G-Rods International BA-611ML-1S

Rod Review

Going For a Spin with G-Rods International (continued)

The BA-611ML-1S fishes more like a light powered rod in terms of sensitivity, but then really does have the power of a more medium-light to medium powered stick. You can feel an awful lot at the end of this rod even when fishing with must nylon monofilament.

Fuji K-Series guides with titanium frames and SiC inserts.

Power: Taking a look at the BA-611ML-1S's deflection chart above, you can see that its curve sits a good half to full power below our 2011 WTF baseline sticks further reinforcing this rod's medium-light power rating. It has a nice, lively tip, yet when you need it, it also helps you apply pressure to your catch for very good control despite using light line.

Fig 1 : The chart above illustrates the deflection characteristics of our G-Rods International BA-611ML-1S against our 2011 WTF baseline rods.

Design & Ergonomics: I mentioned right off the bat how light this rod feels in hand and attributed that feel to two things - the fact it really is a light stick at only 3.9 ounces and the fact it's well balanced. Balance is one thing we often take for granted with spinning rods mostly because the majority have terrible balance.

Checking out that taper.

Spinning reels, in general, are all pretty heavy and the fact most of us hold our spinning rod combos with the reel behind the pivot point of our hand (instead of on top of it like a casting rod) leaves little reason for manufacturers to pay much attention to balancing a spinning rod because the reel will do all that work for the angler.

G-Rods International did not take the balance of their BA-611ML-1S for granted and instead, provided anglers with a stick that feels really good right out of the rack.

Lab Results for G-Rods International BA-611ML-1S
Model	Avg RoD (2-32 oz)	Taper	Measured Weight (oz)	Balance Point (inches)	Balancing Torque (ftlbs)
G-Rods International BA-611ML-1S	2.49	Fast	3.9	7	0.15
DSR820S GLX	3.02	Fast	3.9	8	0.15
SMR822-SP GLX	2.75	Fast	3.7	7.5	0.15

Price & Applications: The BA-611ML-1S is a medium-light powered spinning rod that's good for finesse duties as well as some plug work (cranks, jerbkbaits, topwater, etc.) as long as those plugs can be fished on light line and weigh under half an ounce. I reality, there are a lot of hardbaits that fit that specification. However, I only fished it in finesse techniques and felt it did exceptionally well under these circumstances.

The hook hangar of our BA-611ML-1S is in an odd spot down by the rod's butt end. Additionally it's one of those Fuji hook hangars which I'm none too fond of - we believe the manufacturer has since replaced both the keeper and its position in subsequent runs of the rod.

The slightly bad news about the BA-611ML-1S is that sourcing the rod is still a bit of a challenge. G-Rods International's Game Changer series has received more widespread distribution than its price Pro Bass series, but if you look around or even contact the manufacturer through their website, you should be able to source this or any other stick in their Pro Bass series.

Ratings:

G-Rods International BA-611ML-1S Ratings (?/10)
Construction/Quality	A very clean build	9
Performance	Really good sensitivity even in a ML spinning rod	9
Price	Considering their top end components and unique blank material, not bad at all	7.5
Features	We stayed away this time, from the topic of the graphene, but that together with top end components gives this stick a good score	8
Design (Ergonomics)	Incredibly well balanced even for a spinning rod	8
Application	A good, multi-purpose spinning rod and a very good performer in finesse applications	8
Total Score		8.25
Ratings Key: 1 = terrible : 2 = poor : 3 = lacking : 4 = sub par : 5 = mediocre : 6 = fair : 7 = good : 8 = great : 9 = excellent : 10 = unbelievable! For More Details of the updated rating system visit our explanation here

Pluses and Minuses:

Plus	Minus
+ Very well balanced spinning rod	- Despite being on the market a couple years now, still difficult to source
+ Very good sensitivity	- Hook keeper is in an awkward spot
+ Attractive, JDM-esque styling

G-Rods continues to impress with the BA-611ML-1S Spinning rod in the Pro Bass Series.

Conclusion: Little idiosyncrasies like the placement of this rod's hook keeper and the fact, after two years, it's still difficult to source these rods nationally aren't enough to keep the good feel and performance of this manufacturer's Pro Bass series of rods down. A lot of this can change with their new, up and coming Game Changer Series of rods as well, in the meantime, if finesse is your game and you want to fish a stick your buddies probably haven't seen or held and will make them green with envy, check out the BA-611ML-1S from G-Rods International.