What are your favorite rod brands? 2024

SoFloSully reply :

If you guys had to rank the best rod brands in your opinion what would you say? If there are rods that you think are better build for certain techniques what would you rank for technique specific rods?

HookRz reply :

The simple answer is I strongly lean toward GLoomis casting rods and St. Croix spinning. A few crossovers (SC casting, Loomis spinning) and a couple other brands in the quiver. It wasn't a conscious decision but that's how it shook out when I look at the rods I've kept and use the most.

And I prefer to buy American.

A-Jay reply :

While the claim on the logo might be a little over the top, St Criox's been making a quality product for going on 70 Years now.

A-Jay

Robin reply :

Kistler and Dobyns without a doubt. Super rods at great prices!

Catt reply :

When it comes to rods name brand is meaningless to me!

I had a G. Loomis broken by someone, replaced it a Shimano Crucial & feel like it went up in sensitivity.

I'm not one that could order a rod off line or have one custom made. I have to have it in my hands before I make a decision!

bigturtle reply :

megabass and shimano

ratherbfishin1 reply :

I would have to say st. Croix is an all around good rod company but I have actually been really impressed with bass pros rods they have a pretty good value if you ask me the carbonlite and the Jonny Morris signature are both amazing rods imo.

Chefster reply :

I don’t think there is really a bad rod brand. They all serve a purpose within the given price range. My 5 year old fishes a ugly stick and she can catch them. I think a better question would be what is the best rod within a given price range. It’s so hard to choose. So many great options. But if I had to give my favorite 3. St. Croix. G. Loomis. Megabass. I did just buy a Phenix feather that I am really impressed with.

Jelvas reply :

1-G-Loomis

2-Colmic

3-St. Croix

In that order! I have a few rods from other companies but these 3 are by far my favorites and make 90% of my combos...

LAO162 reply :

It depends on the need/technique, funds on hand, and what bargains I stumble across.

NathanDLTH reply :

I fish all Daiwas, I’m willing to try something new yet happy with what I’ve got.

Bankbeater reply :

On 1/29/2018 at 5:54 AM, Catt said:

I'm not one that could order a rod off line or have one custom made. I have to have it in my hands before I make a decision!

^^This

I have St. Croix, Abu Garcia, Diawa, Berkley, and BPS rods. I buy the one that feels right when I hold it.

Mike L reply :

Loomis, Phenix, Fenwick and Falcon but not necessarily in that order.

Mike

davecon reply :

St. Croix.

Got 1st one about 10 years ago. Every rod purchased since then has been a St. Croix.

There may be comparable/better rods out there but it is an expensive learning curve. With the St. Croix rods I feel I am getting the biggest bang for my buck. Rods last me decades so I don't want to make a mistake and never have with their rods.

Finnz922 reply :

Irod, Megabass, Daiwa, and the unmentionables.

npl_texas reply :

I'm a fan of Dobyns, Shimano, and G. Loomis

Angry John reply :

1.st Croix

2. Megabass

3. Phoenix

Dtrombly reply :

Daiwa and Irod have impressed me the most, Fenwick is up there for me too

new2BC4bass reply :

I think your post asks three questions. Favorite brand of rod. Best rod brand. Best built for certain techniques. (This could be broken down into umpteen techniques as the company making the best Drop Shot rod may not be making the best jig rod, etc.)

I have at least 19 different brands of rods. (Many with only one example.) Yet I am a long ways from having tried every brand out there. I doubt many on here have tried every brand. Their opinion will be based on their experiences with the rod companies they have tried...just like mine is.

I think the Tatula and Elite Tech Smallmouth are some of the absolute best rods for the money. They are favorites of mine, but that doesn't necessarily make Daiwa and Fenwick the best rod brands. Doesn't make them the best for the techniques I use them for either.

Dwight Hottle reply :

G loomis

StCroix

Kistler

NHBull reply :

Shamano on Loomis just feels right. I will never know if these are the best, but for me, they are.

CTBassin860 reply :

St. Croix and Daiwa for me

Raul reply :

GLoomis

Shimano

GraphiteLeader

I always wanted a Megabass ( specifically the Bearing Down ) but it always eluded me for one reason or another so I simply forgot about them.

