I've been kicking around the thought of both getting myself a little 2 wt rod for panfish and of trying my hand at rodbuilding. Hook and Hackle has some great sale prices right now on kits, so what the heck, kill two birds with one stone, right?

There are two kits I'm looking at that are close to the same price. I don't really know what the differences are between them, though, so I'm hoping I might get some thoughts from you folks on them.

Kit 1: Forecast blank 6'6" 2wt comes with the following: BB 662 blank (2 piece) Pacific Bay A5 chrome reel seat with rosewood insert, Reverse Half Wells inletted grip, hard chrome plated chrome guide set, hookkeeper and tip top, winding check. Dark Blue Thread. Adhesives
Cost of this kit is $49.58.

Kit 2: Hook and Hackle Matte Charcoal IM6 kit. Also 6'6" 2wt. (In the description below it says Compare with Loomis GL3 or St Croix SC3 but that doesn't mean much to me.)
Kit comes with the following: Includes 2 pc blank, with H&H reverse half wells cork grip, Pacific Bay U3 black reel seat and walnut insert, black guides, tip top, hookkeeper, winding check, flex coat, rod builder's epoxy, brushes, Black thread and tip top cement. Everything needed to build this rod.
Cost of this kit is $58.77.


Can anybody shed some light on whether one might be a better choice than the other? I'm leaning towards the IM6, but that's just for aesthetic reasons at this point. (Matte charcoal with black guides/reel seat is just so...stealthy!)

I think the sale ends on the 15th, so I'll probably order one of them tonight after work. I'm sure I'll be filling up this forum with silly questions soon thereafter.

~Matt