CAUTION when reading ROD and REEL purchaser reviews

[TOXIC]

Are you trying to tell me that y’all don’t know about the “review” marketing game?  Fer cryin out loud fellas there’s marketing companies out there PAID to do nothing but create reviews both positive and negative.  

[rtwvumtneer6]

Fairly certain the product in question from the OP example is a Curado.  I received one that was actually a factory defect.  Posted on here and attempted all the remedies to no avail.  I exchanged it at zero cost to me.  Problem solved, and have bought 2 more since then.

 

Anyway, I'm on board with everyone who wants facts and supporting evidence.  

[schplurg]

13 hours ago, TOXIC said:

Are you trying to tell me that y’all don’t know about the “review” marketing game?  Fer cryin out loud fellas there’s marketing companies out there PAID to do nothing but create reviews both positive and negative.  

Yep. I have one or two very long posts here regarding Amazon reviews and companies offering me free products for so-called "honest reviews". Hint: honesty isn't really what they want.

[thediscochef]

On 2/5/2022 at 3:51 PM, Cranks4fun said:

Have you ever tried to make a decision on a new purchase and browsed purchaser reviews? I was reading some interesting (entertaining) statements recently. I was reading reviews on a certain popular Shimano reel and nearly everyone was offering positive feedback. A couple of guys complained about backlashes or difficulty removing and replacing the sideplate (that's usually user error). Another guy had a clutch fail - it could have been faulty. Otherwise, the mechanical aspects, the sturdiness, smoothness, and general functionality of the reel were not in question, except for the statements of ONE guy! He claimed to have the gears "strip out" on TWO of these reels and yet no one else among the 56 reviewers had that experience. There is an important reason why I bring this up and why it is important for all of us who read reviews.

   At this point, logic and reason should kick in. How can one guy out of 57 users have the exact same failure TWICE and none of the other 56 guys experience that? Statistically, it seems highly improbable. What is MUCH more likely is that they guy is revealing one of three things:

    1) He really had the gears in two reels fail but it was because of abuse. It's hard to believe that gears would go before a modern, barely-used, $180 Shimano-quality reel's drag would spin. It is possible that it happened to him two times, but very unlikely. It has happened to him but no other purchaser, and it happened to him twice? If it did, there has to be a reason. He could be EXTREMELY abusive with his gear - I've fished with those guys! I have even been that guy years ago! Haha! Statistically, though, you gotta doubt this claim. To quote the worst president ever, "Come on, Man!" I just do not think this is a likely possibility even if he is abusive. This claim is, statistically, almost impossible. That brings me to the next possibility.

  2) He exaggerated the issue by claiming it happened twice to increase the weight of his complaint. To be less diplomatic, he lied! He was mad and wanted to punish the company and discourage others from buying a product which for him was, for some reason, less than satisfactory. He may have stripped the gears in ONE reel or it may have ceased to function for some other reason that he did not understand. BUT gear stripping in TWO reels when no one else among 56 users experiences that? I don't think so. You are free to believe that, but I cannot.

  3) The third option is that he's a rabid brand loyalist. He may not have even purchased one of these reels but he wants to make a strong statement. You may have met these guys. They love ONE BRAND, the one they use, and EVERYTHING else is pure junk! When discussing tackle, reels, rods, etc., these guys usually have only one statement in the discussion. It goes like this "XXXX brand, nuff said!"  Why is a brand name of any product ever "nuff said?" I am not condemning everyone who says, "nuff said" but everyone needs to be reminded that a brand name is never "enough said" to answer a reasonable person inquiring about the quality of a specific model. Imagine someone wanting to buy a vehicle to drive in the mountains, all-seasons, off-road. They are asking if a Ford Fiesta is satisfactory for those conditions. Others are suggesting other brands and models. imagine also that you have a great Ford 4X4 truck that handles the conditions they mentioned so you answer "Ford, nuff said!" At that point you are just being ignorant. Lots of Fords would fail under those conditions. Having a trustworthy Ford truck for off-road does not prove that a Ford fiesta is good for off-road. Brand loyalty has, in that instance, blinded you. Ford is not"nuff said"!

    Any company, yeah EVERY COMPANY, that continues to produce items over time is going to fail and miss the goal sometimes. You either lack experience or you already know that. Both Shimano and Daiwa have have occasionally produced some unsatisfactory rods and reels. All companies that have existed very long have done that.

