 |
An Understated Victory for St. Croix Rods
The introduction of Victory and Bass X during ICAST 2021, brings St. Croix's total number of series for bass anglers to eleven. With models within these series ranging from one hundred to six hundred fifty dollars in price, Victory lands right in between Avid and Legend Tournament in price point - smack dab in the middle of the eleven series hierarchy.
|
 |
The Search for One
: Ark Fishing's BB73MMHFC Old Faithful
Earlier this year, we took a look at ARK Fishing International's BB73MLXS Fair Wand, one of fourteen sticks in the manufacturer's latest value driven series of bass rods. With other nick names like Kinda'
Shaky, Kitchen Sink, Do-All, The Walking Stick, and Good Vibes, within the
series, how could we not be drawn back to sample another? |
 |
The Versatile Lew's Speed Stick Lite Magnum Casting Rod
Lew's Speed Stick Lite Magnum Casting Rod comes with the model number of LCLMCR. It is a seven foot, eleven inch stick made from the company's proprietary, multi-layered technology blank using 85 million modulus graphite. It features a moderate bend so it's ideal for moving baits, and a lure rating of half an ounce to three ounces.
|
 |
Completing the
M1 Trilogy: Phenix's M1 MX-S72L Finesse Spinning Rod
In February of 2020, we presented their Search for
One candidate; then in August, we shared our thoughts on a stick from this
series suitable for big baits. All that's left to complete the trilogy is a
spinning rod, right? Well, what-the-finesse, here's a look at Phenix's M1
MX-S72L spinning rod. |
 |
ARK Rods Elevates Invoker Series to "Pro" Status
It's been a couple years since we've taken a look at ARK Rods's Invoker lineup. Maybe as a way to rekindle interest, the manufacturer has taken it upon themselves kinda-sorta refresh the series. Our first look comes with an intriguing spinning rod. Introducing ARK Rods Invoker Pro IVP6MLXS.
|
 |
Legit Design's Big Bait Travel Stick, the WSC68XXH-5
Whether you're looking for a
new stick to break down and slide into your carry on or under the driver's seat
of your car, Legit Designs has a series of travel sticks worth a look. Here's
their Wild Side WSC68XXH-5 Big Bait Special. |
 |
Evergreen's Latest Specialty Stick, the RCSC-78XH Wakebait
Evergreen International debuted
their Brett Hite Combat Stick series of rods to North American anglers during
the 2017 Bass Master Classic event in Lake Conroe, Texas. Since that initial
introduction, they've slowly refined and built out series to include thirteen
(13) application specific rods... |
 |
iRod Leans into the Power of the Sea with the SWC794C-H Poe's Mag Stick
Matt Newman doesn't make baits,
but he does own a fishing rod company. An avid big bait fisherman, when he
caught wind of our 2021 Rat Rumble, he wanted in on the action and immediately
sent us a new, somewhat under the radar stick dedicated iRod fans have been
buying as they gear up for throwing big baits. |
 |
Power Tackle's "The One" for Big Baits : 4.5XXH
Following on our successful experience with Power
Tackle's The One 04MH, we wanted to dive just a little deeper into the
manufacturer's latest series and sample a stick within the same lineup with
ratings that appear a little more appropriate to my latest obsession - big
baits. |
 |
Bipidy-Boppidy-Boop, Ark's
Brandon Cobb's Fairy Wand is Not a Childhood Fable
Leveraging
the success of their best selling Randall Tharp signature series of rods, ARK is
hoping to catch another wave of momentum with their latest introduction, a
series bearing the name of a rising star in bass fishing circles, Brandon Cobb.
Today, we take a look at our first rod in this new line, the BB73MLXS Fairy Wand
|
 |
Designed to Smash Green
Monsters, the iRod Croaker Crusher Frog Rod
Kaimana is a saltwater inshore
and offshore series that many swimbait anglers have latched onto and there are
two additional freshwater series to book end Genesis, Fiber and Crusher. We take
a look at a rod within one of those series designed by pro Kayak fisherman, Ron
Champion. Introducing the iRod Crusher series IA784C-H Crusher Croaker.
|
 |
Now This Stick Is Legit : The Wild Side WSC72H+
Similar to its bigger and more powerful sibling
reviewed in August 2020, the WSC75XH Big Bait Special, the WSC72H+ arrives in a
custom, two compartment rod sleeve. It is a two-piece stick separating at the
handle, and once assembled, is very easy to forget was ever in two pieces |
 |
The Enthusiast Oriented
Steez AGS Rods are Back and Cater to U.S. Applications
The Steez rod lineup has long been coveted by anglers on both sides of
the pond, and this year U.S. anglers get a upgraded series designed to meet our
region's unique fishing techniques and applications. |
 |
The G.Loomis NRX+ Bladed Jig Rod – Overkill, and Just What
Enthusiasts Want
The G.Loomis NRX+ rods are a modernization of a legend, and bring the
American-made series up to date with Spiral X technology, a new resin which
makes for a lighter overall blank, improved ergonomics, and the return of the
hybrid guide-train. In addition to the popular Mag Bass actions the company is
introducing a series of technique specific models, including a brand-new bladed
jig rod... |
 |
Megabass America Brings Valkyrie
Worldwide and Triza Travel Rods Stateside
For the 2021 season
Megabass America is drawing from their international arsenal and bringing a two
high-end lines stateside including the Valkyrie World Expedition and Triza Series which
are designed to provide on the go anglers with applications specific rods. |
 |
Evergreen International's Power Finesse Stick, the Gizmo Special
Through their exclusive partnership with Daiwa,
Evergreen continues to expand this series with technique, and even bait specific
spec's for the US angler. We got our hands on one of these new introductions,
the Gizmo Special, to not only test its effectiveness as a stick designed around
the Gizmo topwater lure, but of course to see what else this intriguing little
stick can handle. |
 |
iRod's Guitierrez Special, the G2
Ultra Finesse
iRod's founder, Matt Newman is
a reputable big bait fisherman, so even when one of the biggest names on his
staff of pros, Gregg Gutierrez, came to him with the idea and need for a
signature, finesse tuned fishing rod, Newman deferred telling Gutierrez, he'd
take the thought into consideration. |
 |
G.Loomis Unveils the NRX+
Line of Conventional Bass Rods
The G.Loomis NRX Series of rods are for many
anglers, the benchmark premium rod series. Rumors of a new NRX Series have been
circulating online for months and today the company officially unveiled the new
series. We spoke to the team to learn more about the new NRX+ rods to learn just
what accounts for the new "plus" in the coming lineup.
