Why Dobyns?

[MichPhoenix77]

I own 9 of them. Champion XP, Champion Extreme and an Xtasy. Personally I find them to be great rods. I have not used the Xtasy yet because I just got it but the build quality is fantastic. I have a Daiwa Tatula flip and pitch reel on it and it balances perfectly. Also it’s crazy light. I have an NRX 822 drop shot and love it but I see many flaws in how the guides were wrapped. Just looks sloppy for a $525 rod. My Champion XP 6’8” MH is my dock skipping rod and it is perfect for me as I am only 5’5” tall. It allows me to skip a jig with accuracy and it has the backbone to pull them out from under a dock. I own a little of everything, Dobyns, Daiwa, St.Croix, Duckett, and gloomis. I pick a rod for the intended task and how it feels to me. I have hit on some and some were misses.

[limitlong]

I bought a Champion Randy McCabee(?) 7-6 cranking rod and ended up selling it. It had an odd feel to it, kind of tip heavy maybe. I actually had trouble with my casting accuracy with that rod. The quality of the rod was top notch, just wasn't a fit for me.

[cbburke74]

all of my Dobyns are moving bait rods ( 705CB, 705CB Glass MF, DC 736C Glass & DC734C )


They are just spot on for me as I like the way it feels. I have NRX for bottom contact and St. Croix Wacky for that purpose.

[davidsa]

I have 1 Champion XP for moving baits and it is nice. Good cork and good build for the $. I had a full array of rods before purchase and I have bought about 3 since. None were Dobyns. Does not make it bad just did not inspire me to buy more when I really don't need anything anyway.

[Meleagris1]

I have right around 30 Dobyns rods right now - not sponsored I buy it all. I used to have an arsenal full of Loomis and Shimano - now just a few of my favorite MBR's and red Cumara's left. The balance and build quality on the Dobyns are excellent, as is their customer service. I also know their line very well so I can order rods and know exactly what I am getting in terms of action and power. I have a couple Sierras, but mostly Champions for moving baits, Extremes for bottom baits and Xtasy for my finesse. I've used most everything out there and will continue to try new rods and if I find rods I like better I will switch.

[Grey1173]

The rod Maker that has the pulse of the bass fishing rod action and design in the finesse power action rods . MATT the owner of IROD Rods. They are sensitive, super light weight, correct action. Andy Morgan junk rod, Fred magic rod, etc... all great!

[PolarKraft195]

my bass rods mainly consist of Dobyns & St Croix. Love them both! I will say Dobyns rods balance better than Croixs.

[badgerbass]

I've fished Dobyns for close to 10 years and I've caught a lot pile fish!! I'm mostly a moving bait guy and love my 704cb's, 733, and 734. Caught more fish than I care to count, never broke a rod, and was never unimpressed. My only complaint would be even after sealing the cork seems to have issues with pitting. Not every rod, and not a huge deal as I sand and fill the pits every winter and reseal. I would love to see a line with a quality foam handle.

[johnnybass]

I've fished Dobyns for close to 10 years and I've caught a lot pile fish!! I'm mostly a moving bait guy and love my 704cb's, 733, and 734. Caught more fish than I care to count, never broke a rod, and was never unimpressed. My only complaint would be even after sealing the cork seems to have issues with pitting. Not every rod, and not a huge deal as I sand and fill the pits every winter and reseal. I would love to see a line with a quality foam handle.

Most of my dobyns have been ok but I have one XP that has bad cork too I am thinking of just covering it but would be curious if you have any tips on how to fill the pits so the filler doesn't look awful.

[badgerbass]

Most of my dobyns have been ok but I have one XP that has bad cork too I am thinking of just covering it but would be curious if you have any tips on how to fill the pits so the filler doesn't look awful.

I use golden oak wood filler (not putty) and let it dry. Then sand it with fine grit sanding paper and seal with U40 cork sealer.

[Alpha_K]

I’ve had 2 Dobyns, Champion 765CB Glass and Champion Extreme 744DX. While both served their purposes, I’ve since sold them and replaced the 744DX with a NRX894 and the 765CB with an iRod Crank Launcher Jr. The 744DX was not sensitive enough for slow moving bottom contact baits. I bought it based on reviews and tried it for years for dragging jigs. For the life of me, I could not feel the bottom of a lake with 1/2oz and needed 3/4oz to feel anything. One day, my buddy let me use his Powell Inferno rod and it blew me away. I was able to feel the bottom and was finally successful with jigs. I did research and got the holy grail of jig rods, the NRX894. This is night and day compared to the 744DX. I swear the 744DX delayed my progress in jig fishing.

