[Musella]

So you are saying the lifetime warranty is useless... if it is more than a year or 2 old, anything covered would have happened already. Then why bother advertising lifetime warranty? It is misleading.

I purchased a set of 6 custom rods from one of the sponsors here, about 35 years ago. All 6 rods have broken over the years and not once has one been repaired under the lifetime warranty. The lifetime warranty was one of the main reasons I purchased the expensive rods. I find these lifetime warranties are useless.. except from ugly sticks. I have had a few rods replaced by them with no problems.

I would say you should change to a 2 year no questions asked warranty - it will get rid of a lot of bad feelings

 

[Captneilf]

Go back a few years,

a company advertised broken rods replaced no questions asked. Sounds good. But here is what one guy did. Bought the rod and at the end of the season he would purposely break it, return it to the tackle shop and get a new one. Started the next year off with a new rod.

Another guy lifted stripers with a lite rod and it broke. Goes to the tackle shop the next day gets a new rod. Goes fishing that night and breaks the second rod lifting a striper. So he goes back to the shop and gets a new one. This time the employee tells him I know what you are doing. This is the last rod you are getting replaced.

This is the one area of custom rod building that I don't like. Rod breaks and regardless of the reason some folks expect me to build them a new one for free. Wasn't my fault the rod broke. I do offer to build them a new one for 1/2 the labor rate plus parts.

This is certainly a gray area for both the manufacturer and the purchaser.

Capt Neil

 

[yourinmyspot]

a company advertised broken rods replaced no questions asked. Sounds good. But here is what one guy did. Bought the rod and at the end of the season he would purposely break it, return it to the tackle shop and get a new one. Started the next year off with a new rod.

Another guy lifted stripers with a lite rod and it broke. Goes to the tackle shop the next day gets a new rod. Goes fishing that night and breaks the second rod lifting a striper. So he goes back to the shop and gets a new one. This time the employee tells him I know what you are doing. This is the last rod you are getting replaced.

This is the one area of custom rod building that I don't like. Rod breaks and regardless of the reason some folks expect me to build them a new one for free. Wasn't my fault the rod broke. I do offer to build them a new one for 1/2 the labor rate plus parts.

This is certainly a gray area for both the manufacturer and the purchaser.

Capt Neil

The entire situation really sucks. It sucks that it happened and sucks that I have to deal with the return and warranty/non-warranty questions. The good news is now I know the parameters of the Seeker warranty, and can evaluate it as one of the factors when I am buying the next rod and the next one....

 

[MakoMike]

So let me get this straight, if the rod has a "lifetime" warranty it will only be replaced if it breaks in the first year? Do I have that right? If so, that is ridiculous. Take them to small claims court.

 

[Smokey555]

Sounds like an expensive rod, how much was
It? 75 bucks to replace sounds pretty darn good for a few year old rod.
If a rods defective its gonna break probably the first day .
I've had lamis literally break on the first fish ever. And
I've had that same blank last many many years with
Thousands of bass on them . And I treat my stuff horrible
You'd be blown away at the size of fish I can make come flying
Over the rail like the fresh water guys do . On a ic70mh
It's all in the technique . If your hand is anywhere north of the
Foregrip it's your fault

 

[yourinmyspot]

Sounds like an expensive rod, how much was
It? 75 bucks to replace sounds pretty darn good for a few year old rod.
If a rods defective its gonna break probably the first day .
I've had lamis literally break on the first fish ever. And
I've had that same blank last many many years with
Thousands of bass on them . And I treat my stuff horrible
You'd be blown away at the size of fish I can make come flying
Over the rail like the fresh water guys do . On a ic70mh
It's all in the technique . If your hand is anywhere north of the
Foregrip it's your fault

Rod was a little over $300

 

[Leprechaun]

So am I reading this whole thread correctly?

YIMS wanted to swing a 7 pound fish and the rod broke?

I'm sorry, but in what reality is that NOT considered an abusive action? No one else feels this way? Take a Herc Inshore Light and fill a bucket with 7lbs of lead. Now dead-lift it off the floor, up high over a make believe rail or gunnel, and then tell me how that works out. Would that not be the very definition of "high-sticking?"

