Anyone have any experience with favorite fishing rods ?   I’m looking at their balance or BLat spinning MH for 3/8-1/2 crankbaits.  I’m trying to shy away from a casting rod just to keep cost down. 

Overrated. A daiwa aird-X or a Dobyns Colt or even a Lightning Shock would be better, in my opinion. 

Thanks,  mostly looking at it because it seems to be one of the few brands that offers mh mod fast spinning rods. 

5 minutes ago, Maxbasstn said:

Thanks,  mostly looking at it because it seems to be one of the few brands that offers mh mod fast spinning rods. 

 

I feel like Phenix might have one in their lineup.

I had an Okuma Stratus VI MH/MF - was actually a good rod, but sold it when I was re-aligning my rigs. It's a.....DSG/F&S/Public Lands exclusive.

https://www.dickssportinggoods.com/p/okuma-stratus-vi-spinning-rod-19okuustrts56lghtrod/19okuustrts56lghtrod

Sweet. I’ll check those out. Thanks guys. Don’t fish crankbaits much so I’m looking at a cheap way to dip my feet in. 

Spinning reels and crank bait = line twist. 

Suggest looking at crank bait casting rods and lower gear ratio/IPT bait cast reels....if you know how to cast them.

Reason is spinning reels have 50% higher IPT do to the larger diameter spools, not suited well for diving crank baits.

Tom

 

Yeah I enjoy fishing with a baitcaster,  but feel like to get one that’s not gonna birdsnest throwing lighter cranks I might need to spend a bit more than I want. Totally open to suggestions though. Looking to spend no more than 150 on the rod and reel. 

A true crankbait rod + reel will be a little tough in that budget, a Dobyns Colt 705CB + Shimano Caius would be $10 over.

 

Lots of rods on the lower end tend to be more parabolic than their rating, though. A Daiwa Aird-X 7' Medium/Fast + Shimano SLX would be right at $150 and should handle the technique fairly well.

 

6 minutes ago, Aaron_H said:

A true crankbait rod + reel will be a little tough in that budget, a Dobyns Colt 705CB + Shimano Caius would be $10 over.

 

Lots of rods on the lower end tend to be more parabolic than their rating, though. A Daiwa Aird-X 7' Medium/Fast + Shimano SLX would be right at $150 and should handle the technique fairly well.

That seems like it might be a better option.  Could give me a little more versatility 

I’m going to try to get a 13 fishing defy black crank bait rod this year $69.99 comes in a variety of lengths to pair with a Kastking Royal Legend 2 5.4:1 casting reel $39.99. Although I wouldn’t recommend the Kastking for long term use or hitting trophy sized bass (I’m going to use it for ponds) I’m relatively happy with the reel for being a budget reel. I really like my Daiwa CA80 and plan on getting a CR80 (left hand high speed only) but the have a 6 speed in right handed which would hit your budget pre tax. Also will add I threw small- med square bills mostly with the reel.

Edited January 15, 20224 yr by Eric 26
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Just an idea - but this is the Okuma Stratus MH/MF with a Pflueger Trion-35. About $100.

 

Ya, didn't net it cause it bit the line...stole my Rattlin' Rap 07 Bluegill.

 

 

 

8 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

Just an idea - but this is the Okuma Stratus MH/MF with a Pflueger Trion-35. About $100.

 

Ya, didn't net it cause it bit the line...stole my Rattlin' Rap 07 Bluegill.

 

Bummer the pike took it. How sensitive is that setup?  I’d actually be throwing shad raps a lot on it too. 

24 minutes ago, Maxbasstn said:

Bummer the pike took it. How sensitive is that setup?  I’d actually be throwing shad raps a lot on it too. 

I could kinda feel the vibration, and feel when a fish swiped at the lure. It's not the greatest, but for a $100 for the whole rig, it's pretty decent.

55 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

Rattlin' Rap 07 Bluegill.

 

Excellent choice. I had to order a handful of extras when TW got them back in stock.

