Low End Products

[Bud Kennedy]

Like a lot of bass anglers, I tend to like having higher end products.  Although they seem to perform very well I am not totally convinced that they are worth their asking price.  Truth is I really have not given this much thought over the past few years and I tend to buy what is seemingly popular with bass geeks.

Recently I have been using some lower end rods and lures.  There is no particular reason other than I had them on my rack and just decided to take them fishing.  Last time on the water I was using a Shimano Sellus rod.  I was amazed how much I liked it.  It's performance was good and all in all it was a pleasant experience. During the same trip I also was throwing some H20 square bills and they too performed just great.  I often fish with Terry G.  Although Terry G also has some good stuff he also has some lower end products and I have often been amazed good his Mettle reel that is absolutely amazing on how well it throws.  Goes to show you that buying high end may not always be the best thing even though it usually a good bet that higher end stuff will be better.  The feeling is however that if you buy low end you just don't know what you are gonna get.  Might be great or it might be a total flop.  I guess there in is the problem.

[Capt. BassinLou]

Many years ago before I was really involved in bass forums, I didn't know any better when it came to equipment. When an entire rod and reel outfit cost me $100 I thought I was purchasing a big ticket item, and in many ways I was, due to budget restraints. These low budget products caught me loads and loads of fish however. Over time as I became more involved in bass fishing forums my fishing blinders were opened up and my exposure to the bass fishing world really began to take shape ( as well as my budget  ) The volume of education I have received over the course of the last 5 years in regards to fishing gear alone has been unbelievable. Fishing with "low budget gear" for so many years helps me appreciate and  tell the difference between avg, good, and great gear.

[rb-nc]

Bud I bought some of the Academy rods to experiment with Winn Grips. Man do they feel good

[Kris]

As you well know I don't spend hundreds of dollars on rods or reels.  Back in the day when I was super involved in bass fishing the selection was not as broad as it is today.  Most rods were Berkeley Lightning Rods with Daiwa, Shimano and Abu Garcia reels.
Not to say that I fish bottom of the barrel equipment but I used to live out of the Walmart Clearance Section rods.  I traveled for the Company I worked for and stopped into Walmarts in three States off and on.  Most of the rods I bought were right at $100.00 or more at other retail outlets.  I had a Falcon Bucoo Micro medium, several Berkeley Lightning Rod Shocks and a W&M Skeet Reese Jig/Worm that I still use today.  Today my rod purchases are Dobyns Fury Series.  At $109.99 I believe they are the best rod for my money.  Most of my other rods are now history
As for reels, I have a wide selection of new and used reels, all under $100.00.  I have Abu Garcia Maxs Pinnacle, Shimano Curado 201, Daiwa Exceler, Bass Pro Extreme and  Gander Mountain Vortex.  No complaints with any of them.
As far as lures go, my arsenal runs the gambit.  As I have said before, I have 42 Plano 3600 boxes filled with crankbaits, soft plastics, jigs and more.  I do have some higher end from our Sponsors that I have won or bought here on UB.  My Secret Santa has been very good to me also.  Lower end I have Matzuo, Cotton Cordell and others that all catch fish.  Now working at Dick's Sporting Goods I watch for what is on sale/clearance or exceptional deal.
I know the old saying of many a lure has caught a fisherman.  Just about any lure will catch a fish sometime.  I know people who have caught fish on the old Budweiser Can lure.

[Pacific NW Ron]

In my opinion there are many "low end products" that are just fine for the average weekend angler.  Now if you use it more often, say a couple days or more a week and are a more serious angler then the higher end products might be a better bet.  In general the high end products use better components and probably hold up better to heavy use.
Ron

[SteveTX]

I believe the rod market has really helped the fisherman. Just look at the fierce competition for the $100 to $125 range in rods. It forces in a matter of speaking the manufacturers to offer a decent product at this price point otherwise there are other rods mfgs that may or may not be using better components someone may go after. The same with the reel market. $100 to $125 range has really become competitive.

Your avid angler doesn't necessarily want to spend a ton of money. Generally speaking fisherman are no big spenders for the most part they want a decent product and not go broke. Again this to me is how and why the $100 range rods and reels have become so fiercely competitive. That $200 - $250 per combo times 3 to 6 or more combos turns into a pile of cash. But it seems this is where most consider a respectable price point.

