TackleTour

I love the way these rods look and the specs on them...I was so ready to pull the trigger on one or even two of them, even after seeing my fishing partners broken two piece 7’2 Heavy Expride. But in a freak coincidence in the past two days I’ve seen two YouTube fisherman break Exprides, and not doing anything stupid either. They both boat lifted roughly 15” fish but I mean come on! Both were near the top too and I’ve heard they have a solid carbon tip, which leads me to believe they’re vulnerable there at the transition point. One was the Tactical Bassin guys and the other was Lake fork guy. So before I invest in one I figured I would check to see if this is a common occurrence. So please feel free to add your experience with this rod lineup. Thanks. And I can link the videos if needed, but I’m not trying to call out Shimano or start anything, just want to be sure before I purchase. In contrast I’ve never broken a GLX or NRX, and the Expride is supposed to be tougher they claim...

I’ve had a first generation 6’6 medium for 3 years that I use for jerkbaits and topwater’s with no issues at all. Actually one of my favorite rods. Can’t speak on the new gen

no issues with my 3.

cndbasshunter wrote:no issues with my 3.

Very encouraging so far. Do you like the sensitivity and feel of them

I have 2 and love them.

I've got a first gen 7'2 MH and it's been a killer 1/4oz T-rig worm rod. No problems in 3 seasons.

Ok feeling much better about them...I must have just seen to freak instances. They look killer and sound good...I was gonna get the 1610 Medium for finesse and jerkbaits and the 172mh for 3/8 oz jigs and senkos

The 7'2 mh will be great for 3/8oz jigs and senkos.

I always found that if there are breakage issues. They are discussed heavily.

St Croix had issues with real seats and near joint failures on their legen surf rods..and with such a small community using 400-500 surf rods. To hear it as common as it was...was very interesting.

Also keep in mind those guys fish more than most. And things happen....all it takes is a lurehitting the blank the right way and it's compromised

You may not like what I say but I've heard this right from the mouth of a rod designer years ago. He told me that boat flipping fish is wrong, if you break a rod boat flipping a fish it is your fault as the rod isn't designed to be stressed like that. Just like high sticking, boat flipping puts extra stress on the tip section of the rod, and you need to think about the weight. Take your basic MH power rod and pick a 2lb weight off the floor with it, I bet you wouldn't think the rod had a problem if it broke but boat flip a 2lb fish and the rod breaks and then you wonder if something is wrong. In the water that 2lb fish isn't 2lbs, you feel resistance, not weight, well at least not the full weight of the fish. There is a proper way to boat flip a fish but it doesn't take much to have a rod break while doing it, and that is any rod.

I can never understand why guys aggressively boat flip fish over a certain size. In most instances we are fishing for the enjoyment and not in a tournament time crunch where wasting 10 seconds to either net or hand lift the fish into the boat will cost us money. It simply amazes me when i see guys jacking 4lb+ er's into the boat and watching their high end rod snap like a twig...and then hearing them whine and criticize the quality control of that rod company after the fact.

Honestly, shimano makes some excellent quality rods - and I'm talking expride and up (can't comment on rods below the expride in price). With sprial X/hi power X I find the rods fish with a lot of power and tapers seem to be designed to allow the whole blank to absorb energy from fish. With that being said I simply can't see shimano having a breakage problem with their exprides. Operator error is the cause of the majority of rod breakages IMO....

ive had old compre rods, crucials, and now a few exprides and have only broke two crucials both my fault one was line in the trolling motor couldnt get the thumb bar quick enough and snapped the rod, and the other was ceiling fan... but other than my fault i have never broken a shimano rod.

I have four and no complaints. The 6-10 med is my favorite. The actions make them versatile, spiral x makes them very responsive and strong, and they are very sensitive.

surf n turf wrote:The 7'2 mh will be great for 3/8oz jigs and senkos.

How does it compare in power compared to say Loomis MH ratings or St Croix to give me an idea? Especially tip? After all ratings are pretty much subjective. Thanks

Samuel_b wrote:

surf n turf wrote:The 7'2 mh will be great for 3/8oz jigs and senkos.

How does it compare in power compared to say Loomis MH ratings or St Croix to give me an idea? Especially tip? After all ratings are pretty much subjective. Thanks

Lighter than a SC mh and slightly heavier than a Loomis mh. Pretty similar power to an 853 but with a much more moderate action. A little bit stiffer tip than my GLX 843. I feel it has a little more backbone than the 843, too. Keep in mind the 7'2 MH I own is a first gen 2 piece. I have been mostly using it for 1/4oz t-rigged 7-8" worms, and it works wonderfully for that. Also last fall I used it for a 3/4oz lipless crank rod and it worked good but maybe just a bit heavy. Overall it's a good rod but not as lively as a GLX or NRX. I got this rod from Shimano on warranty when I broke my Cumulus 7'1 mh. Thought I got ripped off as far as price goes but this rod was immediately more fun to fish and is a heck of a lot more balanced than the Cumulus could ever have hoped to be.