Fly-rods

[Guest MikeConnor]

This may be of some interest. It is also basically part of an e-mail exchange, and has been published elsewhere, but quite a few people found it interesting.

 

Sorry, but I simply do not know enough about the engineering involved in this particular instance, to do

a review, also, I do not use large arbour reels, of any size, although I have actually built a couple of "big game" prototypes with special slippinmg clutches and brakes, which were very well received, I fear would be unable to compare the performance, or anything much at all for that matter, with the competition.

 

In any case, I think it highly unlikely that there would be any market for large arbour reels in these sizes. I do not know of anybody who uses #15 lines for fishing in Europe. ( My prototypes were built for the US Market, and used in the Seychelles and elsewhere for Marlin and Tarpon etc).

 

Lines of this size are not even readily available as far as I know. #12 being about the normal limit, mainly for salmon fishing. In the USA and elsewhere,some people might use these very heavy lines for big game fishing perhaps, but I have no specific information on this, apart from that mentioned above. Elsewhere the market is also likely to be extremely limited, and is in any case well covered by well known manufacturers.

 

Also, any review I did would be purely for private purposes, and I would not agree to it being published. Most certainly not for a specific "manufacturer". I usually very carefully avoid giving opinions on rods or reels in any case. The rods and reels you mention were my own designs, I controlled their production and cosmetics from start to finish, and they

were in any case never produced commercially. The reel design was my own, and the only models produced were one off test runs, which would be far too expensive to produce using normal methods.

 

The titanium airframe alloy alone costs a fortune, and is extremely difficult and costly to machine. The mandrels used for the rods were my property, and have now been destroyed, and apart from myself and the gentleman who very kindly did the test runs, nobody knows the exact material specifications. I do not wish to disclose any of this information, as I may yet do something along these lines myself. Although this is extremely unlikely at this present time, I would like to

keep my options open.

 

I could ask a friend of mine who writes such reviews for the British angling press, if he would be prepared to have a look at the reels for you. He recently did a review of reels, and his opinion is respected. He might also agree to test the rods. If he agrees, you may perhaps e-mail him directly to make arrangements. He will perhaps charge a fee for an

independent expert opinion, although I do not know this for a fact.

 

I will send this e-mail to him as a copy if you are agreeable, and you should then discuss further details with him personally. Please let me know if you would like me to do this.

 

Much the same goes for the boxes, apart from a number of Wheatleys which I own, all my boxes are "home-made". Even the Wheatley´s, one of the best boxes available in my opinion for certain purposes, and with a certain tradition, suffer from severe disadvantages in certain circumstances, and I can not see a much cheaper copy being any better. The name "Wheatley" is also part of the price.

 

The two boxes you enclosed are of low quality and poor workmanship. It would be pointless to review these, as I have

absolutely nothing positive to say about them. In my opinion, these boxes would not be saleable here, except to unfortunate beginners over the "pet shop" or "supermarket" trade.

 

Much of the Korean gear now being manufactured is of excellent quality, and very reasonably priced. Problems arise when these goods are re-labelled by well known manufacturers and offered for sale under their own names, often at inflated prices. I have considerable personal experience of this practice, and it has once again reinforced my belief that much of the tackle trade depends on pure hype to sell their material, and I refuse to be a party to this.

 

I have seen identical rods in the same shop, one priced at 20$ and another at 200$, not even the cosmetics were changed, just the label on the rod, and perhaps the wrapping colour etc. The average angler seems blithely unaware of this common practice.

 

This does not apply to all Korean gear, some of it is absolutely awful, and a simple sight inspection will not always reveal this, as cosmetics can hide a great deal. In many cases inferior resin is used, or sub-standard matting etc. Although I am aware that it is possible to produce a very reasonable rod, ex-factory, for less than 10 dollars American, as I have in fact done so fairly recently, this does not mean that all such rods are reasonable, and as the testing of such equipment is not standardised, and it is more or less impossible to analyse finished rods completely without destroying them, there is

no sensible way to tell whether a rod has been so constructed or from what. Laboratory costs for such testing are also prohibitively high.

 

None of this says anything at all about the action, or suitability of such a rod for any given purpose. Someone somewhere might think such a rod is wonderful, and be grateful to get it at a low price.

 

For this reason I am also unable to give you an objective opinion of the rods you sent. To be perfectly honest I did not even cast them, there would be no point, as my opinion without knowing any background or construction details would be purely subjective, and of little use to anyone. I also did not wish to take the risk of damaging any of the equipment. I will in any case not lend my name to any equipment under any circumstances whatsoever. Unless I did indeed decide to produce it myself.

 

The major costs involved in marketing such equipment, regardless of quality, are shipping ( can be horrendous ! ), insurance, cosmetics, ( Usually silk-screening of data, trade names etc ), packaging ( up to 50% of intermediate retail costs, usually more than the equipment cost in the first place ), Marketing, ( depends on how you do it, but it still costs money ), and final transport to retailers.

 

Direct sales to end customers, over the Internet, or any other way, are even more problematic, especially internationally. Some things like rod tubes, reel pouches etc, can cost a lot more than the equipment itself to produce, and the consequent packaging is also a severe problem.

 

Direct sale over the internet is in any case unlikely to prove successful at this point in time, at least in Germany, as the acceptance level for internet purchasing is still extremely low, being considered by most as uncertain at best, and few anglers of my acquaintance would buy unknown names in any case. The market here is not large, and consequently somewhat exclusive, most fly-anglers tending towards very expensive high-end equipment upon which they hope to be able to rely.

