KastKing Spartacus II Fishing Rods - IM6 Graphite Blanks Casting & Spinning Rods, 2-Piece Rods with Extra Tip Section, PTS Power Transition System, KastFlex Technology, Rubber Cork Handle

It is a really good rod overall and a fair price for the quality and it has really good action it is a nice weight for the one I got and it has nice cork grips and it is very durable it has hit my fan blades a bunch of times and did not break and the it is the perfect size and it is a pretty stiff rod but that helps some times

Quality is satisfactory. The extra rod tip is a nice touch. The packaging was impressive. Using the medium light as a drop shot rod.Update: in the two months since I bought it, I’ve used the rod maybe 4 or 5 times. That’s 4 or five trips about 3-4 hours each trip. The rubberized cork grip is peeling off the top edge. Right around the area where you place your thumb. Very disappointing. I own maybe 15 rods of different sizes and styles. This is the possibly the most expensive of all the ones i own. I’ve never had the grip wear out on a single one. Even the Shakespeare rods.The hook keeper on this rod is the most annoying thing I’ve ever experienced on a rod. Slightly altering the placement of this hook keeper could make it a better product. It’s placed in such a way that any tiny bit of slack when you finger the line to cast, will catch on the hook keeper. I cannot be the only one to have experienced this. I cut it off and sanded it smooth. There are aftermarket hook keepers that do a better job. I’m sure they would warranty the defective item but it doesn’t seem worth the trouble of paying shipping, sending it in, and waiting.The rod looks and feels great otherwise. I think I might try to mend the defective grip myself because despite it’s very annoying faults, I still think it’s a great rod.

The 7'3" medium/fast-action KastKing Spartacus II is a top-notch dropshot and jigging rod...Put these KastKing Spartacus II spinning rods against ANY big names in the market (especially "entry-level" rods made by St Croix, Douglas, Penn, you name it) and these KastKing graphite rods are easily as good if not better. I literally ordered two of the medium/fast-action 7'3" Spartacus II rods and used them for night walleye fishing the day they arrived. I reeled in over a dozen walleye on these rods ranging from 2-9 lbs, and many smallmouth bass weighing 2-5 lbs. These are amazing rods...the rod tips have optimal sensitivity to feel those rather subtle walleye bites, and they have the perfect amount of "back-bone" for reeling in big walleye and bass. These rods are absolutely the perfect length and sensitivity I like to use for all of my bass and walleye fishing out from boat or shore on Lake Erie, for drop-shotting AND jigging. It's not easy to find 2-piece, 7-ft 3-inch rods with these specs, and they're always missing something you'd like to have on your rod. KastKing got this one right and priced them out to sell.I'd recommend pairing these with 2000-3000 sized spinning reels. 2000-sized is optimal, 3000 if you really need the larger spool and line.Love the hook keeper, the fact that these rods separate into 2 pieces for easy storage and transport, and the absolute BONUS of coming with extra rod tips. Don't need to worry about my kids breaking rod tips since I have replacements. The "big overpriced brands" you see at the big sporting goods store would charge well over $100 for these rods, and no way they'd include tip replacements up-front.Thanks, KastKing, for making these rods affordable and getting ALL the features right...2-piece, hook keeper, IM6 graphite, the tip replacements, and the cork handles are very comfortable. This is a 5-star dropshot/jigging rod for bass, walleye, and all types of fishing in general. Highly recommend. I'll be buying more for sure especially to replace other rods that I have (that were more expensive).And btw, that small "hook" on the handle near the reel seat is a HOOK KEEPER. I saw a review where someone was complaining about snags while casting with this rod, then saw his line literally running through the hook keeper and out the rest of the guides. No wonder he was getting snagged and tangled up.

I have 2 Kastking baitcasting rods I purchased for lake trout and whitefish jig fishing, a M and a MH. They both work well, but the cork tape started to come off around 150 lake trout on the M. The extra tip is a nice bonus.Update: I landed my personal best lake trout on the M/F 7'6" Spartacus II a couple weeks ago using a Spartacus baitcast reel, 12lb Sufix Revolve braid, 12lb Seaguar flouro lead. Ended up with a 40.5", 20.1lb angry beast and it was about the limit of that pole as it was doubled over, but it didn't break or even make a sound as I reeled that head shaking monster in from 230' deep over 15 minutes. (It felt like an hour lol) Even with almost all of the cork cover peeled off.Hat tip Kastking, just ditch the cork and/or adhesive for something more permanent, and it would be even better. I've caught around 500 lakers on that pole for this and last season so far, mostly tournament fishing. Granted, that generates alot of scent and laker slime over the grip, but that is what a towel is for. I will probably replace it after the season unless it fails. I can easily buy a new top of the line pole with tournament winnings, but at this price point and overall performance though, you can't go wrong and I won't be too torn up if it slips into the water on a vicious laker bite.