   If and when rabid brand loyalists say anything more than "nuff said", it will usually sound something like this, "I've used XXXX brand reels for twenty years and they have never failed me. Every Quantum, Daiwa, Shimano, or ABU I'ver used broke within the first two months. They are all JUNK!" Haha! Those kind of extreme, absolute statetments are revealing to some, but some other less-discerning, inquisitive shoppers are misled by those kinds of dishonest claims. They do not realize, oftentimes, that the statements are being made by dishonest, emotional slaves to a certain brand. They, as a result, are misled.  

 

   It is OK to be brand loyal as long as you are not dishonestly brand loyal. We have Shimano guys and Daiwa guys and Lews guys, etc. and tha's great. You have found one brand that consistently satisfies you. It is OK to have favorites. My favorite reels are Daiwas but I have found and own good quality examples from many brands.

   Why is this issue important? First, because we can miss out on great products at good prices because of misleading reviews. Anyone can lie about a product in the review section for whatever reason. That is why I like products with LOTS of good reviews. Reviews from a large pool of experienced samplers/ users are statistically far more trustworthy. In those cases, a few dishonest guys will be overrun with much larger number of honest reviewers. Products with only a few reviews may be great, but it is hard to know by just a few reviews. It is hard to come to a solid statistical conclusion. You generally just have to take a chance if you want the item with only a few reviews or wait until more buyers chime in..

   Secondly, it is important because bad products do go on the market sometimes and we all want to avoid those purchases when possible. Deceptive reviews are just false facts, "fake news", from bad actors and they can and do affect buying decisions and cause people not to make the best choice. Sometimes the dishonest reviews are fairly obvious to the discerning reader, like the one I shared, and sometimes not so much. A guy can also abuse his gear horribly and when he damages the product, blame the company instead of taking credit for his own bad actions. 

  There are defective products even among good lines sometimes, but if a bad review seems highly improbable (when compared to others), or too bad to be true, it very likely is just that. I guess I need to add that good reviews can come from the same deceptive motives too. Some could exaggerate about how good a product is because of their brand loyalty. Some reviews really are just box openings, like when people review reels as "great" and then add, "but I haven't fished with it yet." Those reviews should probably not carry much weight. Read product reviews with caution. Also let me suggest that all of us can help and contribute to our collective wisdom by making honest reviews when we have good or bad experiences with products. 

This is true of all reviews tbh, I tend to try and gauge the overall sentiment of the review section. I’ve done just enough internet retail that I tend to assume most negative reviews are operator error in some form - whether it be the product or their handling of the situation.

The thing to really look out for is fake reviews. Might have something pumped to a 4.8/5 stars with 500 great reviews but it's just AI. 

Also when judging service in a review, note the date on the review. It is relevant.

[Lead Head]

One time I ran across a negative review of what I consider to be very good fluorocarbon line. The guy went on and on about how it was trash and had the "worst memory of any line," and would just spring off his spinning reel. He even included a picture, and sure enough he had a coiled birds nest of line all over his spinning reel. It looked to be a 2000 or 2500 size reel, and he had purchased 25lb line...

[Deleted account]

19 hours ago, TOXIC said:

Are you trying to tell me that y’all don’t know about the “review” marketing game? 

Wait!... So you are saying I CAN be naughty, and can stop leaving out milk and cookies?...Are you sure?...

[Koz]

There's a web browser extension for Firefox and Chrome. called Fakespot that you can use to help spot fake reviews. It's also available for Android and iOS.

[Bankbeater]

I use purchaser reviews as a starting place.  If I see a trend then I start checking different forums to see what is posted about the product.

[Cranks4fun]

7 hours ago, Koz said:

There's a web browser extension for Firefox and Chrome. called Fakespot that you can use to help spot fake reviews. It's also available for Android and iOS.

That would be a COOL thing to have!

On 2/6/2022 at 9:53 AM, rtwvumtneer6 said:

Fairly certain the product in question from the OP example is a Curado.  I received one that was actually a factory defect.  Posted on here and attempted all the remedies to no avail.  I exchanged it at zero cost to me.  Problem solved, and have bought 2 more since then.

 

Anyway, I'm on board with everyone who wants facts and supporting evidence.  

I do not doubt you got a bad one. I am confident that the reviews about the spool disengagement clutch were accurate. The one I doubted and still feel was phony was the one guy who had two reels get stripped gears when NO ONE else did. It is just statistically VERY improbable unless he was horribly abusing those reels. If he was knowingly abusing them, he deserves what he got!

[rtwvumtneer6]

18 minutes ago, Cranks4fun said:

The one I doubted and still feel was phony was the one guy who had two reels get stripped gears when NO ONE else did. It is just statistically VERY improbable unless he was horribly abusing those reels.

I've had that happen out of the box... Then I tightened the star drag and voila, problem solved?

 

And yes, I agree.