Megabass Rods

[dusty]

Who makes the blanks?

[PaBass75]

I'd like to know the answer to that as well..
The blanks are made in China, afaik..
Not sure by who tho..

[andrey]

you know,this is the least talked about topic in these forums but probably one that should be mentioned more. my thoughts on that is a lot of the BIG SHOT rod companies that are competing against each use the same blank manufacturers but will never admit it. i dont think there is many companies that make their own blanks. gloomis is one that obviously does. i dont think we will ever know who uses what blanks, they dont want us to know. these are just my thoughts and i could be completely wrong.

[breezy]

you know,this is the least talked about topic in these forums but probably one that should be mentioned more. my thoughts on that is a lot of the BIG SHOT rod companies that are competing against each use the same blank manufacturers but will never admit it. i dont think there is many companies that make their own blanks. gloomis is one that obviously does. i dont think we will ever know who uses what blanks, they dont want us to know. these are just my thoughts and i could be completely wrong.

If there isn't anything like this going on I don't see why they would keep it a secret.

I know in an interview with Gary Dobyns (forget the site, it was posted in the rods section) he stated his blanks were manufactured in China along with blanks for 2 other 'high end' JDM rod manufacturers. He didn't name the companies specifically but I would guess maybe Evergreen and Megabass? Even if they are manufactured at the same plant I guess there could be significant differences in the blank's design (taper, materials, etc).

[Nitroman77]

Korea not china..

[Tokugawa]

You can bake cookies in the same oven, but it is the recipe that matters most.

I don't think it is a big deal if a lot of companies get blanks rolled at the same fab.

[mhood]

I'm only bothered by semantic games (i.e., "handcrafted in the USA" or "Made in Texas" or "Made in Japan") that attempt to hide the fact that a company's rods are actually rolled in China (or Korea). If it doesn't matter where the blank is rolled, why the cloak of secrecy?

[USA-RET]

I'm guessing it's to avoid controversy and diminish the mystique of their product.

Think Ferrari (Made in Korea)- Great cars are made in Korea (IMO), I own a Santa Fe, next car will be another Hyundai. $250,000 for that Ferrari. It will look like the Italian made Ferrari, drives and perform similarly. In fact it may be identical in nearly every regard. Do you buy it? How about if Ferrari never disclosed the origin of manufacture? How would Ferrari be perceived in the car market if they did?

Personally I'd prefer a company mark their items accurately. I find it rather cowardly and unethical to do otherwise. If I like the item and it performs as advertised, I'll buy it. If I feel I'm being overcharged and can find something I like as well elsewhere, for less, I'll buy from the other seller.

As a consumer, that's the sword I wield.

[Johnny A]

...

Personally I'd prefer a company mark their items accurately. I find it rather cowardly and unethical to do otherwise. If I like the item and it performs as advertised, I'll buy it. If I feel I'm being overcharged and can find something I like as well elsewhere, for less, I'll buy from the other seller.

As a consumer, that's the sword I wield.

[andrey]

i do think that finding out what blanks everyone use will open up a huge can of worms, none the less i think we should know.

[bigreddog]

If you roll your own blanks, then that's great. It's probably a source of pride and differentiation that you'll want everyone to know about from a marketing standpoint. But don't vilify a rod company because they don't want to tell you what supplier they source their blanks from.

Forcing a rod company to declare where they're sourcing all of their parts from is a ridiculous expectation. I don't expect Apple to give a breakdown of where every component of their iPhone is sourced from, nor would I ask a car company to tell me where all their parts come from. These are what you call trade secrets, and no company should be forced to disclose this information because it affects their ability to compete, and reduces their product down to a commodity. It's not the parts themselves, but the sum of the parts that makes for the experience.

That said, I think Megabass is very forthcoming with where their stuff is coming from -- it's printed on their hang tags for everyone to read. For example:

Destroyer Directz f3-710xsd: "Blank material in japan. Assembly in Thailand Megabass Production. Final assembly in Japan Megabass factory. Inspection and modified in Japan."

Shoreluck SLM-74UL: "Carbon blank material in japan. Assembly in China Megabass Production. Final assembly in Japan Megabass factory. Inspection and modified in Japan."

[mhood]

Shoreluck SLM-74UL: "Carbon blank material in japan. Assembly in China Megabass Production. Final assembly in Japan Megabass factory. Inspection and modified in Japan."

Would your opinion change if you were to learn something like: The carbon blank material is the raw carbon sheets that are sent from the plant in Japan to China Megabass Production where they hit the mandrels and become blanks and are sent back to the Japan Megabass factory for "final" assembly? Not saying that's what is happening but that is the sort of semantic game that gives me a rash.

[bigreddog]

No, not really.

The phrase "Made in Japan" is not an arbitrary designation, nor is Made in USA or Made in Canada. There are regulatory requirements that govern how and whether these labels can be applied. Japan is actually more stringent than most nations in this regard from what I know. This might actually be the reason why Megabass goes into this much detail on their hang tags.

In their home market, Megabass doesn't sell their rods by proudly stating that they're "Made in Japan." They position themselves as offering unique, innovative and well thought-out products that show attention to detail. Made in Japan is a mythology that Western enthusiasts have created on their own -- it's not really their fault if they don't live up to our false expectations.

[mhood]

Not a single one of my Megabass rods has "Made in Japan" written on it anywhere. All of my Diakos do.

[andrey]

If you roll your own blanks, then that's great. It's probably a s
I ource of pride and differentiation that you'll want everyone to know about from a marketing standpoint. But don't vilify a rod company because they don't want to tell you what supplier they source their blanks from.

Forcing a rod company to declare where they're sourcing all of their parts from is a ridiculous expectation. I don't expect Apple to give a breakdown of where every component of their iPhone is sourced from, nor would I ask a car company to tell me where all their parts come from. These are what you call trade secrets, and no company should be forced to disclose this information because it affects their ability to compete, and reduces their product down to a commodity. It's not the parts themselves, but the sum of the parts that makes for the experience.

That said, I think Megabass is very forthcoming with where their stuff is coming from -- it's printed on their hang tags for everyone to read. For example:

Destroyer Directz f3-710xsd: "Blank material in japan. Assembly in Thailand Megabass Production. Final assembly in Japan Megabass factory. Inspection and modified in Japan."

Shoreluck SLM-74UL: "Carbon blank material in japan. Assembly in China Megabass Production. Final assembly in Japan Megabass factory. Inspection and modified in Japan."

I dont care the where the guides, reel seat, cork and threads are made but blank would be nice.