On 12/31/2025 at 9:19 PM, Columbia Craw said:

It doesn’t really matter one way or another. I have several combos that have yet to catch a fish and that’s that as they say.

This is a very common scenario for me.  Hopefully now that I've moved to the Sunshine State that can be rectified on most combos.  Fishing from shore in the ABE area sucked big time for me.  😭

On 1/2/2026 at 4:07 PM, FishTank said:

2. Megabass Daemos with a Daiwa Steez SV (previous gen). I got this rod as a do all but mainly for 3/8oz jigs. It felt on the first cast like it was just what I wanted. It loads well, casts accurately and was good in the sensitivity department. Then I hooked into my first fish and that's when the wheels fell off. As the day went,  I kept loosing fish. One after the other kept popping off. I wasn't doing anything different. It was that the rod was so stiff in one portion and then soft in another that it was causing me to have fish pop off. It took me several trips to figure this out. It is now my go to for swimjigs.

Hey Tank,

I did a quick search for Daemos and found this post of yours.

What do you think you were doing wrong at first? And then what change did you have to make?

I'm looking for a good spinnerbait/swim jig rod to handle 3/8 and 1/2 ounce plus trailer.

Must still like it if it's your "got to"?

All of my P5's are pretty much treble hook rods, haven't had any single hook rods yet. Was thinking a P5 or maybe some non-NRX Loomis rod. GLX or something.

THANKS

55 minutes ago, HawkeyeSmallie said:

Hey Tank,

I did a quick search for Daemos and found this post of yours.

What do you think you were doing wrong at first? And then what change did you have to make?

I'm looking for a good spinnerbait/swim jig rod to handle 3/8 and 1/2 ounce plus trailer.

Must still like it if it's your "got to"?

All of my P5's are pretty much treble hook rods, haven't had any single hook rods yet. Was thinking a P5 or maybe some non-NRX Loomis rod. GLX or something.

THANKS

When I first got the Daemos I made the mistake of bringing the rods I use individually for all the techniques I was going to use it for. So I brought an NRX 853C JWR (3/8oz jigs, free rig), NRX+ 883C BJR (spinnerbaits, bladed jigs, some swimjigs), and an NRX+ 843C (swimjigs, topwater, and Texas rigged plastic). I should have just brought the Daemos and switched out a few baits as needed but instead I spent too much time comparing it the 853C. Both set ups had a 3/8oz jig on it. I wanted the Daemos to have the same kind of hook setting power/load as the 853C but it's just too different. I found I had to really pull on the Daemos to get it to set the hook compared to the 853C. The tip of it is that much softer. For setting a jig on slack line when popping it off the bottom, the 853C is where it's at. On the other hand, when I started to fish baits that I would swim in (swim jigs and spinnerbaits) on the Daemos, setting the hook was better and easier than it was with a jig tied on.

As far as it handling what you mentioned, Daemos should be ok but when you get to a 1/2oz plus a trailer, it pretty much maxes the rod out. I feel like it should have a top end of 3/4oz instead of 1oz. Where I like this rod is when you have a swim jig in grass. The tip is really good at ripping a bait through which makes me think it might be a good rod for lipless cranks but I have not tried them on it yet.

With all that said, when it comes to spinnerbaits and maybe swim jigs, I like the 883C NRX+ the best but I hate the hook keeper. It is also more sensitive than the Daemos. The GLX 873C may be a good alternative but I think the Daemos would be more versatile.

To sum up, the Daemos is a great rod that is good at a lot of things but it's not exceptionally great at one single thing. Also, based on how I fish, I might benefit from using braid to leader on this rod instead of straight fluorocarbon.

@FishTank

I appreciate the detailed response.

If I had to guess, I caught the most fish last year on a swim jig with a 4" mayor on the back. Many of those like you were ripping in weeds.

I also enjoy throwing a spinnerbait and am trying to get into chatterbaits more as everyone seems to love them.

I'm not opposed of something like a NRX+, I just didn't know if the extra money for the sensitivity mattered much. I was also leaning towards a full cork handle for this setup and just noticed the NRX and GLX versions are split. I guess there's the "Mag Bass" version but no clue what those are.

I think I'll pass on the Daemos for now. Based on your experience, I might want something that's a little more heavy duty.

Once again, thank you very much for your thoughts!

@HawkeyeSmallie Sounds good. I don't think you can go wrong with the GLX rods for what you want to throw. For a bladed jig/spinnerbait rod, the NRX+ is overkill but sure is a pleasure to fish.

In the really old GLX line, I still have a 783C MBR and an 844C MBR GLX. I have used both rods for spinnerbaits and they work ok but they are also really versatile. For me, I actually like the split grip on some rods, especially for jigs and worms. I think the tip on the BJR rods is softer than the MBRs as well. It comes down I think to a personal choice.

Also, the only new GLX rods I have is an 803c that I got through Loomis' warranty service. It is definitely lighter than the old one and has more of JDM feel to it. I have really liked it so far.