Ark Rods Randall Tharp Honey Badger TS73MHFC Money Maker Product Review

Rod Review

ARK Rods's TS73MHFC May Not Be a Printer, But It Is Money

Date:	8/5/19
Tackle Type:	Rod
Manufacturer:	ARK Rods
Reviewer:	Cal

Total Score: 8.08 - GREAT

Introduction: Ark Rods is an intriguing manufacturer. Seemingly out of nowhere they burst onto the scene with an array of smartly priced, smartly styled, performance driven series of sticks. We've been working out way through their Tharp series having good experiences with each stick thus far, and the subject of today's article had a name that was just too difficult to resist. Here's our look at Ark Rods's TS73MHFC Money Maker.

Ark Rods TS73MHFC Money Maker Specifications
Material	Toray 40T Carbon Fiber
Length	7'-3"
Line Wt.	10-20lb
Lure Wt.	1/4-1oz
Pieces	One
Guides	8+tip (Fuji F-Ring)
Rear Handle Length	11
Power Rating	Medium Heavy
Taper	Fast
Rod Weight	4.6oz
Origin	Made in China
MSRP	$129.99

Introducing ARK Rods's TS73MHFC Money Maker

Impressions: The TS73MHFC is a seven foot, three inch (7'-3") stick made from a blank rolled with forty ton Toray carbon fiber material. It features Fuji's K-Concept guides with F-Ring inserts, a custom EVA foam split rear grip, and custom graphite reel seat.

First impressions of this stick is that it is crisp but more powerful than what I'd consider a "medium heavy" powered rod

Real World Tests: First impressions of this stick is that it is crisp but more powerful than what I'd consider a "medium heavy" powered rod. I needed to throw this stick on the Wrack to be certain, but a fishing opportunity came before I could test the rod, so I threw my Revo4 Rocket on this stick and met up with Zander for some on the water evaluations.

Detailing is a strong suit of ARK Rods

Casting: For the Money Maker's initial tests, I tied on Spro's latest lipless crank, the Wameku Shad 70 and let loose. This bait is rated at three quarters of an ounce so right in the wheelhouse for this rod. The Money Maker loads really nicely and actually handles this bait in a manner that led me to believe it can do much more than the one ounce for which it is rated. I confirmed my suspicion by tying on a GanCraft 178 (~2oz) for some test casts and can say the TS73MHFC can handle that bait with little difficulty as well.

The rod comes with a closed loop hook keeper

Sensitivity: My Revo4 Rocket was spooled with 50lb Finatic 6-strand Pro Braid so sensitivity was turned pretty high - especially with a lipless crankbait tied on. Even transitioning to jigs and Texas rigged plastics, this stick did a very good job of letting me feel and interpret what was going on down on the bottom. It was a pleasant surprise for a stick in this price range.

Fig 1 : The chart above illustrates the deflection characteristics of our Ark Rods TS73MHFC Money Maker against the averages of our general purpose rods separated by power. As you can see, though rated from the manufacturer as a medium heavy, the Money Maker falls right in line with a typical heavy powered rod

Power: Out on the water, the Money Maker has more than enough power to drive single, jig style hooks home. When I finally was able to wrack the rod and work up its deflection chart, I was able to confirm my initial impressions that this stick behaves more like a heavy powered rod than medium heavy - at least when compared to the averages developed from the last ten plus years of testing rods.

Checking out that tip

Next Section: Move that Money Maker...