|
|
|
Gary Dobyn's
deep involvement in
Powell's Max Bass Rods
help create a bona fide
hit for bassers
(continued)
 Casting:
Our Powell 701 L
Fast handled both
the copolymer Yozuri
Hybrid, and
monofilament
Original P-line very
well. Casting
distances were not
as great with the
Berkley Fireline but
we're not certain if
that discrepancy was
from the reel or the
line we used since
the our Daiwa SS
Tournament 700 is
from another era in
tackle all together.
Even so, we never
failed to reach our
intended targets. I
will say, the 7 foot
length of our Powell
spinning rod is
better suited for
open water
applications rather
than fishing in,
around, and under
docks or in any
situation where
pinpoint accuracy is
paramount. For those
applications, I
would choose one of
the shorter, 6'8"
Powell spinning
rods.
Both our 700 and
2000 sized
spinning reels
sat firmly in
the reel seat of
our 701 L thanks
to Fuji's
familiar design
On occasion, we
like to push our
test subjects
beyond their
rated capacity.
When things
don't work out,
the information
rarely makes it
to press because
tests are not
fair, nor are
they applicable.
In the case of
our Powell 701
L, though we do
not recommend
you try this on
your home
waters, we'd
like to note
that we abused
the rod's
maximum lure
rating of 3/8 of
an ounce just a
bit. Realizing
the bite we were
experiencing on
the water was
something other
than the
traditional
finesse type
baits we were
throwing and
wanting to catch
something on
this rod to
judge how well
it handled, we
tied, on
separate
occasions, the
large, 6"
Yamamoto Senko,
and a Lucky
Craft LVR D-7.
While certainly
not our first
choice for these
types of baits,
quite
surprisingly,
our 701 L
handled them
just fine and
did not give us
the impression
of being over
burdened during
both overhead
and underhanded
casts.
Our 701 L
features an
open ended
hook hangar
making it
easy to
secure
everything
from drop
shot
weights, to
texas rigged
plastics, to
treble
hooked baits
and more.
Sensitivity:
To test the
sensitivity of our
701 L, I first
mounted our Daiwa
Exist spooled with
6lb monofilament to
the rod, tied on an
1/8 ounce jig head
and cast it out to
shore. Dragging the
jighead along the
bottom, I could feel
each encounter the
jighead had with a
rock or weed and was
very surprised at
the amount of
sensitivity the 701
L afforded me. This
only increased as I
progressed to the
copolymer Yozuri
Hybrid, and then, to
the Berkley
Fireline. Our actual
hookups on this rod
came on 6" Yamamoto
Senkos rigged
weightless and
though, as noted
above, this lure is
well above the rod's
3/8 ounce maximum
lure rating, the rod
was able to handle
these baits fine and
each strike was
detected easily!
One last shot of the
Fuji spinning reel seat
The rear grip of our
701 L
Power:
The trophy during
our tests with this
rod was a 3.5lb
largemouth caught on
the afore mentioned
Senko, but perhaps
the hardest charging
fish was a 14"
striped bass caught
on the LV-500MAX.
While the striper
proved an
exhilarating battle,
the power of our 701
L was up for the
task. Transition
from the rod's
sensitive tip
section to it's
backbone is quick
and all our hooksets
were solid. Based on
our experience we
see no reason why
use of this rod in
conjunction with the
appropriate test
line and a little
patience, can yield
safe catches of fish
much greater than
those we
encountered. In
other words, this
rod is not
appropriate for
horsing a fish to
the boat, but nor is
any rod that shares
the same light power
rating. On the other
hand, we've fished
many light action
rods in the past
that did not share
the superb
hooksetting
responsiveness of
our Powell 701 L.
Another look at the
hook hangar on our
701 L
Features:
The Powell Max 701 L
sports contemporary
design features such
as a split rear
grip, no foregrip,
and open ended hook
keeper. Born from
the world of custom
built rods, It seems
more and more rod
companies are
incorporating
features such as
these into their
product line and we
welcome the change
of pace. Another
aspect we enjoyed
from our 701 L was
the incorporation of
subtle, yet
decorative winding
checks at the split
rear grip and at the
top of the reel
seat. Small
enhancements such as
this really give the
rod a more finished
look.
