High end rod owners?

[jbrew73]

I buy rods to fish with and not look at the guide wraps.  

[AmmoGuy]

16 minutes ago, jbrew73 said:

I buy rods to fish with and not look at the guide wraps.  

Then you should never spend more than about $150 on a rod. 
 

Above that, and fit and finish (or bragging rights) better be part of your goal. 

[jbrew73]

9 minutes ago, AmmoGuy said:

Then you should never spend more than about $150 on a rod. 
 

Above that, and fit and finish (or bragging rights) better be part of your goal. 

I have rods costing quite a bit more and couldn’t even tell you what color the wraps are.  ? 

[S Hovanec]

26 minutes ago, jbrew73 said:

I buy rods to fish with and not look at the guide wraps.  

 

I buy my rods to fish with too.  I also buy my cars to drive, but i sure want the paint to be smooth and all the body panels to fit together properly, even the cheap ones.

[CrankFate]

1 hour ago, S Hovanec said:

 

Ill have the owner post the pics then.  I have no reason to lie.  I've seen NRXs even worse than this and they are notorious for it.  Why is it so hard to believe that Shimano puts out crap too?

Not because it’s Shimano, but because their $100 rods are never that crappy. It looks more like someone bought the blank and tried to wrap it themselves and did a bad job. Or they just bought a bootleg. I know there can be major variations from rod to rod on the rack in the store, but I’ve never seen a Shimano rod like that. I know there is a lot of now that it’s not American it’s not good going around the Internet.  But this picture is why I never buy rods at discount prices, I stick to real dealers. I believe that there are a lot of bootlegs out there, especially as the price goes up. 

[iabass8]

1 hour ago, CrankFate said:

I have to call this one out. I don’t believe in high end rods, because they are just about being expensive. But no way in the world a rod wrapped like that would ever make it to market from a factory owned by Shimano. I have many Shimano rods in many price points. None are wrapped like this. No way.

you clearly haven't seen many NRX/conquest rods in person then. This is a common complaint......

[CrankFate]

1 hour ago, iabass8 said:

you clearly haven't seen many NRX/conquest rods in person then. This is a common complaint......

No, I haven’t seen too many of them. I do look at rods I consider to be a waste of money in the store from time to time. I’ve never seen anything wrapped so badly that wasn’t a St. Croix, but they have drastically improved in recent times and don’t sell anything like that anymore. I’m still not convinced. Because the 2 or 3 I’ve seen in the stores (since they don’t keep many of them on display) weren’t like that. I still thought they would snap if I threw a hard cast that hooked onto the brush behind me, like I did last weekend, so I stick to more durable feeling options. I drop my rods on the rocks and set hooks like a horse into the rocks. High end rods are made for carpeted decks, IMO.

[S Hovanec]

1 hour ago, CrankFate said:

Not because it’s Shimano, but because their $100 rods are never that crappy. It looks more like someone bought the blank and tried to wrap it themselves and did a bad job. Or they just bought a bootleg. I know there can be major variations from rod to rod on the rack in the store, but I’ve never seen a Shimano rod like that. I know there is a lot of now that it’s not American it’s not good going around the Internet.  But this picture is why I never buy rods at discount prices, I stick to real dealers. I believe that there are a lot of bootlegs out there, especially as the price goes up. 

 

This rod was bought on the day of release at an authorized Shimano dealer. There is absolutely nothing bootleg about it.

[CrankFate]

Just now, S Hovanec said:

 

This rod was bought on the day of release at an authorized Shimano dealer. There is absolutely nothing bootleg about it.

What is wrong with this person? I’d laugh and put it back on the rack and go buy two better rods with that money.

[S Hovanec]

6 minutes ago, CrankFate said:

What is wrong with this person? I’d laugh and put it back on the rack and go buy two better rods with that money.

 

It was ordered online.  I believe if he desired to do so, he'd just have me strip it and wrap it properly 

[CrankFate]

1 minute ago, S Hovanec said:

 

It was ordered online.  I believe if he desired to do so, he'd just have me strip it and wrap it properly 

This poor fool. Totally raked over the coals and thrown over the barrel off of one single rod.

[RDB]

2 hours ago, AmmoGuy said:

Then you should never spend more than about $150 on a rod. 
 

Above that, and fit and finish (or bragging rights) better be part of your goal. 

Knew we would get here eventually.  There are a lot of great rods in all price ranges.  I choose higher end because I enjoy and can afford.  If others want to think I do it for bragging rights, I’m fine with that and choose not to retort ?.

 

To return to the OP’s question, if it were my rod (Loomis) and I had an issue, I would go through the Expeditor program and get a brand new rod.  Other recommendations to get a repair from a custom builder is a valid option as well.

[Cigarguy]

If you bought the rod new and are not happy with it, return it.  Or contact the manufacturer and hopefully they will fix it.  There are many reasons I prefer buying at a local tackle shop.  Besides supporting them I can look, feel, molest the product before buying.  This is especially so with "high end" rods and tackle.  Actually I would question doing business with any tackle shop that would put on the sales floor any crappy/defective rod. 

 

To spend more money on a Cadillac that clearly looks like a Cavalier is nuts in my books.  I definitely would not be replacing any parts myself.  If I damaged it or worse bought from a place that do not do returns it had better be one heck of a deal.

