St. Croix vs Loomis: stirring the pot

[Randingo]

Spent a couple days at the best of the local fishing shows this weekend, gawking at everything and spending too much. I was admiring a couple of the Legend Elite rods at the St. Croix booth and complimenting them on the great price point for such high end graphite and components when the rep let fly with a remarkable claim, stating that the LE is far more sensitive than NRX. Of course, it's not like he had lab tests to back up his claim, but it's got me wondering: for those of you who have fished both, how does the sensitivity compare in your opinion?

Just another quick side note. I asked the Loomis reps about the rumored NRX retooling, and they looked at me like I had two heads. Neither knew a thing about it. I really hope they do an update because I've never been able to get myself to drop that kind of coin on a rod with those creepy Recoil guides...

[uljersey]

This is strictly opinion on my part, but I believe that one's ability to gauge sensitivity comes more from the person than the tool. I'm not discounting the role a rod plays in the equation, I just think there's more to it. A rod that seems "dead" in one person's hands may be a great transmitter in another's hands.

There's too many variables at play to be able to declare one rod "more sensitive" than another.

[Hobie-Wan Kenobi]

Once you get to a point, the gains, if any are so negligible that it wouldn't affect the outcome of you day on the water. I'd say most of us who buy high end gear appreciate the "enthusiast" chase of aquiring high end gear.

Give me a fleet of Daiwa Tatula reels and St Croix Avid series rods and I wouldn't be out fished by myself with my current lineup.

[njbasscat]

Wow, I can't beleive a rep from St Croix said that his rods were the most sensative.

[Randingo]

Wow, I can't beleive a rep from St Croix said that his rods were the most sensative.

I know it's hardly revolutionary, but it's a really bold claim given the price difference. I know that literally everyone who owns the NRX thinks it's the most sensitive rod ever created, but I'm just curious about how people who have spent time with both feel about the comparison.

[KP Duty]

Had green and brown blanked old elites....neither were as sensitive as my old glx's at the time I perceived. I'm surprised croix hasn't launched a proprietary reel seat like others.

[Frosty]

Had green and brown blanked old elites....neither were as sensitive as my old glx's

x2 And my GLX's aren't close to NRX.

[Obz]

I like my st.croix spinning rods but the casting rods leave something to be desired. I don't have a LE but both my 7'MH Avid and Mojo are tip heavy and feel exactly the same even though they have different price points. No 7'H in their line up? The 7'1" MH LE is 5.5oz? I feel like they are missing something from an engineering standpoint. Daiwa and kistler make 7' H rods at 4oz and under.

[smalljaw]

Sensitivity is extremely subjective. I have a Loomis SJR 782 IMX and a SJR 782 GL3 and the GL3 is more sensitive to me and I have a $100 Fenwick Elite Tech Smallmouth that feels a lot more sensitive than both of those. I believe it has to do with how it is held which is directly related to the reel seat. The GL3 for me feels better, the reel seat is better than the IMX version in my hand and the Fenwick reel seat fits my hand perfectly. So when you are on the water and have absolute comfort you are more focused thus you will be able to feel more, the same thing applies to lures and confidence, a lack of confidence messes up your focus and when you lose focus you don't work a bait as detailed as you normally would and you won't feel as much with the rod as you normally should.

[Phippy]

I've fished both the Xtreme and new Elite side by side with my NRX for a season edge clearly goes to NRX. My source told me recently expect a change with NRX lineup later this year.

[Eric Walsh]

Agree 100% with smalljaw.

[KP Duty]

Sensitivity is extremely subjective. I have a Loomis SJR 782 IMX and a SJR 782 GL3 and the GL3 is more sensitive to me and I have a $100 Fenwick Elite Tech Smallmouth that feels a lot more sensitive than both of those. I believe it has to do with how it is held which is directly related to the reel seat. The GL3 for me feels better, the reel seat is better than the IMX version in my hand and the Fenwick reel seat fits my hand perfectly. So when you are on the water and have absolute comfort you are more focused thus you will be able to feel more, the same thing applies to lures and confidence, a lack of confidence messes up your focus and when you lose focus you don't work a bait as detailed as you normally would and you won't feel as much with the rod as you normally should.

I agree that your rod selections could be more sensitive, but I don't believe it would be subjective. You site a couple of more expensive models not being as sensitive as their lower priced counterparts. A rod dyno might show your selections do indeed have less loss of energy/vibration at the reel seat.

[BRONZEBACK32]

One thing I can say about St Croix rods is the QC is a lot better then Gloomis.
But for sensitivity, the NRX is the clear winner...

[smalljaw]

Sensitivity is extremely subjective. I have a Loomis SJR 782 IMX and a SJR 782 GL3 and the GL3 is more sensitive to me and I have a $100 Fenwick Elite Tech Smallmouth that feels a lot more sensitive than both of those. I believe it has to do with how it is held which is directly related to the reel seat. The GL3 for me feels better, the reel seat is better than the IMX version in my hand and the Fenwick reel seat fits my hand perfectly. So when you are on the water and have absolute comfort you are more focused thus you will be able to feel more, the same thing applies to lures and confidence, a lack of confidence messes up your focus and when you lose focus you don't work a bait as detailed as you normally would and you won't feel as much with the rod as you normally should.

I agree that your rod selections could be more sensitive, but I don't believe it would be subjective. You site a couple of more expensive models not being as sensitive as their lower priced counterparts. A rod dyno might show your selections do indeed have less loss of energy/vibration at the reel seat.

A rod dyno may show you have more vibration from one rod to the next but if it doesn't translate to your hands then what good is the added vibration? A rod dyno means nothing if your hands can't feel the vibration, so it comes down to how a rod feels in your hands. My regular fishing partner purchased a Loomis 803S NRX when it came out, he then got a Croix LE 6'10" ML, both rods are extra fast and while his LE is 2" longer they have similar specs and the LE feels a bit more stout. Well he swears to me his LE has a lot more sensitivity than the NRX, I used both and in my hands I couldn't tell, both were really good but I seriously couldn't tell, so why would one be better for me than the other? For my fishing partner, he says he can tell and his LE is more sensitive and it is noticeable but I wonder how much of that is in his head in that he wants to believe that or is he really able to tell the difference. I try to keep an open mind and won't have any expectations when I use a rod, hearing hype may make skew your judgement one way or the other. As I said, a rod dyno may give you the actual results but unless that translates into your hands then what good is it? I know for myself that fishing my partners NRX side by side with the LE that if I was blindfolded I couldn't tell the difference and both rods had the same fluorocarbon line on them so it could have been me but the guy who owns the rods thinks one way while I feel they are no different which makes the case for sensitivity being totally subjective no matter what kind of machine you use and what results come of it.

[BigAl23]

Everyone is going to be different as far as sensitivity goes. At 66 yrs old, I can't "feel" the baits like I did at 30. With that said the most sensitive rod I've ever had was the St Croix Legend Elite, over the two NRX rods I had.