Fenwick World Class WC610ML-XFS Spinning Rod Product Review

Rod Review

Is Fenwick's New Flagship Really World Class?

Date:	1/18/17
Tackle Type:	Rod
Manufacturer:	Fenwick
Reviewer:	Cal

Total Score: 7.6 - GOOD

Introduction: When Pure Fishing negotiated exclusive rights to 3M's Powerlux resin material, many wondered what the company had in store. We can answer that question in part today with a look at Fenwick's new World Class series of rods that are built with blanks featuring this nano-resin material from 3M. Introducing the Fenwick World Class WC610ML-XFS spinning rod.

WC610ML-XFS Specifications
Material	High Modulus Graphite with 3M Powerlux 500 Resin
Length	6'-0"
Line Wt.	4-10lb
Lure Wt.	1/8-1/2oz
Pieces	one
Guides	8+tip
Rear Handle Length	9 inches
Power Rating	Medium Light
Taper	Extra Fast
Rod Weight	...
Origin	Made in China
MSRP	$299.97

Quality/Construction: Fenwick's WC610ML-XFS is six-foot, ten inch(6'-10") long featuring a raw, sanded blank and a split rear grip made of good grade cork. It has a smallish foregrip also made of cork. There's a small bit of carbon weave from the butt of the rod up past the rod's logo. All the finish work including the paint and epoxy around the guides is good and the blank on our WC610ML-XFS is straight with guides that are perfectly aligned.

Quality Ratings for WC610ML-XFS
Finish (1-5)	Grip (1-5)	Epoxy (1-5)	Blank (1-2)	Guides (1-2)	Total	Possible	Rating (= Tot/Pos * 10)
5	4	4	2	2	17	19	8.9

Introducing Fenwick's World Class WC610ML-XFS.

Performance: I paired Fenwick's WC610ML-XFS with a Daiwa Ballistic EX spinning reel spooled with 6lb Sunline Supernatural Monofilament and took to some of our local waters for a little finesse fishing.

This rod features an unfinished, sanded blank.

Casting: The WC610ML-XFS comes with a medium light power rating with a recommended lure range of one eighth to one half ounce (1/8 - 1/2oz). It handles everything within that range easily and as with most spinning gear, can cast below its recommended threshold. The difficulty with casting too low is you lose feel of your lure once it lands in the water.

Wondering what happened to 3M's Powerlux wonder-resin? It's right here in Fenwick's World Class series of rods.

Sensitivity: Which brings us around to the topic of sensitivity. Whenever 3M's Powerlux material is mentioned, there are high hopes for the blanks involved. But the benefit this material provides is in the resin - the agent that binds the graphite in the blank together and keeps it from splintering. Powerlux is an advanced composite resin that really increases the durability of a blank, but sensitivity still comes down to the performance of the graphite in the blank itself and for a $300 fishing rod the WC610ML-XFS leaves a little to be desired.

Fenwick steps things up with the detailing of this rod.

Power: Where this rod shines is in the power department. If you look at our RoD Deflection chart below, you can see that the rod's tip is relatively light when compared to our two 2011 What the Finesse baseline rods, but thanks to its extra-fast taper and that Powerlux 500 resin, when pressure is applied to the rod's tip, the blank really responds.

Fig 1 : The chart above illustrates the deflection characteristics of our WC610ML-XFS against our 2011 WTF baseline rods.

The advanced resin system does a good job of inspiring confidence as you apply pressure to the fish that the rod won't fail. Granted, I didn't catch any monsters while testing the WC610ML-XFS, but I did tighten my drag down higher than I usually do on a couple of occasions just to see how the rod would respond and I was quite happy with its performance. The WC610ML-XFS feels a bit more powerful than its actual rating.

Performance Ratings for WC610ML-XFS
Pitch (1-5)	Cast (1-5)	Sensitivity (1-5)	Hook Set (1-5)	Control (1-5)	Total	Possible	Rating (= Tot/Pos * 10)
3	4	3	4	5	##	25	7.6

This stick comes with name-brand Fuji SS guides with Alconite inserts.

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