A Rocket Ship Spinning Rod for Trout and Panfish: Shimano Compre Lite Rod Review

While sitting on the boat ramp at the end of an eventful day on the water, my snobby fly-fishing buddy turned to me and said, “Let me see that thing.” The “thing” he was referring to was the Shimano Compre Lite Spinning Rod in my hand. I handed it over and watched with a smirk as he guiltily flipped the bail on the reel and made a cast. A boy was about to turn into a man.

The white rooster tail tied to the line shot across the river and landed on the opposite side with a plop. “Whoa, this thing is a little rocket!” he exclaimed.

I laughed and watched him bomb casts over and over. I had been fishing the rod on and off throughout the day, switching from fly to gear, and wholeheartedly agreed with his assessment. The dainty rod can really launch micro-sized lures. It’s a blast to fish for trout and panfish.

In short: The Shimano Compre Lite series of rods are trout and panfish specialists. The 6’9″ Ultra-Light, Fast Action model I tested can chuck lures as light as 1/32 ounce surprisingly far with fantastic accuracy. DIAFLASH, a Shimano carbon technology, provides improved durability and power, which is a godsend for delicate finesse tackle. Thanks to Fuji Fazlite guides and a maybe too-minimalist split cork handle, the rod is light as a feather. Whether you want to chase crappie or bluegill with slip bobbers or throw rooster tails for trout, this rod provides mountains of fun well worth the $150 price tag.

Materials and Components of the Shimano Compre Lite

Shimano is always pushing the boundaries of carbon fiber technology, and this rod is no different. On the bottom of the rod blank, a criss-cross pattern is readily apparent. That’s the new DIAFLASH: diagonal carbon wraps that reinforce the lower portion of the rod, providing improved power, durability, and resistance to twist and flex.

The overall rod blank screams quality. It’s thin and sleek-looking, a big jump away from the mountains of clunky budget gear that dominates the ultralight tackle scene. To me, it’s clear the panfish and trout guys weren’t treated as an afterthought at Shimano. When wiggled, the blank doesn’t whip around like some limp, heavy noodle. It’s light and responsive. The blank looks and feels like the real deal.

Part of the lightweight build can be attributed to the Fuji Fazlite guides, which look sweet on top of being lightweight. The guide inserts are a Cobalt blue color that looks gorgeous next to the stealth-gray rod and the gold and purple wraps. The cosmetics are rounded out with a split, AAA cork grip and a subdued carbon reel seat.

Casting the Shimano Compre Lite

With how nice the rod blank felt, I was excited to get it out for a day of trout fishing on our local Southern tailwater. For years, I was a fly snob, but after diving headfirst down a bass-fishing rabbit hole over a decade ago, I’ve really come to appreciate chasing slimy, pretty trout with gear. Most days, I have gear on the boat with me, even if the plan is to fling feathers all day.

The rod is rated to throw lures from 1/32 ounce to 3/16 ounce. I was very curious as to how the rod would perform with such light lures. I’ve found that many “ultralight” rods aren’t all that capable of casting such light tackle any amount of distance, despite being rated for it.

Performance With Ultralight Lures

With my reel spooled up with 4-pound Berkley forward braid and a 2-pound floro leader, I started the day throwing a trout magnet (1/64 ounce) with a small split shot above and a bobber.

Shockingly, the ultralight rod zipped the rig into the river with ease. That particular setup is very light, and many of my trout and panfish rods struggle throwing it, but the Compre Light let me hit the targets I was after time and time again. If micro lures are on the menu, it’s a solid rod.

Performance With Heavier, Light Lures

A few days later, I strung the rod up slightly beyond the upper end of its lure rating with a ¼-ounce rooster tail. Throughout the day, I could hit any spot I wanted in the river. It didn’t matter how far it was.

The fast action can absolutely launch lures. It’s wild, and tons of fun to cast.

Aside from the impressive range, the accuracy impressed me as well. Even with a lure beyond the rod’s rating, the action stayed tight and crisp. I could hit pockets in lay downs and weed beds consistently.

Fishability

The rod is just as much fun after the cast as it is while bombing finesse tackle around the water. It’s very sensitive, and I could feel the blade of my rooster tail humming on each retrieve. If my lure was fouled, I immediately knew it.

That sensitivity makes fish grabs a blast. Sometimes, small trout would follow my lure all the way back to the boat, nipping at the tail the whole way. I could feel all of it. Aggressive, fully committed grabs sent a lightning bolt sensation through my hand.

Every time I hooked a fish, I found myself giggling with childlike joy. The Shimano Compre Light makes fishing fun.

Despite having a fast action, the rod is still soft and noodly enough to prevent treble hooks from ripping out of a fish’s mouth. Additionally, the fast action allows for quick hooksets when hanging jigs under a bobber.

And fighting fish? It’s the best. You feel every headshake, and even landing a 12-inch trout turns into a tussle.

Where the Shimano Compre Lite Could Improve

There’s only one real complaint I have with the Shimano Compre Lite. I think the handle is too small.

The upper portion of the cork on the split grip is dinky. I get it, we’re chasing little fish with this rod, but that doesn’t mean my hand is any smaller. If you hold the rod with three fingers below the arm of your reel, like pictured above, your pinky will annoyingly dangle off the cork.

However, the rod isn’t designed to be held like that. The plastic knobs of the reel seat are contoured, and if you place two fingers above and below the arm of the reel, your hand sits perfectly on the handle. Clearly, that’s the proper way to hold the rod.

But I don’t like holding my rod like that. So I let my pinky dangle off the bottom of the cork a bit. A few more inches of cork would make the rod slightly heavier, but would allow for more diverse grip options.

The other complaint I have isn’t a complaint, but rather a warning. If you hook a big fish on this rod, you’re going to be in for one heck of a ride. You’ll be undergunned, in the best of ways.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have the opportunity to test that, as the only 18+” trout my buddies and I landed were on fly rods (yes, sometimes flies are the superior choice). But I landed one that was 15 inches on the spinning rod, and it whooped me. I could only imagine how fun a bigger fish would be on this rod.

Final Thoughts on the Shimano Compre Lite

For those who appreciate trout, bluegill, and other panfish for what they are, this is a phenomenal rod. It brings high-end rod performance and technology to one of the simplest forms of fishing. And it does so at a completely reasonable price of $150.

The joy I got from one day of chasing dinky trout with the Shimano Compre Lite is worth that price alone. I’m not exaggerating: it’s that fun to fish.

Heck, just writing this review got me all jazzed up. I’m sitting here ready to toss it in the truck and head down to the nearby creek to stick a few rock bass. This is one of those rods that makes me want to go fishing.

If that’s not a glowing review, I don’t know what is.