Brand Bashing

[J Francho]

I have no time for brand bashing.  Don't make me be moderator J Francho.  I'd much rather be member J Francho.

[Choporoz]

Putting aside the bashing, a lot of people don't even fully comprehend their brand prejudices.  Years past, I didn't bash Quantum much, but I did feel their gear was inferior.    But that was entirely because of a single bad experience with a very cheap combo....IIRC, a $50 spinning combo.  Fast forward 8 or 9 years, and my 3 favorite reels are all Quantum.  I developed serious myopia based on a tier of equipment in which no manufacturer would consistently fair well....and to which higher end equipment should not be compared, no matter the manufacturer 

[Mobasser]

34 minutes ago, J Francho said:

I have no time for brand bashing.  Don't make me be moderator J Francho.  I'd much rather be member J Francho.

J Francho. I have no time for it either

[ww2farmer]

I will only talk negative about an item I have personal experience with and it failed me or my expectations. But even negative reviews I give must be taken subjectively, as my experience with such and such a product might be uncommon. I will not refrain from telling people about stuff I used and didn't like... that's what an open forum is for. Anything else is nothing more than echo chamber advertising.

 

People who blindly bash based on zero experience are generally insecure idiots. 

[PaFrogThrower9]

28 minutes ago, ww2farmer said:

I will only talk negative about an item I have personal experience with and it failed me or my expectations. But even negative reviews I give must be taken subjectively, as my experience with such and such a product might be uncommon. I will not refrain from telling people about stuff I used and didn't like... that's what an open forum is for. Anything else is nothing more than echo chamber advertising.

 

People who blindly bash based on zero experience are generally insecure idiots. 

Bingo. Well said. It's kind of like the bad experience I had with Strike King sunglasses. I gave them a shot 3 times and even though each time their customer service was fantastic and took care of me, the product just wasn't up to par. If you would look in my boat and in my garage you would see that I'm a huge believer in Strike Kings products beings almost 75% of my lures are theirs. Can't base a feeling on one single product or one bad experience. 

[Josh Gann]

Lot of bassers have to budget , I know I do it is what it is. Luckily for me you can find quality stuff( well what I consider quality stuff used) . For example I grew up on Abu Garcia. I got 2 Revo sx reels for 45 bucks apiece in past couple years , just picked up a Revo X on a 7' MH veritas for 70 bucks. If I do purchase expensive gear new I have to wait on an overtime check or income tax, which is fine. Also 39.99 rods have improved VASTLY over the years for instance Lews IM8 speed stick , Berkley lightning rod, Abu gacia Vengeance are three 40 dollar rods I have and they're great . Shoot 5-6 years ago all my rods were stolen , March was coming on and I was in a fix , for around 65 bucks I went an bought 3 Berkley cherrywood rods an they worked just fine , still got one in the Arsenal today, matter fact the other 2 are in great shape STILL just don't use. If it puts fish in my 1,800 dollar bumblebee I'm gonna use it. No patience for brand bashers , ridiculousness really, who cares what somebody else is using . Unless maybe they're catchin em an you ain't lol

[OnthePotomac]

Then you have these characters, whose goal is mysterious.  I frequent another bass fishing site and one day during a discussion on why anglers like Shimano reels a fellow (new to the site) posts that he had just purchased a Curado reel, used it twice and it "fell apart".  When several on the thread asked him politely to explain what he meant by "fell apart" he just vanished from the site never to be heard from again.

[WRB]

You will never stop Chevy owners bashing Ford owners or Ford bashing Chevy, they are competitors, it's just the life is. Bashing is done in jest most of time so don't take it so seriously.

You all heard of Zebco? Quantum bought Zebco decades ago and Zebco bought Langley, my 1st baitcasting reel, long before Daiwa or Shimano made fishing reels.

30 years I would Ambassaduer reels were the top bass baitcasting reels, time has changed that for me and today my reels are Daiwa and Shimano, why?.....I switched back in the early 90's to Daiwa TD HTSA's and Shimano Calcutta, Bantum 100's because they perform better for me. I upgrade my rods and reels about every 10 years.

Tom

 

[J Francho]

I wouldn't say Quantum bought Zebco.  More like Zebco added a brand named Quantum to their line up.  Zebco is an abbreviation for Zero Hour Bomb Company.  Zebco is part of "Zebco Brands" and is owned by WC Bradley.

 

https://www.wcbradley.com/index.php?/divisions/zebco-brands

[sully420]

There's a difference between bashing and honest reviews, I have no issues with reviews based on personal experience with a product. I do take issue bashing someone's gear because it's not expensive or a specific brand.

 

I also find it strange that so many people go out of their way to sell high end products on this site and they don't even get paid for it. It's great you like x brand and you opinion is valuable, at some point I feel like it can stop new bass fishermen from sticking with the sport because they feel like they need high end stuff to catch fish or avoid ridicule.

[GrumpyOlPhartte]

But, on a more upbeat note, I prefer to “talk up” brands which I prefer. To me, in many cases, the customer service is more important than the quality of the product. I suspect no company has a 100% track record; an occasional stinker occasionally gets through. But, what they do to correct the situation speaks volumes.

 

My personal favorites (in no particular order):

 

Siebert Outdoors

Lew’s

Manley Rods

Okuma

Biospawn

Dick’s Sporting Goods (Go ahead and laugh but I got 10% off a kayak because the decal was scratched up! Wonder if bass hate those scratched decals.)

 

All of these companies have taken the time to either correct a situation or communicate with me when I had a question or needed advice. To be honest, I have probably omitted a couple of others, but when someone asks me what I would recommend, I work from this rather short list and just avoid the others.  Frankly, it’s amazing that several companies about which many on here rave will never get my business simply due to the treatment I received. (Yeah, like that’s gonna affect their bottom lines. LOL!)

