Lamiglas X10 MTC

If you’re into tossing spinners and spoons for salmon and steelhead, the Lamiglas X10 MTC may just be your rod.

General Overview

Designed by the Master of Metal himself, Bill “General Zog” Herzog, Lamiglas’ X10 MTC Certified Pro is one serious hardware-hucking howitzer. At 10 feet in length, the rod allows you to cast lures into different zip codes while also giving you excellent line control and mending capabilities. Designed mainly for tossing spoons, the rod is equally at home when you’re swinging spinners as well.

Key Features

• Fuji Alconite Concept guides
• Exposed-blank reel seat
• Premium cork
• Signature of the man himself, right on the blank

On the Water Test

My first overall impression of the Lamiglas X10 MTC was that it was a handsome-looking stick of good overall quality. Without fishing it yet, my gut reaction was that it seemed a little too beefy. However, I quickly changed my tune out on the water.

The tip section of the rod proved to be about a perfect (and somewhat difficult to come-by) blend of softness and power. It was just slow enough to make precision casts a snap while also allowing me to track each beat of the blade of my No. 4 Blue Fox spinner.

When it came to setting the hook, the X10MTC had power to spare and the day I fished the thing, I had 4 steelies grab my hardware and I landed all of them. Obviously, that often just has to do with luck, but I was able to get a solid swing on each of the fish. And when hooked up, I could feel how much of a bad boy the rod really is. I didn’t hook anything over about 9 pounds, but it was obvious that this rod could stop Chinook-sized steelhead. Here’s the X10MTC in action — as you can see there’s plenty of backbone:

My only real complaint — and this is a small one — is the rod felt a little tip-heavy with a Shimano Cronarch 101 onboard. With 10-footers, that’s always going to be a drawback, but it probably is less noticeable with a larger reel — maybe the new Curado 301 for example.

While it makes the rod look a little more pimpin’, I think the end cap on the “General Zog” actually acts as a counter-weight to help keep the tip from feeling heavier. In any case, it’s a good discussion piece…

The exposed blank in the reel seat is another feature that I’m a big fan of. While pitching hardware, the bites are often about as subtle as a slap to the face with a wet spatula on a windy February morning but the extra sensitivity will certainly help you keep track of how your lure is working.

Conclusion

Okay, I’ve gotta admit that I wasn’t expecting to like this rod when I first picked it up. Again, it just seemed really bulky and stiff. That all went right out the window after I made a cast and started swinging the spinner through a nice choppy flat. It was super responsive, crisp and sensitive — and I did a quick 180.

As I noted before, the X10 MTC felt a bit top heavy, but it never really was a factor in a long day of fishing. I really enjoyed fishing it and could see that it probably would serve nicely as a big water float rod as well. Speaking of big creeks, I could see this thing also working as a magnum Slinky tossing machine!

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