Yumeya reply :

Megabass

Gloomis

St Croix

Kistler

Rogue Rods

dupert reply :

My top two favorite rod brands are GLoomis and GraphiteLeader.

ww2farmer reply :

Aside from the custom rods I had built to the specs I wanted them built to, my current favorite off the shelf rods are:

Daiwa

Abu Garcia

Berkley

I find those brands offer a good "bang for the buck" ratio. While not as finely built and crafted with top notch components, or as "nice" as Loomis, St Croix, etc....the performance of "budget" rods now-a-days is closing the gap on some of the premium rods. That's a huge plus for someone like me, who, for reasons only known to god, is very rough on rods. Sure, the warranties on the high end stuff is usually great, but breaking a couple $200+ rods a year is a tuff pill to swallow, breaking a few $75 rods a year is still not desirable, but easier to stomach.

cadman reply :

G Loomis, baitcasters

St Croix, spinning

Boomstick reply :

I buy mostly Daiwa Tatula rods, it's just hard to beat them for the price point. I do like St. Croix, and G Loomis rods as well.

RB 77 reply :

GLoomis and Shimano for fresh and Batson and Calstar for salt.

NYWayfarer reply :

I like, in no particular order:

Abu Garcia

Powell

St Croix

Denali

Fenwick

One three fishing

Chance_Taker4 reply :

I have switched a majority of my rods to Kistler and will finishing switching this year. Great rods and they have actions and powers I have never heard of or knew that I needed. lol

SJex reply :

G. Loomis

Shimano

Megabass

Dobyns

fishindad reply :

Falcon: casting

St Croix, Dobyns: spinning

ClackerBuzz reply :

On 1/29/2018 at 7:54 PM, ww2farmer said:

Aside from the custom rods I had built to the specs I wanted them built to, my current favorite off the shelf rods are:

Daiwa

Abu Garcia

Berkley

I find those brands offer a good "bang for the buck" ratio. While not as finely built and crafted with top notch components, or as "nice" as Loomis, St Croix, etc....the performance of "budget" rods now-a-days is closing the gap on some of the premium rods. That's a huge plus for someone like me, who, for reasons only known to god, is very rough on rods. Sure, the warranties on the high end stuff is usually great, but breaking a couple $200+ rods a year is a tuff pill to swallow, breaking a few $75 rods a year is still not desirable, but easier to stomach.

I can't thank you enough for pointing me to Daiwa Aird X rods. I had a enough of 'quality rod companies' last year. Dobyns refused to back a Champion rod that broke during a forward cast and made me pay $90 replacement (on top of $30 to ship the rod to them for 'inspection'). I was responsible for breaking a Powell endurance and had it replaced with a 3D Max that was horribly unbalanced. I requested an exchange and the owner of the company got so offended which ended in the most disrespectful email I've ever received.

I was fed up with these companies and knew there was something better. A week later I came across a post of yours praising the Aird X. $55? I'll give them a try. these rods are a-m-a-z-i-n-g. they are light as a feather and as balanced as a St croix LTB or Champion Extreme....at only a fraction of the cost. I agree the gap is closing and nothing could make me happier. I'm done with the primadonna niche brands.

fyi:

Daiwa Aird has a 1 yr warranty.

For a few dollars more you can get a 5 yr warranty with the Tatula XT and S Casting.

SoFloSully reply :

On 1/30/2018 at 11:15 AM, ClackerBuzz said:

I can't thank you enough for pointing me to Daiwa Aird X rods. I had a enough of 'quality rod companies' last year. Dobyns refused to back a Champion rod that broke during a forward cast and made me pay $90 replacement (on top of $30 to ship the rod to them for 'inspection'). I was responsible for breaking a Powell endurance and had it replaced with a 3D Max that was horribly unbalanced. I requested an exchange and the owner of the company got so offended which ended in the most disrespectful email I've ever received.

I was fed up with these companies and knew there was something better. A week later I came across a post of yours praising the Aird X. $55? I'll give them a try. these rods are a-m-a-z-i-n-g. they are light as a feather and as balanced as a St croix LTB or Champion Extreme....at only a fraction of the cost. I agree the gap is closing and nothing could make me happier. I'm done with the primadonna niche brands.

fyi:

Daiwa Aird has a 1 yr warranty.

For a few dollars more you can get a 5 yr warranty with the Tatula XT and S Casting.

