Couple of bass rod questions for my son

[Shorelunch]

My 9 yr old wants to get into bass fishing. I'm a walleye guy . . . so I have a few questions for the experts. He can cast a 6' spinning rod/reel pretty well and casted for muskies last year and did pretty well. He wants a bait casting set up for his birthday - he would probably cast a variety of baits with this - cranks, spinner baits, etc. I was thinking of a 6' medium power/fast action rod or would it be better to go into more of a classic set up like a 6'6" or 6'6" medium heavy/fast? He's extremely enthusiastic about fishing and I have some unused gift cards. Rods I was thinking of:

GLoomis GL2: Classic Casting 6' Medium/Fast

GLoomis GL2: Classic Mag Bass 6'6" Medium Heavy/Fast

St. Croix Mojo Bass: 6'6" Medium/Fast

St. Croix Mojo Bass: 6'6" Medium Heavy/Fast

St. Croix Mojo Bass: 6'8" Medium/X-Fast

Finally - which of the above (St. Croix or Loomis) would be a good overall bass rod for me? Thanks!!!

[slipperybob]

I still do my best work with a 6' rod. A 6'6" rod is middle of the road and will be more versatile.

[Larson15]

I would go with the G Loomis GL2 6'6 MH/Fast. You will be able to do just about everything with that rod. You will also be getting a lot better graphite opposed to the mojo bass rod and its american made whereas the mojo is built in mexico.

The Loomis will come with a lifetime warranty and the mojo only carries a 5 year warranty.

[Cecil]

For the kid I would say stick with a 6' unless he is taller for his age. I would say the GL2 6' medium with some braided line would work well.

As for you I would go longer, either 6-6 or 7'

[Deitz Dittrich]

Shorelunch--- I believe I talked to you at the show yesterday. We talked Bemidji bass lakes. For now, as I said at the show, I may lean more towards the 6'.. unless you have a tall 3rd grader. The longer rod may be tough.. then again, he may do great with the 6'6".. You will for sure have more rod options in the 6'6".

If you are going to get him into any non-exposed hook techniques, I would think you will want the MH.. however, you could get away with the Med action if using a braid line like power pro or the like.

[Superduty]

I fish with my son quite a bit and am proud to say he caught his first baitcaster fish last summer at age 8! At 8 and 9 years old they might struggle just a bit with the 6'6" rods. The 6' is just plain more manageable for casting to someone who is 4.5 feet tall. My son uses a 6'6" for underhand pitching techniques. Go with the best you can afford for a rod, and listen to Larson15's advice about warranty. If your gonna spend $120 on a mojo, spend the extra $40 to get either a st croix or a loomis with the lifetime warranty. In addition to being a better rod, the slightly more expensive models like avids, gl2, gl3 are worth the extra money for warranty purposes alone.

[Shorelunch]

Thanks everyone. I think I'll go with the 6' Loomis for him. Maybe the 6'8" for me.

Deitz, yep that's me. Good to meet you yesterday. If/when you have a few spare minutes, would you mind PMing me what we discussed again? I tried to wrap my head around all of data you gave me, but got a little overwhelmed (which doesn't take much ) .

Thanks for your help everyone.

[gritsnham]

Lots of great suggestions but I would consider investing more in a nice reel with a braking system that will help him learn how to cast. A few nasty backlashes and that rod could start collecting dust really easily!

Its great if ya got the money to do it but a 3rd grader prolly does not need a glomis or a st croix as a starter bait caster rod even though the warranty will come in handy if any accidents arise! And a shorter rod will help ALOT even a 5'6 if ya can find one for a starter...I did some kids casting/fishing programs and it is amazing the difference a 5'6 and 6' makes in how they can handle the rod at that age.

Whatever you decide im sure he will love and congrats on getting him into fishing and branching out a bit into bass fishing! Im 22 and I still can only get my walleye dad to bass fish once or twice a year...