Favourite Spinning Reel/Rod

[Beazer]

Took a look using the search functions and surprisingly couldn't find this topic.

Basically, whats your favourite spinning reel that you use?
Whats your favourite rod?
What are they used for?Pike,Wally's, Trout etc.
Prices?

Just seeing what everyones favourites are as I have to replace my Pike setup and wouldn't mind a little community feedback on their gear.

I was leaning to the Quantum series and around $100 for each or maybe more for the rod, less for the real. Might change though lol.

[Cal]

Not a fan of Quantam, every quantom and zebco (I think their affiliated) reel I've ever owned I've had problems with. My favorite spinning rod I had for pike/walleye was a 7 foot shakespear Agility, super fast action and a realy stiff backbone, now I'm using a shimano sojourn which is almost as nice but less backbone. When I break this one I'm going to get a 7' ugly stick lite, and I mean it this time.

For reels I like my phleuger trion. Shimano, Abu garcia, and Mitchel also make some realy good reels

[curler2]

I used to work for the company that supplies Walmart,Canadian Tire,UFA and others with their fishing and hunting products.I have used a Quantum for 7 years and it is the best reel ever.I used to get product to test every year and nothing came close unless you got into the $150.00 range.As far as rods go for pike an Ugly Stik is still hard to beat.

[TroutHunter]

For my Pike setup I use a 7' medium heavy Shimano Crucial with a Shimano Stradic 4000 reel , it's awesome. I also have the same rod in a baitcaster with a Curado BC reel which I'm starting to like more and more for big pike.

[DarkAisling]

Well, I'm a big fan of Shimano.

But, my pike/walleye setup is this one: http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_100394_100003002_100000000_100003000_100-3-2 in a 7' m/h.

I'm really pleased with it, and I paid $75 CAD for at BPS here in town (which is a great price point). I do have to add a caveat though . . . I've only caught PCR walleye with it, and those are pretty small. I have a lot of confidence in it, so I'm sure it'll handle the big guys well, too.

My only beef with it is that it has forward drag. I much prefer rear drag.

I bought my #1 son a quantum setup (https://www.thefishinhole.com/index.cfm?imageSku=3865117&enlargeSkuz=25711&C=031&GETPRODUCTSBYCLASSG=031&D=03), and I'm not really excited about the way it performs. I picked it up for 1/2 price, and if I'd paid full price for it I might be kind of annoyed.

We have a couple of other older Quantum reels, and they're alright, but there is nothing noteworthy about them.

I don't think I'll purchase Quantum again, but Shimano will get my money any day. Daiwa is proving itself around here, too.

We've got loads of gear . . . I'm not going to cover all of . . . just what might be relevant to your search.

[Cal]

For my Pike setup I use a 7' medium heavy Shimano Crucial with a Shimano Stradic 4000 reel , it's awesome. I also have the same rod in a baitcaster with a Curado BC reel which I'm starting to like more and more for big pike.

Medium heavy action and baitcasting is deffinatly the way to go for a specialised pike rig. They do not cast light crankbaits and jigs very well though and are not very versitile which why I no longer have one. Both the agility and the sojourn double as a trout rod quite nicely on those rare ocasions that I am not fly fishing. And dont worry about handling big walleye, I caught one nearing the 70cm mark last night. I would rate the fight somewhere between a large weed and a small pike which is typical. When a big pike bites, well thats what your drag is for.

[Mudslide]

I love Shimano too.
I have a 5ft-9 one piece Compre med action, extra fast tip, rod, balanced perfectly with a 2500 Stradic that's like butter for jigging. I use a 6ft-10 Med-Heavy 2 piece Compre with a Shimano Catala 201 round baitcaster for pike. I also like to use 8ft steelhead/salmon river rods with my 6500 ambassadeur for bottom bouncing.

[slingshotz]

I've always been a Quantum reel fan but their newer products now seem to be less durable and more cheaply made. Picked up a new Shimano ultralight reel at the TFH sale and have been very impressed.

My rods have almost been exclusively Berkley Lightning Rods or other Berkley models. Never had a problem with any of them and they have been abused pretty badly.

[Geezle]

Fortunately I've never really seen any particularly bad reviews for anything from the 'major' brands. That being said, the two rods I have are on the lower end of the price scale, and I don't really have any experience with more high end stuff.

