Spiritof27 Loc: Lincoln, CA

Normally I wouldn't be asking about these, because when it comes to rods I am a St Croix kinda guy and I figure you get what you pay for, and for the money SC's are hard to beat. But. I've seen on Amazon - which is about the only place you can buy one that I know of - they for the most part have some pretty good reviews. I'm wondering if anyone on here has any experience with them? I've got my eye on one, an ultralight, that goes for 51.99. That's a pretty good deal if they're worth a damn.

Sinker Rig Loc: Tampa area

Ultralight meaning you're either going after small fish or going after records? What's the application?

Spiritof27 Loc: Lincoln, CA

Well, I could give you a dissertation of my views on people who go for those kinds of records, but I'll spare you and just say - small fish. Trout. Mountain streams. An 18 incher would be a monster. That's where I usually fish, weather, fire and California law allowing.

Sinker Rig Loc: Tampa area

For 52 bucks I'd take a chance with that rod. There is so much good fishing stuff nowadays, it's hard to chose wrong

Spiritof27 Loc: Lincoln, CA

Yeah, I was kinda hoping someone on here would have had some experience with em and vouch. Or not. I got so much stuff already, I hate tossing money at something and then find out it's a POS. Like I said, only reason I'm asking is because of the reviews on Amazon. Not sure if those can be trusted or if they pay people to right good things about some of the products they're pushing. And those rods appear to be one of those, because only place I've ever seen em is on Amazon. I know they're made in China, but that's not always a bad thing. Is it? Unless they're made by little kids or slaves. Christ. Having second thoughts for sure now.

Sinker Rig Loc: Tampa area

That's a telescoping rod?

Spiritof27 Loc: Lincoln, CA

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08Z3616B3?pf_rd_r=19NC7FP14E0SYZH0XTB1&pf_rd_p=5ae2c7f8-e0c6-4f35-9071-dc3240e894a8&pd_rd_r=a9acd2a7-cd84-40ca-8bcd-ae133f9b3aaf&pd_rd_w=dsGZO&pd_rd_wg=Z9NK4&ref_=pd_gw_unk

Pretty sure it's a 2 piece. Not a lot of useful information in that add. But now I looked again, I see it's only 31.99 - so you're right I should probably just buy the damn thing and see what I get. Only caveat is that child/slave labor thing. Wouldn't want my money to go to supporting something like that. Like the wicked witch said. Oh what a world, what a world.

Sinker Rig Loc: Tampa area

I checked a bit and all I see is telescoping, a carbon fiber rod. Apparently they've been making them for years and carry a high rating

fishyaker Loc: NW Michigan (Lower Peninsula)

I'm a loyal St. Croix guy for the most part as well...although I do have some oddball stuff that just seems to have landed in my garage over the years. I like the quality of the assembly they do, and for the most part, when they set the "spine" of the rod up with the guide alignment they are pretty darn close to having the rod perform like it should when you bend in the direction of a "fish on" stature.

I have enjoyed the following 2 St. Croix units for many years:

6' fast action Lite Power 4 piece model Premier-PS60LF4
7' fast action Ultra Lite Power 2 piece model PS70ULF2

In a fast paced "assembly" shop, regardless of location, the technicians may not bother to check that sort of thing. I own some other rods that are fairly good brands, and the spine is offset from the line guides...sometimes by as much as 90 degrees! That being said...and I hope I don't jinx myself, but I have never snapped a rod during use due to this specific issue! It probably takes a lot of strain...and that would not be happening with an ultra light set up going after small trout....

I am kind of picky about smooth epoxy over the guide wraps (no dust or sags), tapered guide foot transitions and no sloppy spaces between thread wraps either. Kind of pet peeves of mine as I used to dabble in rod assembly some years ago.

Good luck on your selection. Can you choose anything about the aesthetics...like cork grip versus synthetic...or line guide whipping colors and guide style?

Sinker Rig Loc: Tampa area

We're talking about a $32 rod, but I did enjoy reading what you said

Spiritof27 Loc: Lincoln, CA

ditto

fishyaker Loc: NW Michigan (Lower Peninsula)

Yeah...come to think about it...at that price point it will probably be a great rod regardless of the care that went into it. Frankly, there is a ton of quality stuff made beyond our borders by careful and highly skilled people...and I think we would have to admit that. On the flip side, I do like to invest in the good ole' USA whenever possible, and I see that you lean that way too....

Sinker Rig Loc: Tampa area

Are St. Croix rod blanks made in the US, or China?

Spiritof27 Loc: Lincoln, CA

I have quite a little small collection of rods and reels, and almost none of it is what I would call junk. I have found through the years that, as I said originally, you generally get what you pay for when it comes to fishing equipment. I buy Shimano reels and St Croix rods almost exclusively. I have bought some brands - good brands - of reels that lasted me maybe a year and something went south on them. On the other hand, I have Shimano reels that I bought over twenty years ago that perform today as well as they did coming out of the box. And they are not top of the line reels. Not cheap by any means, but I don't own a Stella either.
I wonder is there a way to check on the production lines of these foreign companies? So as to avoid supporting the kinds of things that I was talking about earlier.

fishyaker Loc: NW Michigan (Lower Peninsula)

Good question! Back in the days when I was acquiring many of their rods (St. Croix) for various applications (25 years ago ish), I recall their advertisements saying "fully made in USA". That made a big impression on me. Now don't take this as gospel, but I believe that over the years they may have undergone some changes on this front.

I am now convicted to do a little homework/research and dig deeper! It is indeed hard to find products nowadays that are made of 100% USA components as well as labor for assembly.