Tom, Be sure I don't lend you any of my rods while you are here next month.. Tony
Tom Davenport wrote:
"a lifetime guarantee that can be abused by knuckleheads who abuse/neglect their equipment ..."
I resemble that remark. Here are the accounts of all the rods I have broken, all under lifetime warranty, all replaced. I was making around 180 short, 2 to 3 hour fsihing trips a year when most of these breaks happend. You decide if I qualify for the coveted "Knucklehead" title:
1. I was fishing on a windy March day, and had rigged up my rod, a St. Croix Pro Graphite. I had forgotten to tie up one boot, laid my rod in the notch of the open door. As soon as bent over gust of wind slammed the door on the rod. Knucklehead!!
2. Another windy, winter day. I left the river at sunset, leaned the rod on the wind ward side of the van, and opened the back doors to take off waders. Suddenly I had the need to relieve myself (something the over 50 crowd can relate to) and in my hurry to get out of my waders and drive to a nearby restroom, I forgot about the rod until I felt the front wheel run over it AND the reel!! Knucklehead, but under duress.
3. I bought a St. Croix Legend Ultra to fish with while waiting for the replacement Pro-graphite to be shipped, with the understanding from the fly shop owner that he would take the replacement rod in trade against part of the cost of the Legend Ultra. It became my favorite rod, but one day I left it strung in the van, and didn't notice a hook had caught in the seat fabric, and when I pulled it out it snapped the tip. Knucklehead!
4. This time I left the rod strung in the van and neglected to remove it when I went to the local furniture store to pick up a washing machine. The machine shifted and snapped the rod. Knucklehead!! The St. Croix folks and I now work on a first name basis. They shipped the rod back in a nice PVC tube which I keep stored in my garage....
5. This time is was actually their fault. The replacement tip didn't quite fit, and kept slipping up the rod. I hooked a nice cutthroat in Yellowstone river, and the rod crept up close enough to snap off the tip of the butt. I switched to a 6 wt. Powell LGA I had acquired in a going out of business sale, which hasn't yet been broken (perhaps because it also lost its lifetime warranty in a change of ownership).
6. I quit leaving my rod lying in the back of the van, but still carried fully strung but broken down in a tube with a built in reel bag. I hadn't broken it for over a year. But on this day I was putting the tip and the butt together in the tube, felt a little resistance, pushed harder and heard a "pop". Yep. Broken tip. Knucklehead!!!
7. From this point on I have always removed line and reels, and separated the rod parts and nestled them gently into their tubes. I built Scott SAS which became my new favorite rod, and the Legend Ultra rests peacefully in its bag. St. Croix celebrates.
8. They celebrated too soon. The tip of a 7 foot three weight St. Croix Avid blank snaps while I am wrapping it. They replace the tip.
9. I go a year or more with no breaks. But last month I was stringing up the Scott, with its butt on the ground. I tied on flies, then pulled (I thought) the fly line straight up and away from the tip to get more out. I wasn't looking, felt some resistance which I assumed was the loop to loop leader catching on an eye, pulled harder to get it through and heard the dreaded "pop".
Yes, lifetime warranties are for knuckleheads. And thank God we can still get them!!!
Tom Davenport
On Feb 6, 2004, at 11:09 AM, Monte Smith wrote:
Hi Wes,
Sounds like you had yourself a great time in San Mateo. Thanks for sharing your experiences with us; it makes me want to get to the local show this weekend to talk with "the guys" and check out the gear!
As for the Sage/Redington deal, I'll give it to you straight. I think the "lifetime guarantees" are ridiculous. If you're springing for a $650 rod because of the guarantee, from a relative newcomer like Redington, well...I'll fish with you but always have to question your judgement. :-)
A reasonable warranty period of a year or so seems like plenty of time to ascertain whether the rod has a manufacturing defect. If I snap the tip off in my truck door, well is that really something the manufacturer should cover? It seems like my responsibility.
Personally, I'd rather pay less for the quality rod with a reasonable warranty period than for a lifetime guarantee that can be abused by knuckleheads who abuse/neglect their equipment all because the company will replace it.
Regards,
Monte
-- Monte Smith Halsey, Oregon http://community.webshots.com/user/nwflytyer
