Picking up on Grizz's reply to Saflyfish Q about whether to buy a $600 rod I think a statement Grizz made deserves it's own post.

He said that if he blindfolded you and gave you both an inexpensive rod like a TF rod (the example he used as they advertise on here} and a "Big Brand Name" rod.. you could not tell the difference.

It might be a good thing to try at a fish in. Have 3 to 5 rods same wt and reel all strung up... blind fold people and hand them a rod to cast...Vary the order of rods tested from caster to caster and simply ask which felt best and which cast the poorest.

Now I know that much is in the ability of the caster and we have probably all seen Lefty put out a long line on his knees with just the rod tip...maybe even seen someone use no rod at all to cast a line
but we are talking the average Joe here.

I know , with out being blindfolded I can feel the difference in my own rods but that could mainly be because of their stiffness and action. My Winston has a soft action , Orvis a bit stiffer, a Scott quite stiff ,my inexpensive Native rod is very stiff while an old self built Lamiglas is a bit on the soft side. My bamboo rods have a much different feel so perhaps this "Test" should be limited to one or the other materials.

Whats your opinion? First, do you think you can tell the difference and would you submit to the "Test". Thanks for the idea for this post Grizz.