 

[The Pond King]

I have a St. Croix Legend Elite that's way worse than that. I couldn't believe how much space there was in between the threads. Terribly loosely wrapped. It's just a little less noticeable because every guide foot wrap is a dark gray thread that blends into the dark green color of the painted blank. What's more, only the first guide from the reel seat has a highlight threads; a very mundane and boring rod from an aesthetic perspective. It really must be old grandmas with arthritis wrapping them things. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have low end and mid range rods that are made in China with better thread wraps than this! That's sad. What's worse is that I had to wait 4 months since I purchased this on Black Friday because they ran out of stock due to covid. I'm thinking St. Croix is rushing these builds, and they're coming out looking ugly. Who knows what their raw blanks really look like. I'm certain they paint them to cover the blemishes. 

[NOC 1]

On 4/22/2021 at 12:57 PM, Dumbbassanglr said:

I was thinking about a mb destroyer I have and all the intricacies of the guide wraps. I wasn’t sure how many rod builders are up to the task of redoing a megabass guide.

I have Megabass rods and I also build some of my own rods. I do some Megabass style guide wraps on my own rods without a whole lot of issues and I'm not as as good as someone who does it for a living is. As for guides, Megabass usually if not always uses whatever are the premium Fuji guides of the day so they should be pretty easy to look at and figure out what they are.

20 hours ago, S Hovanec said:

 

I don't think I can even drunk wrap as bad as this Conquest.

 

 

 

?  Blind guy with Cerebral Palsy perhaps?

[NOC 1]

13 hours ago, AmmoGuy said:

Then you should never spend more than about $150 on a rod. 
 

Above that, and fit and finish (or bragging rights) better be part of your goal. 

$150-$200 might be enough to get you a top grade blank to build a rod on. There are some good blanks for less, but not as good for the most part. Top notch guides add another $50 or more. It cost me at least $250 to build a a rod based on a really good blank like a Loomis LMX or Phenix K2. The bling, state of the art handles, and custom reel seats isn't included in that.

 

Your average $150 rod would start with a pretty mediocre blank I would think maybe $40 or so. If someone can't tell the difference, so be it, but I sure can.

[Deleted account]

10 hours ago, Cigarguy said:

To spend more money on a Cadillac that clearly looks like a Cavalier is nuts in my books.

That would be the Cimarron...

[NOC 1]

6 minutes ago, BassWhole! said:

That would be the Cimarron...

LOL, That was the Cadillac that WAS a Cavalier. It didn't just look like one.

[Deleted account]

9 minutes ago, NOC 1 said:

LOL, That was the Cadillac that WAS a Cavalier. It didn't just look like one.

That car was a race between the drivetrain and the body to see which failed first, my Chevy Vega (first car) at least knew it was never going to be a Vette.

[CrankFate]

9 hours ago, BaitFinesse said:

Maybe they are made somewhere else then their their other rods by people that don't give a darn.

Makes you wonder if Loomis sold his staff to Shimano along with the name.

[Dwight Hottle]

16 hours ago, CrankFate said:

I have to call this one out. I don’t believe in high end rods, because they are just about being expensive. But no way in the world a rod wrapped like that would ever make it to market from a factory owned by Shimano. I have many Shimano rods in many price points. None are wrapped like this. No way.

 

Just do a little research & you will find that guys have been complaining about the poor NRX builds for a really long time. The blanks are greatly loved but the build quality is only tolerated because of the iconic blanks. 

16 hours ago, S Hovanec said:

 

Ill have the owner post the pics then.  I have no reason to lie.  I've seen NRXs even worse than this and they are notorious for it.  Why is it so hard to believe that Shimano puts out crap too?

 This guy is legit not a phony or liar. He tells it like he sees it. 

[CrankFate]

6 minutes ago, Dwight Hottle said:

 

Just do a little research & you will find that guys have been complaining about the poor NRX builds for a really long time. The blanks are greatly loved but the build quality is only tolerated because of the iconic blanks. 

 This guy is legit not a phony or liar. He tells it like he sees it. 

well if anything it adds to my opinion on high end rods. Great products aren’t always the most expensive ones. I think this is more true with rods than just about anything else.

[fishwizzard]

I buy high end rods for the feel/function, if they look good, that's a cool bonus.  And even when it comes to looks, the guide wraps are like the last thing I am looking at.  But, I think split-grips 100% look awful and will ruin the look of a rod, so my fussiness if clearly directd in a different direction.  

[Johnbt]

"I have had 3 Conquests and the finish was great on all of them."

 

I've had 4 for a few years and I've never looked closely at the wrapping. The guides are still solid and the rods feel great and fish even better. I don't think I've ever looked closely at the wraps on a rod in the 65 years I've been fishing. They're just tools. If they do what I want I keep them.

 

Well, that's not true, I did look hard at every detail of the first 11' surf rod I had Red Drum Tackle build on a Lamiglass blank way back in the old days. I'd never had a rod built that would throw 8 ounces and bait.

[NOC 1]

On 4/24/2021 at 9:38 AM, CrankFate said:

well if anything it adds to my opinion on high end rods. Great products aren’t always the most expensive ones. I think this is more true with rods than just about anything else.

You are of course entitled to hold whatever opinions that you choose to hold but I think that someone who doesn't use high end rods is least competent to judge their lack of benefit. Use whatever you like, but don't justify your taste and or budget for lower end gear by characterizing my preference for better gear as somehow uninformed or wasteful.