Not stepping on them .......

ALL. I fish mostly Abu Veritas with a few older KVD cranking rods thrown in for good measure and a Shimano Expride for my go to soft plastic rod. Best value and price point in my experience. I have close to 20 and have had very few issues.

Easier said than done. Which is why I use Falcon Lowriders by the dozens. If I step on one, it’s not the end of the world.

I think I'm going the Mudhole route. Thought about it a few years ago but didn't have room for a good set up. Now I have room so I'm going to invest in some equipment and start repairing some broken eyes from some old rods. Yes these old rods were stepped on by Fred the basset hound back in the day and the show it.
Good thing Fred went to the big pond in the sky a few years ago. These new rods I have don't like to be looked at funny

There used to be rod building classes you could sign up for and buy the equipment. Wonder if that's still a deal. We search that out as I decide where to spend my money next.

I have an old KVD glass cranking rod. used to love it. Feels so strange nowadays

The Mudhole classes are how I got started. They still do them but they are virtual now due to COVID. I think you need the hands on instruction myself. But hopefully they start back up soon. Not only do you learn but you walk out with a nice rod you built yourself.

I'm a firm believer in buying the best rods you can afford. Most of my primary rods were built in the 80's: American made All Star's and Falcons. I still use them today and have had zero issues with them. I gave anywhere from $80 to $120 for them back in the day, when you figure for inflation, these rods would probably cost $300 to $500 each at today's prices. I did break one of my All Stars a couple of decades ago, it was closed up in a rod box lid if I remember right, it didn't die from natural causes. An old WR1 and it was by far my favorite, my Texas rig worm rod which was my favorite way to fish back then as well.
Before I decided to step up to the best I could afford I bought all my rods at Walmart, and they were usually around $30 to $40 a piece They'd last about 3 months and die from a hook set or a crankbait getting killed on the other end would snap them in half. That all stopped when I spent the money for the good stuff.

Wow! I've never seen a thread elicit so many responses. I fish the Texas coast with 7-foot baitcasters. I have a Powell rod that is a great stick, but I have replaced almost every cheap-o guide on it. I recently bought a St. Croix Mojo light baitcaster rod, and it's a quality(made in Mexico) rod for light baits.

I've always wanted a Falcon glass rod, but I've got better odds of getting hit by lightning than finding one of their classic glass rods. I tracked down a new 7-foot ML Lowrider Composite Cranker glass/carbon rod at a mom & pop shop in north Texas. They sent it to me, and the top 1 & 1/2 feet of the cardboard tube was gone! The rod tip was in it's plastic, but sticking out. I swear, if it had been a carbon rod, it would have been broken by United Parcel Destroyers. I LOVE the full cork grip. The blank is big, due to the fiberglass construction, but it's a good rod, stiffer than I wanted, but it 's OK. My first fish on it was a 29" Red, and it worked great. I recently caught a 32" Red with it in my kayak! One thing I HATED was that all the guiders are tiny! That bothered me enough that I replaced the two nearest the reel with two Fuji guides, one larger than the other. NOW, it looks right, and will work like I want.

I decided that I wanted to try spin-casting, so I ordered a 13 Fishing 7-foot ultralight rod. $50 shipped! Really nice construction. I put a tiny 50+ year-old Shakespeare spinning reel on it with 6-pound mono. My first fish on it was a 21" Speck. That UL rod really bent! Fun.

I never pass a trash barrel at a launch ramp with a broken rod sticking out of it. I take the pieces home, cut off the guides and tips and save them for my next repair job. There's always another repair job! And I'm from the era when people fixed things, rather than tossing them.

Interesting thread and replies. Thanks. IslandJim

Another thing that I’m working on is testing the middle grade rods between $100 to $200 range. When I bought those Falcons and All Stars there really weren’t any middle ground rods, it either was top of the line or Walmart level; of course you had the Bass Pro line by then but from what I remember folks were breaking those right and left as well. So far I’ve bought one Duckett Ghost Crankin’ Rod and one of the new Jordon Lee Abu Garcia Crankin’ Rod. Both have micro guides and so far I’m not a big fan of those. The next brand I want to get into is the Dobyns line, I want to replace that All Star WR1 I broke. That will probably be something out of the Sierra or Fury lines.