 

Most are not in a position to compare rods, reels, etc directly, and therefore rely on the good name of the

manufacturer, seller, various guarantees etc. Which really have nothing whatever to do with rod quality etc, but these are nevertheless the most important sales criteria. Much the same applies to the Scandinavian countries, and doubtless to much of Europe, although I have no direct knowledge of much of this either, and am simply extrapolating.

 

Prices in America are rather more humane, and this is doubtless a result of the much larger market, and the rather fiercer competition. Shipping goods individually to America is not a viable proposition. I have done so in the past for various reasons, and the cost is simply prohibitive.

 

Retailers expect a reasonable margin on such products as well, and this is rarely below 60% on such goods, sometimes considerably more, and this drives the price up still further. Rods sold for 25DM at large chains here, cost

less than two dollars American originally, and are generally rubbish. Obviously a quantity of this material is sold, as it would otherwise hardly be offered for sale in the first place, but no serious angler, which is the main market here, would buy it.

 

Unless you are conversant with the manufacturing process, and have some say in design and quality control of these products, which of course requires considerable research and knowledge on your part, then I would strongly advise you to refrain from buying any large quantities of this material.

 

The sea-fishing traces are of reasonable quality, but more or less useless for fishing purposes here in Germany, or indeed most of Europe, as the types, colours, and sizes used, are simply not in common use here. These traces can be obtained in a massive range at give-away prices from any number of far-eastern manufacturers, and I would suggest you order samples

from some of these before committing to any quantity. The same goes for the lures and pirks etc. Seem OK, but hardly anybody would buy them here.

 

The floats, hooks, swivels etc. etc, are more or less standard bulk products and may again be bought in large quantities at give-away prices, which is precisely what most firms do. The stuff is then simply packaged in smaller packets with the firms name, logo etc, and sold for a great deal more than it is worth. The packaging and handling usually costing far more than the contents are worth. Although this is widely known, even by retail customers, it is more or less impossible to change their buying habits, and they would not buy very large quantities in any case. Nobody I know would buy a thousand swivels of one type for instance, most people would not use these in a whole lifetime.

 

As far as I am aware there are no large scale manufacturers of this stuff left in Europe, as they simply can not compete on the international market. There is a large mark-up on these items, a swivel for instance costing less than 0.001 DM being commonly sold for 1.00 DM or more. The difficulty is in selling large enough quantities of this stuff in small packets to make the operation worthwhile.

 

Packaging and marketing costs are astronomic, and transport is expensive. Products made of lead are also often a problem,

being expensive and difficult to transport, and due to regulations, may not be sold everywhere. The lion´s share of the market has to go to the retailer on this stuff, as he will otherwise simply buy elsewhere. Some small retail chains now import this stuff directly for this very reason. The manufacturers in Korea and elsewhere are always willing to sell to anybody with the money to buy, even individuals under some circumstances.

 

The hooks are excellent quality, and I would not hesitate to use them myself, but again the caveat regarding packaging etc applies. Selling 1000 + boxes to the general public is not really viable, for various reasons. Not even many fly-dressers buy hooks in these quantities. 100 boxes or packets being about the limit.

 

The market here is more or less fully exploited by manufacturers and retailers selling guaranteed goods under their own trade names, and the chances for an "unknown" are not good, the competition is just too entrenched. "Selling good stuff cheap direct to the customer", as you put it, is not likely to prove successful, even though this might seem

ridiculous. Some large American mail order firms seem able to do this, because of their massive market, it is unlikely in the extreme that you will manage this in Germany, or indeed anywhere else in Europe, as the prevailing opinion is that "cheap = nasty", and this is unlikely to change.

 

It appears indeed that the main selling point of some "top of the line" rods and other equipment from well known manufacturers is the very high price. Some anglers obviously wishing to be able to say "I paid a thousand Dollars

for this" etc. The rods themselves are rarely any better than cheaper examples from other, or indeed, even from the same manufacturer. If your intention is to "educate" anglers to buy cheaper products which are arguably "just as good", then I am afraid you will probably go bankrupt long before you even make a dent in the opposition.

 

I am not a business consultant, and although I do run my own small business, it has nothing whatever to do with fishing tackle. The opinions outlined here are entirely my own, based on my knowledge and experience, which of course is limited. Even though I did some considerable research into the possibilities when I was considering the idea of doing the same thing as you are now considering. Some other person might give you completely differing opinions. Please take this into account before making any decisions.

 

Even though I did do some consulting for various firms, purely regarding the development and construction of equipment, I no longer do so, and have no commercial interest in this line of work. A number of tackle firms have asked me over the years to become a "special consultant", or "pro-staff", usually for a retainer, to date I have avoided all such temptations, even the lucrative ones, as a matter of principle. I fear one might be forced into giving opinions not entirely free of bias in such circumstances, and I would not do this. Angling is a passion of mine, and I would not like to

debase or devalue it either for myself or others in this manner. This point of view may well be somewhat unusual, and perhaps appear completely crazy to many, but it is what I believe.

 

I do not charge anything for giving my personal opinion, and I do not claim to be an expert on anything whatsoever. The only opinions I have published are those I publish myself, invariably on the internet. I have "endorsed" a few products, which I like and use myself, but purely because I think they are good products, and for no other reason.

 

At the present time I am not interested in engaging in such a business, not least because I do not possess the necessary capital, and though your offer is very flattering, I must gracefully decline.

 

I hope this is not too disappointing to you, and I would strongly urge you to obtain opinions on the basic business viability from experts in this field if you decide to go ahead. This is not purely a matter of calculating the financial side of things. It will be necessary for you to obtain a much greater knowledge of the tackle business itself, and also of the equipment involved before attempting this.

 

I returned the equipment to you this morning per DHL, under my own account number, and I would be most grateful for reimbursement of the accrued costs. If necessary I can invoice you for this.

 

Yours faithfully

 

Mike Connor