# Brand Loyalty



## Garfish (Jun 2, 2006)

Fellow yakkers... other polls have got me wondering...

In terms of rod and reel selection, which brand do you immediately turn to?


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## Gigantor (Jun 27, 2006)

Garfish,

This is a tuff call. I have rods from: Live Fibre, Pflueger, Shimano, Diawa, Silstar, Shogun etc. I have reels from: Shimano, Diawa, Pflueger, Silstar.

I wouldn't say I hand with any particular brand. My purchasing decision is generally based on: Price, look & feel, comments from other fishos, and purpose of item.

Cheers,

Pete


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## aleg75 (Dec 20, 2005)

yeah tough one, I own one or two of a few brands, I put down Okuma as I own two and have been very trouble free, but I also have two pfluger reels which I love too. My one and only shimano broke.


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## Garfish (Jun 2, 2006)

Hmmm... that's interesting.

My thought process is usually:

1) What reel in my collection has been the most reliable (Shimano)
2) What style of reel do I need (eg. spinning, 4lbs, front drag etc)
3) What's my budget ($150)
4) What's the best shimano spinning reel i can get for $150.


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## Squidder (Sep 2, 2005)

Good poll, a bit tricky for me to answer because all my favorite rods are Daiwa, and (almost) all my favorite reels are Shimano.


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## colzinho (Aug 6, 2007)

Daiwa for spinning reels definitely. Had a few shimanos and they were shite - stradic wobbled and felt "cheap"and symetre died after a month.
As for rods I like to balance them to a outfit so haven't really got a favourite but I do love my angler rods for heavier rigs (pacific composites blanks) and for lighter my new loomis, would be brand loyal to loomis if only I was rich :?


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## justcrusin (Oct 1, 2006)

come on garfish weres pfleuger in the choices. So i'm an other. I know there part of shakespeare but the shakesphere stuff is the cheap s*&t. 
I used to buy shimano but i have broken a couple of them so i try to steer clear of big brand names as i think you pay to much for the name.

Cheers Dave


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## Phoenix (Jan 12, 2006)

I use Penn rods mostly due to cost, but will start changing over to custom made livefiber rods next year.

I use shimano reels (TLD15, TSS4, BR3500 & BR4500) - will soon add a BR6500 to that collection also.

Hate Abu with a passion, and not very excited about Okuma.


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## fishnfreak (Jun 22, 2007)

shimano all the way, i just got the new 2008 catalogue, im looking forward to the fireblood rods(reels=too expensive) and i reckon i might pickup a heavy model Tiralejo beach rod for mulloway/sharks

i also just put a shimano decal on the bow of my ' yak


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## Garfish (Jun 2, 2006)

> come on garfish weres pfleuger in the choices.


Why would anyone buy pfleuger??? It sounds like something you've just coughed up! :lol:


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## ManjiMike (Jan 24, 2007)

I like the ebay brand of reels :lol: :lol: :lol:


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## ArWeTherYet (Mar 25, 2007)

I have no brand loyalty on anything I buy. I buy on price and quality of an individual product.


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## T-curve (Feb 19, 2007)

Ive definately always been a shimano fan...but these last couple of years daiwa sure has come through with the goods. But in saying that im going to pick shimano until the daiwa gear ive got recently can prove itself otherwise. Be interesting to see what happens in 2008.


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## DGax65 (Jun 7, 2006)

I own more Shimano reels than any other brand. It really isn't a brand loyalty thing; just the best product for a specific application. I have a bunch of TLD reels that I use for tuna fishing from sport boats and trolling from the yak. They are good all-around reels. I also have a number of Torium reels that I'm very fond of. I have some Daiwa Sealine reels that are awesome for yak fishing. The Sealine reels have a good drag system, are very rugged and dependable and are inexpensive. I still have some older Penn reels.

I haven't tried any of the Shimano rods yet. Almost all of my rods are made by Seeker, a local California company. Most of my yak rods are Seeker Black Steel graphite models.

I also use Shimano Deore XT components. Maybe it is brand loyalty :?


