Thread: New Stick in the Stable

Like I need another rod, but 7+ foot rods are my weakness. I prefer this length from the casting deck of my boat and seem to be more accurate by using these longer rods. So last month I sprang for the 7.6 ABU Garcia in the Eradicator Real Finesse line.
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Here are the unboxing pics, what a beauty. Now I have the 6.10LT in this line and it is an absolute pleasure to cast and retrieve fish with, toss a 1-1.5g jig head it will. Many here on this forum have and use the Slow Taper Special in this particular line of ABU rods and many videos can be found of it, most made by members here. The new 7.6 has a much softer tip than the 6.10, and I really did not expect that with the specs listed. You actually get a little whip wobble action out near the end when shaking the long rod next to the 6.10. So out to the lake it went, and with a 1.2g and 1.3g jighead, I sure did enjoy the fishing experience with this rod.
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Using the Varivas Infinity 8 Area Trout braid I caught several Crappie and a nice Bluegill that was swimming like crazy towards the boat due to being chased by a herd of hungry White Bass. Never seen that before but he was tickled I snatched him out of the water when I did. He was returned later at a different dock and for sure thanked me. The rod, the reel, the line all working flawlessly together, just a pure joy. Soft tip, an actual deeper bending curve than the shorter 6.10, and the lightweight reel seat make this rod very pleasant to cast and retrieve.

Second trip out was Friday, my birthday and you can see some of the pics on the Cooking board.
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The handle is the same as the 6.10 and I actually prefer this style for ease of cleaning. With the 1.2g jighead casting distance was good and I felt several short strikes on the tail of the Nikko worm. Fishing for Gills I actually scored several Crappie on this bait and the bite this time of year is not the thump, but just a feel of dead weight on the lure and all that was necessary to set the hook was to raise the rod tip and begin reeling fast. You can see Randy do this on most of his videos using the STS. These rods, with good sharp hooks, set the hook for you. The extremely fine diameter Varivas Braid just seems to flow through the small guides with ease and absolutely no noise. Soft seems to be the recurring word, but with backbone, is how I would describe this rod. Super lightweight and a small diameter blank are standard for this line of rods. No big fish have been fought on this rod yet, but I will report on the feel of the first bully that wants play. ABU has upped their game last few years, check them out if you get a chance.


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