Hey all, I still see many questions on these forums about which rod at a certain price point is “best”. I’ve asked a couple of rod questions myself! 

 

I just thought I’d make this post for everyone and hopefully someone benefits from it :). 

The ones with * next to them I have personally used and experienced it and can say they are the better choices in their range. 
 

ALL OF THESE GO ON SALE OFTEN!!

 

Casting Rods

 

$50 and below -

*Berkley Cherrywood

*Berkley Lightning Rod 

Berkley Lightning Rod Shock

Abu Garcia Vengeance

 

$50 and up - 

Shimano Sellus

*Daiwa Aird X

Fenwick Eagle

*Lew’s Carbon Fire Speed Stick

 

$75 and up - 

*H2O Xpress Etho HD

*H2O Xpress HD Nano

Abu Garcia Vendetta

*Abu Garcia Veritas 

 

$80 - $120 -

***Dobyn’s Fury

Duckett Ghost

**Shimano SLX

*Daiwa Tatula XT

Lew’s TP1

Powell Diesel

*Fenwick HMG

*BPS Carbonlite

*BPS Pro Qualifier 

 

$150 and up -

***Daiwa Tatula

**St Croix Mojo Bass

I am sure I am missing some (probably a lot and feel free to put them in the comments). But these rods will start you off with success :). Remember you get what you pay for!! 
 

I didn’t go up to $200 because personally I have no experience in that price range with rods. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At 149.99 The Irod geneses III is tough to beat, so much so, that I bought 3 of them and about to buy another. They get rave reviews on TW, and a great warranty, alone with top notch customer service. 

5 hours ago, Hammer 4 said:

At 149.99 The Irod geneses III is tough to beat, so much so, that I bought 3 of them and about to buy another. They get rave reviews on TW, and a great warranty, alone with top notch customer service. 

Great point! I have a buddy that has one and he swears by it. This is definitely one of the better ones that I forgot. Thank you. 

Maybe I missed it but are the ones with more * next to them supposed to be the better choices?

Lots of opinions on the subject of "best"

 

 

Any new angler reading this, save yourself the trouble and look at the Daiwa Aird-X, Shimano SLX, Dobyns Fury, and Daiwa Tatula, wherever your budget is. Pretend the rest don't exist.

1 hour ago, J Francho said:

Lots of opinions on the subject of "best"

With the passage of years, things change. New models, upgrades to older models - nothing is static.

 

Maybe once a year Glenn can pin a post where we put in our reviews of gear we've used the previous year? Just thinking out loud.

19 hours ago, Jake51823 said:

$150 and up -

***Daiwa Tatula

**St Croix Mojo Bass

Sierra, Kaden.

51 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

With the passage of years, things change. New models, upgrades to older models - nothing is static.

 

Maybe once a year Glenn can pin a post where we put in our reviews of gear we've used the previous year? Just thinking out loud.

Those links list are constantly maintained. When good threads come up, they are added. 

Add St Croix Triumph and Bass X to the $80-$120 list

 

Great rods at a great price.

No Falcon Rods! ?

On 4/20/2021 at 9:53 PM, Catt said:

No Falcon Rods! ?

Amen. Falcon rods beat out most all of those listed at their respective price ranges. Most people who actually try Falcon end up as fans.

On 4/20/2021 at 4:00 PM, ironbjorn said:

Any new angler reading this, save yourself the trouble and look at the Daiwa Aird-X, Shimano SLX, Dobyns Fury, and Daiwa Tatula, wherever your budget is. Pretend the rest don't exist.

"These are not the rods you are looking for, let them pass"....

I wouldn't sleep on Falcon Bucoo SR at the $100 price point. It's a lot of rod for that dough and if I ever see them on sale, I'll snap up one or two more. Probably the best quality rod I own is a Falcon Lowrider 7' MH "big crank" rod. I usually use it for big topwaters (think Whopper Plopper or Spook) and lipless cranks. I got it for $50 used from a guy who was going from fishing to motorcycles. That's about $80 savings over new.

On the lower priced rods, I've gotten a lot of mileage out of a 6-6 M and a 6-6 MH Berkley Lightning Rod. They were the best I had at one time. But as I bought new rods I moved them to techniques that don't require a lot of sensitivity, like spinnerbaits, trebles and topwaters. I'm slowly phasing them out.

 

I also own a Lightning Rod spinning M 7' rod for lighter trebles.

Some that I haven't seen mentioned.

 

Under $50

 

Lew's Hank Parker Speed Stick

Ugly Stik Gx2

 

Right about @ $150

 

Phenix Feather

On 4/19/2021 at 10:30 PM, Jake51823 said:

Casting Rods

 

$50 and below -

Lew's Hank Parker Speed Stick

 

$50 and up - 

G.Loomis Conquest 843c

 

$75 and up - 

G.Loomis Conquest 843c

 

$80 - $120 -

Dobyn’s Fury 703c

 

$150 and up -

G.Loomis Conquest 843c

 

My choices! ?