Usually I'm a middle of the road guy, but I've decided to go all out this one time; top of the line, best of the best. My personal experience combined with AI research is driving me crazy. I began with Loomis NRX, moved on to Edge First Cast, then to Megabass P5 Destroyer, Daiwa Steez, and now I've hit a brick wall with the Shimano Poison Ultima. The reel will be a Daiwa Steez A 100 8.5:1. Each of the rods claim to have what I'm looking for to fish docks and shoreline targets with various kinds of jigs; 6'9"-7' MH or H Fast or XFast. What would you guys do?

I can’t help you much with those lines but I’d ask yourself what weight range of jigs do you plan on mainly using and what line do you prefer to fish with? As a braid to leader guy I wouldn’t look for a XF jig rod personally.

2 hours ago, 10,000 lakes Bassin said:

I can’t help you much with those lines but I’d ask yourself what weight range of jigs do you plan on mainly using and what line do you prefer to fish with? As a braid to leader guy I wouldn’t look for a XF jig rod personally.

15-20# Fluorocarbon; 1/2 oz jigs plus trailers.

Nrx 873 crr is my favorite rod I’ve owned and I throw a 1/2 oz jig and trailer on it all the time. My apologies if you meant that 7’ would be the longest you would go, this rod is 7’3” and I fish it from a kayak. Definitely never felt that it was too long.

Whoa! So far out of my budget it's laughable. You might consider talking to a custom rod builder for that kind of money. A good one can deliver exactly what you want.

I have a few jig rods and my favorite by far is the Loomis 894C NRX+. For a 1/2oz jig, I have yet to find its equal. I like using it for the spots where fish are sitting kind of shallow and next to cover. I know the length is longer than the OP wanted but when I am fishing it from my kayak, I'm able to skip with a side arm roll cast easier than I can with a shorter rod. Sensitivity with this rod is also exceptional and it has plenty of power to pull fish from cover.

Other rods I use for jigs in the 1/2oz range....

G. Loomis

853C NRX - not as much power as the 894 but is great for 3/8oz jigs. A little sluggish at a 1/2oz

803C GLX (new version) - just a great all around rod. 1/2oz jig plus trailer might be too much

904C NRX+ - great for deeper football jigs and dragging jigs

873C NRX+ CCR - all around great rod. It sits between the 853C and 894C for me but has a softer tip

895C NRX+ - It can pull a stump out. Too much power for most of my fishing and it can fatigue the hands if you use it all day. 1/2oz to 1oz jigs are not an issue for this rod.

Megabass

P5 Super Destroyer - shorter multi taper rod with some power. More versatile than most. Not as sensitive as the NRX+

P5 Daemos - soft and not as much hook setting power as I would like but it works. Better for bladed jigs and spinner baits

St. Croix

Legend Elite 7'1" MH X-fast - great classic rod with power and a really fast tip. Kind of stiff

Daiwa

Steez Real Control 6'11'' MH-SV - super sensitive, almost too sensitive but it a pleasure to fish. It is better suited for the free rig and believe it or not, jerkbaits. It does load differently and has more power than you think it would based on how light it is. Works better for casting jigs rather than flipping and pitching.

Only you know what action feels right for you. Any rod I would or already have purchased are 7’2” to 7’5” so I can’t help you outside of that. Good luck.

I recently picked up a new model GLX 844. I've fished the 843/844 for a hundred years but the new models are really good. My understanding is that they are the NRX blank ( pre plus ). I personally like the MBR actions for their versatility.

16 hours ago, Tackleholic said:

AI research

A LLM has never held a fishing rod and can’t possibly give you any sound advice about them. It has scraped all the marketing material, Facebook posts, and YouTube comments and regurgitated it onto a page for you. Most likely while hallucinating badly. https://www.google.com/search?q=ai+hallucination&rlz=1CDGOYI_enUS999US999&oq=ai+hal&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqCggCEAAYsQMYgAQyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQLhiABDIKCAIQABixAxiABDIHCAMQABiABDIHCAQQABiABDIHCAUQABiABDIHCAYQLhiABDIHCAcQABiABDIHCAgQABiABDIHCAkQABiABNIBCDIyMDBqMGo3qAIUsAIB4gMEGAEgX_EFUIKJQO3sWeU&hl=en-US&sourceid=chrome-mobile&source=chrome.ob&ie=UTF-8

My first suggestion is only use AI to provide a data point or fact. How long is this fishing rod, how many grams does it weigh, where was it made.

Now that we’ve got the gibberish bot out of the way we can talk about high end gear. FishTank is a local resource that has extensive knowledge about high end gear. I’ve fished or own a number of the same rods he’s recommended and agree with those recommendations. The only swap I have is I prefer the slightly slower action of the 873 vs the 894. To me the 873 is the best bottom contact rod I’ve ever used.

When you dig into high end gear there are rods which the price can keep going up but you’re not going to see any returns. Removing boutique art pieces like the ARMS rods by Megabass puts us in the NRX, Steez AGS, Legend X2/Xtreme, Ultima range. I have zero experience with the Ultima so it’s out of my recs. Of the remaining let’s break them down a bit.

NRX - Lightweight, duel guide trains. I don’t mind the recoil guides but I know some do. For the longest time the gold standard for sensitivity. Now days, I don’t think the gap is much or even exists anymore at the high end.

SC - X2 is as light as NRX, single guide trains in both lines. X2 is all torzite Xtreme is 1st gen AGS. Sensitivity with my Xtreme is on par with my NRXs. I don’t notice enough difference between the two which I can’t attribute to noise in the data.

Steez AGS - again very light. The guides are improved from the 1st gen and I’ve not broken one on any of my AGS equipped rods in the 5ish years I’ve owned them. My “the one” is the most sensitive rod I own bar none.

Of the 3 I’ve listed I’d simply choose the one you like the look of.

In those lines my personal favorites for dock and single target fishing are:

NRX 873 or 894. They have been personal favorites of fishermen for 15 years for a reason. Dependable power and comfortable to use all day.

St. Croix - 7’1 MHXF or 7’4 HF. The 7’1 fishes lighter but has the it factor. The 7’4 is a workhorse. I regret selling my Elite one and most likely will replace it with an X2.

Steez - 7’2 Power Pitch. It’s so much like a 873/894 smashed together it’s crazy. I think if I don’t have the 873 I’d only need this rod for all the same things. This one got sold when I moved the same as my 7’4 elite. Regret it.

I would suggest you at the very least contact DVT or another reputable rod builder and talk to them about custom options before pulling the trigger on a super high end rod.

Being able to pick out your preferred grips, length, guides, and general cosmetics to be built on a blank of equal or possibly superior quality might help you make a decision.