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## Fishing Man (Oct 4, 2006)

well it seems like theres a lot of kooks on here,

Daiwa hauls over all the others, shimano is probably the next closest but the range we have here is rubbish, 
really need to get into the stellas/firebloods to get good gear.

Just look at the most successful/popular brand in the world (DAIWA)
look at the most popular brand in Japan (the home of sportfishing).......DAIWA.

well guys looks like the answers done then,

D.A.I.W.A

"is the jarvis walker vote a joke lol"


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## justcrusin (Oct 1, 2006)

> is the jarvis walker vote a joke lol"


Mate once apon a time they were the beez knees of fishing rods, my dad still uses his jarvis walker ****** rod with the bakerlite alvey style reel its over 40 years old but its a great rod. I agree that now they are a grade one C%^P.

Agree that diawa are good my surf rigs diawa and it takes a pounding and gets right back up again. But i reckon they are hugely overpriced. You can get similar quality in other brands for a lot less.

Cheers Dave


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## paffoh (Aug 24, 2006)

Early last year when I didnt have clue about Graphite rods or drag quality I would have said Penn, these days ( Courtesy of knowledge gained through influence ) I would rate Daiwa higher than any other brand.


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## craig450 (May 11, 2007)

Id say Daiwa as well, i have a few Daiwa rods and reels and im very impressed with all of them


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## Dodge (Oct 12, 2005)

justcrusin32 said:


> once apon a time


Dave, please do me a favour and use another word selection, that sounds like the era of Shrek and Alice in Wonderland... and I was also fishing in 'once upon a time' :shock: think I have a nervous tic since reading this :lol:

The start of fibreglass rods [from cane] were the solid glass of Jarvis Walker and Pastime brands and if you leading the pack in gear you owned one or the other and it was some years before hollow glass became the norm and other brands started to appear.

JW and Pastime chose the chain store and general purpose fishing route and never tried to compete with the quality brands, but certainly introduced many anglers to the sport over the years and have been successful in that they are still in the market place.

18 months ago I bought my grandson a JW 9' light beach rod [alvey rig of course] and its not a bad little rod for next to nothing [-$40]


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## mudcrab (Jul 27, 2007)

Good Poll,
Not some thing i've kept notice of, so went down stairs and checked. Seven reels, five are Shimano, one Daiwa, one ABU. Four Shimano rods. You tend to lean towards brands you trust i suppose. Interesting.
leigh


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## Biggera Yakker (Jan 25, 2007)

Don't forget the good old Alvey!!


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## chrissy (Jul 7, 2007)

Jeez this is a tuff one. I have mostly had shimanos,my little sedona 2500FB has copped a wacking for about two years now and is still goin strong. Ive caught a 7kilo jewie on it,many good size kingfish,big bream.bass and the list goes on. I have recently bought a Daiwa sol and i love that too,but too scared to give it a hammerin on the rocks or out to sea in the kayak. So i cant decide i will say Daiwa and Shimano.


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## Fishing Man (Oct 4, 2006)

chrissy said:


> Jeez this is a tuff one. I have mostly had shimanos,my little sedona 2500FB has copped a wacking for about two years now and is still goin strong. Ive caught a 7kilo jewie on it,many good size kingfish,big bream.bass and the list goes on. I have recently bought a Daiwa sol and i love that too,but too scared to give it a hammerin on the rocks or out to sea in the kayak. So i cant decide i will say Daiwa and Shimano.


i too own a sedona 2500 and sol 2500, 
the sedona feels like utter rubbish after using the sol, 
i often take both of them but its a painful thing using the sedona after having the sol in your hands,


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## chrissy (Jul 7, 2007)

Yeah but the sedonas are work horses and are guttsier than you'd think. I dont care how smooth reels are,i only care about how well they work.


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## andybear (Jan 15, 2006)

I hope no one thinks I am a sicko.....but.....in all honesty I dont really like any of my fishing gear......'cept the lures.
My Okuma reel has its moments, when the level wind feature wants to put all the line in one spot, and loads up the crank, then it comes good. My penn egg beater is as good as gold. My Jarvis walker rod has just stopped shrinking now, its lost about 40cm since new.

