About a month ago I bought an abu garcia cardinal 400i combo for $40. The reel is fine, the rod is not so good. How would this be as a replacement for a Medium setup? Im looking at the Plueger President XT combo on sale at Cabelas this weekend. The rod is IM8, I have 2 IM8 rods that are great.

The price seems great, but I wonder if i'd be better off buying a rod and reel separately to get the 'right' setup. It just seems like a good deal.

Any opinions on the President XT combo?

Some combos are pretty good deals. Buying seperately allows you to go out of that mediocre area. Yes you are going to be able to put a killer combo together, but plan on spending twice as much on the average.

I like making my own combos so I get it exactly like I want it, but I have bought combos pre matched in the past. The Pflueger President combo is a nice one. I looked at it while there last time. I don't need one but it caught by eye. I noticed it because it was so nice compared to its price.