My lighter rod is a 6'6" medium action Shimano Sojourn...probably the same one Cal has, and I really haven't logged a lot of time using it yet, but so far it seems pretty decent. I have a Shimano Sidestab 2500 on it, and for the price it's a nice little reel. It's got a rear drag setup, if that's something that's important to you.

My beefy rod for sturgeon is a 7' Rhino medium/heavy with a Shimano Solstace 4000 reel. I've heard from several people that the Rhino is basically the same as an Ugly Stick, but about half the price. Decent action and plenty strong.

[lolanr]

I use 3 setups. 1. 6.6 M fast carbomax with a mitchell reel I hate. It is the newer black and silver one. I hate it! 2. 7' southbend with an Okuma something reel. I like it alot. The rod is fantastic and I use it for everything it is a ML fast. This rod was a replacement. I broke a tip on and old cheap SB rod and called to see if they would sell me a replacement and they said send it back and we will give you an new one. No questions asked. They paid return shipping. 3. 6'6" St Croix Triumph UL fast with a Quantum Array. I really like this rod and the reel is okay. Did a great job landing a 60cm walleye the other night. I am looking to upgrade to a couple Pflueger supremes for my medium rods.

Any one use the Fenwick elite tech walleye rods. They are my next splurge purchase.

[walker197]

i have 3 setups: 6'6" berkly gorilla rod (medium) with an abu cardinal 3, daiwa 6'6" (light) with an abu specialist, and a kufa 6'6" (medium) with a kufa reel. i've had the cardinal for 4 years now, with no problems, i run 12 lb mono for the pike, the specialist i've had for 2 years, no probs as well, running 8 lb braid, for the walleye, and the kufa rig was new this year, and was reasonable on the wallet, but i run 20 lb mono on it. i've killed every quantum in less than one summer, never had a shimano though...

[bsnyder]

:wave:We carry 2 sets of 5 rods (5 each ) for tournys and they are mostly Quantim with a couple of phlugers reels .Luv them all for strength and more importantly sensitivity, St Croix is my second choise.:wave:

[pecker]

Well, I'm a big fan of Shimano.

But, my pike/walleye setup is this one: http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_100394_100003002_100000000_100003000_100-3-2 in a 7' m/h.

I'm really pleased with it, and I paid $75 CAD for at BPS here in town (which is a great price point). I do have to add a caveat though . . . I've only caught PCR walleye with it, and those are pretty small. I have a lot of confidence in it, so I'm sure it'll handle the big guys well, too.

My only beef with it is that it has forward drag. I much prefer rear drag.

I bought my #1 son a quantum setup (https://www.thefishinhole.com/index.cfm?imageSku=3865117&enlargeSkuz=25711&C=031&GETPRODUCTSBYCLASSG=031&D=03), and I'm not really excited about the way it performs. I picked it up for 1/2 price, and if I'd paid full price for it I might be kind of annoyed.

We have a couple of other older Quantum reels, and they're alright, but there is nothing noteworthy about them.

I don't think I'll purchase Quantum again, but Shimano will get my money any day. Daiwa is proving itself around here, too.

We've got loads of gear . . . I'm not going to cover all of . . . just what might be relevant to your search.

i also am a fan of the rear drag -- you can actually set it as you're dragging your fish in . i'm a pike fisher and my shimano 2000 & medium ugly stik rod with 12# test is all i need . if i lose one i'll blame it on the barbless hooks .:lol::wave:

[Beazer]

Great responses guys.
I already have a nice shimano baitcasting set up for the troll.

Sounds like Shimano has a great following and Quantum is so so.

I was contemplating getting a Pfleuger President or the Supreme.
However I might take a more serious look at Shimano now.

Sounds like the rod's pretty much covered. Good ole ugly sticks eh.

Gonna stop by Wholesale Sports tommorow and see what'll work.

on a side note, anyone try the pfleuger president rod?

[Waxy]

Beazer,

Do a quick search here, this topic has been covered a lot, and there's far more good info to be had.

Myself, I'm a Shimano guy almost exclusively, and my only advice would be to buy the best stuff you can afford, regardless of brand. You'll have it a long time, and the few extra $$$ up front for top quality gear will pay off in the long run - both in dollars and cents, and your enjoyment of fishing.

Waxy

P.S. I'm not a fan of the Ugly Stik... :D

[SCRUB]

my current setup is a berkley cherrywood 7' medium with a shimano 4000 reel and love the combo, i do have a couple back up rods but what they are is not coming to me right now.

