Erin, go with the best you can afford even if it is just buying 2 at a time.I've never used Pst's, Southern Crappie, or Capps Coleman rods so I can't comment on those. I use 12' West Points and 2 8 ft.Uglystik striper rods in med./lt. action for cranks when pulling. I use 4 12ft. West Points for pushing cranks with 3 plus oz. of lead.I like 14' rods for spidering and they are long enough considering trying to net fish and getting your baits away from the boat.I have a 17.5ft. boat so anything longer would be a hassle for me especially under a Sportsbrella.Download the Grizzly Jig catalog and check out what they have and pricing.Like Rees said you need to put your hands on the rod you are considering. Can that same rod serve you with a lot of different functions in 1 rod?If you buy cheap, later you will want something better.Trying to redeem any money back from those cheaper rods will be tough because we all have a garage full of them ourselves.If the fish are really biting you can catch em on a bamboo cane pole.There are a lot of products that catch more fishermen than fish!!!Just my .