Quality Issues? - Matt hayes Limited Edition Centrepin

[fishfinder]

I posted in a recent thread to say that I had one of the Matt hayes Limited Edition pins but was not impressed with the quality. I particular, when I spin the spool it has a slight wobble and makes a grating noise and doesn't spin for very long at all.

 

A few people advised it was probably just bad luck and suggested getting a replacement.

 

well, now I have a different one and it has exactly the same problem and i don't think its a coincidence. When i spin the spool there is the same very noticeable wobble and the same grating noise.

 

I really regret wasting my money, but I suppose you get what you pay for! I sold my trusty TFG Classic centrepin to help pay for this - I'm kicking myself now as that was so much better in every respect.

 

Everyone be warned - it might look nice and it has the name of a celebrity angler but I would avoid these reels!

[Tigger]

Blimey, that's bad luck ! I did have my suspisions with them apparantly comeing from the same place as the cortesi pin's and so many people having prob's with the cortessi's.

fishfinder, send it back for a refund and get an okuma aventa pro, they're going cheap on fleebay and they are a superb reel !

[rob4310]

Blimey, that's bad luck ! I did have my suspisions with them apparantly comeing from the same place as the cortesi pin's and so many people having prob's with the cortessi's.

fishfinder, send it back for a refund and get an okuma aventa pro, they're going cheap on fleebay and they are a superb reel !

 

Go outdoors doing the following at a discount. also extra 10% off till 9th sept

 

 

http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/svendsen-avent...tch-reel-p99561

 

Under £63

 

Regards Rob

[RUDD]

Blimey, that's bad luck ! I did have my suspisions with them apparantly comeing from the same place as the cortesi pin's and so many people having prob's with the cortessi's.

fishfinder, send it back for a refund and get an okuma aventa pro, they're going cheap on fleebay and they are a superb reel !

 

My only pin is an aventa pro and I love it - never had any problems with it, very smooth and spins forever (I did clean bearings and re lubricate with the oil that came with an Abu 6500 C3 mag elite (I use 10/40 motor oil in that reels bearings to slow it down a tad!!!))

 

At the price they are going for at go Outdoors they are an absolute bargin.

[Tigger]

At the price they are going for at go Outdoors they are an absolute bargin.

 

 

I got two of them when there was an extra 20% off during the sponsord fishing week (not long back) and so I got two at a cost of £100.80

[chavender]

well fishfinder ,i'm sorry if my review of the reel convinced you too buy one ,it does seem as though they are suffering the same fate as the early batches of marco contessi reels ,i guess dragoncarp are rushing the order out (pre-releasing this reel before the launch of the full range) ,without getting the factory too do proper quality control or they themselfs are failing too check once they arrive .sad really because the one i recieved was perfect ,and i judged it on face value .dragoncarp do themselfs no favours by rushing out products before they're checked or ready ,and have marred what otherwise is a great little aerial .

 

i guess i was just lucky ,as i could of quite easily of gotten a bad one .mind you i was lucky with the marco contessi ,i was brought one for christmas when they came out ,that too was virtually perfect ,i think i had to bend the spring to hold the pawl in better ,otherwise apart from being a bit fugley it was ok ,although i don't think i ever used it (its not to my personal taste ,as wasn't the origanal x-pin design) i ended up putting it into a fundraising auction at a traditional fishing forum meeting .if i was a real gentleman i might of offered you mine as a gesture of good will ,but mine might be the only good one ,so i'll be holding onto it .

 

demand your money back .

[PeterNE1]

I posted in a recent thread to say that I had one of the Matt hayes Limited Edition pins but was not impressed with the quality. I particular, when I spin the spool it has a slight wobble and makes a grating noise and doesn't spin for very long at all.

 

A few people advised it was probably just bad luck and suggested getting a replacement.

 

well, now I have a different one and it has exactly the same problem and i don't think its a coincidence. When i spin the spool there is the same very noticeable wobble and the same grating noise.

 

I really regret wasting my money, but I suppose you get what you pay for! I sold my trusty TFG Classic centrepin to help pay for this - I'm kicking myself now as that was so much better in every respect.

 

Everyone be warned - it might look nice and it has the name of a celebrity angler but I would avoid these reels!

