11-01-2013, 07:19 PM
I've actually had nothing but good success with an Ugly Stik, in fact, I regularly recommend them because of their superior rod strength and affordability.
I have encountered the issue with the eyelet popping out of the line guide, but this seems to be a more common occurrence with the older version of the rod, or the cheaper made versions mass produced for Walmart. With that said, I absolutely love the ugly stick lite series, and have not experience the eyelet issues with them. Even better are the inter coastal ugly sticks.
However, as previously mentioned, Shimano makes a fine rod, but be prepared to get your feelings hurt when it's time to check out. You are going to pay for the warranty, and unless you are using specialized tactics specific to salt water, I would argue the price versus the value add. I use Shimano products for saltwater applications, specific their jigging rods, but for my normal heavy fresh water applications (catfishing) I use ugly stik Tiger jigging rods. I use traditional ugly stiks for my light weight stuff.
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I have encountered the issue with the eyelet popping out of the line guide, but this seems to be a more common occurrence with the older version of the rod, or the cheaper made versions mass produced for Walmart. With that said, I absolutely love the ugly stick lite series, and have not experience the eyelet issues with them. Even better are the inter coastal ugly sticks.
However, as previously mentioned, Shimano makes a fine rod, but be prepared to get your feelings hurt when it's time to check out. You are going to pay for the warranty, and unless you are using specialized tactics specific to salt water, I would argue the price versus the value add. I use Shimano products for saltwater applications, specific their jigging rods, but for my normal heavy fresh water applications (catfishing) I use ugly stik Tiger jigging rods. I use traditional ugly stiks for my light weight stuff.
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