Has anyone given these a try yet?  I was thinking of picking one up, but wanted to see if you guys knew, or heard anything about them, thanks for the feedback!

This might be an old post, but I was interested to hear from anyone who has these smallmouth rods how they compare to the St. Croix Premieres and the Shimano Compres.  Anyone??

These rods are great for finese fishing or using soft plastics for some hogs. I own a St. Croix Premier and the 6'9 Daiwa I picked up is definetly a better rod. Great sensitivity with alot of back bone. Like I said in an old post. I have caught catfish well over 20lbs on this rod and it held up no problem. Daiwa has been making some some aweomse products for the smallmouth angler latley at very reasonable prices. Very happy with the quality in these rods.

They sound like what I might be looking for. But that's what I thought when I bought a Daiwa Procyon spinning rod. I ordered it online and when it got here, the part of the rod that goes through the reel seat was a little too thick for my liking. I don't think there are any stores here that sell the VIP Smallmouth rod and I learned my lesson from buying the Procyon that I should hold the rod before buying it. So now my question is, is the reel seat area thick like the Procyon? I like a thinner diameter reel seat, which is more comfortable for me.

I had no idea that this type of rod existed. Would you say that in addition to the finesse (grubs, tubes, drop-shot, senzo) capbilities that it handles top waters (zara spooks, pop-r, floating rapala's) and crankbaits (shad raps, X-raps) as well.

I guess in short, can this be used as an ALL around SMBass rod?

Cheers,

CWeb

No.

Labels don't have much effect on Power and Action.

I would consider an "all-around" rod to be 6 1/2' or 7'

Medium Power/ Fast Action. From there you go to specific

attributes for different techniques.

8-)

roadwarrior,

Unfortunately, I have two spinning rods I use for fishing right now. A medium/light for finesse and a medium/medium for topwater, cranks and small spinner/buzzbaits. I know, I need to get some baitcasters mixed in.

My question is, as I stated in my Introduction not long ago, I am in the process of buying all my SM and LM bass baits, plastics and terminal tackle as well as rods and reels over the next 10 years so that I have everything I need for reitirment. In your opinion, do the specialty rods (crankbait, drop shot, topwater, etc.) really make a difference or is there ways that I can cut costs a little so that I get the most feel and action for several presentation on one rod. I'm not saying that I just want one rod and reel but rather 4-6 instead of 15-20.

I hope I make sense.

Cheers.

CWeb

Three rods will cover everything. Pay close attention

to the specs, not necessarily the brand, but I will be very

specific on what I fish:

For all weightless soft plastics:

St. Croix Legend Elite ES70MF/ Stella 2500FD/ #6 Yo-Zuri Hybrid

For all treble hook lures:

St. Croix Avid AVC66MF/ Core/ #12 Hybrid

Note: A better generic recommendation is Medium Heavy

Power/ Moderate Action. However, this particular St. Croix

blank makes the perfect "all-around" rod for treble hooks.

The tip is soft enough for this class of lures, but firm enough

to effectively work topwater lures and jerkbaits. I think you

will find it to be the right one for buzzbaits and spinnerbaits,

too.

For weighted soft plastics and jigs:

G. Loomis GLX MBR844C/ Curado 200E7/ #12 Yo-Zuri

You "need" nothing else.

8-)

That's some serious advice roadwarrior.

Thanks.

Let the DD begin!

CWeb

labeling it a smallmouth rod is just a gimmick for sales.. Im with roadwarrior a few general rods will work for everything..

I carry one medium 2 medum heavys 1 heavy and one extra heavy swimbait rod and thats all i have dont have a ton of rod and reels but what i got is good quality stuff

I looked at these Daiwa rods being a Daiwa fan just didnt like the size of them I prefer 7 ft plus rods

What RW said !!!

Pay attention to the POWER and ACTION of your rods .

I fish a St Croix Avid 68MXF with A Daiwa Capricorn 2500 ( the original, not the Dick's one) and 0.25 mm Tectan Premium line ( equivalent of 6lb) or 15lb Power Pro with a leader for weightless or very lightly weighted plastics (up to 1/8 oz).

Anything a bit heavier goes on an Avid AVC70MF with a Zillion and 0.28 Tectan

For jigs and weighted plastics (more than 3/16 oz) I'll use a Fenwick HMG 7oMHF, paired with a Daiwa TD-S with 12 lb BPS Fluoro . It will handle spinner baits ,spoons, light swimbaits and other stuf too. This will handle soft plastic stick baits (senco), too

For everything top water, subsurface i'll grab the Avid AVC66MF, Zillion,Tectan or Trilene XL.This is a very versatile rod !!!

I have dedicated rods for drop shotting and crankbaits but the AVC66MF or an AVS66MF could handle those.(Yes ,you can drop shot with a baitcaster but is not always efficient )