How much is a warranty worth.

[timinmo]

So let me start this by saying I work at a sporting goods store. We handle about a full range on rods, no Megabass, but Loomis, St. Croix, Shimano, Fenwick, Daiwa, you get the idea. As you know the warranties vary widely on rods from all manufacturers. Every one that I have read states whatever period of time on "Materials and Workmanship". Almost on a daily basis someone comes in and states the rod broke on a 1 pound fish or hook set. Years ago I saw a quote from Gary Loomis to the effect that he could built a rod that would not break but you would not want to fish it. So I think we can all agree that if we do our part the rod is not going to break on a small fish, or hook set, etc. Where I am going is two fold. I wish every rod had about a 6 month warranty, if something is wrong with the rod it will show up by then. If something happens after that odds are we did something to the rod that damaged it. The other part is that rods with longer warranties, you are paying for the warranty when you buy the rod. Say it is a $200 rod with a 10 year warranty. What part of that price is the cost of the warranty? Could you buy the same rod for $150 with a 6 month warranty? These things are why Loomis went to the Expeditor program, I believe, and why Shimano quit their life time warranty. I know most of us realize that when we buy a rod from Japan we are getting little or no warranty but we are willing to complete the purchase to get the performance we want.

I don't think any of this group would claim a reel was defective if we closed it in a car door but when a rod breaks it is always the manufacturers fault.

I guess this would class as a rant but we could all buy better rods at lower prices if the builders did not have the increased warranty costs.

[poisonokie]

I agree. That's why the Zillion rods, which, despite a few component upgrades and a little bit better build/aesthetic quality, and few different lengths and actions, were very similar to the Tatulas. While you could find any Tatula for 30% off all day, the Zillion line was almost always MSRP, which was almost twice as much. That's mostly because of the lifetime warranty, which nobody needs anyway. If it weren't for that, they would've probably been $180-200 and I wouldn't have so many Tatulas. I still like my Tats just fine, but I like the Zillions better. Either line will last a lifetime if properly cared for.

[Polkfish1]

Rods in general are proportionally delicate instruments with what we put them through, even when we do are best to do it with care. Not to mention, when we are performing physical acts with split second reaction thinking. Sometimes they’re going to snap. I think we should be prepared for that possibility when making the investment. Warranties are a massive bonus when available and I think a lot of us factor it in when deciding between rods. Over the years, I’ve found some models just don’t jive with me with regard to holding up and in those cases, I don’t go to the trouble of even using the warranty. In other cases, I’ve given broken rods a second chance only to find the replacement snaps just the same. Rods should not snap on hooks sets and I’m not going to try to tailor my hook set because a rod can’t handle that basic move. These rods simply don’t make my cut. I like the expiditor program model. Then a guy has at least some skin in the game when claiming a replacement. I hate that some take advantage of warranties when closing the garage door on rods.