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Rod Review- LL Bean 9 piece 9' 9wt.

2K views 1 reply 2 participants last post by  Eddie 
#1 · (Edited)
Yes, that's right, 9 piece. I haven't actually measured it, but the case can't be much more than a foot long.

I brought this rod with me to Eleuthera last week(report soon to come). Despite not being able to carry the rod on with me, the extremely small pack size of this rod turned out to be a huge advantage. I found that I could fit the rod inside my fishing hip pack with my reel and flybox, allowing me to bring the rod pretty much everywhere hassle free. Since I was with my wife, I wasn't doing much hard fishing, but it was nice to be able to bring my bag with me 'just in case'. I didn't end up catching any of those 'just in case' fish, but I did get some good shots at bones that I would've had to observe from afar if it weren't for the convenience of the pack rod.

My main concern with a 9 piece was setup time and lining up all the sections. Lining up all the ferrules was a snap due to a line on the male end that lines up with a dot on the female end and allows you to put the rod together without holding it up and squinting 8 times. Setup time could be a bit frustrating, especially with feeding bones in sight, but I found that turning my back and taking a deep breath usually made it tolerable- That and reminding myself that if it'd been a 2 piece I probably would've left it in the hotel room for all but the fishing outings.

I was a little worried about the rod being a bit 'loose' due to all the ferrules, but I was pleasantly surprised- I couldn't even tell they were there. The rod casts very well, and I'd say the 'medium-fast' designation they give it in the catalog is spot on. The sighting conditions weren't really ideal, so I didn't do much long distance casting, but I was able to punch out a couple of 70-ish foot casts at a big 'cuda without much problem(follow, but no take :( ).

Overall, I think this is a great rod, and at $245 for the 9 weight, it's a steal.
 
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#2 ·
Friends ask me what's the best camera? Should they get a Haselblad or a Nikon? and I always tell them that the best camera is the one that you don't leave at home. An idiot camera with a great lense will take better pictures than the Haselblad that stays at home.
Fits in a fanny pack...wow.
 
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