[craigmid]

I have two go to set ups the first is a 6' G. Loomis G3 ML/Ex-Fast with a Shimano Stradic Mg 2500 for jigging and lighter spinners, and a 6' 4" Shimano Crucial MH/Fast paired with a Shimano Citica 201 baitcasting reel for trolling and fighting the big pike. I couldn't be happier with both set ups.

[BigT]

Shimano Quickfire reels and Berkley rods, you can't go wrong.

[Cal]

Great responses guys.
I already have a nice shimano baitcasting set up for the troll.

Sounds like Shimano has a great following and Quantum is so so.

I was contemplating getting a Pfleuger President or the Supreme.
However I might take a more serious look at Shimano now.

Sounds like the rod's pretty much covered. Good ole ugly sticks eh.

Gonna stop by Wholesale Sports tommorow and see what'll work.

on a side note, anyone try the pfleuger president rod?

Every pfleuger spinning rod I've ever played with had a very slow action and flexed almost to the butt. I like fast action where at least the last 3rd of the rod is very stiff, dont know that I've played with the President though so maby its better. The ugly stick, Shimano sojourn, and berkley lightning rods cost under $50 and IMO their action is better than any pfleuger rod I have tried, most of them costing around twice that amount.

[spudislander]

I bought a Rapala Magnum 6'6" Medium Heavy casting rod for pike this spring. I was setting up my baitcasting reel with a spoon and the rod broke in two below the second guide. It hadn't even been in the boat yet. I replaced it with a Shakespeare rod. My spinning set up is a Rapala rod and reel. I'm on my second Rapala spinning rod though, the tip broke off the first one (seeing a trend here) and it was replaced under warranty.

[Chris84]

The set up I typically use is a light action 5'6 uglystick with a shakespeare 3000 reel. It's not the most high end combo out there, but I've had it for 4 or 5 years and have used it A LOT!!! It has never let me down.

[jesse34567]

yeah topic of this nature as been made already

anyway favorite combo is

Reel: Shimano Citica 200E

Rod: quantum pt energy

Price= roughly $325

Main Applications: Spinnerbaits, topwater, soft plastics and crankbaits

[Beazer]

I searched and couldn't find it guys.
Usually I search first so I don't necropost but just couldn't find it for the life of me.

If I bought what I could afford, I'd have a $1k setup. Problem is I don't fish tourney's and IMO I should be able to make due with a 2-300 dollar setup. Particularly if I'm going to be having multiple setups.:)

[cribfisher]

If you bait fish at all I just bought an Okuma avenger baitfeeder and it is great. It has a secondary drag so you flip the lever at the back and it has a micro drag that more or less free spools with a dial you can fine tune tension. When you get a hit the fish can run with little to no resistance and you either flip it off manually or just start to reel and set the hook with full drag.
As far as rods go I find that with braided lines the type of rod is not really as impotant as finding an action you like. When I used to fish with mono I spent more time and money when buying a rod as I found the rod has to do more work.

[.millartime.]

i bought a bass pro shop graphite med action rod and i love it! it only cost 35 dollars! its also bullett proof that bad boys caught a lot of fish! but i put a quantam reel on it and all it does is tangle up on me!!

[Cal]

i bought a bass pro shop graphite med action rod and i love it! it only cost 35 dollars! its also bullett proof that bad boys caught a lot of fish! but i put a quantam reel on it and all it does is tangle up on me!!

lol the name says it all.

[Waxy]

I searched and couldn't find it guys.
Usually I search first so I don't necropost but just couldn't find it for the life of me.

If I bought what I could afford, I'd have a $1k setup. Problem is I don't fish tourney's and IMO I should be able to make due with a 2-300 dollar setup. Particularly if I'm going to be having multiple setups.:)

Lucky you! You don't need to fish tourney's to appreciate quality gear.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with the setups mentioned already, but if you've got the means, then look at some of the higher end stuff, you do get what you pay for the most part. The Shimano Sustain, Stradic and Saros are a big step up in reels. For my money, the Stradics are the best, the new CI4 looks awesome, but the older FI's and MgB's are great reels too, I've got several of them. There might be some sweet deals to be had on the FI's this fall or spring when the CI4's come out, I know I'll be watching.

http://www.shimano.com/publish/content/global_fish/en/us/index/products/reels/spinning/Stradic_MgFB.html

As for rods, I love the Shimano Crucials, but St. Croix and Fenwick make some sweet rods too.

