Weekend bank fisherman. Usually I bring 2-3 rods when I go fishing: 1 Medium Heavy/XF baitcaster, 1 Medium/F baitcaster, and 1 Medium/F spinning rod. My spinning rod consists of a 6"6 M/F (2 piece) Ugly Stik paired with a 2500 Pfleuger President. I'm looking to upgrade (rod and reel) to something more sensitive and reliable. I plan to use this rod mainly for Ned rig, drop shot, and small 3inch paddle tails. For the reel I'm pretty set on the Shimano Stradic CI4+ and the rod I'm in between the Shimano Expride ML or M. I was also looking at the Zodias lineup which would save me $100, but I would be sacrificing sensitivity. I am open to opinions on both the rod and the reel!  

You could certainly do a lot worse than an Expride/Stradic combo. I'd go with the ML. What's you budget? In that Expride range you could go with an Orochi XX Shakeyhead or a Champion Extreme in either the 702 or, if you don't mind the extra length, the 742. The 742 is a special rod.

1 hour ago, anderb54 said:

You could certainly do a lot worse than an Expride/Stradic combo. I'd go with the ML. What's you budget? In that Expride range you could go with an Orochi XX Shakeyhead or a Champion Extreme in either the 702 or, if you don't mind the extra length, the 742. The 742 is a special rod.

I've heard great things about the rods you mentioned. I drive a sedan so the 742 might be a challenge. My budget would be around $250 for the rod. Any reason why you suggest those rods over the expride/zodias?

4 minutes ago, Raymond Gozon said:

I've heard great things about the rods you mentioned. I drive a sedan so the 742 might be a challenge. My budget would be around $250 for the rod. Any reason why you suggest those rods over the expride/zodias?

Not particularly, just giving some additional options. I'm not super crazy about the Zodias personally... It's more of a feel and aesthetics thing than a performance thing though. The Expride is a phenomenal rod for the money, and it performs above it's price point in my opinion.

Get the Expride/Stradic Ci4 2500. You will love it. I have had Zodias and the are nice rods, but the Exprides worth the difference. Light, sensitive and very comfortable to fish. It would be perfect for the applications you mentioned. It also makes a great rod for throwing small poppers. I have higher end spinning gear, but the Ci4 is the best spinning reel you can buy for the money.

You’re looking at a quite an upgrade there. Pretty much anything you get will be more sensitive and lighter than an Ugly Stick.