hwright38

The Curado is a good bet. I would highly doubt you'd cast off all the line off a 200 size reel, even with using heavy line. I can't cast all the 14lb mono off of my DC Curdado, with a tail wind, so I'm pretty sure you'll be fine with even more spool capacity.

At the absolute top end of your budget, I like the Shimano Zodias / Abu Garcia Villain 2.0 much more than the E6X or Avid X. Better balance than the Avid X, and I just flat out don't like the E6X. I'm sure MegaBass makes an excellent rod, but good luck finding one in a store to try out first. To save a bit, I'd go with one of the Phenix Feathers. INSANELY lightweight rods. They make my Villains (which are supposed to be pretty light themselves) feel hefty. Not as sensitive as the Villains though, imo. The feathers do fish a bit light (a MH is closer to a M), so go with one power higher. The 7'1 H is a perfect all around rod, and is lighter than anything you'll find in a store, and lighter than most period until you're spending absurd amounts. For reference, my 802s GLX (which retails for $419.99) isn't as feathery light as the $150 Phenix in a 7'1 MH (that's a full power and 5 extra inches). Only flaw is if you have bigger hands you may have a problem, the handle is super small. Also, I've beat the crap out of both my Villains, and both my Feathers, and neither has shown any signs of breaking (well... Besides the time I stepped on my Villain and crushed the eyelets. But we don't talk about that). I've heard of durability issues with both of these rods, but I've been flipping bass and tearing up trees with both and never had an issue after 3 seasons on the Villain, and now into my second with the Feather.

This right here. Also, I'd get two rods to start. The first: the cheapest 7'6" 3wt glass rod you can find. I like my Eagle claw. This rod will be awesome to learn on, and since it's slower in action it will force you to slow down on your casts. The number one mistake I see when teaching newbies is they want to whip the rods back and forth like an inflatable-arm-flailing-tube-man. This rod will also make a 6" bluegill feel like you're fighting a tuna, so that's a plus. Also super for any small-creek trout fishing you may find yourself in. The second: 9' 7wt (or a 9'6 6 wt). I'd go for something form TFO (not the BVK. BVK is a dry fly rod, and you'll hate it for streamers it's pick-up strength is really lacking) or Redington for a cheap but not trash rod. I like the Professional Series II (TFO) and the Crux (Redingtion) for bass. The 7wt will be more ideal for the bass bugs, but a tad too heavy for most of your smaller pan fish or trout. As for reels, Okuma just came out with the "Sierra X," which is much better than their older Sierras, though still pretty cheap. I'd go up a little bit and get the SLV. Or if you're near a Sportsman's Warehouse, they usually have a deal going on for their Lost Creek Fly Reel for like $100 off. Not the best reel, but it's fully machined and has a decent drag on it. Line: Weight Forward floating will do 99% of your pan fish stuff, while a sink-tip or full sink would be necessary for most streamer applications for bass (though this depends heavily on how deep the fish are). If it's mostly topwaters go with the WF floating. Double Tapers suck, sorry old-schoolers. GET A NICE LINE. You're line will probably cost more than most cheap reels, and you're really going to need it as the line almost has more to do with your cast than the rod, and certainly way more influence than the reel. I really like the Scientific Anglers Amplitude Smooth in their Infinity Taper as an all-around line (I've got it in a 5, 6, 7, and 8).

Aldebaran would be my choice, but you can't really go wrong between that and the pro ti. I would not recommend a 13 reel though. They're nice out of the box, but in 2 years the Shimano will still be just as smooth as it was day one, while the 13 have degraded a lot. Aldebaran > Lew's TI >>>>>>>>>>>> Anything 13 makes.

Lol. I'd much rather have a Chronarch or a Curado DC than two or three SLXs. It's a decent little reel, but you're really going to contend it's just as good? No way no how is a reel half the cost going to punch in Chronarch/Curado weight class.

Good choice. I actually like the regular stuff on spinning gear more than the super8. Though I'm also not a huge fan of the super anyways.

That could be the difference in gear ratio. The lower the ratio (generally) the more power you get, though the difference between 6:1 and 7:1 isn't that extreme. I'd still take a Curado/Chronarch/Bantam over a Metanium any day for moving baits because of the gear material alone though. The dampening affect helps a lot with smoothness and that "tugging" feeling from the lure in the reel. Also, I like the Curados more than the Chronarchs because the Curados have bigger, softer grips. Just another dampener to that pesky vibration, plus they're more comfortable for all day cranking.

yeah, I was confused to why I couldn't find any in the last few hours of searching. Chalked it up to an id10t error, glad to know it's because they don't exist. Are the NFCs actually worth it over something like the higher end MHX blanks? I have a sneaking suspicion that the hype over the NFCs is just because Loomis is attached to it.