The Stradic/Crucial combo is going to put you well over the $300 mark, but it's a sweet setup, and you'll be using it for a long time. The same goes for any non-Shimano setup in that price/quality range.

As a general comment, I see a lot of people using big reels - 3000 and 4000 series. IMHO, you really don't need a reel that big for AB fishing, the added cranking power and line capacity are rarely an issue, but the extra weight and bulk are, especially on long days of fishing.

Waxy

[Geezle]

As a general comment, I see a lot of people using big reels - 3000 and 4000 series. IMHO, you really don't need a reel that big for AB fishing, the added cranking power and line capacity are rarely an issue, but the extra weight and bulk are, especially on long days of fishing.

Waxy
...unless you're fishing for sturgeon ;)


edit: at least this is what I've been lead to believe...

[jrcw]

I've had good experiences with Quantum and Daiwa reels. For rods I'm a big fan of St. Croix, great action, feel and a lifetime warranty. Their Avid series I think is a bargain for the performance.

[Beazer]

As always great info guys.
I took alot of what you guys said and ran with it.

Surprisingly I actually spent ALOT less than I was planning to spend.

Went and saw Trevor at Wholesale and he set me up with a Pflueger Asaro and a Rapala TS2 6'10" 2 piece.

I remember plenty of guys raved about the Floogers(tired of spelling it the other way) and the Shimano`s. He was of the opinion that unless I was going to buy top shelf Shimano`s, not to go with them. He`s inclined to believe the Asaro is damn near as good as any expensive Shimano you can find but at half the price at least. He has a similar setup as does his pops for pike at clear lake. Exactly what I`m looking for.

Then he led me too the Rapala`s...now I remember all the bad things that have been said about em and I know the reels sucked.

BUT...

His rapala rep gave him a brand new model this year to test(some sort of contest for the sports guys). He explained to me that they have had some terrible stuff the past 3 years but he was astounded by the quality. Someone upstairs must have been listening to the consumers it seems!

Great guy, great service as usual.

Just waiting to test out the stuff.
Bought me a nice flooger trout rod too for my avocet.

ps-anybody have luck with the pelican spoons. I was tempted and bought one.

[Cal]

.
As a general comment, I see a lot of people using big reels - 3000 and 4000 series. IMHO, you really don't need a reel that big for AB fishing, the added cranking power and line capacity are rarely an issue, but the extra weight and bulk are, especially on long days of fishing.
Waxy

If your using 10 or 15lb mono the bigger spools on the 4000 work much better. Tried using 10lb mono on my wife's mitchel advocet and the tight coils made the line pretty unmanageable. As for weight, unless the reel is excessively large or the rod very short I like the way a larger reel brings the ballence point closer to your hand rather than out towards the rod tip. I find a 4000 serries reel to often actualy be less tiring due to the better ballence.

[Waxy]

If your using 10 or 15lb mono the bigger spools on the 4000 work much better. Tried using 10lb mono on my wife's mitchel advocet and the tight coils made the line pretty unmanageable.

I can see that for sure.

I rarely if ever use mono any more these days though. If I'm casting or trolling big lures for pike (about the only time I'd use 10 or 15lb test line), I'll be using Fireline and maybe a fluorocarbon leader, much better casting distance that way. If I'm trolling, where weight's not as big a deal because the rod is probably in the holder anyway, the Fireline gets the lure to the desired depth with a lot less line out behind the boat. On top of that, the Fireline (or any superline) is just stronger and more abrasion resistant.

Also, I'd probably be using a baitcasting reel for that application.

Using superlines does require a good rod and drag system though.

As for weight, unless the reel is excessively large or the rod very short I like the way a larger reel brings the ballence point closer to your hand rather than out towards the rod tip. I find a 4000 serries reel to often actualy be less tiring due to the better ballence.

I guess it depends where you hold the rod, and the weight of your rod.

A good quality one piece 6-7' graphite rod weighs next to nothing, holding the tip up should be pretty much effortless, again, depending on where you hold the rod to determine the balance point.

I like to hold it with 2 or usually 3 fingers in front of the reel so I can work the bail easier and hold the line when rigging. In that case, the extra weight of the large reels is major nuisance IMHO, because it's dead weight you're holding up. I think regardless of where you hold the reel and the balance point, those extra ounces (lots of them in some cases) wear you out over the course of a day's casting, jigging, etc..., and IMHO, they decrease the sensitivity or your rod/reel combo as well.