I give YIMS plenty of points for honesty, sounds like a genuinely nice fella that really believes that the blank company is trying to skate on the warranty. But in my opinion the disastrous results of his action is just not something that you can hold a blank company liable for.

These new high-tech carbon-graphite rods aren't the old broom-stick glass Lami's from the 1970's. I recall swinging 10lb bluefish like they were minnows on my cut-back BT1083M. Nope, these fancy graphite blanks need to be treated with care if one expects to cash in on their extreme sensitivity. Like anything else, its all a trade-off. We receive great sensitivity and get to hold a very lightweight stick all day - which is good, but this great new utility comes with the implied caveat that they just will not tolerate the kind of use that is indicated in this thread.

Sorry, but that's my dos centavos worth.

Lep

 

[yourinmyspot]

So am I reading this whole thread correctly?

YIMS wanted to swing a 7 pound fish and the rod broke?

I'm sorry, but in what reality is that NOT considered an abusive action? No one else feels this way? Take a Herc Inshore Light and fill a bucket with 7lbs of lead. Now dead-lift it off the floor, up high over a make believe rail or gunnel, and then tell me how that works out. Would that not be the very definition of "high-sticking?"

I give YIMS plenty of points for honesty, sounds like a genuinely nice fella that really believes that the blank company is trying to skate on the warranty. But in my opinion the disastrous results of his action is just not something that you can hold a blank company liable for.

These new high-tech carbon-graphite rods aren't the old broom-stick glass Lami's from the 1970's. I recall swinging 10lb bluefish like they were minnows. Nope, these fancy graphite blanks need to be treated with care if one expects to cash in on their extreme sensitivity. Like anything else, its all a trade-off. We receive great sensitivity and get to hold a very lightweight stick all day - which is good, but this great new utility comes with the implied caveat that they just will not tolerate the kind of use that is indicated in this thread.

Sorry, but that's my dos centavos worth.

Lep

Thanks for the input Lep. Certainly will have to think twice before doing anything like that again. While I was doing it, it didn't seem like that big a deal until the popping sound.

 

[Smokey555]

Oh yeah my technique wouldn't work at all
On a pb lol

 

[Billy40]

So you are saying the lifetime warranty is useless...

I've been following this and called Seeker when I saw the post pop up. I dont' deal with factory rods so I really didn't want to get involved in the dealings between YIMS and Seeker. I want to point out that it is NOT a Lifetime warantee....its' LIMITED. They posted the warantee card, read it and see what the terms are.

Lifting fish breaks rods. I have lifted 30" Striped Bass with my Lite, I won't hesitate to lift 6-7-8# Blackfish with it - and we've deadlifted 20# dumbells with it. I know from past experiances with my own person graphite rods - it does not take much to screw up and blow the rod up. One single 1/10th of a second mistake is all it takes. I have a keychain of wraps I've cut off of rods that I have broke, easily 100 hours of labor + thousands of dollars in materials that I screwed up for a split second.
I've seen others blow up rods from every company lifting fish (also trying to flip the boat over stuck in the bottom).

It sucks no doubt. But you have to understand that when you have a rod for a couple of years it's not the rod that magically decides to break. I look at it like this, you're driving your car and some ass hits you. Just because the car is under warantee that doesn't mean you're going to get a new one. The worst thing for rod manufacturers is the no fault lifetime policy - cheap rods like Ugly sticks which probably cost $10 to manufacture, and super large companies that do millions of rods like SHimano can handle it. Every other manufacturer that I know and speak to suffer from it.

A Hercules has $200 retail in materials in teh rod, which is $289 in the shops. A fly rod that has $350 in materials will cost $700. Hmmm?

 

[Musella]

I. I want to point out that it is NOT a Lifetime warantee....its' LIMITED. They posted the warantee card, read it and see what the terms are. ?

