Don't be discouraged by picking up this rod, well the GLX 1563 anyway! I agree with some of the comments but I find it hard not to want to use it especially for steelhead but hue-nut is right in that the GLX series was designed and tested by a group out of the Great Lakes Tribs. If you can find this rod "NEW" at a great price and don't mind using it for certain species then I would recommend 1 but not if you want it as an all around rod.
I was interested in trying a longer rod than the normal ones you see around so I ordered a 13' Raven from back East and on my first trip hooked into a nice bullet wild doe and from then on I was hooked. I had a chance to pick up the GLX(1563) at a great price so I jumped at it. My first impressions were that it came in a nice rod bag(no use really...), the rod looked great at first glance and was super light. I didn't like the sliding rings(tape down my CP) as they seemed cheaper than the rings on my Raven and didn't care too much for the recoil line guides as they seem to be a little soft and bend easily.
I took this rod out steelheading wondering how it would perform as I had only used it for smaller coho and couldn't really tell how much power it really had because it was really noodlie compared to what I'm used to and bent easily on small fish. Anyway, I hooked a monster buck in a tailout and it shot into the fast water and sat there. At first I thought the rod was going to blow up as it bent right to the cork and I also wasn't sure about the hook set as the rod didn't feel stiff enough to transfer my hook set. I leaned on the rod wanting to see if I could move the fish and figured out that it did have reserved power from butt to mid section and even though the rod was doubled over you can get a sense that you still had enough to put more pressure on the fish. I managed to work this buck up and out of the rapids almost to hand but the knot on the jig finally came undone but the rod passed my expectations.
I have a collection of CP rods that includes a 13' Raven IM8, 13' GLoomis GLX(1563), custom Sage 3106LB, Sage 3113M and custom Sage 3113LB. I choose my rods depending on situations(High/low water, species) and unlike most I enjoy my time out fishing wether fish are hooked or not and enjoy the gear I use. All rods are different and would be difficult to compare and for those that try to compare say a GLX(1562,1563) to a Sage 3113LB, there's no comparison and not even close! The rods are much different in action and overall performance. The GLX is very limited and would seriously only target steelhead and smaller salmon species whereas with a Sage 3113LB you can pretty much use it for anything Muskie and Pike like they use it for in the Great Lakes.
All I can say about the GLX is that I will at some point have strip it down and have it rebuilt the way I want because I do enjoy the action and the length is perfect for me. My ultimate rod would be a 13 footer as light as the GLX but have the same action or feel as the Sage 3113LB.
PS Highly recommend using with a bearing style reel.
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Topic: G loomis glx cp rod (Read 6123 times)