 

Just posted to your other thread, then noticed this one: seems appropriate to duplicate the post here so:

 

Hmmmm - the reels arrived a couple of hours ago: I've been having a play with them for at least an hour now, and I'm seriously unimpressed by both the quality of the reels AND the attitude of the company I bought from, who are currently playing silly buggers, and trying to make it awkward for me to return the reels, which WILL be happening, one way or another.

I realise that in this matter I have legislation firmly on my side, so in that sense it's no more than an annoying headache caused by an extremely bad attitude from the retailer (whom I'll keep anonymous just for now) ... but the main issue is with the reels themselves.

 

Now, I'm not going to knock what Chavender has said about the specific reel he has in his possession: he appears to have enough experience to give an educated opinion about the reel, and seems to have got hold of a decent example ... and therein lies what I believe to be the inherent problem with this reel: very poor quality control ... or perhaps even none at all!

 

As my previous post explained, I ordered three of the reels at a very good price, with the intention of 'gifting' two of them, and either keeping the third if I liked it enough, or adding that to someone elses tackle bag when the appropriate occasion arose.

 

First box opened, and immediate impressions are surprisingly good. It's a bit 'industrial' in comparison to some reels, and the finish quality is no-where near what you would expect / receive from even the cheapest Okuma offering. I'd suggest that it's biggest selling points at this stage are 1/ the endorsement of Matt Hayes (with which I've no problem whatsoever), 2/ the idea of owning an 'exclusive' reel - limited to just 1000, and 3/ (likely the most important factor for many?) the appearance of a spoked Aerial-type reel ... I assume that people will expect it as a given that the reel will function well, particularly when endorsed by Matt Hayes.

 

So, appearance aside, the first reel out of the box was OK.

Sort of .......

It spins smoothly enough when batted lightly, but stopped quite quickly - around 20 seconds or so at best. OK: I accept that this MIGHT improve if I did a bit of fettlin' ... cleaning, polishing and re-lubrication etc ... but if I do that it gives a retailer ammunition if a situation arises where I decide that a return is in order ... something for others to consider perhaps before they take that route, IF they suspect that a return might ultimately be neccesary.

In it's current state it's not going to make a very effective trotting reel unless I'm floating a Fairy Liquid bottle down a reasonably streamy stretch of water.

Of slightly more concern was when I rotated the drum by actually winding with the handles, applying a little pressure (as might be anticipated with any sort of respectable fish on the business end) ... rotation of the drum was no longer smooth and even, and though it didn't actually catch, it was obvious to the touch that the rotation of the spool was 'stickier' in some places ... reminded me of a cheap fly reel overloaded with line.

A relatively minor point, but the sound of the ratchet being activared by a fish taking line is NOT something I would look forward to with anticipation: a personal thing perhaps, but to my ears it just sounds 'tinny' ... a bit cheap and nasty.

 

Unfortunately, this reel was the best of the three: the second reel was catching as it was batted (though conversely was very smooth when wound under pressure!), and the third reel was simply a mess: when it stopped within 2 to 3 seconds of being batted, I looked at it no further.

 

Perhaps quality control is the issue here, though I strongly suspect it is more to do with a combination of build quality, cheaper components and indifferent assembly. It would seem that the reel has been built to a price, rather than to a standard - a belief that seems to be echo'ed by my retailer who's initial response when I told him I wanted a refund was: 'Well, what do you expect at that price?'

 

For me, one of the sadder parts about this is that Matt Hayes seems to have aligned himself with Dragon Carp (who are not exactly known for quality products), and on the evidence of this first offering in the new range, he may just find that people start associating his name with the quality expected from Dragon Carp, rather than associate Dragon Carp with the quality normally expected from products endorsed by Matt Hayes.

 

Now ... round two with my retailer

[fishfinder]

It saddens me to say this, but I'm glad its not just me going mad!

 

I can't wait to read the inevitable glowing magazine reviews. Of course, they will be honest in their findings as it wouldn't be of any financial benefit to them if they give a unfair, biassed opinion?

[George387]

I'm so glad that I hung off to see what everyone thought as I had an issue with Dragon carp on my last buy but I stood my ground and got it sorted. Its not looking good for something that has been endorsed.

[Guest bbamboo]

I'm so glad that I hung off to see what everyone thought as I had an issue with Dragon carp on my last buy but I stood my ground and got it sorted. Its not looking good for something that has been endorsed.

 

I am like you George just pleased I did not jump in a buy one.