Flambeau's Cheaper Alternative To Mafia and Edge

[RichF]

Just picked up a couple of Flambeau's new offerings and thought I'd share my first impressions.

 

First up, the Crank Bank.  Neat idea.  The individual cups can be removed which allows for decent customization.  They can accommodate 6XDs and DT-16s (without hook bonnets).  I've also got smaller cranks doubled/tripled in some slots.  You can also fit decent sized jerkbaits in the cups (deep diving x-rap, Spro Mcsticks).  

 

Second is the Blade Krate.  I love this thing.  Such a nifty idea.  No bending spinnerbait arms or ruining skirts like in the old FTO/Plano Spinnerbait boxes and no swinging/banging into each other like in a traditional spinnerbait box.  I've got spinnerbaits up to 1oz in there. Bladed jigs hang by their hook.  The dividers do a great job keeping skirts straight and protected.

 

The overall construction of these things is wayyy better than I was expecting for the price ($19.99).  I haven't been able to test out the anti-rust properties but I imagine they'll be on par with other brands rust inhibitors.  The one thing that could be seen as a negative is the shape/size.  These things aren't fitting in any tackle bag.  They're meant for a boat or home storage (which is what I'm using them for right now).  As a side note, I have to give props to Flambeau's customer service as well.  One of the dividers in the Blade Krate came damaged.  I sent them an email with pics and the mailed me 2 free replacements in a couple days.

[PourMyOwn]

Great post, thank you. 

 

Just picked up a couple of crank banks at Dick's and some split rings/trebles. Free shipping over 49. 

[J Francho]

That Blade Krate looks great.

[Fishin Dad]

Hey Rich, where did you pick these up?

[Cgolf]

Glad to hear this, as I was debating getting this box since I am picking up 30-40 new spinnerbaits for christmas. I am also picking up their small box that holds six and drilling holes in it for a boat box after I cut them off to dry. No matter how good boxes rust protection is, I always let my baits dry before putting them in more of a long term storage.

[MIbassyaker]

How many spinnerbaits does the Blade Krate hold?

 

Is it suited for buzzbaits as well? Hard to see from the pictures, but I expect maybe not if it stores them flat. 

 

[RichF]

12 hours ago, MIbassyaker said:

How many spinnerbaits does the Blade Krate hold?

 

Is it suited for buzzbaits as well? Hard to see from the pictures, but I expect maybe not if it stores them flat. 

 

Holds 42 spinnerbaits. Buzzbaits are a no go.

[RichF]

Update on these suckers...

 

So I ordered 2 more of these from Dicks during the Black Friday sale.  They arrived with hardly any packing and both boxes were destroyed.  Dicks sent me replacements promptly (I didn't have to return the broken ones).  Those came in a box with ZERO packaging and both were cracked/chipped.  I opened another chat with them online and they shipped 2 more replacements that I just received today, again, no packing material in the box.  The blade krate survived and the krank bank had only one small aesthetic chip.  

 

My point for this update is I'm somewhat questioning the durability of these boxes.  I totally understand that all of the tackle utility boxes out there chip and crack, etc. but these seem a touch too brittle.  It could totally be the packaging (or lack thereof) but I can't help but think these might get banged up good in a boat compartment.  Guess I'll find out next spring.

 

Kudos to Dick's customer service though.  But now I'm up to my eyes in busted boxes!

[J Francho]

1 minute ago, RichF said:

Kudos to Dick's customer service though.

Glad they replaced the damaged goods, but this is a silo.  They are not communicating with fulfillment.  All this results in paying more, eventually.  It's wasteful.

[RichF]

3 hours ago, J Francho said:

Glad they replaced the damaged goods, but this is a silo.  They are not communicating with fulfillment.  All this results in paying more, eventually.  It's wasteful.

Totally agree.  I even asked them if they could ensure that the goods were actually packed adequately.  That obviously did no good.  I hate that I now have a bunch of extra crap plastic lying around.

[CountryboyinDC]

Nice write up @RichF.  I guess I'll order the spinnerbait one.  This will be the 40-11th attempt a finding a way to store them I like.  I do wish they had a 2 "file" as opposed to 3 box.  I just don't carry that many spinnerbaits.  I waited a year for the smaller 3600 terminal tackle boxes to come out from Plano.  Us guys fishing from kayaks have to wait for the neat stuff.

[RichF]

5 hours ago, CountryboyinDC said:

Nice write up @RichF.  I guess I'll order the spinnerbait one.  This will be the 40-11th attempt a finding a way to store them I like.  I do wish they had a 2 "file" as opposed to 3 box.  I just don't carry that many spinnerbaits.  I waited a year for the smaller 3600 terminal tackle boxes to come out from Plano.  Us guys fishing from kayaks have to wait for the neat stuff.

Totally agree with wanting something smaller.  I also rarely carry more than a half dozen spinnerbaits since I only use them in a limited capacity.  You can take out an entire row from the box which leaves a big open space for other stuff though.  I got these strictly to store my overstock baits but since I have a bunch on dinged up ones now; I'm thinking about using one for a day box to store some spinnerbaits, bladed jigs, and regular jigs (I checked and they fit perfectly fine in there, even 1.25 ouncers).

[CountryboyinDC]

1 hour ago, RichF said:

You can take out an entire row from the box which leaves a big open space for other stuff though.  I got these strictly to store my overstock baits but since I have a bunch on dinged up ones now; I'm thinking about using one for a day box to store some spinnerbaits, bladed jigs, and regular jigs (I checked and they fit perfectly fine in there, even 1.25 ouncers)

I may try that.  Right now the spinnerbaits (and buzzbaits) are just in the pages of a bait binder I have.  I only throw a couple of buzzbaits these days, and could probably get by with half dozen spinnerbaits in all honesty.

[Big Swimbait]

I ordered the Crank Bank from TW. It was packed well with zero issues. I really like this concept.

[Sphynx]

As a guy who knows a thing or two about the transportation industry, anything that is shipped without packaging/wrapping/etc is asking for trouble, drivers don't often go out of their way to destroy freight, but when you have companies like the major parcel companies packing trailers with God knows what, primarily based on destination you are going to get things bumping, tipping, sliding, etc. In transit, the metal flooring in a lot of trailers is going to make these shifts especially uncomfortable for plastic boxes that shift to the bottom and get banged around against it, if they refuse to package items, I'd have to say your best bet is to find a company who's shipping department accepts the reality of the transportation industry and packs these things properly.