Heddonfrog wrote:Hello, has anyone spent some time on the water with any of the Valkyries? Was interested in the 7-2 Hvy. Thanks
I got the 71H last week and have taken it out for a bit almost every day since. Have not hooked into anything big enough to really test it yet and my experience with it is limited. On one occasion I took it out with the cqt 904 and fished the valkerie most of the morning. As soon as I put it down I accidentally hooked into a baby gator with with the cqt on a bottom bouncing bait, which would have been the perfect test, but oh well. It balances fairly well with a zillion variant. I’ve frogged with it on top of half dead slop and it performed really well. I’ve thrown 1 to 1 and 3/8 oz baits with no issue. You could probably throw a Volkswagen with it. It’s plendy sensitive with bottom bouncing jig style baits and underspins with plastic trailers. I can’t feel a difference between it and new destroyer, but not quite the same thump I feel on cnq, ultima, or EG. It feels and acts like a carbon blank. I can’t figure out what the glass is doing. It has that “shieldz” visible about a third way up the blank and then the blank looks just like a the new destroyers-unsanded, groved appearance. It’s a heavy rod. So, know what your getting into with these—intended big bait; “monster hunting” applications. I get around monsters every now and then, but it’s just as easy to catch dinks with it. Casts well and has enough tip even though there is a stiff backbone. I’ve loved it frogging and throwing owner underspins. I was thinking about the 72H, but decided on the 71H because I’ve never had a spiral wrapped rod and wanted to check that out and I think it was something like 50 g lighter than the 72. The 71 is billed as a MF, and I’d say it seems just a hair on the faster side of that spectrum, which suits me well. Don’t know if that means the 72F will be more of an extra fast? As far as looks go, this in my opinion is the most megabass looking new MB rod since the x7s, although of course it could not be more different. It just looks the part and in a somewhat understated way from a distance. You have to get your nose close to it to see the bling and detail on the lock but, etc., which I like. Very comfortable handle with ECS and generously sized Eva split grip. I am not using the adjustable handle. I just set it at max length and there it will sit. But, the mechanism is robust and so far has stayed put if anyone should find that sort of thing useful. Between the spiral wrap and the skull on the but end, I feel like a cross between a samurai and chuck Norris when fishing it, and maybe that’s why I needed to add it to my current arsenal. It’s the second recent MB rod I’ve bought with a premium price and a big fat made in china sticker on it. Don’t get me wrong; I’m glad to have it, but wonder if they could bring the price down a bit since they seem to have gone more and more to larger scale factory manufacturing processes; I guess I’m speculating.