Winding checks a the
spit rear grip are a
welcome design detail
The 701 L, and
all Powell MAX
rods also
feature a
handsome winding
check at the top
of the reel seat
Similar to the Kistler
MgAPSMH66 we reviewed
earlier this year, our
Powell 701 L sports a
permanent label with
recommended uses for the
rod. While, again, we'd
prefer to see this type
of information presented
on a removable label, at
least on our Powell
stick, it is co-located
with the rod's typical
specifications for
length, power, action,
and lure and weight
ratings. This is less
obtrusive and a bit more
bearable than putting
this information on the
split rear grip.
The rods
specifications
include
recommended
uses
A closeup of the
simple, but well
executed thread
wrap
Warranty:
All Powell
Max Bass
Rods are
covered by a
lifetime
warranty
applicable
to the
original
owner of the
rod. Typical
of any
manufacturer,
all warranty
claims are
subject to
inspection
and cover
defects in
workmanship
not
accidental
or
intentional
breakage or
other
non-fishing
related
damage.
Warranty
claim forms
can be
printed
direct from
the Powell
website and
all postage
is paid by
the
customer,
including a
$35 warranty
fee which
basically
covers
return
shipping.
Should you
have an
occasion for
an actual
warranty
claim,
please
contact
Powell
directly and
work out the
details for
of your
situation
directly
with them.
This
applies,
really, to
all
manufacturers
as often
times, a
happy middle
ground can
be reached
for
situations
that do not
fit neatly
into the
printed or
stated
policy.
This 3.5 lb bass was the
trophy fish during our
test of the Powell 701
L
Ratings:
|
Powell
MAX
701
L
Fast
Ratings
(?/10)
|
|
Construction/Quality |
This
product
may be
assembled
overseas,
but if
we
weren't
told
about
this
upfront,
we would
not have
known.
Some
competitor
rods
have
cooler
looking
weaved
blanks,
but the
Powell
offerings
some
pretty
darn
close to
premium
offerings |
9.5 |
|
Performance |
Casting
weight
range is
above
the
rated
capacity,
sensitivity
is very
good,
hook
setting
power
and fish
fighting
ability
is what
one
should
expect
from a
light
action
rod |
9 |
|
Price |
Intentionally
brought
in at an
aggressive
price
point
this rod
is
actually
more
aggressively
priced
than
many
comparable
competitor
offerings.
While it
isn't a
cheap
rod it
is one
that is
worth
the
money |
8.7 |
|
Features |
Contemporary
design
together
with a
solid
line of
components
this rod
has a
bit more
than you
would
normally
expect
in a rod
of this
price
range.
While
there
are not
breakthrough
features
the
overall
design
and
layout
is very
good |
9 |
|
Design
(Ergonomics) |
A bit
tip
heavy
off the
shelf,
but the
rod is
so light
overall,
it
easily
balances
out with
about a
2000 or
2500
sized
spinning
reel |
9 |
|
Application |
Wonderfully
suited
for
finesse
applications
and even
a little
more.
This rod
surpassed
our
expectation
in this
category
and was
able to
handle
bass and
even
stripers
with no
difficulty.
Use it
for any
type of
finesse
applications,
or tie
on a
bigger
bait and
go to
town |
10 |
|
Total
Score
|
9.20 |
Pluses and Minuses:
|
Plus
Minus
|
|
J
Excellent
Value! |
L
On the
guides,
strictly
for
cosmetics,
I'd have
preferred
the
frame to
be
chrome
with the
black
inserts.
The
contrast
would
give the
rod a
more
high-end
look. |
|
J
Very
Light |
L
The hook
hanger
always
works
better
for me
on the
left
side of
the
blank |
|
J
Quality
Components |
L
Hard to
find
outside
of the
West
Coast,
but
hopefully,
this
will
change
soon |
|
J
Versatile
Casting
Performance |
|
|
J
Very
Good
Sensitivity |
|
Conclusion: Yet
another rod
manufacturer heads
overseas to bring to
our shores, a rod
with contemporary
design features and
superb performance.
Powell makes a
successful foray
into the world of
bass fishing with
the expert guidance
of Western Pro
Angler, Gary Dobyns
and his designs in
their MAX line of
bass rods. The first
in our series of
planned reviews has
really set our
expectations quite
high. The 701 L
spinning rod is very
sensitive, light,
yet surprisingly
versatile rod. We
were able to fish
both inside and
outside the tackle
box with this rod,
and that left us
with a lasting
impression. How will
the other Powell
rods we have stack
up now that we've
sampled the waters
with this stick?
Only one way to find
out. Time to put
this rod down, pick
up another and go
fishing! Until then
congratulations to
Gary and Powell for
breaking into the
highly competitive
bass rod space with
a rod that many
bassers out there
will find very
attractive.
|
|
|
|
