My son is entering his 3rd year of high school bass fishing here in Texas, and we need to add to our arsenal of rods. His current rods are mostly JB3 warriors series and they've done a good
Job so far. We've had a couple minor issues with guides and the cork, and also we had one rod blank brake. The owner of JB3 replaced it at no charge which was much appreciated. Overall I'd say they are good rods but I'm curious as what othwrs are fishing that do tournament fishing.

I've always been a leisure fisherman and didn't realize how much wear and tear happens when you fish hard for 8-9 hours straight during tournaments. Thank you in advance.

Also, Reel Suggestions would be great too. So far my shimano curado 200 dc is my favorite. Most of our reels are the shimano mgl 70

Being in the industry for 40 years I see what a lot of guides, pro fisherman and tournament fisherman use. Understand that the guides/ pros and some regional tournament guys all have sponsors and discount deals and therefore push the brands they are sponsored by or get discounts from. They change sponsors, they suddenly change their opinions of who they think is the best.
Nowadays so many well known old rod companies have Chinese blanks ….that other than name, many are the same.
In order of preference by what I see guys that I respect and make their living using are the following rods:
1.) St. Croix Legend, Victory, Avid Series. (Made in the US).
2.) Kistler Rods
3.) G.Loomis/Shimano (Shimano owns Loomis)

Reels:
1.) Shimano Curado in any Series
2.) Daiwa Tatula Series.

That's not to say there aren't other good brands like Dobyns, Duckett or Waterloo.

There are lots of individual opinions for sure.

Money is no object and you want the best, for me it's G. Loomis and Shimano. There are a bunch of both rods and reels that will not only work but are awesome, but these two can't be beat imo.

G Loomis rods are really nice bass rods. I have way too many. I personally think the GLX for worms/jigs are great. I really do not see the value in the NRX models. IMX for specific applications are just fine like throwing a chatterbait or a frog for example.

Start focusing on the presentation and what kind of lure. Then match the perfect rod length and action, to the very specific line type and size, to the retrieve ratio of the reel for that one lure presentation. Then that setup is for that lure.

Repeat for topwaters, crankbaits, finesse worms, Carolina rig, pitching and flipping, spinner baits, chatterbaits etc.

Repeat again for different weight lures or heavier/lighter structure.

One specific targeted set up for each specific.

I think Lews has surpassed Shimano years ago....

I moved on to Lew's from Shimano several years back as well

Good dad on getting him into the fishing and the high school tournaments!!
Please continue to teach him to learn to fish and not stare at a livescope all day!

Gunny456 said:

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Good dad on getting him into the fishing and the high school tournaments!!
Please continue to teach him to learn to fish and not stare at a livescope all day!

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Aint that the truth! I dont bass fish much but still go to Toledo Bend a lot. What used to be boats with two guys blind casting, conversing, reading the signs, and actively fishing has turned into most boats with a single guy on the bow, trolling motoring around, staring at the front deck all day long. I know it's effective but almost seems like a giant step back.

To the OP, as far as gear, If youre looking for anything in 300 size, the new Shimano tranx 300B will crush big fish. I have one that only gets used offshore. Lots of snapper over 30", king mackeral, big bull reds, etc. Its still smooth as can be and cast like a dream. It should last a lifetime of inshore freshwater use.

G.Loomis was bought by Shimano in the late 1990's. Gary Loomis started his new company after the no compete with Shimano ran out and its now called EDGE rods.

Gunny456 said:

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G.Loomis was bought by Shimano in the late 1990's. Gary Loomis started his new company after the no compete with Shimano ran out and its now called EDGE rods.

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Yep. The Edge rods are made on Northfork blanks. I build rods on the blanks regularly. They are made in the USA, and go on sale fairly frequently through their website Northfork composites. Salt Grass builds their rods on these blanks too. They are, or were, a sponsor on Texags.

One thing to note, high modulus rods have incredible sensitivity and are super light, but they need to be taken care of. Small nicks from hitting them on a branch or simply allowing them to bounce around together on the boat ride will result in broken rods. Use rod socks and avoid laying them on the boat where they can be stepped on.

