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CB Rod Wars Part #6: Lucky Craft's Fat Mini Magic
(continued)
  Features: With little to no literature on the
internet surrounding their rods, it's difficult to say exactly what Lucky Craft has leveraged the makeup of the 701MF. We can
ascertain the guides are SiC's and probably Fuji, but are uncertain as to
whether they are titanium or stainless steel framed. With the different finishes
Fuji uses these days, it's not always easy to tell, but in our tests the quality
is there.
Lucky Craft does not miss on the opportunity to give us a true JDM feeling rod with the required logo'd butt cap.
The reel seat is most certainly Fuji and the cork used on these rods is super clean and pit free. This is the clarity of cork we expect when seeing a rod that has "Grade A" cork on it.
Details are difficult to acquire from Lucky Craft, but these
tested out similarly to SiC guides and quite possibly Ti/SiC's.
Application: The 701MF from Lucky Craft is designed around their Fat Mini Magic crankbait - a small bodied crank designed to run anywhere from three to seven feet deep depending on which model of this bait you are fishing. In reality, the 701MF can handle much more including shallow to deep diving cranks. This is a very good all purpose type cranking stick.
We actually did fish the rod with the bait for which it was intended and benefitted from their symbiotic relationship.
Availability: How many of you crankbait fishermen always purchase more than one of a new bait thinking in the back of your mind you can fish one and have the other as a backup? Heck, how many of you buy at least three at a time with this mindset? The Lucky Craft series of rods are available right now at select retailers and at their current discount of more than 50% off, you can extend this same mentality to their rods - buy one to fish, and another to keep in reserve and you'll still pay less than full retail! Insane!
Welcome to the rod manufacturing space Lucky Craft!
Warranty: Lucky Craft has packaged a warranty and rod replacement program all into one entity. In a nutshell, all their rods are covered by a 3 Year Limited Warranty that includes coverage against accidental breakage for 50% the retail value of the rod plus a $20 fee for shipping. As always, it is always best to contact the manufacturer directly with any warranty concerns but since Lucky Craft makes it a habit to be non-responsive, please pose your questions to your closest, authorized, Lucky Craft retailer and they should be able to help you with any warranty concerns.
Ratings:
|
Lucky Craft 701MF Ratings (?/10) |
| Construction/Quality |
Clean detailing and assembly |
9 |
| Performance |
Casts very well and has power to back it up |
8.5 |
| Price |
Unbelievable at discounted price! |
10 |
| Features |
Top end components |
8.5 |
| Design (Ergonomics) |
Conservative JDM detailing |
8 |
| Application |
A very good multi-purpose cranker |
8 |
|
Total Score |
8.67 |
Ratings Key: Ratings Key: 1 = terrible : 2 = poor : 3 = lacking : 4 = sub par : 5 = mediocre : 6 = fair : 7 = good : 8 = great : 9 = excellent : 10 = unbelievable!
(For a detailed explanation of the ratings go here) |
Pluses and Minuses:
Plus |
Minus |
| J The discounted price on this rod is simply insane |
L For those who care, Lucky Craft is not forthcoming with information regarding where the rods are made - but for the price they are offering, this information is almost immaterial. |
| J JDM detailing |
L At these prices, you're going to own more than one! |
| J Quality components |
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| J Did we mention the price? |
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Conclusion: Our love hate relationship with Lucky Craft continues. Their Pointer series jerkbaits, LV500MAX lipless bait, and BDS cranks? Love them. The Real California Supreme 200 swimbait and Live Series baits? Hate them. Their new line of technique and bait specific bass rods?
We've shared a love hate relationship with Lucky Craft over the years, and judging by this one specimen alone, we LOVE their rods!
Judging by this one specimen alone and taking into account the current, discounted retail price - LOVE THEM! Sure it'd be nice to know where these rods are made simply from an informational perspective, but at one hundred fifty to two hundred dollars a pop, complete with SiC quality guides, high grade cork, JDM  detailing, and most importantly a more than competent level of performance, who really cares? Lucky Craft not only hit one out of the park with this rod, but for as long as the special pricing is available, they hit a two run homer with TackleTour winning Editor's Choice AND our Best Value award!
Looking for a Lucky Craft Rod? Check out Monster Fishing Tackle and Tackle Warehouse , both have them in stock
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