You can also get $50 Lightning Rods and $50 reels that even seem to be quite durable and productive. Just some like to get in that "elite" class and go all out but to me that doesn't guarantee a game changing result. You still have to know where when and how to catch the fish. Maybe a slightly better result here or there with top end stuff but to me that is more to make the angler feel good because that bass doesn't give a shit how much you spend or if its coated in 24K gold.   

So as long as you do your homework I don't see where a guy couldnt fish with lower end stuff very confidently. The Fury line has great components as does the MoJos, the H2O line and others. Same with reels and even lures. It doesn't take long once on the market for consumers to nail down the junk. And with the interweb with social media has make it quicker than anything to pass the word.

[SteelHorseCowboy]

I often get frustrated with the cost of equipment and parts, whether it be gun, motorcycle, fishing, car, tools, whatever the case may be.
I buy the best quality I can afford, which doesn't mean much. I'm happy as a pig in slop with a $40 rod.
I'm a follower of "Wired 2 Fish" page on Facebook. I call them out on a regular basis for being way out of touch with the average Joe. I mostly follow them for the tips and ideas, but they also do product reviews and advertising.
$450 shades? Are you freaking kidding me? And they're only suitable for wearing out on a boat, preferably by yourself, cause they're too friggin ugly to wear out in public. I've got a pair of polarized aviators I bought in a gas station for $20, and a floppy hat from Walmart for $10.
That same group also apparently thinks it takes about 3 to 4 grand to get started kayak fishing. A $450 paddle... I didn't even know anyone made a paddle that costs that freaking much! And a $300 cooler to sit on! Barely even big enough to hold a 12 pack.
Not even counting the $1,700 they recommend for the kayak itself, nor all the electronics they think it should be weighed down with. Oh, and don't forget your go pro so you can show youtube how cool you are.
They recently reviewed and recommended a $270 rod, and were "pleasantly surprised" with it's performance since it's a "budget priced" rod.
That's more than my car payment.
This here old two piece Johnson Citation rod... I don't even know where it came from. It appeared in my yard one day a few months ago. No one else seems to have a clue about it either. It's missing a guide insert, second from the tip. There's no telling how many fish it's caught. So with it being pretty much the crappiest rod in the house, I went ahead and slapped that Ambassadeur on it anyway, you never know what might happen.

[3deez]

you can catch fish with cheap equipment as well as the most expensive. the fish don't care what rod or reel your using. the problem is how long will they last. I have Shimano Bantams that are 40 years old. although I don't use them anymore, they still work like the day I bought them. remember when people were catching fish on those Popiel thingies?

[LgMouthGambler]

The only thing that the quality of the equipment matters to, is the person using it,.

[flowerjohn]

Message sent via the FC Network.

[SteelHorseCowboy]

Okay, another example I just remembered...
When I was around 8-9 or so, my family and I were going camping. I knew there was a nice mountain stream nearby. Actually, to get there, you'd follow a back country gravel road along the base of a cliff, then hook a sharp right across a one lane concrete bridge, and the campground was on the opposite bank.
I also knew I had no room to pack a pole but that there was a cane brake nearby, so I just packed a spool of line and a small pack of jig heads.

As soon as we got there, I noticed a man fishing from the bank. He had a row of rainbow trout laid on the rocks, smallish ones, the largest no longer than about 10".

As soon as I could, I went and cut a bit of cane about as tall as I was, maybe around 4.5-5' back then, tied on some line, a jig, dug up a grub, and dangled it over the bridge, bouncing the jig in the shade of the bridge. I was only there maybe 10 minutes, and landed a nice trout. Didn't measure it, but my grandad held it up to his arm, and it stretched ALMOST from the crease of his elbow to his middle fingertip.
Me being about the same size he was when he passed away, I just measured that length on myself. From my fingertip to the crease is 19 inches. So I would estimate that trout was maybe around 18 inches, but I'll be conservative just to be fair and say it was probably closer to 16-17".
The man came over and congratulated me, but expressed his frustration over the fact he spent about $150 on a new rod and reel (this was close to 30 years ago), and here I was skunking him with one fish on a cane pole and $2-3 worth of gear.

