ABU is overpriced Posted January 11 Posted January 11 I do. The difference in construction of the alphas tw (Thailand) and the jdm 21 Zillion is pretty much null, but if i am about to spend a decent amount of money on a fishing reel (especially for reels in the $300+), i want to see that Made In Japan tag no matter what. How about y'all? 1 Quote
Super User AlabamaSpothunter Posted January 11 Super User Posted January 11 Yes it matters greatly to me. If it's over $200 I want it to be made in Japan. Few reels under $300 are made in Japan, but for example the JDM Zillion SV TW is, and as long as you can get that reel for less than $250, there's no reason to buy a similar priced reel that's made in China, Malaysia, or Vietnam....outside a few exceptions. 2 Quote
redmeansdistortion Posted January 11 Posted January 11 I don't require it, but I highly prefer it with brand new models. 2 Quote
MediumMouthBass Posted January 12 Posted January 12 Whether a product is made in Japan or somewhere else, its made by factory workers making the bare minimum. I personally dont care where my rods or reels or made as long as its not China. I have 24 casting reels currently but only really love a select few, the Tat CT, Fuego CT, SLX MGL 70, and BB1 Pro. These i believe are all made in Thailand, and were free of defects or issues. Held up to a lot of use and keep on going. I dont think being made in any other country whether Japan or here would make them any better or worse. I havent gotten pulled into the JDM black hole yet, but im seriously thinking about getting a 24 Tatula 100 along with a old stock last gen SLX MGL 70 from Japan, but thats only for lower price due to the exchange rate. Having a few reels from Japan would be cool, especially since my mother was born there. But the only thing i would ever want stamped on my reels would be Made In The U.S.A. Im holding out hope Quote
Super User J Francho Posted January 12 Super User Posted January 12 The last reels that were made in the USA were pretty terrible. All of the reels I've actually purchased were made in Japan. Some are JDM, but most are USDM. the reels I've received from various places such as Korea, China, Malaysia, etc. have been of varying quality. None have been truly bad products. Yeah, if you crack open a reel you can see the difference if you know what to look for. As far as actual use, there's very little difference until you start getting into what I call price point reels. 1 Quote
softwateronly Posted January 12 Posted January 12 It was a thing for me, all things considered, but the alphas has been bomb proof and is slowly changing my mind. scott 1 Quote
Super User bulldog1935 Posted January 12 Super User Posted January 12 I always wonder if the technican at bench H-g commits seppuku if this reel comes back for warranty. it was jokes 5 Quote
Super User FishTank Posted January 12 Super User Posted January 12 I didn't use to think it mattered then I fished a few Tatulas. I think I am going to stick with Daiwa reels from Japan going forward. That is not to say that the Tatulas aren't nice reels. I just can feel a difference and it might be all in my head. 1 Quote
Super User JustJames Posted January 12 Super User Posted January 12 Does it matter, NO. Preferably, YES. Made in Japan reel doesn’t mean all parts are made in Japan, right? Yes I trust assembly lines of Japan more than other countries but if one part is bad all things would become not working properly. I got zillion made in Japan with imperfection finish as well as Alphas made in Thailand. Quote
Susky River Rat Posted January 12 Posted January 12 In theory no matter where the plant is they should be able to make the same quality reel. I can promise you that is only a theory. Not every plant does everything with exactly the same materials, quality workers or tools. I know this first hand by visiting a company’s various manufacturing sites through out the USA. (Not fishing reels) another example is you go to any fast food place. There are ones that serve better food than others even though it’s the exact same item. I prefer made in Japan but, will buy a reel made somewhere else if not available. 1 Quote
Super User bulldog1935 Posted January 12 Super User Posted January 12 There are differences between offshore assembly line reels and Japan-bench-finished reels - the difference is intentional and goes beyond the labor rate. Made in Japan Sells in Japan. While the parts all come from the same manufacturing, the Shimano Malaysia worker or Daiwa Tica-Taiwan worker is getting reels out the door. What they do in Japan is sort and match parts from the bins for smoother function as they're assembling the reel - the extra time and labor quality is designed into the pricing. If you put a Stradic and Twin Power side-by-side, you'll notice the difference - and Stradic is good enough, you won't notice the difference otherwise. @softwateronly - no offense, the only Daiwa warranty return I know of was an Alphas that left out the frame-spool-ring on one side. Also, there are full-bench and bench-finished reels still made in USA (to me, this defines USDM - i.e. imported USM reels are not made domestically) 4 Quote
