It's between a Dobyns 682C (6'8" medium fast) and a 684CB (6'8" medium moderate). I am leaning toward the fast action because I like the responsiveness of the fast tips for working jerks, poppers, and sammy type walking baits. I know the standard is to have a moderate action for trebles, but in the past I did not like the way they felt when working baits requiring rod tip movement. Any opinions or advise?

ETA: The fast action could also double as a nice finesse casting rig.....

i'd go with the 682c as well!

I would prefer the fast action. If you fish anywhere around submerged grass with your shallow running cranks you're going to want to be able to rip grass off the hooks and that's hard to do with a moderate action rod.

I like a faster action for topwater and jerkbaits, allows you to work the bait with decreased effort over the M action, I'd say 682c

I have an Avid AVC70MHM that used like this is PLENTY strong enough to rip through weeds.  The reason I step to the faster LTBC70MF, is simply because when I feel a tick from a reed, and give the rod snap to free the bait, it all happens much quicker.  The moderate or slow action crank rods are too slow to recover, and already have quite a bit of bend.

Now here's the thing....when I watch pros on TV use big old fiberglass buggy whips for this, you'll see really dramatic sweeps from them.  I don't need anything like that with a fast action rod.  To each his own.

I have an Avid AVC70MHM that used like this is PLENTY strong enough to rip through weeds. The reason I step to the faster LTBC70MF, is simply because when I feel a tick from a reed, and give the rod snap to free the bait, it all happens much quicker. The moderate or slow action crank rods are too slow to recover, and already have quite a bit of bend.

Now here's the thing....when I watch pros on TV use big old fiberglass buggy whips for this, you'll see really dramatic sweeps from them. I don't need anything like that with a fast action rod. To each his own.

Just watch KVD fish a red eye shad.  He puts way to much energy ripping a bait free.

That's kind of what I was getting at, but its pretty hard to criticism KVD.