Oh lord...here we go

Dobyns DX701SF w/ Shimano Stradic 1000, 10# Fireline w/ 8# fluoro leader

Is it way too much money for a crappie rig? Probably, maybe

Do I regret spending the $$ ? NO

Why? 'Cause it makes me smile!

Are the spool bearings the same in the E and G series Citicas and Curados?

Ooops, just noticed you were looking for a casting rod and not spinning. St Croix also makes the same rod in a casting model but I don't have any experience with it.

Don't forget the St Croix Premier PS70MLF. Great rod for the $$

Another vote for a Dobyns 1 or 2 power. I owned and extensively fished a pair of Champion 702's and currently fish DX701's and DX742's. The DX701 with a Stradic 1000FI is my "go to" and is the definition of fairy wand. They have plenty of backbone too, I've caught bass to 4#'s while crappie fishing ...

Nice!

I'm not impressed with the G series reels. I'll also qualify that by stating that I haven't fished one yet but after handling them I'm not a fan. IMHO Shimano could have raised the prices on the E series and been better served. Every reel I currently own and fish (~20) is Shimano so I am a fan and b...

Thanks Bantam. One comment and I'm sure you've heard some version of it before.....IMHO Shimano has done a great job with their spinning reels this year, the baitcasters...not so much. I appreciate your support both here and on the other forums you post on.

Day dreaming about what I want next and was looking at the new Stradic versus the Symetre and noticed something odd on the website. In almost every case the Stradics and Symetres run about the same weight in given sizes with the exception of the 4000. The Stradic shows to weigh 10.8 oz and the Symet...

Dobyns. My DX742 is one of the most sensitive and well balanced rods I've ever owned and that includes several St Croix.

Shoulda' known better....oh well...thanks Bantam.

Glad to see you're getting to fish! We've had the screwiest 12 months of weather I can remember here so I'm behind the "power curve" on my crappie. Record drought last summer and now one of the wettest winters on record. We've had like 6" of rain in the last 3 weeks which is great for lake levels bu...

I was playing with a St. Croix Legend Extreme 6'9" ML XF the other day. Very nice, super soft drop shot rod....and they have variants in lesser priced rods. The Loomis 820 DSR/GLX are very forgiving as well. I just bought the Legend Tournament Bass version of this rod on closeout for $160. Love my ...

May be a dumb question but will spools interchange between these in the same reel sizes?

Alot of my local lakes are stocked with hybrids and I love to target them. One of my preferred baits is a 3/4-1 oz jig head with a 4" shad body soft plastic. I've fished this combination on several rods including three different Falcon Cara's, CC6-17, CC7-17, & CCB6-174, 7' MH Shimano Crucial, and m...