Savage Gear SGS5 10’ 12-46g lure rod review (it’s a cannon!) - as of October 2023 I can find it for well under £150 in the UK

My educated guess is that if a bass angler goes for a 10’ long lure rod then they are most likely chasing the potential for more distance with their lures. They might also be after a bit of extra leverage around the rocks and so on, but considering that the newish 10’ SGS5 and SGS8 rods were originally created for some specific European markets where distance is key, I’m going with the getting lures out there thing. I don’t actually know whether my beloved and very well used Savage Gear SGS5 9’6’’ 12-46g lure rod is coming in at second place now in the distance stakes, but what I do know is that this rather amazing and slightly longer Savage Gear SGS5 10’ 12-46g lure rod is an out and out cannon………….

I tend to default to a 9’6’’ rod over a 10’ rod because that’s what I am most used to, but I have had finished samples of the two SGS5 10’ lure rods here for a long time now - and I find myself pressing this 10’ 12-46g weapon into service more than I initially thought I would. For sure I had to go through the testing process with the rods, but I ended up liking this particular rod so much that I often take it out fishing with either a Penn Authority 3500 or Penn Slammer IV 3500 strapped to it. I love the rod for surf fishing especially, but I also like it when fishing deeper water from the rocks where distance can often be key. One of the bass I caught yesterday came on that “Sexy Mackerel” colour IMA Hound 125F Glide, a hard lure which yet again caught me a fish when it had all gone very quiet for a while. It’s ridiculous how far this rod can put this specific lure out, and the bass jumped on the end literally a couple of turns into the retrieve.

In many respects this 10’ 12-46g rod was an easy one to make because we already had the 9’6’’’ 12-46g version, but I was insistent that we lose nothing in the tip section especially when we made a 6’’ longer rod. You are not going to buy a lure rod rated 12-46g to get a tip which collapses when the wind is howling or the seas are raging, so if anything we put a smidgen more into the rod to retain what I think makes the 9’6’’ version so awesome. For sure you can spend a lot more money and buy a subtler 10’ rod, but as of October 2023 I can find this SGS5 10’ 12-46g lure rod for £129.99 at Veals Mail Order which to me is a ridiculous price for how much rod it is. Yes I work with Savage Gear, but I hope you know me by now. In many respects I remain more proud of the work we have done on the much cheaper range of SGS5 lure rods.

As much as this rod does a pretty good job with some of the lighter lures, I turn to it when I need to bang the heavier stuff in bouncier conditions especially. It still makes me giggle at how far you can put the Savage Gear Surf Walker 2.0 18cm S42g (sinking) surface lure out, and the Xorus Patchinko obviously goes a mile if need be. With a 10’ long lure rod I do tend to turn to the US-style of pencil popper retrieve when fishing surface lures at range - it’s just so easy to fish like this - and then you can guess how well something like the Surf Seeker 35g and 40g metals go out into a good bit of surf. I do like how fishing a longer rod in a more upright position helps a bit with keeping as much braid off the surface of the water when it’s really crashing around.

This Savage Gear SGS5 10’ 12-46g is a very fast and powerful bit of kit that rewards a decent casting style. I really like how the rod feels in the cast, but you need to properly wind it up to feel the benefits. If you are really enjoying an easy going 30g or 35g lure rod and you don’t feel like your casting is quite up to something more powerful yet then I would avoid this thing for the time being. It’s surprisingly deft at chucking something like the Xorus Patchinko 125 or Savage Gear Slap Walker 12.5cm/20g surface lures around at closer range though, but give me a good bit of wind in my face and a heavy surf and I am now feeling at one with this rod and what it can do. Every single tap and bang from a fish is transmitted very sharply back to you, indeed the pickup with the pokey tip is key for me. For sure I will happily fish with a far more expensive lure rod like that stunning APIA Foojin’RS Vivogue 96ML+ 9’6’’ 6-38g which I describe as a “28g finesse rod masquerading as a 38g weapon”, but this SGS5 10’ 12-46g rod can be found for under £150, and along with the 9’6’’ version I am going to default to rods like these with more powerful actions for my surf fishing especially. Banging lures like the Savage Gear Sandeel 14cm/33g and 15.5cm/46g around in deeper water and the rod just eats this up as well.

I haven’t actually weighed this Savage Gear SGS5 10’ 12-46g lure rod, but it says 178g on my finished sample and this feels right to me. I don’t mind a lighter reel like the Shimano Vanford C5000 at all on this rod, but personally I think the rod feels better in the hands when you strap something heavier to it like the Penn Authority 2500/3500 or Penn Slammer IV 2500/3500. The Penn Spinfisher VI range is currently being replaced by the VII version, but for £99.99 you can currently grab the rather lovely Spinfisher VI 3500 spinning reel and it works great on this 10’ rod.

You are getting a touch less subtlety with these much cheaper SGS5 lure rods when compared to the more expensive SGS8 ones, but in certain situations I think this is a good thing (I will get around to reviewing the subtle as you like SGS5 8’6’’ 9-35g rod one day, now that is something a bit special). When I press this absolute frigging cannon of a 10’ lure rod into service, knowing exactly what I am going to get is what I am after. A casting machine which is plenty light enough in the hands, the tip doesn’t flop around in the wind or collapse into lures in deeper water and/or fast currents, I can seriously push the heavier lures without ever feeling like the rod is maxing out, working surface lures feels damn good at range especially, and whacking/cranking the bejesus out of any number of metals and hard lures is to the manner born. Forget my working with Savage Gear because life is far too short to arse around fishing with lure rods you don’t like very much. You can probably guess how many different current and sample lure rods I might have here at home at any one time, but when it gets hectic out there I will more often than not pick up either the SGS5 9’6’’ 12-46g or this SGS5 10’ 12-46g, and damn right I love how what might be termed more “budget” rods are so damn good at getting my heavier lures out there with such a lack of fuss.

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