When you talked of making booming casts with the big boys, my guess was that you wanted to get a rod to throw plugs at breaking fish, not a jig rod.
I have both the 10' (factory) and the 11' (custom) one piece Supersurf MH blanks. The weight difference is negligible (half an ounce according to the Lamiglas catalog). My 10' factory rod has a double taped foregrip and 7 Concept guides, which probably makes the finished rod even a little heavier than the 11' custom with 5 old school guides. I have Emblem Pro 5500s and 50# braid on each, so when I compare casting distance, it's an apples to apples comparison. The results are what you would expect--the 11' throws a little farther. Enough to make a difference? Once or twice a tide, at most?
If you want an all-around rod for both plugs and jigs, the 10' would be a good choice. Both rods throw 5 oz jigs fine, but the 10' is a little crisper and lifts the jig off the bottom better. If all you want is a max casting performer throwing plugs out there towards the middle, then I'd go with the 11'. Either the SSU or the XRA 1322. Just be advised that the factory 11' SSU is a totally different rod than the one piece 11' blank--2 piece, much thicker blank towards the butt, much stiffer, and noticeably heavier. I've never thrown it, but I think it's way too stiff for plugging.
The 11' custom SSU can be had for about 350 clams from CMS. CMS will also give you a no questions asked one year warranty against breakage (Eric told me that because they order several hundred Lamiglas blanks a year, Lami just sends them new blanks without any assessment of who was at fault for the break). The factory SSU can be had for under $300 from M&Ds. In fact, Mike may not have sold his personal rod yet
