Mystic Reaper X Rod Review

Aesthetics

Out of the box the new Reaper X is a handsome piece of equipment. The rod blank sports a deep burgundy that is subtle in low light situations and becomes more pronounced when light hits the blank. The quad grade cork on the handle feels nice in the hand and doesn’t exhaust your hand even after a long day on the water. The Reaper X has stainless steel snake eye guides that run the length of the rod. The reel seat has a modern aluminum skeletal look to it with a carbon fiber looking underlay which helps to reduce overall weight.

Performance

If you are new to Mystic rods, this is the newest version of their Reaper rod. The original reaper was a moderately priced rod that was rated highly in many of the 5wt shootouts done by yellowstone anglers.

The biggest differences between the original Reaper and the new Reaper X, aside from appearance, are the overall weight of the rod and the action of the rod. The Reaper X is considerably lighter than its predecessor. The action of the Reaper X is slower than the original Reaper rod. The reaper X casts with a medium-fast action.

I prefer the performance of the Reaper X over the original Reaper model. The medium-fast action of the rod helps me to feel my cast better, which results in more accurate casts and mends. The lightness of the rod is remarkable for a rod at its price point. The rod excels at short to medium range casting as the rod is soft and loads up easily. The Reaper X is good at distance too, but not quite as good as it is at short and medium distances.

I have fished the Reaper X for several months now. I have caught everything from small native Brookies all the way up to my personal best brown that measured 26 inches. The Reaper X has a sensitive and responsive tip, and the backbone of the rod resides in the middle to lower portion of the rod blank. The result is a slightly slower rod than the original Reaper, but the Reaper X is more accurate and fights fish much better than the original model. The softness of the rod tip adds more cushioning for your tippet when fighting a fish. The weight and fighting ability of the new Reaper X are its two biggest improvements from the original model.  

Recommended Set Up

I prefer the Reaper X with a half weight heavy fly line on it. This helps to load the road easily for those short and medium casts on small water. If you frequent larger rivers or tailwaters you might want to stick to a true 5wt line.

Conclusion:

The Reaper X is a solid update to their flagship Reaper series. Improvements in weight, action, and fighting ability all make this rod a fantastic do it all rod. The Reaper X comes in at $300 and is offered in a variety of lengths and weights, from a 3wt all the way to a 6wt. If you are looking for a new rod that can handle anything, the Reaper X won't let you down.