When I first joined the board a few years ago I took RW's advice and bought the Avid 6'6MF. That has been my treble hook rod and I love it. I use it for cranks, jerkbaits, and topwaters. I am looking to get a little more technique specific. I am looking for advice on a rod or rods for shallow, medium, and deep cranks, lipless cranks, and jerkbaits. If I can get less rods to do all the tasks the better, but I am leaning toward buying a few different rods. One of the big problems with the 6'6 is I cannot get the casting distance I want. I know KVD uses a rod he calls the launcher, and it it like a 7'6 (or more) beast of a rod. I want to be able to cover distance better with lipped cranks. Lipless I have no problem, because it is easy to launch with any rod, and jerkbaits I never find myself casting over 25-30 yards.

Dedicated jerkbait rod: Avid AVC66MF

Also great for topwater, buzzbaits and spinnerbaits.

Dedicated shallow, lipless crank: Avid AVC70MM

Dedicated deep divers: Lamiglas SR705R

Don't go any shorter than 7'6 for deep (>13') crankbaits.

Don't go any shorter than 7'6 for deep (>13') crankbaits.

I was using my 6'6 avid and I think it was about to break in half. I did manage to catch some fish in 15 ft on it though...deep cranking is really neat.

I am tempted to give the shimano cumara reaction rods a try. I broke two of the original cumara rods. I like the 7 ft med for shallow/medium crank and the 7'11 M for deep cranks and maybe lipless.

Don't go any shorter than 7'6 for deep (>13') crankbaits.

I was using my 6'6 avid and I think it was about to break in half. I did manage to catch some fish in 15 ft on it though...deep cranking is really neat.

Not about the rod strength, it's about casting distance.    Longer rods allow for longer casts.  Longer casts mean more time for the bait in the strike zone.

With shorter casts, by the time a deep crank hits it's max depth, it will already be on the way back up.  I spent a summer throwing DD22's and 3/4 oz. Hot Lips on a 7' rod.  It wasn't productive.

As for the Cumara Reaction, you're buying something specifically for big (>3/4 oz.) cranks, opt for the MH-F.

Cranks are something I really like to throw. I've had experience with 4 rods. I've used a Team Daiwa S 6'6" Glass rod, a Powell 684CB, a Loomis CBR 906, and a St. Croix Premier 7' ML spinning rod.

The Daiwa was actually a great small crank rod. It was one of the better casting rods I've had and one of the best reel seats I've ever used. Wasn't real sensitive but kept fish buttoned and isn't a bad option.

I currently use the Powell for all of my shallow to medium cranking. This rod has good sensitivity, is lightweight, and has a good action to keep fish buttoned. I really like this rod and I'm thinking about buying a few more Powell crank rods soon.

The Loomis is a 7'6" beast that I bought for throwing deep cranks. It does that job good, but a problem I've heard many times with the Loomis CBR series is that the handle is just too short to really sling a bait. When I'm trying to cast a 5/8+ oz. bait, it just feels like the rod might fly out of my hand. This rod is now my primary lipless rod and it is a champ at this. Has enough power to rip baits from the grass and the handle length isn't as big a problem since they seem to cast effortlessly anyway.

I use the 7' St. Croix Premier spinning rod to cast small balsa baits like Shad Rap #5s and some of the smaller Big M baits. With 10# PP this rod is fun to fish gravel banks and points with during the early spring.