Edit. Sawgrass rods

Gunny456 said:

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Being in the industry for 40 years I see what a lot of guides, pro fisherman and tournament fisherman use. Understand that the guides/ pros and some regional tournament guys all have sponsors and discount deals and therefore push the brands they are sponsored by or get discounts from. They change sponsors, they suddenly change their opinions of who they think is the best.
Nowadays so many well known old rod companies have Chinese blanks ….that other than name, many are the same.
In order of preference by what I see guys that I respect and make their living using are the following rods:
1.) St. Croix Legend, Victory, Avid Series. (Made in the US).
2.) Kistler Rods
3.) G.Loomis/Shimano (Shimano owns Loomis)

Reels:
1.) Shimano Curado in any Series
2.) Daiwa Tatula Series.

That's not to say there aren't other good brands like Dobyns, Duckett or Waterloo.

There are lots of individual opinions for sure.

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I second Gunny on all of the above. I have a couple tatula's and they're super easy to maintain/oil if one starts screamin. One of the pros, forgot which one, has a YouTube video on what to do for maintenance etc. They would be perfect for a high school kid to easily maintain and not have to remember the order of 100 parts to oil a spool or bearing when you put it back together.

If you are looking for out of the norm brand for rod look at pheonix, one of the local tackle shop owners recommended them a few years back and I bought a flippin stick cause it was pretty lol and my favorite way to fish. Been a good rod, not sure if they still make em or not. I have three falcon rods I use a lot and are my go to.

Bassfishin17 said:

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Gunny456 said:

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Being in the industry for 40 years I see what a lot of guides, pro fisherman and tournament fisherman use. Understand that the guides/ pros and some regional tournament guys all have sponsors and discount deals and therefore push the brands they are sponsored by or get discounts from. They change sponsors, they suddenly change their opinions of who they think is the best.
Nowadays so many well known old rod companies have Chinese blanks ….that other than name, many are the same.
In order of preference by what I see guys that I respect and make their living using are the following rods:
1.) St. Croix Legend, Victory, Avid Series. (Made in the US).
2.) Kistler Rods
3.) G.Loomis/Shimano (Shimano owns Loomis)

Reels:
1.) Shimano Curado in any Series
2.) Daiwa Tatula Series.

That's not to say there aren't other good brands like Dobyns, Duckett or Waterloo.

There are lots of individual opinions for sure.

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I second Gunny on all of the above. I have a couple tatula's and they're super easy to maintain/oil if one starts screamin. One of the pros, forgot which one, has a YouTube video on what to do for maintenance etc. They would be perfect for a high school kid to easily maintain and not have to remember the order of 100 parts to oil a spool or bearing when you put it back together.

If you are looking for out of the norm brand for rod look at pheonix, one of the local tackle shop owners recommended them a few years back and I bought a flippin stick cause it was pretty lol and my favorite way to fish. Been a good rod, not sure if they still make em or not. I have three falcon rods I use a lot and are my go to.

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Correction on the "a lot" part. I have a one year old and a three year old so I've only been to Toledo maybe 5 times since my oldest was born, but should change soon. We've been smackin the Bream with the Zebco in the creek by the house and he's starting to get mad at em.

Good dad! Good dad taking those kids fishing!

Love my Kistler Helium rod for throwing flukes and senkos. I can feel a fish sneeze on the bait. And they go on sale several times a year. Got 2 for 1/2 off at Christmas

SGrem said:

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Start focusing on the presentation and what kind of lure. Then match the perfect rod length and action, to the very specific line type and size, to the retrieve ratio of the reel for that one lure presentation. Then that setup is for that lure.

Repeat for topwaters, crankbaits, finesse worms, Carolina rig, pitching and flipping, spinner baits, chatterbaits etc.

Repeat again for different weight lures or heavier/lighter structure.

One specific targeted set up for each specific.

I think Lews has surpassed Shimano years ago....

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SGrem, what model Lews are you using for saltwater?

Lews Custom Pro

Lews Custom Lite are good too.

I miss the old Team Lews Lite if you can find those.