Dobyns Savvy Line

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Permalink Reply by AaronW on March 23, 2013 at 12:36pm

I've got the 735 'broomstick' model for frogging. Nice, light rod that can chuck frogs pretty far with the extra fast tip.

Permalink Reply by rzone on March 23, 2013 at 1:32pm

Warning. When you get one of these Dobyn's rods, you will end up buying many more. They are great. I have some Savvy and a handful of Champion Extreme's.

Permalink Reply by Jake Anderson on March 23, 2013 at 10:17pm

I've never been great at determining what rod is "good for frogs" or what makes a good "tube rod" or whatever.... But what I do know is that the quality of the savvy rods at that price point is, in my opinion, really tough to beat. 

I have a savvy, a coalition, and a champion dobyns rod.  I can say with confidence that the next dobyns rod I buy, will likely be a savvy series rod.  At that level of quality, I'm fairly confident that the rod won't cost me any fish. 

A buddy of mine has a powell that I've been impressed with at that price point too.  

Permalink Reply by D.J. LaRoche on March 23, 2013 at 10:36pm

I have the Savvy 735 that I use as my frog rod and it works very well for me.  I don't throw frogs nearly as much as a lot of guys on this site, but it seems to work good.  It also doubles as my muskie rod.  I didn't want to sink a bunch of money into a rod that I don't use all that often.  The craftsmen ship is top notch, as it is with all of my Dobyns.  Really good rod for the money.  

Permalink Reply by Larrick on March 24, 2013 at 9:58am

Gentlemen thanks for the feedback. I am definitely leaning towards replacing this thing with a Dobyns Savvy Micro Guide. If the guy from Airrus doesn't get back to me by Monday I'll have TW send me a shipping label. As a matter of fact I'll just call TW today and have them send me a shipping label and I'll just pay the difference for a Dobyns. Seems as though folks are pretty happy with Dobyns products.

Permalink Reply by BigBass Dez on March 25, 2013 at 11:23am

+ 1  DJ !!

I would suggest the Dobyns 735 savvy Micro series for 80% of all your froging needs . If you happen to find yourself fishing Extremely Thick pads or grass you might consider stepping your rod power up to a 766 savvy ... Keep in mind when it comes to selecting a good frog rod you want to look for the well balance rod with the soft tip and plently of back bone but yet as lightweight as possible .. You will be 100% satisfied with what Dobyns Rods has too offer for sure :)

D.J. LaRoche said:

I have the Savvy 735 that I use as my frog rod and it works very well for me.  I don't throw frogs nearly as much as a lot of guys on this site, but it seems to work good.  It also doubles as my muskie rod.  I didn't want to sink a bunch of money into a rod that I don't use all that often.  The craftsmen ship is top notch, as it is with all of my Dobyns.  Really good rod for the money.  

Permalink Reply by P.J. Koshi on March 25, 2013 at 12:17pm

Now I'm not trying to be "that" guy, but if you had problems with guides I would not recommend Dobyns.  I have zero experience with their Micro guide rods they put out, but I have had nothing but problems with Dobyns traditional guide inserts.  Either they are brittle and will crack thus causing phantom line breakage or they break and fall out somehow.  I know 4 people who have experienced similar issues as well with guides on varying Dobyns rods.  I don't know if it was a bad batch and they switched manufactures or what.  I had 4 Dobyns rods at one point and the only one that didn't have a problem with the guides was the Extreme series. I only have one rod with micro style guides and I love it.  I use it for froggin and it works great!

Permalink Reply by Larrick on March 25, 2013 at 1:17pm

All again thanks for the response. I didn't know Dobyns had problems with the guides but it's too late. I found a "local" Dobyns dealer in Burlington on Sunday and ordered one. Of course after that the creator of Airrus phoned me at home (how's that for customer service) and we spoke but it was too late for him. I had already packed the rod up t ship it back to TW for a full refund. He said it was uncommon for Airrus rods to have guide issues (candid but not good). I'll take my chances with Dobyns plus I'm buying semi-local.

Permalink Reply by Jake Anderson on March 25, 2013 at 1:27pm

You are out of line pj.... Did you know that gary dobyns middle name is orville. Think about that for a second...

Permalink Reply by BigBass Dez on March 25, 2013 at 3:48pm

Good pick Larrick !!  If you ever have any problems with the rod please let me know .

Dobyns does take the feed back from there Prostaffers very serious . If something needs to be addressed in regards to the product , Gary Dobyns himself is always willing to make things right with anyone from dealers down to the consumers :)

Larrick said:

All again thanks for the response. I didn't know Dobyns had problems with the guides but it's too late. I found a "local" Dobyns dealer in Burlington on Sunday and ordered one. Of course after that the creator of Airrus phoned me at home (how's that for customer service) and we spoke but it was too late for him. I had already packed the rod up t ship it back to TW for a full refund. He said it was uncommon for Airrus rods to have guide issues (candid but not good). I'll take my chances with Dobyns plus I'm buying semi-local.

Permalink Reply by Mike Matkowski on March 25, 2013 at 5:57pm

PJ, 

I am surprised you had so many guide problems, I have not had any guide issues with my many Dobyn's rods, including Generation 1 rods. Rod builders have to choose from a limited number of companies that manufacture guides based on the manufacturer's representations and limited testing.  I know Dobyn's rods did start using different guides sometime in the summer or fall of 2011, at the same time he changed the logo on the rods.  The rods that had the older guides had a few problems and they had the old Dobyn's logo; the new rods have the Dobyn's fish logo on them and use the tangle free Kigan guides which have a better frame on them and the inserts are installed differently.  I am surprised you didn't mention these problems to me last summer when we talked because I could have helped.  Anyone who is having guide problems with Dobyn's Rods can email me and I will try and help.

  Also, I believe the limited past problems I had with rod guide inserts (with another brand of guides that was a standard throughout the industry for many years), were caused from the rods vibrating and rattling off something hard; and I had most these problem with rods while carried in my aluminum boat. Everyone should consider getting some Rod Gloves or other protective for their rods to protect them as they take a beating when running in rough water, even when unprotected in the rod locker and on the road. 

Larrick, I do think the 766 Savvy would have been too heavy for what I suspect you will be frogging in Washington, and I would suggest the Champion 736 over it.  I think you made a good choice, but if someone wanted something heavier for hollow body frogs in heavy cover, the 736 Champion would be more versatile.  The 735 Savvy is a good choice, although I don't own any "micro" guide rods yet, I think you will be happy. 

Permalink Reply by D.J. LaRoche on March 25, 2013 at 8:46pm

Mike, I am with you.  I have never had problems with my guides on any of my Dobyns.  i have a Savvy, a few Champions and a few Extremes and nothing but good experiences with them.  

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