redmeansdistortion Posted January 12 Posted January 12 35 minutes ago, bulldog1935 said: Made in Japan Sells in Japan. Precisely. Japanese consumers have an eye for quality, unlike Westerners who have an eye for quantity. While most famous Western fishing brands have been relegated to nothing more than brand names with OEMs providing both design and manufacturing, Japan is much different. If a business is working and earning good reputation, they leave it be and do what it does best. Western companies are much more concerned about the bottom line and use a plethora of cost cutting measures to the eventual demise of the company. The example I like to use with how Japan treats its own companies is McIntosh Labs, the famous American audio manufacturer. They were bought by Clarion, a Japanese company in 1990 and many workers thought for sure the buildings were going to close and everything off-shored. What did Clarion do? Absolutely nothing. They let McIntosh Labs operate independently because they knew the company was very highly regarded. Why fix what isn't broken? 20 years ago McIntosh Labs was bought by H&M Holdings, a Japanese investment company that specializes in audio and visual equipment. Who wants to guess what D&M did to McIntosh? If you guess nothing, you are correct. That's the Japanese way of doing business. Heck, ABU only got into the situation it is now because Pure Fishing took over ABU distribution in Japan when Olympic went bankrupt 25 years ago. The best contemporary Swedish made and designed reels all hail from the Olympic era. 2 Quote
softwateronly Posted January 12 Posted January 12 25 minutes ago, bulldog1935 said: There are differences between offshore assembly line reels and Japan-bench-finished reels - the difference is intentional and goes beyond the labor rate. Made in Japan Sells in Japan. While the parts all come from the same manufacturing, the Shimano Malaysia worker or Daiwa Tica-Taiwan worker is getting reels out the door. What they do in Japan is sort and match parts from the bins for smoother function as they're assenbling the reel - the extra time and labor quality is designed into the pricing. If you put a Stradic and Twin Power side-by-side, you'll notice the difference - and Stradic is good enough, you won't notice the difference otherwise. @softwateronly - no offense, the only Daiwa warranty return I know of was an Alphas that left out the frame-spool-ring on one side. None taken.....I might have been trying to convince myself as I was browsing amazon's low prices. scott 1 Quote
Recurve1 Posted January 12 Posted January 12 I want my car to be made in Japan. Don't care where my fishing reel is made. Quote
Super User bulldog1935 Posted January 13 Super User Posted January 13 Toyota trucks are made in San Antonio. 1 Quote
MiceNReets Posted January 13 Posted January 13 7 minutes ago, bulldog1935 said: Toyota trucks are made in San Antonio. And they’re priced like they’re made in Japan. 2 Quote
MediumMouthBass Posted January 13 Posted January 13 3 hours ago, bulldog1935 said: Toyota trucks are made in San Antonio. Many Subarus are made here too Quote
Recurve1 Posted January 13 Posted January 13 10 hours ago, bulldog1935 said: Toyota trucks are made in San Antonio. I heard they were made in Mexico? The Crown Signia is reportedly MIJ. Likely my next vehicle. Some Mazdas still MIJ, those are worth a look too. Quote
Super User bulldog1935 Posted January 13 Super User Posted January 13 https://pressroom.toyota.com/facility/toyota-motor-manufacturing-texas/ We're 130 mi from Mexico... But all Japanese car makers have major US plants. 1 Quote
GReb Posted January 13 Posted January 13 “Made in Japan” reels are typically the most expensive models using the best quality parts so of course you’d expect it to be a great product. I’m not sure the origin of the plant or assembly line worker matters a great deal. However I would expect a worker building a $500 reel to be more skilled and experienced than one making a $100 reel. Quote
MediumMouthBass Posted January 13 Posted January 13 6 hours ago, Recurve1 said: I heard they were made in Mexico? The Crown Signia is reportedly MIJ. Likely my next vehicle. Some Mazdas still MIJ, those are worth a look too. Some TRD Pro's are assembled in Baja Mexico, and then theres Toyota Motor plant in Guanajuato Mexico too. Quote
Recurve1 Posted January 13 Posted January 13 4 hours ago, bulldog1935 said: https://pressroom.toyota.com/facility/toyota-motor-manufacturing-texas/ We're 130 mi from Mexico... But all Japanese car makers have major US plants. Ahh - the Tundra made in Texas. The Tacoma is made in Mexico https://www.4thgentacoma.com/threads/where-are-toyota-tacomas-made.938/ Quote
Super User WRB Posted January 13 Super User Posted January 13 Reels Made in Japan are preferred but I am OK as long as it’s not made in China. Tom 1 Quote
MiceNReets Posted January 14 Posted January 14 6 hours ago, Recurve1 said: Ahh - the Tundra made in Texas. The Tacoma is made in Mexico https://www.4thgentacoma.com/threads/where-are-toyota-tacomas-made.938/ 1 Quote
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