The warranty card states "defects in materials". When the rod cracks, there is now a "defect in materials". And I have never seen a warning label that swinging a fish in is no longer allowed. We used to be able to do that in the past with the old style rods... I would think most people would assume the hi tech materials are stronger and lighter.

My only point is that saying there is a lifetime warranty is misleading. The way Seeker responded, there is no way a 20 - 30 year old rod is going to be covered.
The "lifetime" warranty gives the impression that the rod is indestructible. I would prefer a 1 or 2 year full warranty instead of a useless lifetime limited warranty.

 

[Captneilf]

My thought!

Most anglers never end up with a broken blank. Some anglers might have one over their fishing life time. Then some anglers have a history of breaking blanks.

Custom rod builders probably see more broken rods and have more dealings with the manufacturers. It never ceases to amaze me how many times they honor their warranty. Many times I was surprised when they gave the customer a new blank or rod. They should get credit for that. I do understand that it is less expensive to give out a blank versus a rod.

Neil

 

[Billy40]

The warranty card states "defects in materials". When the rod cracks, there is now a "defect in materials". .

What Bizzarro world do you live in? When a car runs over a pothole and gets a flat tire - is the tire now defective? I almost dont believe that you are being serious, that's how outlandish that comment is. Regardless of what the warantee is called, you have to read what the warantee says.

Neil, most companies replace blanks for no cost. I know Seeker will replace a blank pretty much no questions asked. Factories rods have a different warantee policy.

 

[DarthBaiter]

The warranty card states "defects in materials". When the rod cracks, there is now a "defect in materials". And I have never seen a warning label that swinging a fish in is no longer allowed. We used to be able to do that in the past with the old style rods... I would think most people would assume the hi tech materials are stronger and lighter.

My only point is that saying there is a lifetime warranty is misleading. The way Seeker responded, there is no way a 20 - 30 year old rod is going to be covered.
The "lifetime" warranty gives the impression that the rod is indestructible. I would prefer a 1 or 2 year full warranty instead of a useless lifetime limited warranty.

OMG...RoFL. I just knocked over my beer.

 

[JohnTFT]

a company advertised broken rods replaced no questions asked. Sounds good. But here is what one guy did. Bought the rod and at the end of the season he would purposely break it, return it to the tackle shop and get a new one. Started the next year off with a new rod.

Another guy lifted stripers with a lite rod and it broke. Goes to the tackle shop the next day gets a new rod. Goes fishing that night and breaks the second rod lifting a striper. So he goes back to the shop and gets a new one. This time the employee tells him I know what you are doing. This is the last rod you are getting replaced.

This is the one area of custom rod building that I don't like. Rod breaks and regardless of the reason some folks expect me to build them a new one for free. Wasn't my fault the rod broke. I do offer to build them a new one for 1/2 the labor rate plus parts.

This is certainly a gray area for both the manufacturer and the purchaser.

Capt Neil

Neil,

You could not have said it better. GLoomis had the preferred warranty policy years ago. When the cork got beat up, the user broke the rod sent it back and got a new one. It almost put them out of business.

Graphite rods are great pieces of engineering with one major character flaw - high sticking. It is usually instant death for them.

B40 knows how many Hercules we sold together and how many factory rods I have sold.
The warranty level is very low on the rods when compared to how many we sold.

I have one customer who breaks a 70L every single season. Lifting bluefish over the rail on the head boat he works on. Comes in pays his $75.00 and goes his way.

I hate when a customer comes in with a broken rod. The situation even when handled right can lead to mistrust, bad blood and just a bad experience.

John

 

[Billy40]

I deal only with blanks, and rods I build. I've sold well over 500 Inshore Lites since they've come out, there have been 13 of them that have broken or delaminated. Four of those were on fish, the others were when guys spined them, pressed up on the cieling or broke from a car door/etc. Teh de-lams were before they changed the dsign, it was easily "fixed" by wrapping thread over them and epoxying. This is not an ideal situation, but for a guy who has a $300-500 rod it's better for the fisherman and builder to try it and see if it holds up than to have to start all over with a waranteed blank.

