WaskaCrank12

Thank you @Hulksterand @GetFishorDieTryin for your feedback ! Today I went to Cabela's and looked at/held the St. Croix Bass X ($124) and I also did the same with a St. Croix Mojo Bass (since it was available in the same size and on clearance for $119). I had not considered the Mojo Bass as it generally goes for $149 and that would have put me well over my budget of $200 when I purchase the Shimano NASCI at $99 (hopefully less if I can find it on sale !) -- yet with the Mojo Bass coming in at the clearance price of $119 and it feeling better in my hands I made that as my rod purchase. They both seemed like nice quality rods. This rod will be a significant upgrade over the current rods I have. Thank you again for your feedback as that helped me eliminate the SLX and focus on the St. Croix.

Hello - I am new to the forum and new to fishing (I'm not young, but in Feb. 23' I bought my first boat and in the summer of 23' I attempted to throw lures into the water and catch some fish). I currently have 5 rods/reels that I bought at yard sales (4 are South Bend spinning rods/reels, 1 is an old Shimano spinning rod/reel). I have watched many videos over the past month to gain knowledge (as well as reading this and other forums) and also to look at potentially purchasing a few new spinning rods/reels. I am looking to stay under $200 for the combo, yet in todays world I might need to go slightly over that. No doubt whatever I will purchase will be a massive upgrade from the gear I used this summer (although the Shimano spinning rod/reel I currently have - they must be 30 years old and many thousands of casts taken on them - worked pretty well). Specifically, with this post, I am looking to get feedback from those much more experienced than I am on the two rods mentioned above (I believe I will be going with a Shimano NASCI spinning reel as I was able to try one from a fellow fisherman this summer and it felt smooth/a good fit for me and it would fit my budget). Certainly rods/reels seem a "personal choice" (what is excellent for one person is not the best for another, I understand that) yet if people on the forum have had experiences with these rods (good or bad experiences) it would help me in the search process. I would be looking for the spinning rod (Shimano SLX 7' ML or St. Croix Bass X 6'10" ML) to be used as a rod for drop shot/ned rig/neko rig/micro crankbait type fishing. These are two spinning rods that were mentioned quite a bit in the videos I watched. Thank you in advance for your time/efforts.