistler to this date is mainly an online direct to consumer company with little to no dealers.

Exactly! Nobody has had any issues with Smackdown, not saying it can't happen but it's very rare. Been using 50 lb Smackdown and absolutely love it. NO issues. That line looks like it is months old and caught in the trolling motor a couple times.

I am leaning toward possible user error now. The line appears to be 100% authentic. I'd be interested if another person would have issues with the remaining line on the spool. User error or minor manufacturing issue.

It's sad but all these retailers are taken advantage of by customers. Looks like someone probably took advantage of them. It's possible Seaguar had a small run of defective braid. I'd have to see more pictures to know for sure though. The braid looks like it's been used for months. How many trips was it used on? In what application? Seaguar Smackdown does make a stealth gray braid, however, I can't tell through the picture of it is. I've been using smackdown and it's phenomenal line.

Z Bones aren't quite in the same league of the rods produced by Shimano, Phenix, or Megabass IMO. Fished them all and the ZBones are the only ones I no longer have. I'd rather have the GLX, Conquest, Destroyer, K2 or NRX over the Zbone. The Kistler Zbones sensitivity isn't as crisp in my hands but they are well built.

Shimano and Daiwa both manufacture their own reels and are phenomenal. As said by Bhoff, if you want to have a reel to last you for years Shimano and Diawa are they way to go. Abu use to make great reels but not quite sure the same quality is there. Lews at one time was actually using Shimano to build their reels. I believe they are made by DOYO now. Ultimately, buy what you want you like. But always buy quality.

Diawa IMO is far superior. Shimano and Diawa are by far the 2 best reel manufacturers.

Met MGL

Unfortunately this is the case. People always look for the cheapest deals and often this can result in receiving fake line. Always buy from reputable people and websites. A lot of high end braid and fluorocarbon line mostly is the line being faked. Most selling fakes will get Seaguar, Gamma, and Sunline packaging and substitute some other cheap line in and sell under the assumption of legit line.