Hey I was watching North American Fisherman today and a commercial came on for ugly stick. It was pretty funny there were wives of fishermen that were tired of their husbands fishing so much so they tried everything to break their ugly stick rods and nothing would break them. I just thought about this post when I saw it and thought I would share.

I've seen that commercial and laughed heartily. I don't think that Uglys are quite up to some of the stuff in that add, but they sure do take a beating! Tom

I have a cheap 40$ Ugly Stick combo, bought from wallmart for bass. It is a MicroLite. They have it on basspro.com but havent seen another 1 at wallmart yet. It casts at least 80 yards and is 4 ball bearings. Very durable rod n reel. cant beat it for 40$. I also use an ugly stick for catfish. The Uglystick Catfish Rod. its 7 foot and can hold 20-40lb line. Another durable rod. They are a classic brand, and u can count on them. just dont buy a cheap 1 from wallmart, go online either to cabellas or basspro and get a decent one.

I have 4 or 5 ugly sticks no complaints at all.

The Ugly

sticks at Wal-Mart are exactly the same as the rods at BPS and Cabela's, the difference being that Wal-Mart does not cary the Lite series or the heavy trolling or Big Water rods. Incidentally, the price is the same no matter where you buy! Tom

shakespeare to me is a very good company. been buying their rods for awhile now and no complaints. i own about 5 of them and 1 rod broke from the eye hole. a little glue still works great. Wish i could see the commercial. sounds funny

I think my next trout pole will be an ugly stick. Just to try them out.

Hello, could you tell me more about you lightning rod, I have an  ultra-light 5' (one piece which I love) Ugly Stick and a Cherrywood. But I'm considering a tactix or a lightning for more sensitivity? But I need to know they're reliable. Thx
Colaiza1965

A Lightning Rod is not as durable as an Ugly but is in my mind more sensative. Even a Lightning Rod is not as sensative as some of the upper end rods but is a good compromise for the money. My Lightning has given me great service for years now, but I go to great pains to protect my gear when transporting and storing it. Tom

Hello isfields420, actually I am going to buy a either a Berkley Lightning rod or tactix in the 5'6" in 2 pcs for this summer. Can you tell me about your experience w/ Lightning rods and what size do you have?
Colaiza1965

isfields post is about 9 months old, so you may not get a reply. I have a Lightning Rod in 6'6" medium light 2 piece spinning and I am very happy with it. I bought it to replace a broken rod while on a trip to N. Dakota. It was the best rod that fit my budget at the time as I didn't expect to be replacing a rod on the trip. If I had known what the resort owner was going to do I would have bought a better rod (he sold me the rod at cost) but have fished it ever since and is one of the first choices when heading out. BTW, I will never need to buy a rod on a trip again, I learned my lesson and now pack spares space permitting. Tom

I have three or four Ugly Sticks of varying sizes. I can't say for sure that they're the best rod out there, but I've never had any problems with mine either.