I'm not a dyed in the wool spider rigger, but I am set up and have a bunch of fun with it. Too stiff a rod will cause the jigs or baits to bounce up and down every time a boat goes by, or whatever. I use the BnM bucks graphite jig poles and like em, 5 @12' and 3 @ 10'. If I were starting out, knowing what I know now it would be all 12's. I use a jig and tip with a minnow when necessary. travel real slow, then slow down some more. Bobby Garland baby shad (BGBS) are normally on the end, with 1/16 or 1/8 heads. Panfish assassins and southern pro curl tails also get some use til I see what they want. A hundred dollar hand held gps with a power cord will help you get back where you want to go. A Ram mount holds mine and that unit gets a lot of use. Others will give you their opinion shortly, and some will have lots more exp than I. My rig came together slowly and didn't break the bank, and works just fine for me. Good luck and have fun.
Creativity is just intelligence fooling around