To each their own though, everyone has their own recipe for success, and I don't claim to be an expert, only passing on my opinion based on my experience.

Waxy

[Cal]

I use 10 lb test for most of my walleye fishing cause I fish in alot of snag infested holes and going any lighter gets pricy. I have used the super braids but I dont like them. I do use spiderwire on my baitcasting rig but still disslike it.

I guess untill my last couple rods I they were cheap and heavy and benifited from matching a large reel to a long rod. Your probably right that with the light weight of rods these days you could use a smaller reel. Just a matter of habit by now I guess. Probably a Rhyno or Ugly stick would have enough weight to benifit from matching the reel size to get a better ballence though.

[thegaddiman]

I guess you can say i'm a Quantum fan, I've got:

- 5'6" Xtra lite rod w/ Pulse10 Spinning reel
- 6' Xtra lite rod w/ Energy PTi10 Spinning reel
- 7' Catalyst Med/Heavy rod w/ Energy PTi10 Spinning reel
- 6'6" Tour Edition PT Med rod w/ Tour Edition PTi10 Spinning reel
- 6'6" Tour Edition PT Baitcast Med rod w/ Tour Edition PT Baitcast reel

I use both 6lb Fireline and Spiderwire on all my reels, except for the baitcast, I haven't found a mono I really like yet. I like the size 10 reels being that I mainly fish from shore and feel that 125yds of line is plenty enough.

And I've purchased all of the rods and reels at The Fishin' Holes annual August sales, I hate paying full price on anything. And with the savings, I blow all of that on lures.

[benamen]

My favourite combo is my Shimano Stella FD on a 6.5 ft Loomis G3 rod. Excellent drag on this reel.

[rk4]

i use a uglystick lite for pike but for walleye i just got a g loomis with a fliping switch reel. i also use the pfluger supreme xt

[thorne]

Definately got to give my vote to Quantum...own pretty much one of everything now in the spinning catagory from low to the tour series and they all are awsome! Had a lower end one for about 10 years and it worked great until it finally gave out last year so I started going up the scale and they kept getting better. As for rods since the reel treated me so good I am starting to use Quantum higher end rods...energy series. Time will telll if they match teh reels! As for mid range you cannot beat a good uglystick for warenty and preformance in the med to heavy catagory or the Berkly cherrywood series for an ultralight.! Just my 2 cents, but both those rods have gone to hell and back for me over the past 12 years or so! PS had beers cant spll!!!:evilgrin:

[mooseknuckle]

I'm cheap so when I found the Abu Garcia Ultra cast combo I bought the 2000 and the 4000 got them both for $70 at Crappy tire. I think they still have them on sale right now for $35. See I'm bad on equipment so when i step on it or drop it in the lake it doesn't hurt as much. But honestly they are some of the best spinning combo's I've ever used IMO. I've hauled in many of pike from 1lb to 15lb. And jigging for walleye they seemed to work well but I think one must always factor in line choice I always spend the cash on line.:wave:

[Crossfire]

i have always used shakespeare so i would personally go with a 7' medium action ugly stik lite they are a really good rod expecially for the price and have excellenmt backbone for the price. the cork hand is nice too for 50$ you can go wrong i have caught everything from trout walleye perch whitefish etc with my ugly stik there great.. For i reel i personally use a shimano stradic 3000fi that i bought at bass pro for $200.00 if you dont want to spend this much s shimano saros300f is also an excellent value for around 130$ hope this helps

[AlbertanGP]

What the heck, I'll bite. All of my rods are G-Loomis rods. I was getting a little worried when no one mentioned them because they are out of this world rods. My favorite is also my oldest...my primary jigging rod...a G-Loomis SJR-722 GLX with a Pflueger 9025XT magnesium reel. It still makes me giggle every time I let a friend use it for the first time.

[mistamikel]

7ft mitchell rod with quantom reel for lakes
6'6 uglystick rod/reel for lill bit of everything
5'6 4 piece eagle claw trail master with mitchell reel for light spinners (the day I got it I went to Bowness and caught a nice brown...I knew right then that the rod was a keeper hahaha)

[TexasTornado]

I am amazed nobody mentioned St. Croix?

I have a L & M spinning St. Croix Premier & a MH & H casting St. Croix Premier. I use a 9'6" Shimano Talora for trolling / downrigging all equiped with Shimano reels of different makes.