Just go with Googan for all your fishing needs, top quality and very innovative products!

Whats key to me is how a rod can handle a being cracked against a boats gunnel while fighting a 10lb bass that goes under the boat....and if the company gives free hats/sweaters for catching 10 pounders.

Aside from that....value. When it comes to rods and reels I really feel the law of diminishing returns comes into play big time. Yea, im sure an Loomis NRX is better than a Phenix Feather....but is it $400-$500 better? I dont think so. Never thought id get to this point...but i run 7-8 casting rods and 2 fairy wands with me every time on the water. And some of you have way more rods than that in your boat.

7 rods x $400 is $2800. Thats a livescope system. Id take Phenix Feathers, Low/Mid end Powell composite rods for reaction baits, and a Livescope than i would 7 Loomis NRX. Value is key....but I do think its a fine line. I swear I cant find a sub $100 rod im impressed with......Berkley lightning rod is low key a sleeper decent rod for certain techniques. But yea, i think $150-$250 is that sweet spot for rods.

[quote=bockscar]Whats key to me is how a rod can handle a being cracked against a boats gunnel while fighting a 10lb bass that goes under the boat....and if the company gives free hats/sweaters for catching 10

Don't forget a padded gunnel with pool noodles. Keeps boat from making so much noise rubbing dock. Eventually it prompts breakage of thin walled hollow rods. The word "gunnel " never entered the conversion during warranty experience.

My Fury rods remind me of my Berkley Lighting Rods but with much better reel seats. Do they still make Lighting Rods?

Good point on price. So the $100 rods bought today is equivalent to a $30 rod from back in the day. I have a bunch of rods i paid $100 for in the 90s. So these would be the high dollar rods of today.

Its amazing we can still buy rods for a $100, thanks China.

All my 90s junk is made in USA. Been digging in rod closet,founding lots of rods i had forgotten about and all the good memories of rods that could handle real fish.

Island Jim, those redfish fight so hard compared to these 10lb bass. Can only imagine the " pop" that a redfish could put on some of these bass rods. I bought Falcon saltwater rods for the eyelets, only rods I use those at the coast.wasvin Rockport 2 weeks before the big storm. Need to get back down there. Bass fishing is fun but fishing the bays for redfish and trout is the real fun.

Those trash cans must be the thin wall bass rods, no way they could handle big reds all day.

I have always come back to Falcon Lowriders. Decent rods for the price. Pretty tough. Rare to break one. If you do then you did something to it like closed it in the lid or grabbed the rod blank while swinging in a fish. I never send one back on warranty. If it breaks it’s something I have done and it goes in the trash can. I probably break one every two years. I liked the original brown ones the best. Decent sensitivity.

I don’t like foam grips. Prefer a solid cork grip to a spilt grip. I like their Saltwater Lowriders and now the Clear Water too.

For saltwater I have a Waterloo Slam Mag. Yes, it’s better than the Falcons but I don’t think it’s worth twice the cost. I have a total of 24 rod and reel combinations. Lots of guys have more than that.For Falcon at $160 each thats $4,640. Top price rods could easily be 2 to 3 times that.

My price for a good rod reel combo today is about $350. Falcon with a Curado K is a solid set up. I take care of my stuff. They all are in rod racks in my office. My wife even noticed all the reel handles are all lined up vertical in the rack.

For those that have broken a Falcon Lowrider, are they a thin wall hollow rod? Or full core?
Don't want to bust one of my classic Falcons to found out. Just trying to understand what I have liked and disliked in certain rods over the years.

Thanks guys good feedback and no bashing, very cool

Oh I prefer full cork grips too. Another reason I went to Falcon Coastal XG rods a few years ago

I have started to like a split grip on rods when fishing shallow grass. When hanging in grass,, I use my hand thats usually on reel and touch the rod blank section in between grip and the bait comes through perfectly.