Rod and Reel Brands

PatrickC wrote:
It's mind-boggling to me that folks can actually make assumptions about a person's character based on the brand of gear they use. I think that says more about the one making the judgement than the person with said brand of gear...
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Pfft...sounds like something an uppity winston user would say.
 
Probably some pretentious know it all in a waxed canvass hat drinking knob creek. :-D

Wait, that didn't come out right. LMAO.
 
I only wear a waxed canvas hat in the rain and it's usually Highland Park!!!
 
Never owned a Winston BTW....
 
AND, I'm hardly pretentious. Been called a know-it all a few times :-D
 
Patrick C ,+1 for FD. GG
 
It was a jab at Jack but he must be sleeping in OT forum. :p
 
Sorry, didn't recognize myself in a waxed hat.
 
Aren't you saving the Nob Creek stuff? GG
 
The only problem I found with my Konic 3.5 is that the tolerances between the spool and the frame is too great. The running line can sneak into the gap

 
I have several single handed rod brands mostly Orvis because of their remarkable customer service, and great fishing equipment. I broke two rods on one fishing trip ( duh!) and had then both back within two weeks. My hats off to the Orvis rod shop.
 
This thread begs the question. Can you tell alot about a fisherman by his gear?
 
depends on what kind of gear we are talking about. I really don't care what my trout gear is. I think that anything bellow a five wt is really more depending on the anglers skill and confidence on landing fish. I use a cabelas L tech that I like. its a little stiff but great for nymphing and streamer fishing. I like my dads old orvis Clearwater 4 wt. I also love my cabelas fiberglass 3 wt. all great rods that have their place.

the places where I do get picky is when buying gear that is going to be used for larger fish. for me this means surf and saltwater applications. for rods and reel you need something that has a lifetime warranty on it. I used to use a Winston Baron but it broke. I bought it used so the warranty was not standing. I did get my moneys worth from it but it was heavy and didn't cast great in the wind. this year I just picked a TFO BVK. the thing is a cannon in the wind and handles fish really well. broke it in nicely this fall on the bass in north jersey.
I used to be a big fan of Lamson reels until this fall. I do like my guru a lot. it lite and sounds great when you get a fish to take some drag. the place where I lost confidence in the brand is m konic. I know its a cheap reel but it the drag system that failed this passed fall on a nice bass. the drag completely opened up when fighting the fish and I lost my drag clutch and had to hand line the fish in from the backing. after thinking about the reel the why the drag system is it looks like it is setup to fail.

now I am looking into new reel brands. seriously considering picking up an allen kraken 10wt or a cheeky 10wt or Galvan. I hear great things about the allens and they are affordable. the cheekys are sick looking and they also seem like great reels. if I had the money I would buy a hatch or something higher quality. I loke my gear to look and sound good that being said it usually cost money to have that so I put the money in the gear where its needed.

this winter I am planning on building a fiberglass 7/8 wt rod for carp and some lite salt use. ordering a blue halo blank and see what buildings like.
I am kinda all over the place with my gear.
 
This thread begs the question. Can you tell alot about a fisherman by his gear?
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If I can read the labels on your gear, then you're too close...
 
Stenonema wrote:
This thread begs the question. Can you tell alot about a fisherman by his gear?
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It's best to avoid judging anyone on their choice of tackle.

But, if someone starts judging people on choice of tackle, then you can tell a lot from THAT. :)

Can you tell a lot about a person if they write "begs the question" rather than "raises the question?" :)
 
This thread begs the question. Can you tell alot about a fisherman by his gear?
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Depends what you're trying to determine.

You can probably tell less based on the brand and relative cost, and more based on the model. And a lot more if you get a look at his fly box. i.e. these things can tell you what kind of fishing a person likes to do.

i.e. if you see a cannon of a rod, combined with a fly box full of big streamers, maybe a big shot ring weighing down his vest, and spot some wire tippet, well this guy is into fishing big water for big fish. If he's got a Troutbum, a box full of midges, tricos, and the like, and 8x tippet, he's probably more the "finesse" type of fisherman.

You can also get a good idea when you see him cast. At least you can tell whether he's good or not. A beginner sticks out with totally improper mechanics, backcasts slapping the water even on short casts, etc. An intermediate has a nice, normal casting stroke, and it looks smooth and practiced. An advanced angler is doing lots of funky stuff, that to a beginner, may not look very impressive. Slack line casts for dry flies, tuck casts when nymphing, pile casts, etc.

But whether he's wearing Simms or Hodgeman waders, and carrying a Cortland vs. Sage vs. custom bamboo rod, probably not much. Maybe those Hodgeman's are backup waders. And most fisherman have multiple rods, covering the whole scale. And sometimes the Cortland will get picked up instead of the Sage for no better reason than he was in different mood that day.

If you see all the same brand, that might tell you something. But that something might be as simple as "he has a blog and that company sent him a bunch of free stuff."
 
the best way to tell a lot about a fisherman is if he catches fish and how much time he puts on the water learning about the are he is fishing.
 
After getting into fly fishing a few years ago, I made it a point to try to learn as much about the gear I use as possible. I have been a 25+ year bass fisherman (including tournaments for the past 5 years) and the trend in bass fishing is gear, gear, brand, brand, sponsor, etc. It is all driven off of marketing that my reel is better than yours because it casts 72 feet instead of 71 and my rod is bigger and better than yours because it has carbon fiber scrim technology, etc. The same goes for fly fishing from what I have witnessed so far, but only on a more gentleman aspect. You have your winstonites, orvis crew, sage devotees, etc.

In the end, it comes down to what you like. I like to buy and try a lot of stuff and sometimes get busted on or criticized because I do so. But I like it and I do catch fish on all of the gear that I have. We are all susceptible to brand image and marketing, but I bet if we took the labels off of the gear we were using and just tested it for what it was, many would be amazed what they like vs. what they think they should like because of what magazines and websites tell us!

Just my opinion...
 
right its all about what works for you and your fishing... my three favorite rods are a $180 tfo, a $100 greys, and $350 mystic, in that order.

 
i've been fishing my way up through the st. croix line for the last 15 years. so yeah i'm sorta brand loyal. i flop around on reels every so often. the current favorite is redington's drift, i have at least one of each size. and the line has always been a scientific anglers of some sort.
i'd say it's more ocd than anything.
 
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