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Posts: 10
| Thoughts on this rod?
Edited by Mr. RJ 5/24/2010 7:52 AM
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Posts: 439
Location: Lake of the Woods, Morson, Ontario | The rod feels great, but I haven't had a chance to throw anything with it yet. I put a Medussa on and gave it a few bounces in the house and thought it would be a great tool for that. I plan to keep something big and rubbery ready to go whenever I'm out fishing this summer.
I have 2 other fenwick elite techs and I'm pleased with all of them so far.
I also like the different material on the handles of the Elite Techs. |
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Posts: 10
| Justin have you had problems with the black butt cap coming undone and paint chipping on the top eye of the rod?
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Posts: 272
| I just pitched mine for about 7 hours on Sunday.
Thoughts:
I loved it immediately. My first 8'6" rod. It's slightly heavier (seems tip heavy) than my Techna AV 8footer. Definitely made my left forearm sore-er than I figured, especially considering I've already got two part days under my belt so far this year.
The rod is listed as an XH fast, but I would consider it neither, which is exactly what I wanted. Its stout, but bends a long ways down the rod, so I would consider its "speed" as moderate or medium, on a slow-moderate/medium-medum fast-fast scale. It's not whippy, but it's whippier than most any other rod like it. Its alot like a Lamiglas.
My one strong dislike is the butt section is long. Too long for me. So long that I was sticking it inside my sleeveless shirt on almost every F8 and it was getting annoying. I may have to look into what kind of custom length adjusting I can do to alter this. (Read: remove 3-4" of the butt)
Also, I run a fairly light reel. A counter weight system, like they use for pool cues, might help this some. Dunno if any are available.
Most of this is prolly just my initial reaction to the "big boy" poles most of you are already using. I'm used to 8' super lightweight sticks like Avids and Techna AVs. This rod is by no means heavy in weight. But the imbalance of the increase length, slight increase in rod weight compared to the ones I own, and the light reel I use, and its newness to me...makes me say this.
I got mine new on eBay for a steal. I am satisfied with the purchase and the rod. Its a great stick.
-Eric
Edited by muskie-addict 5/24/2010 4:06 PM
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Posts: 1270
| addict, the long butt is exactley why I like it so much. I'm guessing that you hold the fore grip instead of palming the reel, if you do then the butt might be a bit long but nothing a hack saw can't take care of in 5 minutes!
I have used them since last spring and like them much better than the TechnaAV's because of the longer length and longer butt. The amount of guides is also kind of incredible! For DC10's I can't imagine a better set up than this rod with a Toro Winch! |
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Posts: 1185
Location: Iowa | I used one last November throwing pounders, mag dawgs, big crankbaits and double tens and it handled all of them like a dream. Paired up with a Revo Toro Winch it was the best oversized bait set up for casting that I have used. I like it so much I ended up buying the combo for this year. I love the syncork handle as well, you never loose grip of it when it is wet.
Big Perc |
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Posts: 272
| Ya reelman, I'm a foregripper not a palmer. Only palm when I jig. I hate the thought of taking a saw to a brand new couple hundred dollar rod.....so I might just let it really it pee me off first and in the meantime hope to try to get used to it before I find a new blade for the saw.
The other point to consider about the rod is the narrow cork handle, vs the Avid style grips which are much fatter.
Really like the spongy-ness of the rod on the hookset. Happy I got to find out about that aspect on my first day out with it. If you like the quick tip and "pool cue-ness" of an Avid or the Bulldawg series type rods, this is not at all like that. |
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Posts: 439
Location: Lake of the Woods, Morson, Ontario | Haven't had much time on my 3 new fenwicks yet, but did use the 8-6 two piece for sturgeon fishing this spring. I plan to get 2 more for fall trolling as the rod handled sturgeon like a dream. The guy fishing with me didn't even realize it was a two piece until I pointed it out to him. I really liked the 7-6HF jerkbait rod as well when I tried it off the dock for 20 mins.
No noticeable wear on the rod tip of the butt cap yet, but I'm extra anal in taking care of things..mostly because it's impossible to get things repaired easily up here in the wilderness. I'll keep a look-out for that though.
If I hadn't gotten a predator last spring, I'm sure I would be using the 8-6XH the most of any setups. I plan to pair the fenwick with a Toro 60 Winch when Pure Fishing can start filling backorders.
The material for the handle and foregrip is called TAC...different from the syncork I have seen and felt on a lot of the other rods as a replacement for real cork. I really liked it as well for the look and grip. Also like the length of the handle; the longer the better for me if muskie fishing.
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Posts: 10
| Reason I ask is I purchased one for $150 supposedly barely used and it has both issues.
The chippage and loose cap aren't huge issues I just worry it is a sign of things to come. |
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Fenwick Elite Tech 8'6 Big Bait XH