Being from washington we have the great fortune to have some great manufacturers right here in the state. I would look at both Sage and G.Loomis. They both offer great rods and very good warrenty programs. It's nice knowing that your rod can be repaired and returned to you in a farly short amount of time. Both companies offer rods in all the price ranges. Echo is right there in my opinion when it comes to really good low to mid priced rods that come with a lifetime warrenty and some of the rods come with both an accuracy and distance tip which allows you to fine tune the rod to your casting stroke and gives you that extra insurance when your on that trip and you break a tip. Tim Rajeff designed the Echo rods and he is no doubt one of the best casters and fisherman in the world. Recently sent in an Echo rod for repair and recieved the repaired rod 2 days later. There customer service is second to none.