DrifterWa is spot on. alot of lessser rods feel jsut as good as the $350.00 ones, its just that they break more often because the quality of the graphite is not there...For the money and Buzz Ramsey IM8/ or 7 and the new Fenwick HMX rods cannot be beat. If I was blindfolded I'd never know the dif between one and a higher end rod.