The difference is probably because the Chronarch MGL and the Curados have brass gears, while the metaniums have Aluminum. Brass is good for absorbing vibrations, but aluminum is lighter weight. The Chronarch is a good choice, but honestly for moving baits and JUST moving baits, I'd rather have a Curado K or Curado DC. If you're going to throw any sort of jig or worm I'd get the Chronarch. Can't go wrong with any of the three though.

I use 15lb PowerPro in the hi-vis yellow and it's been really good. I personally don't like the 10lb because it's a bit too thin for me. I usually tie closer to a 20ft leader for smallmouth in clear water, and the same for walleye. In creeks and stuff if the water is super clear you may want to take a sharpie to the last couple of feet before your leader so you can keep the leader short and still be "stealthy", but honestly I haven't noticed too much of a difference switching from green to yellow anyways so that's probably optional. TLDR: yes, you can totally use hi-vis braid for your situation, and I personally don't use anything but hi-vis braid for everything. Once you go black yellow, you never go back.

For $300 I'd buy a Chronarch MGL. Comes in cheaper than the Bantam, and it's way lighter. Plus, unless you're throwing big baits or in thick slop the Bantam doesn't really have much over the Chronarch. Curado DC is a good bet too.

Well I didn't even know you could get just a GLX blank... I'll look into that. Luckily I kept all the tags so I should just be able to return it for full price.

Just holding the rod with a reel attached is uncomfortable, bordering on irritating. I prefer a much thinner handled rod as I have small-med sized hands. It's a wee bit too much material on the handle for me to get a comfortable purchase on it. Yes. The reel seat itself is quite large for the diameter of the rod, and I know from building experience there isn't much actual cork before you get to the "tang" of the reel seat underneath (not to mention the sides of the reel seat protrude quite a bit anyways). Even crazier is being unhappy with a handle, modifying it, and then being really unhappy with it. I'm not 100% sure it would even make a difference tbh, but there really isn't a spinning rod that has a comparable blank with a more comfortable handle so I may have to just bite the bullet.

Honestly I don't think I've ever sold gear anyways, so I'm not as worried about that. I am worried about wrecking the rod in the first place though. I'll see if I can find a rod builder locally and see what they have to say.

Has anyone tried sanding down the cork on their GLX spinning rods. I love the rod itself, but the handle is so much fatter than it needs to be. It looks like you can't take off much before you get to the plastic, but even just a little smaller would be nice. Anyone that's tried it, did it work? Or am I crazy to try and modify a $420 rod?

For $50 the Abu Vengeance isn't terrible. I'd rather go up another $10 though and get a Fenwick Eagle. Lew's also has their Laser SG-1 line, which seems serviceable, if only a bit heavier weight-wise than ideal.

Any recommendations for a higher end spinning reel? My Revo SX decided anti-reverse was for suckers and cost me some fish today (something that a lot of people seem to have a problem with in Abu's higher end spinners), so I'm looking to upgrade. It'll be going on a GLX 803s. Price range around $250-$400. Thanks (ps, I know it's dumb, but I'm a princess when it comes to looks of my equipment, and I'll buy something that matches the rod aesthetically even if I miss out on a bit of performance)

Signature extremely relevant.

So how was it so unsettling? If anything trusting your way to not slip more than how every other person has been doing it is the unsettling option.

@CrankFate Please explain to me how what I said so surprising to you?

Mono is cheap enough, and you can get away with so little you might as well just tie on a leader length to the spool first if you're spooling with braid.

Veritas are very good rods. I was never really impressed with the Bass X, not that they're bad in any way. Veritas do run a tad bit heavy as the other guy said.

Would you still recommend that if I told you I already have a Curado K for just that? I guess my question boils down to is the Curado DC really something special enough to warrant buying it if you already have what's immidiately below and above it? I know that's really subjective but I've heard some amazing things about them and I'm not sure I buy into the hype.

@Camjuno I agree with your friend that the MGL isn't as good to crank with. That's what I'm trying to decide lol. Already got an MGL.

So, I got an MGL during the Winter, and now that I've had a chance to fish it, I love it so much I'm buying another. However, the Curado DC is also very intriguing, and I'm curious how much better (if any) the DC casts over the MGL spool, especially in the wind or with smaller lures. They're so close in price, so that's not an issue for me. I'd be using 40lb braid if that makes a difference. Not a fan of fluorocarbon or anything else for what I'm planning (t-rigs, jigs, etc).