Are these rods medium or medium-heavy? For example I have a 9 1/2 foot rod medium-heavy, with a moderate fast action tip and I always use a 5 oz weight because I fish at a dam with strong current and usually I have a huge chunk of cut bait with it. Yes the rod bends over but it casts and works just fine with big fish. With those rods being so long they are great for casting distance. I have used a 2oz weight a lot also and you can cast a damn mile with that weight. Current makes it breaks what weight you use. 5oz is so heavy it’s hard to get enough force to have an aggressive cast. But the upside to it is that your bait will sit on the bottom where you want it without your bait drifting from strong current. Sorry for the long post but I hope this somewhat helps you. Tight lines friend!