 

(Gets down off soapbox and goes back to waiting for water to warm up.)

 

[Boomstick]

1 hour ago, OnthePotomac said:

Then you have these characters, whose goal is mysterious.  I frequent another bass fishing site and one day during a discussion on why anglers like Shimano reels a fellow (new to the site) posts that he had just purchased a Curado reel, used it twice and it "fell apart".  When several on the thread asked him politely to explain what he meant by "fell apart" he just vanished from the site never to heard from again.

I saw the post you're talking about. At the time, I had never owned anything Shimano but I never heard of users complaining about their Shimano reels falling apart -- even the entry level models. When I saw it was his first or second post, I figured it was probably an fanboy/agent of a competing brand or being a troll.

 

 

16 hours ago, Yumeya said:

I only make fun of people who use Favorite brand and Googan fishing stuff LOL.

Now, isn't that going against the point of this thread? I haven't tried any Googan baits yet, but I hear they work pretty well.

6 hours ago, TBAG said:

I don't bash but it sure is annoying when someone on here, not going to mention any names but in EVERY single post they try to push a certain brand who IMO is junk............

Well at least they're trying to promote what works for them instead of saying "what you all use is junk!"

14 hours ago, jtharris3 said:

Fender or Gibson? Oh wait! Never mind! ?

Why not both? I own a Fender and a Gibson and the voices in my head are constantly at war with each other...

[fishballer06]

4 hours ago, J Francho said:

I have no time for brand bashing.  Don't make me be moderator J Francho.  I'd much rather be member J Francho.

I much prefer J "The IT Department" Francho. ??

[Heartland]

I like what I fish the best

[J Francho]

39 minutes ago, fishballer06 said:

I much prefer J "The IT Department" Francho. ??

What about J "Spell Checker" Francho?  I inherited that from Long Mike!

[Deleted account]

1 hour ago, Heartland said:

I like what I fish the best

I fish what I like the best...

[Glaucus]

One of the first setups I ever owned was one of those cheap like $30 Shakespeare baitcasters with the $15 Shakespeare rods you get at Walmart - I think they're called Excursion. You know what happened? I caught fish and it never broke. Next I stepped up to Lightning rods and Silver Max reels and I still use them for some things to this day. The old Shakespeare rods got spincasters slapped on them for my wife and kids. 

[OCdockskipper]

2 hours ago, WRB said:

...30 years I would Ambassaduer reels were the top bass baitcasting reels, time has changed that for me and today my reels are Daiwa and Shimano...

Tom

Time can play into it.  When I started fishing in the mid 70's, Mister Twister was one of the top brands with huge name recognition and Strike King was looked upon as a smaller company with a few unique baits.  When I came back to bass fishing about a decade ago, their positions had switched.  My opinion of both companies would have been incorrect without updated experience.

 

Knowing the history of companies is also helpful in evaluating their products.

[Yumeya]

7 hours ago, Largies4Life said:

This, to me, screams what the OP was just saying. Why make fun of people using this gear? Just because they're all seen as overrated by many people? The Googan baits are nearly identical to the Rage series so you may as well make fun of people using Strike King now, too.

Its not so much there knockoff baits, I just personally can't stand the Googan Squad or their crappy favorite rods they try to pond off as the best rods ever.

 

I also hate anything decorated as patriotic thats made in China.

I have a few rods that are made in China and they are good rods, just don't stick American colors on it. 

[Choporoz]

5 minutes ago, Yumeya said:

, I just personally can't stand the Googan Squad or their crappy favorite rods they try to pond off as the best rods ever.. 

 

 

19 hours ago, Yumeya said:

I only make fun of people who use Favorite brand and Googan fishing stuff LOL.

We got it the first time.   Maybe take a moment and detail your honest, personal experience,  or just let it be and respect that the overriding sensibility here is that public brand bashing isn't valued conversation for most of us 

[Fishes in trees]

I can be flexible on different brands of spinning gear - Shimano, Diawa, Pflueger, and a couple of US Reels are in my collection of spinning reels.

 

When it comes to bait casting reels - I can't help it, I'm a Shimano guy.   I go to the tackle store and the store helpers show me all kinds of new reels from Lews, Diawa, Quantum and other brands.   I have to politely shake my head and say no thank you, all my other reels would get jealous.

 

Once at a store show where both Guido and Dion Hibdon were present, they were promoting the line of US Reels bait casting reels.   They were an attractive price, so I bought one - fished it twice - It now has an honored place in my cat fishing gear which might get wet every few seasons.  For Bass fishing, it just isn't a good reel.  Lesson learned - I just buy Shimano now.   This isn't gear basing - it is more likely deep seated paranoia, but I'm ok with it.

[Bankbeater]

It’s not the cost of your equipment, but how you use it that counts. 

[fin]

4 hours ago, J Francho said:

I wouldn't say Quantum bought Zebco.  More like Zebco added a brand named Quantum to their line up.  Zebco is an abbreviation for Zero Hour Bomb Company.  Zebco is part of "Zebco Brands" and is owned by WC Bradley.

 

https://www.wcbradley.com/index.php?/divisions/zebco-brands

I always thought Zebco created the Quantum brand name to market higher-end products (baitcasters, etc.). Zebco has been very successful, but I think they knew they would have an uphill battle going into that market with the Zebco name.

 

I’m okay with bashing brands. I’m not okay with bashing people based on their preferred brands.

 

If I have a bad experience with a brand, I’m not going to keep it a secret. I don't think keeping it a secret benefits anyone.

[BassThumb]

The kid will be fine with his Quantum. They're not my preference, but he'll learn for himself what his preferences are.

[crypt]

the fish don't care what boat, rod,reel your using the only one that cares is you.and if your good with what your using then giddyup..................