I think I need to spend again! this could be very therapeutic....I think I feel a shimano baitrunner coming on :lol:

Cheers all Andybear.. I really cannot vote on this one :lol: :lol:


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## Breambo (Apr 19, 2006)

The only brand Im loyal to is Alvey. Its the only one that can stand the constant dunking in saltwater. Dont get me wrong, I love using all other reels but they never last long. In the eggbeaters my penn is still going ok, The Abus, JW's, Okumas( which were very smooth action and drag), Mitchell ( which was meant to be fully waterproof) , and a heap of others , all seized up in 1- 6 months of use and this was looking after them properly. The manufacturers said warranty wouldnt cover because I was getting the reels wet. Abu Gacia replaced 4 reels untill the local baitshop fella said he would go broke covering the postage so I gave up. Mitchell said they would fix the reel but parts and postage cost more than the reel, still under warranty, so I told them to stick it and left the reel at the shop. At least I can rely on the Alveys, and put up with a bit of line twist every now and then. Go Alvey.


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## Fishing Man (Oct 4, 2006)

chrissy said:


> Yeah but the sedonas are work horses and are guttsier than you'd think. I dont care how smooth reels are,i only care about how well they work.


sorry but the shitty sedona isnt in the same league as the sol, 
its a kiddys toy in comparison, sure the sol is a lot smoother, but its also designed better, lighter, larger spool, not plastic, waterproof drag, washable design, all the new daiwa internal features and has a great drag. Hook onto a decent GT with the sedona and you will soon change your approch when the drag burns out lol.


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## Guest (Sep 15, 2007)

I really don't buy this sol reel being the bees knees, I have caught more fish using cheap and nasty reels than any expensive reel.

I really think it all comes down to the fisherman, how the fish is played, how much pressure you apply and so on. What line you are using and whether luck is on your side. 

I have used all gear in the poll and have never paid more than 180 for a reel and no more than 100 for a rod.

Cheers


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## RedPhoenix (Jun 13, 2006)

Unfortunately, due to the change in ownership of this web site and the lack of response by the owners to my requests to remove my email address from all administrative-level notifications and functionality, I have decided to remove my posts on AKFF. Thank you for the great times, the fantastic learning experiences and the many many fish. If you are desperate for the old content of this particular post, it is available below base64 encoded and bzip2 compressed.

Red.

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QlpoOTFBWSZTWfedEQYAAA/XgAAQYIEY4BQAL+eeoCAAdRFD1HqekempoNGGUIahlA0A9RptIQFUcMUyf5QthdJWsciSMziDy2Qom9INwlMyquvLXIj+ya7whNEkERHGcXY7dAaigpg6god56k5SUFIxS/8XckU4UJD3nREG


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## Fishing Man (Oct 4, 2006)

yeah i know,

just its like comparinga nissan skyline with a basic pulsar.
theres just no comparison between the likes of a sedona and a sol.

As i said i own both and at one stage was loving the sedona but now that ive got some better gear i hardly use it.
if your tossing up between daiwa and shimano based on the sedona v sol you need help...

anyways 
im just passionate about daiwas now and would never buy anything else again,
they are the best hands down


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## Billybob (Aug 29, 2005)

I've got mostly Shimanos... BR3500, BR4500's. I still occasionally bring out the old TSS4 as well.

They're not top of the line by comparison to the Certates and Saltegas but they do the job for me.

I've tried the Okumas (bearings don't seem to like salt water dunking) and Pflueger (antireverse kept crapping out every trip or so) and have a Penn 460 Slammer (not cheap) that is so allergic to salt water that I've left it on the shelf after a complete overhaul.

By process of elimination over the years I've settled on my favourites and and I'm comfortable with that.


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## chrissy (Jul 7, 2007)

Your right Fishing Man but what Kraley said "i dont feel as bad when my sedona goes 'plop' into the drink". But yeah sedonas are inferior compared to the sol. Im still deciding if i should take my sol offshore or not.


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