P5 super destroyer

[Drakestar]

Got about an hour of time on the water with the rod today. Air was thick with CA wild fire smoke and I was feeling impatient after I didn't draw any bites. Some initial impressions:

It's a cute little rod. That might be a weird thing to say about an F6 (pretty much a Heavy) rod, but at 6'9" it feels like that.
It looks great. Much more understated than the USDM Destroyers, but cool. It's comfortable, as well. Not super light (around 11.5oz with a 6oz reel), but superbly balanced as you would expect.

Sensitivity is great, but not out of this world. Didn't take the FMJ for a side-by-side comparison, but it feels similar. I fished a 1/2oz tungsten jig on braid to leader, and felt everything the way I expected to.
Cranked a bit on the rod and it was surprisingly pleasant; the taper is well-suited for it. Used a Yo Zuri mid-depth crank and a 6th Sense Krush and had no issues. I feel that the rod wouldn't be underpowered for deeper-running ones, either (i.e. the Tactical Crank). Not sure about a Deep 6 and deeper.
Tried a jerkbait, as well, but to no one's surprise the rod is too heavy and stiff for that, even on the Vision 110 +2 that I used. It'll do it, but it's far from the best-feeling jerkbait experience that I've had.
Casting distance was good. It's a short rod, but the tip loads up well to sling out the baits.

Not sure yet how I'll use this rod if I keep it. It's more versatile than the FMJ, and easier to cast at steep banks, but for jigging (the main reason I have either one) there's a lot of overlap.

[Drakestar]

I think I found the right reel to pair this with. Gonna take it out on Monday to fish.

sd1.jpg (35.48 KiB) Viewed 2268 times

High-res: https://www.dropbox.com/s/uli9iyrri2n811p/sd1.png?dl=0

sd2.jpg (36.42 KiB) Viewed 2268 times

High-res: https://www.dropbox.com/s/2e21q9u92vhrv8x/sd2.png?dl=0

sd3.jpg (44.99 KiB) Viewed 2268 times

High-res: https://www.dropbox.com/s/v2wjdzyodxeh8i2/sd3.png?dl=0

[freelancer27]

I think I found the right reel to pair this with. Gonna take it out on Monday to fish.

sd1.jpg
High-res: https://www.dropbox.com/s/uli9iyrri2n811p/sd1.png?dl=0
sd2.jpg
High-res: https://www.dropbox.com/s/2e21q9u92vhrv8x/sd2.png?dl=0
sd3.jpg
High-res: https://www.dropbox.com/s/v2wjdzyodxeh8i2/sd3.png?dl=0

I approve!

[Polkfish1]

I think I found the right reel to pair this with. Gonna take it out on Monday to fish.

sd1.jpg
High-res: https://www.dropbox.com/s/uli9iyrri2n811p/sd1.png?dl=0
sd2.jpg
High-res: https://www.dropbox.com/s/2e21q9u92vhrv8x/sd2.png?dl=0
sd3.jpg
High-res: https://www.dropbox.com/s/v2wjdzyodxeh8i2/sd3.png?dl=0

Yeah; that’s a nice pair for sure. I haven’t been this into the appearance of a megabass rod since P3 era. Sounds like they’re fishing well too.

[Drakestar]

You might still be wondering if you need a P5 Super Destroyer in your life. Well, if you fish quarries and steep banks like these from shore, you absolutely need a P5 Super Destroyer in your life!

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steep1.jpg (142.9 KiB) Viewed 2201 times

Went to a local reservoir (used to be an old mine) and put the combo through its paces, and it was perfect. I could jig a 1/2oz football, then switch to craw-colored squarebills and easily crank the same area on that combo. (I also threw some topwater on it, specifically that new Teckle Blade Waker, and worked some swim jigs through grass.)

Length is awesome for these locations (I'm rather small at 5'6", maybe that helps), sensitivity is on FMJ-level (it doesn’t have that addictive bottom contact an NRX, Zbone etc. have, but it’s so good that it's impossible to miss a bite or not notice all changes in structure), and it's really versatile. It really does do great double duty as a graphite cranking rod; tried a Megabass Deep-Six this time around, and the combo handled even that rather well. (Not the rod you'll buy to be your dedicated deep crank rod, of course, but it did it without issues.) That Metanium is the real deal, btw. Casts great and <knocking on wood> I think it might be impossible to backlash...

Only negative I found is the handle. It looks nice, but because it's totally smooth my grip was slipping when my hands started sweating or I still had some fish slime residue on them.

Caught about a dozen bass on that rod using jigs and squarebills. I also threw deep jerkbaits along the quarry (Vision 110+2 mostly), but I used a different rod. I feel like the SD could have done that, as well, but the tip is too stiff to feel good about it. No giants yet, but they'll come

steepfish.jpg (121 KiB) Viewed 2201 times

[Drakestar]

Threw a pivoting jig a bunch on this rod today and I think I found the perfect match for that technique. Had been looking for a rod that I liked for quite a bit but was never quite happy - tried the FMJ (came the closest), GLX 855 (too heavy), Xtasy 754 (not stiff enough), Powell 733 (too light)...

The Super Destroyer is perfect: the slower taper works well since you're ultimately cranking a jig, the sensitivity is spot on to not get snagged and detect bites, and I like the short length a lot for feeling connected to the bait and bottom. Maybe it helps that I'm only 5'6"

pivotjig.jpg (133.12 KiB) Viewed 2100 times

Getting a bit closer to catching good fish on the rod, this one was around 3.5lbs.

[Thunderblack1984]

Nice Fish!

[goldrod]

Nice catches on your setup.
I’ve heard of guys using this rod for swim jigs as well as other reaction baits.