So I've broke 2 *** *** black rods... before they broke I loved it. BUT I've not brought in a fish over 4lbs and 2 rod snaps 2" down from the tip is crap.

What I want is a decent rod 7' or 7'3" m or mh with a fast tip. Thinking about ducket ghost, carrot sticks will wild green or st Croix premier. Thought pls.

So I've broke 2 *** *** black rods... before they broke I loved it. BUT I've not brought in a fish over 4lbs and 2 rod snaps 2" down from the tip is crap.

What I want is a decent rod 7' or 7'3" m or mh with a fast tip. Thinking about ducket ghost, carrot sticks will wild green or st Croix premier. Thought pls.

 

Are you swinging the fish in the boat ?

 

Id try a fenwick smallie/aetos, daiwa tatula, powell endurance/max...

I have a friend that was breaking high end rods like they were going out of style,  he told me the expensive rods he used were all junk so he was heading out with a new replacement he got and he was going with a friend of mine and I asked the other friend to video him using his rod. Well he broke another rod and the exact same place as all the others, guess what he did? He would get the fish next to the boat and just dead lift it with the rod while all he held was the rod handle, always broke on big fish and now I knew and told him. When we finally went together I explained to him and showed him that the rod, while it may be able to do that, isn't designed to do it, once that tip goes beyond 90 degrees, the result is entirely your fault. I'm not saying it is your fault but I seldom see rod breakage, even in $50 dollar rods, that are due to a rod being poorly built or a blank defect. I've had a couple bad blanks but out of all the rods I've used it is extremely rare for it to happen, and of the ones I've watched others break, it is usually from swinging a fish in the boat, or high sticking, which is holding to rod straight up and down while the fish is next to the boat which causes the tip to be bent in an extreme angle and it create a lot of stress at that one spot and it often results in failure. Rods breaking a couple inches from the tip, down to the first guide is normally what happens when you high stick because it isolates that section of the rod, when they break on a hook set, a fast action rod will usually break at 4" to 6" from the top, right where the backbone kicks in. It is possibly you had 2 rods in a row with defects in the same spot but that is very rare and I highly doubt that you would end up with 3 in a row, if you do then you have super horrible luck.

i do swing the fish into the boat a lot. Where i'm at in ohio the bass do not get that big but if it is of a decent size i will use a net or from the banks pull it out by hand.   the largest i've caught this year was probably 3.5 lbs. the rod snapped yes pulling fish out of the water, but both fish were small probably 1.5 lbs.  crap my son uses a berkley lightning rod 6'6" and i know he doesnt treat it right.  he pulled a 5lber up out of the water with this junk rod and it took it like a champ.   These rods should not have snapped.  

 

i like my st croix rods but was looking for something more sensative which the *** Black was. 

I don't wana come off wrong, but if you are gonna be boat swinging fish, you've gotta use common sense ans know what the limitations of your rod. Never dead lift a fish and always usr their momentum and use the shortest swing into the boat. I use a Powell 723 probably mote than any other rod and unless its a Dink, I'm not boat flipping any quality fish, now my flipping rods and jig rod is a different story.... Just remember if you can't get a momentum and a short swing. Just lip em or net em.

Also a firm beleiver that rods will become weaker in certain spots over time due to stress, it may not have the been the 3 lber that broke your rod. But no doubt he contributed

the rod was less than a month old and this was a jig rod....  The first rod was broke on my second trip using it.  If a 3lb bass is going to weaken the rod in no way do i want to own it.

Rods breaking at the top 3"-5" is usually from rod storage/transportation problems. Swinging bass into your boat is simply unacceptable on several levels. Keep the bass in the water, use a knotless net and teach your son how to handle bass properly, it will help the bass and save your tackle.

Now that I have lectured you, it's possible your rods had flaws and would break regardless how you used the rods and that is why buying products with a good warranty and customer service is important. Did the rods get replaced on warranty? If not why not!

I recommend ALX rods, good quality, customer service and warranty for state of the rod, check them out.

Tom