I have been away from fishing for far too long, but I am back. It is time to replenish & upgrade my remaining tackle. Currently I have Shimano Crucial rods for TX Rigging, soft plastic jerk baits, Senkos, etc and Falcon for Carolina rigging.

I 'need' some crank bait rods so I am looking at St. Croix Avid, St. Croix Premier, G-Loomis, 13 fishing and others. Whats a good now now and worth the ca$h? I have decided to flip Shimano the bird because when the changed the warranty policy during my dark period and despite the fact that IMO they crucial are one heck of a rod the change in warranty ticks me off (get off my lawn so to speak).

Also looking at the Lews reels for crank baits.

Who the heck is 13 fishing?

They're fairly new company. No experience with them, but I've read mostly good reviews on their reels.

Most of my casting reels are Abu 5500C3 and 6500C3 reels paired with mostly Berkley Lightning Rods MH.