Casting Rod (Phenix X10 & X12) It is time to pick a casting rod, and since this is the "Year of the Crank" here at TT a reasonably priced cranking rod was the natural choice. Though there may be more refined rods, of all the crankbait rods we have reviewed thus far in our crankbait rod wars none offers a better balance of performance versus price than the Phenix X10. The X10 retails for only $189 and yet manages to blend high modulus graphite, carbon fiber, and a glass tip all together to create a cranking rod that offers the best of both worlds.

The graphite and carbon main blank help make this rod light and sensitive and give the rod plenty of backbone when you need it, and the fiberglass tip give the rod that forgiving action necessary to keep fish pinned on to fast moving crankbaits. The X10 is good for shallow to mid-running crankbaits while the longer X10 will help you cast bigger crankbaits farther. The only problem with this pick is that the secret is out regarding the value that these rods represent and they can be hard to find, and are even out of stock at many e-tailers. Check out Tackle Warehouse who should be getting some of these rods soon.

Application Specific - Frogging Rod (Powell Frog Rods) When the weather warms up during the Summer we put down our cranking rods for a short period to enjoy some explosive topwater frog fishing action. Powell has a new rod series designed specifically for this purpose and is a great choice for tossing frogs into heavy cover or walking them in open water (Leo's favorite method).

The rods feature Powell's traditional clean motif but a frog emblem on the blank ensures you will remember exactly what this rod is intended for. The Powell Frog Rod is available in 7'2" or 7'3" lengths and features an extra fast tip that allows anglers to make extra long casts, but has a ton of strength for quick hooksets and pulling a fish out of the weeds with braid.

Spinning Rod (Shimano Voltaeus) The Voltaeus spinning rods are the epitome of "best bang for the buck." The Voltaeus line is aimed squarely against the popular Ugly-Stik rods, and there are a total of 29 rods in the lineup so there is a Voltaeus rod for everything from fishing for panfish and trout to striped marlin. In terms of cosmetics the rods feature a sliver blank that matches nicely with many of Shimano's spinning and lower baitcasting reels. These rods are designed to be extremely durable yet also extremely lightweight and to acomplish this Shimano turned to an exclusive proprietary new construction that fuses carbon and T-glass together to form a light, sensitive, and extremely durable rod. Shimano is so confident that these rods will hold up to stress that they back the rods with a limited lifetime warranty. So how cheap are the spinning rods in the Volateus lineup? At only 39.99 a piece these rods cost less than the gas to go on your next fishing trip. The Voltaeus spinning rods are available at FishUSA.com