What power and actions would be best for the following:

1) Topwater frogs
2) Light topwater lures like the Pop-R that you may want to cast a long way and yet have control of on the water
3) Flipping Jigs and artificial worms (I'm assuming these would take the same rod.)
4) Light jerk baits
5) Spinner baits
6) Crank baits

Be prepared for 5 million different answers

There will be tons of opinions. I personally focus more on tip than rod power. I use a moderate fast tip on all but the jig and worm. .Power depends on what you think your trying to pull them out of.

For me personally I use a heavy rod for frogs, SOME tx rigs and jigs. Medium for tops cranks and traps. And medium heavy for normal tx rigs and everything else. Like I said that worms for me

This comes up frequently and the reason it's so hard to answer is their is no industry standard for these terms. One companies med/hvy may be hvy for another.

Okay, well let me ask something simpler and more specific. Take these lures and situations: flipping jig, crankbait, spinner bait, horizontal presentation of a Texas-rigged worm, vertical presentation of a Texas-rigged worm, wacky-rigged worm, light topwater, topwater frog, Zoom Super Fluke. Now assume you had to fish all these with only 4 rods. How would you distribute them across the 4 rods?

Heavy fast or extra Heavy fast
Medium moderate or medium fast
Medium Heavy fast or heavy fast
Medium heavy fast or med heavy moderate
Medium moderate for shallow to mid and a medium heavy moderate or heavy moderate for deep cranks

You can do everything you need to with a medium, medium heavy, and heavy action rod.

Go to Tackle Warehouse site and use the guide for the Dobyns rods. Or the Dobyns site either one. They have a good line of rods in different powers for what you are looking for. Go with the Champion series.

Personal preference and depends what cover you are fishing
In general I like:
Heavy for frog and pitching jigs/pegged trig into heavy cover

Medium Heavy fast action for most other single hook presentations including spinner baits, hollow body swimbaits, flukes, unpegged trig, split shot rigs and weightless plastics around wood and grass I also like MH for lipless crankbaits and crig (used to prefer heavy for crig, but prefer MH now). Also like MH for bigger top waters

Medium heavy moderate action for bigger crankbaits

Medium fast action for open water drop shot, jerkbaits, small top waters, finesse bottom contact presentations with a single hook in light cover

Medium moderate action for most smaller crankbaits

I found that All Star Rods under their Nano section has a good breakdown of what is required. Their rods have 4 actions and 4 power ratings but they don't have all 16 combinations. Their powers are ML, M, MH, and H. Their actions are M, MF, F, and XF.

Just looking at power, I noticed:

H power is for topwater frogs only. It is also their longest rod.

MH powers are used for worm (F), Carolina rig (F), and spinnerbait (MF).

M powers are for crankbait (M), Texas rig (F), jerk bait (F), topwater (MF),and light worm (F).

ML power is for drop shot (F) only.

I'm not sure what they are lumping under the worm category but light worm, I suppose would be any worm fished without a weight.

From this I conclude:

(1) I don't drop shot, so I can drop the ML power.

(2) I should have one HF rod for topwater frogs.

(3) My MH should be MF for spinnerbaits or else XF for jigs.

(4) My M should be MMF for topwaters or else MF for jerkbaits and Texas rigs.

So with 4 rods I have to compromise. Since I use topwater frogs, and it requires the longest rod and heavy braid, I should have one rod just for that purpose. I would have to decide between having one MH and two M powers or the other way around, two MH powers and one M.

With 5 rods I could have 1 H, 2 MH powers, and two M powers. The two MH powers would be MHMF for spinnerbaits and a MHXF for jigs. My 2 M powers would be MMF for topwaters and MF for jerkbaits and Texas rigs. This would allow me to have a power and action for the types of fishing I do 95% of the time. The compromise would be that I would have to retie in the field if I want to switch from topwater to jerkbaits and Texas rigs (all of which I use a lot), and also retie when going from spinnerbaits to jigs.

But this exercise has clarified my thought processes a lot.

The one thing I would recommend is that if you are researching for buying new rods I would stick with the same manufacturer for each of the rods you buy. Like it was stated above with no industry standard you can buy two different rods with different power and action and they will feel the same and may be the same. Go to Kistler's web site and they have section that actually shows you where their rods load up for any given power and action. They supposedly test every rod from what I heard.

SAKS and others are correct, that there will be tons of opinions on best rods for each circumstance.

But, a slightly different twist regarding rod selection:

Whenever a heavy rod with fast action is the rod of choice, say for frog fishing or heavy jigs where it is often mentioned, does it really do a better job than a somewhat shorter, lighter powered rod with somewhat slower action?

A rod that bends farther back up toward the hands effectively "shortens the lever." A shorter lever gives the angler more effective power over the fish.

If I set a 20 lbs. barbell plate on the floor to lift with strong braid and we have a bet about lifting it and I offered you a 7 ft. heavy rod with fast action, that, or a 5 ft. rod with medium power and a rather slow action, which one would you choose to lift the plate?

Thoughts:

A "fast action" maintains a longer lever, a "normal action" shortens the lever quicker (the rod bends farther away from the tip).
A heavy power rod resists being bent and having its lever shortened; a weaker powered rod bends more quickly giving the angler a shorter lever and better leverage for more power.

Yes, a long rod, all other things being equal, casts farther, but a shorter rod allows for power transference from the angler's end.

Question: For flipping heavy jigs short distances, would we actually be better off using stubbier rods that are powered and tipped to bend closer to the hands, this for maximum leverage?

Brad

Get you a 3 power, 4 power 5 power and a Medium action rod made for cranking.

3 for the light stuff and wacky rig and 10-12 # line.
4 for tx. rig, and fluke.
5 for jigs and frogs
Medium action crank bait rod for Yellow Magic type baits and small to med. crank baits and lipless baits.

1) 7'3" heavy fast
2)7' medium fast
3)7' heavy extra fast for jigs and heavier beaver plastics, 7' MH for lighter worms
4)7' medium moderate
5)7' MH moderate
6)7' medium moderate for most crankbaits that run between 5-12 ft, 7'mh for traps and squarebills, 7'6' mh for deep cranking 12ft +

Why no Medium Lights? Are they not meant for bass? One thing I've learned since creating this thread is that no one makes a heavy spinning rod for frog fishing. One company makes an extra heavy but it is way out of my price range.