I'm confidant based on my direct real world experiance with these blanks, that there is a 1-2% defect/failure rate with the Inshore Lite.

The Inshore heavy I've sold almost 200 of, and not one of these have broken for any reason at all which is pretty crazy. Not even in a car door.

 

[flukerr]

"OMG...RoFL. I just knocked over my beer."


Why, cause a person broke their rod...?

Cause they have a different understanding then you ?

Please....

Sorry to hear about the broken Seeker...Seems like you enjoy the rod and are willing to spend the money to get another...That in its self speaks volumes...

Good luck !

 

[Captneilf]

Forgot to read the fine print!

I take too much for granted. Sometimes it causes me grief.

Saw these nice colored blanks for sale that would make good fluke rods especially for children. Price was right and cam with a limited warranty. So I ordered a few in all the colors. I wanted to make inexpensive children's rods. Turns out that was impossible unless I worked for 5 bucks an hour. They did make nice rods.

I forget exactly why but I had to go back and read the limited warranty. The warranty stated that it was good for only 1 year. So I called the company that I purchased them from. It turns out the warranty started the day they sold me the blanks. Of course it took me over a year to start building on the blanks. The warranty was up before I started to build. BUYER BEWARE!

Many blank/rod purchases are made without taking into consideration what the warranty is. It is only after a disaster that we get concerned. How many anglers buy a companies rod and know that for a set fee they can get a new one if theirs breaks? I bet not many. Store employees could care less about another companies warranty. I have no idea which companies have such plans.

I always try to tell my new customers what I will do for them if a rod I built for them gets broken. Actually as a customer they should ask that question. Too many think they will get a new one for free.

Capt Neil

 

[treble]

I've broken my share of rods, lifting fish, setting hooks, car doors etc. All were my fault. And In dealing with the warranty depts of such rods, I've stated it was my fault. There were times, they replaced them for a fee and other times I lucked out and just paid shipping. Regardless of the outcome, I knew going in that I screwed up and would have to face the consequences. Lifting fish is and always will be abuse. Rods are made to catch fish. Nets are made to land them.

The reason why I chimmed in is because of another recent thread regarding Seeker in which it states that Seeker is replacing a rod, on their own accord and out of praise, on a rod that was railed so badly, that the rod actually flattened on the underside and hypalon foregrip was worn through. I know that this is not fact that this was done because you cant always beleive what you read, but if so, how can Seeker reward one person for abusing a rod and not another? If this were the case, YIMS should have ground down the rod and posted pics on how many big fish he caught with it....

Speaking as a parent, rules are put in place for continuity, among other things. Rules are rules though, and once you give in to those rules, you lose those rules. You cant be discretional from one child to the other. So why is this any different? Why is YIMS suffering the consequences when "Peter" is being rewarded? I'd call it bad parenting

 

[yourinmyspot]

I've broken my share of rods, lifting fish, setting hooks, car doors etc. All were my fault. And In dealing with the warranty depts of such rods, I've stated it was my fault. There were times, they replaced them for a fee and other times I lucked out and just paid shipping. Regardless of the outcome, I knew going in that I screwed up and would have to face the consequences. Lifting fish is and always will be abuse. Rods are made to catch fish. Nets are made to land them.

The reason why I chimmed in is because of another recent thread regarding Seeker in which it states that Seeker is replacing a rod, on their own accord and out of praise, on a rod that was railed so badly, that the rod actually flattened on the underside and hypalon foregrip was worn through. I know that this is not fact that this was done because you cant always beleive what you read, but if so, how can Seeker reward one person for abusing a rod and not another? If this were the case, YIMS should have ground down the rod and posted pics on how many big fish he caught with it....

Speaking as a parent, rules are put in place for continuity, among other things. Rules are rules though, and once you give in to those rules, you lose those rules. You cant be discretional from one child to the other. So why is this any different? Why is YIMS suffering the consequences when "Peter" is being rewarded? I'd call it bad parenting

Funny, I read the thread you are referring to and thought the exact same thing...