|
 |
A Feature Packed Travel Stick from Monstar Fishing
Whether you're planning your
next exotic angling adventure or you just enjoy having a combo on standby in
your trunk for those "just in case" scenarios, functional, multi-piece, travel
rods that are truly compact are difficult to come by. I'm not talking about two
or three piece sticks that still require their own spot in the overhead
compartment but something you can literally fit into your carry on.
|
 |
Daiwa's Rebellion Against the Dark Side of Enthusiasm
A manufacturer that until
recently, was not often associated with the term "good value" is Daiwa, but they
have a line of bass rods that, after reviewing the specifications, have the
potential to be just that. We got our hands on one of their sticks for a closer
look. Introducing Daiwa's Rebellion 7111HFB-SB swimbait stick. |
 |
A Serious Exterior with a Lively
Personality, the Douglas XMatrix Swimbait Rod
Douglas Outdoors, a company known for their fly rods, has branched out
into conventional spin and casting rods designed to address the complete
spectrum of bass fishing techniques. The company's flagship conventional line is
the XMatrix Series which features a proprietary carbon construction and comes
armed with Fuji components. |
 |
A Classic Vintage in the Making? Kistler's '21 Helium
While there are other product
lines above and below this one, in my mind, Helium is still the series that
defines Kistler Custom Rods. We recently caught wind of some changes within the
company surrounding their source for blanks, so we acquired a stick from the
current Helium series to check out. Here's our look at the 2021 Kistler Custom
Rods Helium. |
 |
Abu Garcia and Ike Help You Take Your Show On the Road
With all the difficulty these days trying to fly with more than one suitcase, let alone a big tube full of fishing rods, it's a little surprising there aren't more options for multi-piece fishing rods made for the fisher-person who loves to travel. Abu Garcia recently introduced an option within their IKE series of rods consisting of a multi-piece stick with two different tips... |
 |
Does Power Tackle Deliver with "The One"
Rod?
Power Tackle Rods out of
Richland Springs, Texas has been building fishing rods with serious minded
anglers in mind since 2007. They have a relatively new series that caught our
attention for the name they chose to dub the lineup. Time to meet the "One." |
 |
Getting Straight to the Point Blank...
Creating a Custom Rod Build
Every now and then we learn of
a new blank manufacturer making noise in the custom rod circles. Usually, we can
find a manufacturer who is not afraid to divulge they are using these blanks so
that we can fish, test, and write up the finished product... |
 |
ARK Rods's New Graphite Cranking Stick : Invoker Pro IVP74MHRC
Riding on the coat tails of the Reinforcer success is a refresh of one of their original series, Invoker. They've elevated these rods to "Pro" status but kept the price point the same. Let's take a look a the IVP74MHRC to see how they've done.
|
 |
The Omega Swimbait 8' Heavy by Leviathan Rods
To be honest, it didn't really take much to convince me to reach out to Leviathan rods once I found out they're relying on Gary Loomis's company, North Fork Composites (NFC), to supply their blanks. Their Omega Swimbait 8' Heavy is built on an NFC, custom specified LMX-PSI
blank... |
 |
The Search for One : Megabass of America's F5.5-75XX Braillist
Megabass of America's F5.5-75XX Braillist is a seven foot, five
inch (7'-5") casting rod rated with a fast taper rated and medium heavy in
power. The stick's name is derived from the fact it excels at bottom contact
applications. |
 |
Going Big with Phenix's M1 : The MX-UR80H
Phenix's refreshed and revamped M1 series made a big splash here at TackleTour when we published our thoughts on the Search For One contender, MX72MH. In fact, it is still among my favorites so far this year. Of course, when we published that article, we received quite a few messages from our
West Coast readers asking about the swimbait stick.
|
 |
An Enthusiast Level Rod For Anglers Of All Levels, Legit Design's Big Bait Special
Arundel Tackle out of
Chicago, Illinois is in partnership with Legit Design for exclusive North
American distribution rights. That's how we got our hands on the subject of
today's review. Introducing the Legit Design Wild Side WSC75XH Big Bait Special.
|
 |
Taking the Time to Appreciate the
Unique Personality of the Dobyns Xtasy Series
Priced well into the enthusiast range these rods are described by Dobyns
as a "feel" series, and are designed to provide an advantage in applications
where quick bite detection is key. |
 |
A Cranky Honey Badger of a Stick : Ark Rods's TS74MH-G B-Hittay
Since their debut a few short years ago, Ark Rods has done a good job making headway with affordable, smartly styled, good performing sticks. They recently upped their game by signing Pro Bass Fisherman, Randall Tharp to their team and last year, they celebrated this team up with the company's very first line of signature series of rods, Randall Tharp's Honey Badger line. |
|
|