[SteelHorseCowboy]

Yeah, pricier gear can last longer. The fact that I've been through several Zebcos, a couple of Quantums, Shakespeares, and the first Ambassadeur I ever bought a little over 20 years ago is still kicking and the rest aren't attests to that fact. Not only kicking, but out of 4 Ambassadeurs, a black max 2, a used Daiwa, another quantum, and two more Zebcos, it's the smoothest, most reliable, and by far my best and favorite reel. Even though I did have some frustrations while giving it a recent tune-up.

But the second best and second favorite is the Ambassadeur 6500C/5500C/5000 reel apparently built from spare parts I recently acquired for $35.

[SFL BassHunter]

Low end stuff sometimes isn't low end, sometimes it is. Just like sometimes high end stuff is pure crap. But you do have a better chance of getting a better product that costs more than those that cost less. Best bet is to research the heck out of what you want to get.

I recently gave in after owning 10 pair of cheap sunglasses. By cheap I mean between $15-50. All of which fit me perfectly. Never bothered me one bit.
Here is the deal, those cheaper glasses get messed up pretty easy. Scratched lenses, or the coating starts to come off, or the whatever else happens. Some are still in tact and 100% usable, but the lens isn't quite as good for fishing as other glasses so they just become glasses you use to drive with or whatever the case may be.
So I bought some wiley x glasses that were $100. This for me at the time was splurging on glasses. After several hours of wearing them the top of my ears start to hurt, as do the sides of my head. I used them for over 6 months despite this issue. Not to mention they recently got scratched up somehow.
So back to the drawing board. Went to BPS and asked to see all of their widest Costa's. I wasn't about to get 250 dollar glasses that hurt the side of my head or the top of my ears. So I got their widest ones after wearing them for about 10 min in the store as I browsed around and looked at the other glasses.

I go fishing with them the next day and 4 hours in the bridge of my nose was bothering me. 6 hours in my nose was in pain and breathing was a problem. Then for the ride home I had to take them off and just deal with the sunlight.

So 10 pair of cheap glasses fit me perfectly.
100 dollar glasses hurt my head
250 dollar glasses hurt my nose.

In this case, I rather get some cheaper glasses even if I have to buy a new pair every year than endure pain on my nose or head.

--------------

Another example is the H2O brand stuff. As many have mentioned here the academy rods are very good quality for their price. Their crankbaits are fantastic at 2.99, 3.99. In fact better than some cranks I have used that are upwards of 6 or 7 bucks.
BUT their worm hooks I feel don't live up to the reputation of some of their other items. They are very cheap, and it is noticeable when using them. Between bent hooks and bent hook points and quickly dulled hook points, I tossed half a pack of 4/0 worm hooks I had bought in one of their bulk packages.
I am sure someone uses those hooks and finds them acceptable. After using several other brands, I don't.
So sometimes it is just a trial and error kinda deal.

[cortman]

The only thing that the quality of the equipment matters to, is the person using it,.

That's a pretty good thought, I'm going to have to incorporate that into my standard mental essay on why I like pricey gear.

[LgMouthGambler]

That's a pretty good thought, I'm going to have to incorporate that into my standard mental essay on why I like pricey gear.

It matters to me, and thats all that matters.  (my wife hates that saying BTW)

[Bud Kennedy]

The reason for the op was just to say that some of the lower end stuff may work just fine for how you fish or how you use the products.  I am not saying go buy low end stuff but I am saying is if it make you satisfied then by all means go for it.  After all it's your money.  We tend to believe that high end stuff makes you a better angler and at the bottom line it really doesn't.  Your skills and your experience makes you a better angler regardless of what you are throwing. JMHO

[rhouser30]

lower end equipment to me is really up in the air depending on what you consider lower end, there are many people that think a MOJO St Croix is a low end rod at 150, Becasue they buy 500 Steez rods, same goes with reels.

[Lee Smith]

The reason for the op was just to say that some of the lower end stuff may work just fine for how you fish or how you use the products.  I am not saying go buy low end stuff but I am saying is if it make you satisfied then by all means go for it.  After all it's your money.  We tend to believe that high end stuff makes you a better angler and at the bottom line it really doesn't.  Your skills and your experience makes you a better angler regardless of what you are throwing. JMHO

Very true, some of the guys know I use some old rebuilt equipment, can't catch crap with it, but can't with the good stuff either   

[LgMouthGambler]

Very true, some of the guys know I use some old rebuilt equipment, can't catch crap with it, but can't with the good stuff either   

1st step is admitting the problem. 