St. Croix Premier is the best bang for the buck. I have yet to fish a rod that feels even remotely close to a St. Croix.

[javlin101]

I have 2 setups

General
QUANTUM CATALYST SPINNING REEL CT30PTI-A
Berkley 7' C30 Cherrywood rod fast action, had this one for 20 years now& by far my fav. It has been abused beyond belief over 20 years but still works & looks great.
8lb Black Spiderwire

Heavy
Quantum Accurist baitcasting reel
Berkley 7'6" Lighnting MH rod
30lb green spot braided line

Both are new setups for me this year but like the feel of them so far. Will have to see how they work out on the lake.

[Jeromeo]

I picked up a Pflueger ASARO a few weeks ago. I used to use DAIWA and never had a problem. The salesman showed the Pfleuger reels and I fell in love. So smooth and awesome for the money. I went home and threw it on my old rod..... didn't look that good on the old rod. I went back and looked at some rods and really like the feel of those Fenwick rods. I will be picking one up soon. I haven't tried the combo but i am pretty confident that I will be super happy with the setup.

[Beazer]

My current setups include:
Pflueger Asaro on Rapala TS2 rod(rod's killer, unlike the junk they made before/after) w/ 15lb Power Pro
Pflueger Trion on Abu Garcia Stamina(need new jigging rod) w/ 10lb Spiderwire Invisi-Braid
Pflueger President on Pflueger President w/ 10lb Stren Sinking Braid
Mitchell Avocet II on Shimano Voltaues w/10lb Sufix Fuse
Next:
Pflueger Supreme or Abu Garcie 7075x(if I can find one).

I heard Fenwicks are a real nice touch like a Loomis, but not as much money?
What would you guys recommend for a pure pike "casting" rod with 20-30lb PP running through it? Sounds like Cherrywoods and Ugly Stik's but maybe something a little different with fast action and good backbone like a Pike rod should have and I don't mind spending more money.lol

[Fireline]

St. croix legend series are great rods. Combine with phleuger for spinning reels and Diawa or Abu reels for baitcasting set ups.
I don't believe there is a better reel for the money right now than phleuger president.

Beware of quantum snapshot reels. I bought a #20 last spring and loved it. thought it was great for the money, so I bought two more for my kids and by the end of summer all three had the anti reverse stripped out of them.

[luckyme]

for reels i have abu garcia in my inventory.504 albi and 606(they graded for salt water too as i used them for peer,surf fishing when i travel back to Florida) 504 albi paired it 7' medium Shimano FX and 6,6' berkley lightning d-shock for perch,walleye,pike and finesse fishing using from florocarbon 8lb,mono 14lb and braided 20lb to cover any fishing situation for Alberta water.i don't used my 606 paired with 8' FX MH lots here since i intended for bigger freshwater species like cats (i used for walleye and pike too). shimano fx rods is not that expensive rod but yet it has not let me down yet, if i do brake one it will be easy to replace and just toss in the back of the car after fishing trip.
i am just a weekend angler not for tournament and so far these setup work just well for me.:wave:

[TJG]

Shimano Stradics
Mitchall Advocats


G-loomis
Fenwick
Shimano Crucial - rods

G-loomis rod and Diawa baitcasting outfit

Also have a few Penn line counters for the big water trolling.

[S.A.S]

I got a RSX1000 with 6 lb test. 5'6 Light rod.

[jeprli]

At the moment I'm enjoying...

Walleye - Lamiglass XMG50 8'9" 1/4-1 1/2oz(), xfast action coupled with 2500 Ci4 - this one I assembled myself, split grip, lightest/strongest guides possible, under wrapped and finished of with kevlar thread for strimers, looks like a samurai sword ;) ...got the last blank of this rating from Mudhole
(St. Croix IPC Avid 1/4-1 1/4oz 9', as a backup, no more in production)

Pike - St. Croix Wild River 8'6" 1/2-2oz coupled with Daiwa Regal XiA 3500
-Browning citori baitcaster 8' 2oz coupled with quantum accurist

Trout - Rapala F2 ultralight with Sedona 500 reel
- Shimano Clarus Steelhead series with Symetre 2500

I just have to get a Fenwick rod or blank, that's only thing missing...maybe if I make it to Netherlands this year I'll acquire some Gamakatsu Cheetah"R" rods, superlight, superstrong, sensitive and way cheaper than a G-loomis(so GD overpriced)