13 Fishing Fate Black Crankbait rod is around $80 and has gotten good reviews. My friend has one and he just loves it. 

Falcon has spinning rods for cranking in their Bucoo lineup. I have the M/MF that I use for 1.0 squarebills and shad rap style baits. They also have a MH/MF. I really like the one that I have. 

Nice I’ll be checking those out.  Thanks for the suggestions 

4 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Falcon has spinning rods for cranking in their Bucoo lineup. I have the M/MF that I use for 1.0 squarebills and shad rap style baits. They also have a MH/MF. I really like the one that I have. 

I might be sold on that MH -cranker.   Do you see any issues with line twist if I did braid to fluoro?

2 hours ago, Maxbasstn said:

Nice I’ll be checking those out.  Thanks for the suggestions 

I might be sold on that MH -cranker.   Do you see any issues with line twist if I did braid to fluoro?

Probably not but I use straight fluoro and don't have any issues with line twist.

2 hours ago, Maxbasstn said:

Nice I’ll be checking those out.  Thanks for the suggestions 

I might be sold on that MH -cranker.   Do you see any issues with line twist if I did braid to fluoro?

 

16 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Probably not but I use straight fluoro and don't have any issues with line twist.

I use straight FC on my current ML/MF rod for small cranks...no issues yet with line twist.

Used 10# YZH on the Okuma MH/MF...didn't notice any twist issues on that either.

14 hours ago, Maxbasstn said:

Yeah I enjoy fishing with a baitcaster,  but feel like to get one that’s not gonna birdsnest throwing lighter cranks I might need to spend a bit more than I want. Totally open to suggestions though. Looking to spend no more than 150 on the rod and reel. 

look for an aftermarket low-mass spool that will fit one of your existing baitcasters - you can make them cast less than 1/8 oz backlash-free. 

They're fairly common for Daiwa, Abu, and Shimano. 

If you want some offline search help, send me a pm and let's talk about your reels. 

It's not like you'll destroy the reel, but will have a swap-in spool just for the light stuff. 

On 1/15/2022 at 11:25 AM, bulldog1935 said:

look for an aftermarket low-mass spool that will fit one of your existing baitcasters - you can make them cast less than 1/8 oz backlash-free. 

They're fairly common for Daiwa, Abu, and Shimano. 

If you want some offline search help, send me a pm and let's talk about your reels. 

It's not like you'll destroy the reel, but will have a swap-in spool just for the light stuff. 

That’s pretty cool. Thanks for the advice.  I ended up going for the falcon spinning. I would like to try that eventually though 

On 1/15/2022 at 3:26 AM, Bluebasser86 said:

Falcon has spinning rods for cranking in their Bucoo lineup. I have the M/MF that I use for 1.0 squarebills and shad rap style baits. They also have a MH/MF. I really like the one that I have. 

 

On 1/15/2022 at 7:50 AM, Maxbasstn said:

Nice I’ll be checking those out.  Thanks for the suggestions 

I might be sold on that MH -cranker.   Do you see any issues with line twist if I did braid to fluoro?

I think you’ll like that for LIGHTER cranking. 3/8 and lighter baits. Only falcon rod I own. I think you’ll like it. Try to touch one first and see if tip is soft enough for you. One of my nicest bass of all time I caught on that rod but had it rigged with a 4” craw. The rod is pretty universal. And not real fast. Hard to find a decent Moderate or Mod.Fast spinning rod these days. Abu Garcia and St. Croix have medium moderate for lighter cranking as well. 

If you also look at some house brands of rods I think you will find a tip that might fall in line with a moderate fast tip. BPS, Cabela’s might not say mod. or mod. fast but will be. 

On 1/14/2022 at 8:55 PM, Maxbasstn said:

Sweet. I’ll check those out. Thanks guys. Don’t fish crankbaits much so I’m looking at a cheap way to dip my feet in. 

Why would you fish crankbaits on a spinning rod ?

9 hours ago, dodgeguy said:

Why would you fish crankbaits on a spinning rod ?

 

Shad raps