[Lee Smith]

1st step is admitting the problem. 

That walk is getting LONGER and LLLLOOOOONNNNNGGGEEEERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR 

[kadas]

Low end stuff sometimes isn't low end, sometimes it is. Just like sometimes high end stuff is pure crap. But you do have a better chance of getting a better product that costs more than those that cost less. Best bet is to research the heck out of what you want to get.

I recently gave in after owning 10 pair of cheap sunglasses. By cheap I mean between $15-50. All of which fit me perfectly. Never bothered me one bit.
Here is the deal, those cheaper glasses get messed up pretty easy. Scratched lenses, or the coating starts to come off, or the whatever else happens. Some are still in tact and 100% usable, but the lens isn't quite as good for fishing as other glasses so they just become glasses you use to drive with or whatever the case may be.
So I bought some wiley x glasses that were $100. This for me at the time was splurging on glasses. After several hours of wearing them the top of my ears start to hurt, as do the sides of my head. I used them for over 6 months despite this issue. Not to mention they recently got scratched up somehow.
So back to the drawing board. Went to BPS and asked to see all of their widest Costa's. I wasn't about to get 250 dollar glasses that hurt the side of my head or the top of my ears. So I got their widest ones after wearing them for about 10 min in the store as I browsed around and looked at the other glasses.

I go fishing with them the next day and 4 hours in the bridge of my nose was bothering me. 6 hours in my nose was in pain and breathing was a problem. Then for the ride home I had to take them off and just deal with the sunlight.

So 10 pair of cheap glasses fit me perfectly.
100 dollar glasses hurt my head
250 dollar glasses hurt my nose.

In this case, I rather get some cheaper glasses even if I have to buy a new pair every year than endure pain on my nose or head.

--------------

Another example is the H2O brand stuff. As many have mentioned here the academy rods are very good quality for their price. Their crankbaits are fantastic at 2.99, 3.99. In fact better than some cranks I have used that are upwards of 6 or 7 bucks.
BUT their worm hooks I feel don't live up to the reputation of some of their other items. They are very cheap, and it is noticeable when using them. Between bent hooks and bent hook points and quickly dulled hook points, I tossed half a pack of 4/0 worm hooks I had bought in one of their bulk packages.
I am sure someone uses those hooks and finds them acceptable. After using several other brands, I don't.
So sometimes it is just a trial and error kinda deal.

completely agree with Rick on this.  Sometimes you just can not judge a product by the price tag. You will be surprised both ways by some products.  I have found forums like this best for getting the facts about products--good or bad

[SteelHorseCowboy]

Another +1 to Rick. Customer reviews are EVERYWHERE.


And cheap sunglasses are so cool, ZZ Top wrote a song about 'em. Hard to argue with that.

[LgMouthGambler]

Another +1 to Rick. Customer reviews are EVERYWHERE.


And cheap sunglasses are so cool, ZZ Top wrote a song about 'em. Hard to argue with that.

They also wrote "pearl necklace" and "tubesteak boogie", whats your point? 

[Oldfart9999]

You want expensive? You want high end? You want to cry? Go to the Orvis Fly fishing site or a store, their rods make an LSCR seem cheap!(No offense Lee, I know you make a great product.) 5 or 6 hundred for a fly rod, 1,000$, 2,000$ for a rod!!!! Really!!! Are they platinum filled? We used to have a store here, about 20 years ago I walked in, I was thinking of giving it a try, cheapest rod was about 500$ cheapest reel was 3 or 4 hundred, I ran out!!!
Rodney   

[SFL BassHunter]

You want expensive? You want high end? You want to cry? Go to the Orvis Fly fishing site or a store, their rods make an LSCR seem cheap!(No offense Lee, I know you make a great product.) 5 or 6 hundred for a fly rod, 1,000$, 2,000$ for a rod!!!! Really!!! Are they platinum filled? We used to have a store here, about 20 years ago I walked in, I was thinking of giving it a try, cheapest rod was about 500$ cheapest reel was 3 or 4 hundred, I ran out!!!
Rodney

If I walked into a store like that they better have a heart defibrillator. Cause I'm gonna need a jump start just to wake back up.