DSTYLE Dehighro DHRC70H Power Fishing Versatile

It’s been a while since I’ve posted, been super busy working but also fishing a lot now that the bass season is in full swing here in Ontario.  Recently our local tacklestore had a sale (20% off) on all items so I picked up the DSTYLE Dehighro 7’ heavy for a ridiculously good price (around 280 USD).  So far, it has been an incredibly competent rod and I feel that it’s a great one to break down.

Being a DSTYLE rod, it is very crisp.  The thing about this company’s rods is the blanks are all very high modulus.  Even the lower end Blue Trek models are very crisp.  The one ‘tradeoff’ being the fact that the comfortable upper end of these rods tend to be lower than competitors.  This is just a matter of physics though, I don’t necessarily see it as a weakness.

The rod is rated as a heavy and a regular fast.  I’d say this is pretty consistent even compared to other brands, but with the rod being so crisp and having such a fast rebound it fishes faster than it seems.  The initial tip section locks up into a very VERY stiff backbone, giving the rod an immense amount of hookset and turning power.  It is very much a 7’ heavy rod built for straight violence.  The lock-up at the stiff butt section almost reminds me of the QUON Jackson Bastard 69H (I’m sure someone in this forum knows about those rods) which was my first true heavy stick, although at a much lower price point.

This DSTYLE rod has a relatively short handle, meaning that the usable rod or true length is actually quite long, this is nice as a lot of heavier rods I find overdo the handle length.  The blanks are very sensitive, bite transmission is comparable to any top end rods, I know guys like to use NRX+ as a benchmark and this blank is definitely up there.  Although the guides are small, the transmission from slackline bites is very strong, it’s the kind of rod you’d trust yourself to look at your phone while fishing with, there’s no way you don’t feel the bite.

Fuji titanium frame SiC guides make for a light and strong guide train, keeping the dry weight of the rod low at an impressive 112g (around 3.9oz).  Nothing special though.  10 guides, 7ft.  The rod blanks are mostly no-frills as with any DSTYLE product, this focus is 100% on performance, it is simple and gets the job done at a very high level.  The signature Daisuke Aoki blue is beautiful though.  Half cork and textured EVA is also interesting.

While being an incredibly powerful rod capable of handling heavy cover and big fish, it is also delicate enough to fish lighter rigs.  The regular fast action also gives it a little more versatility.  Recommended rigs are basically anything single hook, heavier spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, swimjig, cover jig, Texas rigs, weightless plastics, and a frog; in reality it’s everything under the sun besides treble baits.  The claimed range is 3/16-1oz and I think it does that range comfortably.  The one caveat is that it takes some skill to master casting it.  The room for release angle error on this rod is virtually 0, it punishes sloppy casting.  It is very much a katana vs a broad sword, with this rod being a katana.  A seasoned angler would be able to utilize this rod fully, but I wouldn’t recommend someone new having this as their first heavy stick, don’t be fooled by regular fast!

For people who are able to handle this rod, it is a dream to fish with.  Pulling fish out of cover on it is very fun.  The transmission through the blank on bites is very satisfying, and it is a light enough rod that fatigue is not an issue on a 12 hour fishing day.  As with all the DSTYLE rods (I believe with the exception of the Steez Grandee series but that’s technically Daiwa) the blanks are MIC, and again I know some of the guys on this forum are afraid of MIC, but with rods like Raid Maximum being well established in the market as strong performers, MIC isn’t necessarily bad.  These rods are backed by Daisuke Aoki, and he personally uses them in his tournaments.