You could’ve sold me on this one. I might have to go pick one up to see for myself.

Hulkster reply :

my top 3:

1. G. Loomis

2. Loomis

3. 1 and 2

ClackerBuzz reply :

On 1/30/2018 at 11:42 AM, SoFloSully said:

You could’ve sold me on this one. I might have to go pick one up to see for myself.

I haven't pushed them to their limits yet (yanking on a snagged lure with braid mainline like an idiot; too much drag set with braid etc) but i'm pretty sure ww2farmer middle name is torture test so I'm confident they will fair well.

bigfruits reply :

Megabass, Loomis, St. Croix.

Would love to try a Kistler

LxVE Bassin reply :

St Croix hands down. Daiwa has served me well too.

Yudo1 reply :

I like Loomis, Megabass and Kistler not in any particular order. I would be happy fishing exclusively with any one of these brands.

DogBone_384 reply :

Abu Garcia and Kistler.

ZebcoZak reply :

I have slowly migrated pretty much 100% to Fenwick. For the price I have a hard time justifying anything else. I use several Aetos rods and they are awesome. I have never fished with one of the 400-500 dollar rods, but for what I do I don't know if I ever will.

DogBone_384 reply :

On 1/30/2018 at 12:48 PM, bigfruits said:

Megabass, Loomis, St. Croix.

Would love to try a Kistler

Their current incentive is 20% off your order.

punch reply :

There's just WAY too many quality rod brands these days. It's really difficult as a consumer to pick something.

On 1/30/2018 at 9:41 PM, ZebcoZak said:

I have slowly migrated pretty much 100% to Fenwick. For the price I have a hard time justifying anything else. I use several Aetos rods and they are awesome. I have never fished with one of the 400-500 dollar rods, but for what I do I don't know if I ever will.

My only complaint about Fenwick is IF you send back a warranty rod.. they make you ship the busted rod to Canada. Shipping a tube to Canada is expensive.

ZebcoZak reply :

On 1/31/2018 at 1:38 AM, punch said:

There's just WAY too many quality rod brands these days. It's really difficult as a consumer to pick something.

My only complaint about Fenwick is IF you send back a warranty rod.. they make you ship the busted rod to Canada. Shipping a tube to Canada is expensive.

Interesting. I actually haven't ever had the need but that is a bit of an annoyance....

punch reply :

On 1/31/2018 at 2:03 AM, ZebcoZak said:

Interesting. I actually haven't ever had the need but that is a bit of an annoyance....

Yeah, it REALLY sucks. You get a "free" replacement on an Aetos but gotta spend like 50-60 bucks sending the old rod to them. They will not reimburse you either. Pure fishing has offices in the USA, but their warranty program is run out of Canada. This is literally the reason I'm not buying anymore Fenwick in the future.

Paul Roberts reply :

There are many really good rods out there across all brands and price ranges.

Djohn reply :

For the money - Fenwick

Jar11591 reply :

Fenwick

WdyCrankbait reply :

Powell

S Hovanec reply :

1. St Croix

2. Rodgeeks

3. Batson

Bass_Fishing_Socal reply :

On 1/31/2018 at 1:38 AM, punch said:

There's just WAY too many quality rod brands these days. It's really difficult as a consumer to pick something.

My only complaint about Fenwick is IF you send back a warranty rod.. they make you ship the busted rod to Canada. Shipping a tube to Canada is expensive.

Not really, in my email just last week for warranty on Ateos from Fenwick, they give me option to ship to either US location or Canada, but on my own dime.

punch reply :

On 1/31/2018 at 11:29 PM, JustJames said:

Not really, in my email just last week for warranty on Ateos from Fenwick, they ask me to ship to either US location or Canada.

Wow, they didn't give me such an option. They emailed me just a Canadian address. This was last summer.

BigBass'n_Harrison reply :

On 1/29/2018 at 6:53 AM, Chefster said:

I don’t think there is really a bad rod brand. They all serve a purpose within the given price range. My 5 year old fishes a ugly stick and she can catch them. I think a better question would be what is the best rod within a given price range. It’s so hard to choose. So many great options. But if I had to give my favorite 3. St. Croix. G. Loomis. Megabass. I did just buy a Phenix feather that I am really impressed with.