The 765CB has done well for me, but even for a moving bait rod comparatively, there’s very little sensitivity. I tried the iRod Crank Launcher Jr. and fell in love with its sensitivity. I ended up selling the 765 and making by switch. No regrets.

I’ll be honest, after trying the Dobyns, I don’t know what the hype was about them. I currently own Shimano Exprides (77H, 8H, 9XXH), Shimano Cumara (72M), Megabass Orochiis (Perfect Pitch and AM Flipping Special), Loomis NRX’s (854,893,894), Phenix Feathers (76MH and 76H), iRods (Crank Launcher, Crank Launcher Jr, Bama Rig Special), and a Low Down Custom XH. I like all these rods more than the Dobyns and some of these rods are less than half the price of the Dobyns. I am not brand loyal, I try to get best value for the money and try my best to base my opinion of a rod on their performance.

[johnnybass]

What type of blanks do they use ?

Good question- website says "proprietary high modulus graphite" for the Champion XP so who knows. Like some others, I find they balance well and have some really sweet actions but the sensitivity is well below average. They are relatively heavy rods too which maybe affects the sensitivity but balanced. They don't list weights either probably because they are heavy.

I am down to to only a couple now and I have shifted more towards ALX Zolo and MB Orochis. They have the "it" factor for action and much better sensitivity. They are less expensive too. I think ALX in particular going to take a lot of their business. Made in USA too.

[freelancer27]

Through the 40% off I added some more high end Dobyns (Extreme 746c, Extreme 704c, Xtasy 755c). I fished the Extreme 746c today. And I have to say that I am impressed.

For comparison:

I have a St. Croix Legend Elite 7'4. A NRX 852c, 2019 7'6 MH Zbone and a 7'9 XH Steez AGS.


I would say that the Extreme in my hands is noticeable more sensitive than the Legend Elite. To be honest though, I never thought that the Legend Elite was really sensitive and moved her to become my Chatterbait and Paddletail rod.

I would say that the 746c is fairly close to the Steez and the Zbone in terms of sensitivity. The NRX is still king.

What I love about the 746c is its incredible tip. You can easily throw a 3/8oz jig with it. At the same time it has still a lot of backbone to get big fish out of cover.

The only thing that I am not a super fan of are the esthetics. It might mainly be the orange (of the stickers and in the guide wrapping) but I feel that it looks more like a 150 USD rather than a 350 USD one.

On Monday my Xtasy 755c should arrive. Will give an update about this rod then.


Also, the customer service is top notch with Dobyns! Megabass (here in the USA) was a complete disappointment (last time I buy a rod from them) and Daiwa is also not standing behind their top tier rands as they should.

[HellaBass]

Look forward to your thoughts on Xtasy 755

[TonkaCat]

Hellabass nailed it on every point.

[johnnybass]

For those who think this is important, Dobyns are made in Asia. Loomis, St. Croix, Kistler, ALX are made in the US by and large.

[BigSexyPhoenix]

Good question- website says "proprietary high modulus graphite" for the Champion XP so who knows. Like some others, I find they balance well and have some really sweet actions but the sensitivity is well below average. They are relatively heavy rods too which maybe affects the sensitivity but balanced. They don't list weights either probably because they are heavy.

I am down to to only a couple now and I have shifted more towards ALX Zolo and MB Orochis. They have the "it" factor for action and much better sensitivity. They are less expensive too. I think ALX in particular going to take a lot of their business. Made in USA too.

Proprietary high modulus graphite is code word for Chinese blanks

[johnnybass]

Proprietary high modulus graphite is code word for Chinese blanks

For a $250 rod?

[jay74]

Guess the addage "to each his own" certainly applied here. I absolutely love my Dobyns rods. Out of thirty rods I own I'd say 75% are Dobyns. I do use Megabass Addarmines for spinning rods. I have all Extreme HP's for slow movers, spinnerbaits, chatterbaits and crankbaits. I do have a few of the cinnamin G Loomis's for crankbaits also. I love the way they are in balance with my Mataniums. I've broken one rod in the past fifteen years because I smacked my trolling motor head with it it. My next cast I set the hook and a fish in the grass and it snapped in two. I paid $70 and got a replacement within seven days. In addition, it's not often you call a rod company and talk to the owner.

[Tywithay]

I've owned a little bit of everything and while I liked my Dobyns rods, they were just missing a little something. I went with them because I prefer a full rear grip. They feel and balance well, but the blanks are only so-so, in my opinion. I think they're priced fairly accurately for the performance, but there's other rods that perform far better for the same, or less.