Major Craft Seabass Custom Marc Cowling Edition 88ML 8'8'' 6-32g lure rod review - £479.99 (£408 at Veals for the rest of this week)
In all honesty it took me a while to really get my head around this high-end lure rod, and I put that down to the fact that I had got so used to the action on the awesome APIA Foojin'RS Art Magic 90ML+ (UK Custom) 9' 5-36g lure rod (review here). Switching between different lure rods is something I find very interesting, but it can take a while to park how a specific rod behaves when you pick up another rod which happens to be completely different to the rod you were fishing with so much. I love that particular APIA rod and I was sad to hand it back the other day, but this fascinating and not cheap Major Craft Seabass Custom Marc Cowling Edition 88ML 8'8'' 6-32g lure rod is a completely different animal……………
First off I do like a good lure rod around the 8’ to 8’8’’ length. I also love a good 9’ lure rod, but get it right and to me there is something potentially very special about a quality sub-9’ long lure rod and how it can sit in your hands. I do tend to turn to a 9’6’’ or even 10’ long lure rod when it comes to hectic surf fishing and/or deeper rock marks in bouncy seas especially, and to me it’s a case of working out what works for you and your fishing in different situations. I understand completely why Marc Cowling of South Devon Bass Guide went with the 8’8’’ length, but for me and the variety of locations and conditions I lure fish for bass, I feel that the one rod length can’t quite do it all for me. But damn I can do a hell of a lot with this thing.
Rather than me waffle on about how this Major Craft Seabass Custom Marc Cowling Edition 88ML 8'8'' 6-32g lure rod came to be, have a look at Marc Cowling’s blog post about it here. I have grabbed some text which highlights the changes to what was the limited edition and no longer available Major Craft Seabass Custom 8’8’’:
It is 25% ‘softer’ in the final third towards the tip section – ensuring that it is extremely ‘easy’ to fish with, through the entire spectrum of soft plastics, hard lures, metals, and creature baits.
The final 8″ of the tip section is finer in diameter to aid sensitivity.
Subsequent to the above – it is rated 6-32g in terms of Casting Weight Range (CWR).
The rod remains at the optimum all-rounder length of 8ft 8″ yet has a Rod Power Rating (RPR) of Medium Light (ML).
Measuring 45cm (which is the same as the previous Seabass Custom models) the handle section of the rod is a mixture of duplon and quality cork at the top and bottom – a nod to the classic Major Craft Skyroad and Truzer respectively…..
I do agree with Marc in that this is a true all round lure fishing rod, and although it’s a fair chunk of cash, I would imagine that this one rod could cover literally any bass fishing that many lure anglers might do. I don’t really care what I’m chucking on this rod, because if you get it right, it’s getting out there big time! This is a very fast, steely rod which I think is pretty powerful for a 32g rating, and I would imagine that a “slightly less than ideal” casting style is not going to get the best out of the rod. This may well not matter of course because it’s not as if maximum range is often required, but you need to get it right for your lures to really fly. Goddamn they fly when you do though, because this is a very smooth rod to load up. But it’s not particularly forgiving, and to be honest I don’t think you should expect a high-end specialist tool to be like that anyway.
I have pushed a bit past that 32g upper end rating and the rod copes just fine, but please note that this is not me telling you that it’s safe to do so! I can easily fish the awesome little Berkley DEX Strider 9cm/9g surface lure with this rod, but I think the rod is performing better when you move up to the slightly heavier and fascinating little IMA Chappy 80 12g surface lure. Marginal I know, but I feel that I am fishing the heavier Chappy a bit better than the lighter little DEX Strider with this rod and its relatively powerful tip. I don’t have any experience of the original Sea Bass Custom 35g, but Marc knows his bass fishing and he knows what he wants from a rod. With how right this version feels I am so pleased I got to fish with this rod.
The whole sensitivity thing with lure rods is at best debatable in my opinion, largely because I remain convinced that what we perceive as sensitivity or feel depends on so many factors before you start thinking about the rod. Wind, waves, water depth, current, braid, lure, technique, makeup of the sea bed, these all affect how much you can “feel”, but give me optimum conditions to feel as much as I can when I am lure fishing and this stunning Major Craft Seabass Custom Marc Cowling Edition 88ML 8'8'' 6-32g lure rod seems to be transmitting a lot of information to me. I can’t tell you that it’s more information than another rod with similar specs, but I am naturally drawn to a very sharp feeling lure rod. Like this thing.
You get your Fuji Torzite guides and your typically outstanding Major Craft build quality. I do love cork grips and I am really glad that Marc utilised them on this rod. Everything about the rod smacks of quality, including the rather lovely rod bag. I have deliberately fished with a few different spinning reels on this rod, from a heavier Penn Slammer IV 2500 to a light as you like Shimano, and as much as you know that I am often drawn towards a combination of a slightly heavier spinning reel on the end of a very light lure rod (115g in this case), to me this particular rod feels better with a really light spinning reel on it. Yep, we are talking about a proper wand here.
Whack the regular Patchinko 140 out and walk it at range, smash an IMA Hound 125F Glide into some bouncier conditions, straight-retrieve the Gravity Stick Paddletail/Pulsetail or Slender Scoop Shad on weedless hooks, bump the Savage Gear Sandeel V2 Weedless in current or along the bottom over sharp reefs, trundle those fascinating MegaBass Sleeper Craw or Dark Sleeper lures around, or bang different weights of Savage Gear Seekers out, I don’t really care - because to me this rod is lapping it all up and asking for more. It may say 6-32g, but to me the rod is excelling at about 12g and upwards to 32g. I don’t see it as a specialist rod which thrives with a specific technique more than another, rather we’ve got a true all rounder which rewards a good casting technique but which isn’t going to rip your shoulders off if you ain’t quite there.
So at the end of the day I doff my cap to Marc Cowling and the excellent people at Tacklewave, the UK Major Craft people. To have the balls to tweak a rod that many anglers already rave about and come up with such an interesting lure rod that I know Marc continues to literally stroke with contentment because it so suits how he goes about his bass fishing and guiding business? Serious respect from my end. It’s a lot of money to drop on a lure fishing rod I might hear you say, but if it’s your thing and you can afford to do so, why the hell not? A really good lure rod makes my fishing so much more rewarding. And yes, I did consider delaying this review for a good while so that I could keep fishing with this rod and not have to hand it back yet! I feel that I have properly got to grips with it though, and this week’s Black Friday deal at Veals Mail Order brings the price of the rod down a lot. You all have a good weekend………….
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