This post was a while ago, but I'm hoping you see that I quoted you. I just want to know what model Phenix feather you got and if you still like it? Is the taper and power what they say?

JustinJ reply :

Dobyns everything

optimator reply :

G Loomis, Lamiglas & St Croix. I am becoming fond of Dobyn's as well.

lmbfisherman reply :

Shimano/Loomis for me. I have some others I kept from other brands because I liked them a lot for certain things though. I find that there are just rods from different brands that just work great for the way I fish a certain bait or situation.

- St Croix Avid 6'6" M/F, great Jerkbait Rod (Not the new Avid X)

- Abu Garcia Gen 1 Veritas 7'3" MH/F (Awesome Multipurpose rod for everything 1/2 oz)

- BPS Carbonlites (2) Best pond beaters when I don't want to bring my more expensive rods.

Brock_v reply :

I have a rod from just about everyone. I have no consistency really I like some Phenix rods and dobyns but I've liked about every rod I've purchased. My favorites right now have to be Phenix I like the M1's and the feathers a lot.

DropShotHotShot reply :

The Cabela's rods have really grown on me. I think they can hold their own against the top names, and they carry a lifetime guarantee

PatrickKnight reply :

Currently my favorites are Cajun Custom Rods out of Jacksonville. They have a rod for everything I do. Great rod for the money imo.

Graham reply :

G loomis, Dobyns, and Shimano for me. I hear great things about Megabass and am gonna try one, so maybe I’ll report back on that .

I like G loomis for faster action techniques (jig & worm), Dobyns tends the offer a more moderate taper so I like those for things like (cranking, spinnerbaits, and bladed jigs), they also make some killer swimbait rods.

YaknBassn reply :

My favorites are

1. Ark Rods

2. Falcon

3. Daiwa

They may not be the "best" but they do what I need them to do and I enjoy using them.

MDbassin reply :

Dobyns and st.croix are tied for #1 for me other good rod brands I've either owned or tried are irod, 13.

I haven't tried the gloomis or diawa rods that people like.

BPS carbonlite are nice rods also

Cak920 reply :

Love my St. Croix Rods. Just got a Dobyn a couple weeks ago and it equals St. Croix in my opinion.

J.Vincent reply :

There are a lot of really good rods on the market and I've fished with Abu, Daiwa, Shimano, St Croix, Berkley, South Bend, Quantum, *** and more....here are my favorites right now:

1) Team Daiwa S (Green Blank from the 90s, discontinued)

2) Abu Garcia Veritas

3) St Croix Premier

all excellent rods in the $100 dollar category

thinkingredneck reply :

St. Croix is my favorite BC. I bought some used American Rodsmith, Ozark rods thatare pretty good. I have a Lamiglass I like. It is a beast in cover. I use an Abu spinning, some BPS that are okay. I hate to admit it, but my Ugly Stick, is my favorite spinning rod.

Dens228 reply :

I bought my first two St. Croix this winter. By the end of summer all my rods will be St Croix.

Darren. reply :

I'll go with:

Shimano (original cork Compres, spinning)

St. Croix (own Legend T, Premier, owned Avid)

BPS rods (Carbonlite, MicroLite)

I feel if I can stay within the range of $100, I'll

be happy. Such good quality there now-a-days.

Problem being, I like shorter rods in the 6' range

and that automatically limits the brands I can

buy.

BankBasser reply :

I fished only spinning gear for 40 years with St. Croix and Shimano being my go to rods for years. A few years ago I started experimenting with baitcasters and Dobyns seems to be the road I'm going down for those rods.

JLopez0128 reply :

Love my St. Croix Rod

nd1225 reply :

Kistler and Dobyns

blckshirt98 reply :

#1 for me by far is Phenix. I have ten of their rods and if they had a trade-in program I'd have twenty more. #2 is St. Croix, and #3 on the basis of a single rod that I own is Megabass (Orochi Swingfire for crankbaits, probably my #1 favorite rod to use, it's just a one-trick pony, but man that pony is the best of them all).

FryDog62 reply :

After years of using many St. Croix Rods, I finally dumped them. I gradually fished a number of other brands and realized how tip heavy and poorly balanced many of the SC rods were. Especially as you go up in size. I prefer all of the below now:

•Megabass

•Dobyns

•Kistler

•Daiwa

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