Enthusiast Fishing Preview - Japanese fishing rods Megabass, Evergreen, Nories, Angler's Republic, Palms

Enthusiast Tackle: Preview

Announcing the 2006 TackleTour SuperCast Shootout! (continued)

Lab Tests: As you can see above, though the lure ratings on each of these four sticks are a very close match, their line ratings vary just a bit more. Our next step was to take each of these rods into the lab and see how closely they matched up in our RoD tests.

Deflection Data
Model	4oz	8oz	12oz	16oz	20oz	Avg RoD
Megabass Elseil	11.75"	21"	28"	34.25"	38.25"	2.39
Evergreen Steed	11.25"	22.25"	29.75"	36.75"	--	2.59
Nories HB680M	10.5"	20"	27.5"	35"	39"	2.31
Palms EPGC 664	10.5"	20"	27.75"	34.5"	39"	2.31

Deflection Data: Since this is an official shootout, we've changed up our testing methodology just a bit. Instead of a single data point at a pre-determined weight load, we took deflection measurements across a range of loads to determine how each rod behaved as the load increased. The goal of this exercise was to obtain an Average RoD value for each stick and see how closely they aligned. Again, the lower the RoD, the less its rate of deflection and therefore, the more powerful the blank. As you can see in the chart above, the Evergreen Steed came out with the highest average RoD value at 2.59 even though, for safety reasons, we chose not to test it at 20 ounces (see below).

The lure weight and line ratings of our Megabass Elseil

The familiar detailing of our Megabass Elseil Evoluzion stick

Action/Tip Progression: Another adjustment we made to our tests was to chart the actual progression of how far down the blank our rods bent at each test load rather than attempting to establish the rods' actual effective action of extra fast, fast, moderate, etc.. The chart below shows us, of all four rods tested, bending through the blank progressed the slowest in our Elseil and the fastest in the Steed. Once we passed the 40% mark on a rod, we shut down the tests for fear of breaking the rods before getting a chance to fish them!

Tip Progression
Model	4oz	8oz	12oz	16oz	20oz
Megabass Elseil	--	21%	29%	34%	39%
Evergreen Steed	6%	24%	33%	44%	--
Nories HB680M	--	21%	30%	36%	43%
Palms EPGC 664	--	20%	30%	38%	44%

The lure weight and line ratings of our Evergreen Crossfire Steed

Our Evergreen Steed displays this proud label on its split rear grip

Line Slap/Rub: In this test, we are looking for the amount of pressure it takes for us to experience the touching of line to blank. We take time to point this out because there are those that believe that the friction caused by this phenomenon must undoubtedly affect the longevity of the blank. This is where the Evergreen Steed came out on top lasting well beyond the Megabass Elseil and Nories HB680M.

Line Slap/Rub : Spine : Weight : Balance Point
Model	LS/R	Spine	Weight	Balance Point
Megabass Elseil	8 oz	Bottom	5.3 oz	+ 5.5"
Evergreen Steed	12 oz	Bottom	4.5 oz	+ 4.5"
Nories HB680M	8 oz	Bottom	7.0 oz	+ 2"
Palms EPGC 664	10 oz	Bottom	4.1 oz	+ 5.5"

Spine: The spine on all four of our rods tested out at the bottom of the rod, or opposite the guides. This configuration, in theory, gives more snap to the rod during a cast making it easier for the rod to load on the back cast, and then, borrowing from the inertia of the spine's tendency to straighten itself on the motion of the forward cast, snapping forward to help deliver your bait precisely and accurately.

The lure weight and line ratings of our Nories Hard Bait Special

Our Nories rod features an attractive green blank with purple and blue highlight threads

Weight, and Balance Point: The weights on each of our sticks varied greatly with the Palms Edge Pride coming in the lightest at a svelte 4.1 ounces and the Nories Road Runner Voice rod weighing in the heaviest at an almost unheard of 7.1 ounces. The Nories HB680M comes in at such a weight because it is built with the Fuji rod balancing system at the end of the rod and true to form, this rod balanced very well out of its sleeve easily taking this test from the others. It will be very interesting indeed, to see how this comes into play out on the water.

The lure weight and line ratings of our Palms Edge Pride

Our Palms Edge Pride rod was the least decorative, yet most lively stick out of the shipping tube

The Matchup: So there you have it, our four contenders from across the Pacific. It's quite apparent, from our lab tests, that each of these four rods has its own niche and intrinsic value. Are they perfect matches to one another? No. Will that stop us from comparing them anyway? No. Is there an early favorite? No, it seems to change each time we pick up a different combo! Speaking of which, to be fair, we matched each of these four rods up with its very own Daiwa TD-Z Custom 103HL reel. Each reel is spooled with 14lb Sunline Shooter Flourocarbon. We will be fishing a variety of baits, over the next several weeks and maybe even months, to get a good feel for what each rod does best and which one, if any, is able to handle a wide range of baits and handle them well. Stay tuned, as in our next installment, we will reveal the winner of TackleTour's 2006 SuperCast Shootout!