Since summer, I've been dedicating myself to learning cranks.  I've been throwing CB on spinning gear with fast tips and have decided to get a rod dedicated just for CB as the next step up.....towards pro  ;D.  Yeah, right.

The CB rods I'm looking at are: Shimano Compre and St. Croix Premier.  Those who have used either or both, please post.

Did I overlook anything else in this price range?  

Also, should I get it in M, MH or H?  I mainly fish Bomber FF Guppy and FF Shad. Also, LC Pointer jerkbaits and a few lipless cranks.  Nothing deeper than the DD22.  

I'm just looking for the best balance to get the best casting distance I can.  Don't mean to beat a dead horse so hold your stones.

Cheers!

I fished a med 6'6" Compre crankbait rod but felt a little wimpy. I replaced it with a MH 6'6" St.Croix Premier crankbait rod and couldn't be happier. It has the right feel in my hands and while slightly heavier the the compre..it does balance alot better.

With the close-out sale going on at some retailers right now, you might get an Avid for about the same price. You would be miles ahead with the Avid if you can find the one you like. Two that I would suggest looking at are the AC66MF and the AC70MM.

M, MH or H depends more on how much muscle you need to pull them out of cover or the lack of it. My home lake is filled with standing timber and I can horse them out with a medium rod, takes a little more skill than with a heavier rod but it can be done, however I would not fish with a M rod in Lake Guerrero or Sugar Lake for the same crankbaiting, cover in those lakes is a lot more dense.

I use the premier glass rod in 7' medium / moderate-fast. I like it. RW's point about finding an avid on sale is an awesome idea though. If not, the premier glass is a good rod. It loads up well and will sling lipless cranks a long, long way. Since it's a bit heavier it can be tiresome fishing big cranks with it after a while though. I would'nt suggest using a round reel with it either. I had a round abu on mine and replaced it with a revo, that took a lot of work out of fishing a DT16 crank for example.

I have used both and hands down the compre is more rod.. also with a lifetime warrenty .But like RW said if u can find a Avid get that them are awsome rods

I have the 6'6'' MM Premier crankbait rod and it is a big improvement over the 7' BPS Crankin Stick I was using before that. It is a lot lighter and more sensitive. I just replaced the Premier with a 7' MM Avid because I prefer a 7' crankbait rod. The Premier is a nice rod but like RW said, if you can get an Avid you won't be sorry.