Tackle reviews - do we trust them?

[Mr Cholmondeley-Corker (PaSC)]

There is only so much space in the magazine each week for product reviews

Gary

How about posting some reviews (good and bad) on FM and giving FM users the benefit of your experience ????

Just a suggestion. I'm sure many people would appreciate the information.

As you say, there is only so much space in the magazine - use FM as an overspill. Also, you can post reviews on here that you wrote, but didn't get past the editor and into print for some reason.

What do you think?

Matt

 

[RMNDIL]

Any review by journalist or angler is subjective and only ever going to be their opinion.

It works both ways. I've seen good reviews on a product which, in my opinion, was tat and I've also seen negative reviews on a product which was actually good. The negative review was simply down to the fact that the reviewer didn't have a clue.

 

[Gary Newman]

I can't speak for other reviewers, but as I'm a full-time staff member of AM i don't get paid any extra for doing reviews. You could argue that I'm getting free tackle but this isn't as good as it sounds as i already have everything that i need, favourite rods etc (some of which is quite old), plus as a consultant for a tackle company i can get as much as i like anyway.

With regards letters about bad items of tackle to print something criticising a product you have to have enough evidence that there is something wrong with it in case the manufacturer decided to take legal action - not that many would go that far.
A letter could be sent by anyone, even a rival manufacturer, and we have no way of checking the accuracy of what is being claimed, hence we don't print them. If we were getting loads about one product then it might be different.

 

[Chris Season32]

Don't need to argue it, cough. If anyone wants to donate a nice match rod and reel I'm sure I could summon the energy to give it a thorough review for the good people on FM.

 

[Bluenose]

Cakey, don't know if you remember but Bob R wrote a really good article on the old fm some years back about fella's jumping from one bait company to another. Sadly it got pulled when he left the site at some point I think.

 

[Jeff Woodhouse]

I can't speak for other reviewers, but as I'm a full-time staff member of AM i don't get paid any extra for doing reviews.

That's always the way it was even when I wrote for Coarse Angling and Colin Mitchell. You got to keep the tackle, but does it colour your view if you work as a "consultant" (a position I have often questioned) for one company and you get an item to review from its main competitor (like working for Shimano and reviewing a Daiwa reel)?

Just curious.

Does AM offer tackle out as a kind of bonus to other writers who get paid a mere pittance for their normal works? This is how Colin did it, seems fair too. Let's face it, not a lot of money in magazine writing these days.

 

[alan whittington]

Ray the idea of a review in theory sounds marvelous,but only if it can be ensured to be legitimate or the information is only as stated by the manufacturer(with pics),then,with this in mind the angler can view it himself at a TS and make his own mind up.What a disastrous job you have Gary,come and do a real job,you can borrow my tools(im a sheet metal worker its not to bad apart from being half deaf,and arthritis,repetetive strain injury etc.),second thoughts you can have them if i can have yours,dont worry only joking.

 

[MarkTheSpark]

With regards letters about bad items of tackle to print something criticising a product you have to have enough evidence that there is something wrong with it in case the manufacturer decided to take legal action - not that many would go that far.
A letter could be sent by anyone, even a rival manufacturer, and we have no way of checking the accuracy of what is being claimed, hence we don't print them. If we were getting loads about one product then it might be different.

With great respect, Gary, that's not true. Yes, if you say the bail arm doesn't work, it mustn't work. But if tackle is submitted for review, you can be as strong in your opinion as you like.
You don't have to justify your opinion legally. You may have to justify strong criticism to the editor, but there's the rub. He then talks to the advertising manager...

---------- Post added at 06:54 ---------- Previous post was at 06:52 ----------

I have also had plenty of products that i haven't ended up reviewing on the basis of them being no good.

The other thing to consider is this, if a product is rubbish then why am i going to use my already limited fishing time to go out and fish with something that i know is no good and is going to cost me fish? All my reviews are done in my own time and i don't get paid anything for them!

Er, I think not reviewing bad tackle is the problem, as I thought I made plain. It's easy to cherrypick the good bits from the tackle bag but that's not reviewing, it's PR

 

[alan whittington]

Mark the other side is that what they say is good is not,and most of us have had some experience of it.Without being funny with my years of experience i could probably make most things work so as i caught fish on them(as could many others on this site),but it is a totally different thing to say that an item of tackle is good for its job of design when without fiddling about its not usable at all and is basically junk.

 

[Gary Newman]

Mark,
With regards letters, we are responsible for what we print and would only print a lett if we could prove the allegation to be true. If someone writes a letter to us stating that their reel has broken and that the company who makes it has refused to swap it for a new one, how do we know this is true? And to be honest it is more a matter for Tradign Standards anyway. If we received lots of letters saying the same thing then we'd look into it.

When it come sto reviewing tackle you'd find it hard to find someone who wants to go out and test the stuff that is no good! I for one am not going to waste my valuable fishing time using soemthing that is going to stop me catching, especially on the waters that i fish.

Wolfman,
Obviously i don't review products from the company that i work for, but i wouldn't then give a competitors product a lower mark just because they are a rival. On that basis tackle items would be getting a worse review than they deserved as most reviewers are associated with one firm or another. Even to the extent of being bunged a few free reels, knowing the owners of some companies personally, etc.
If a competitors product was really good, rather than mark it down in a review, I'd rather try and improve the product that the company I'm a consultant for makes, after all that is what they pay me for.
I've got no problem with working for an angling magazine and also being a consultant, one pays me for my writing/photography skills, and the other for what i do in my own time when it comes to catching big fish on a regular basis and also havign input on fishign tackle design.

 

[Jeff Woodhouse]

I've got no problem with working for an angling magazine and also being a consultant, one pays me for my writing/photography skills, and the other for what i do in my own time

We have a couple of Vicars in our little group, one of whom seems to catch more than his fair share of fish without contributing the necessary amount of loose feed, if you see my point. So I asked him once if he prayed each time he cast in. His reply was that he never mixed business with pleasure.

This is just my little thought. If I were a manufacturer, I'd be quite wary of sending my products for review by someone who, at the same time as working for the magazine, was also passing on information to my competitor. I'm not saying you are and not saying your company is copy other's ideas, but I just don't think I'd feel comfortable with that!

Now if you were a consultant for a pie or even a camera manufacturer, it wouldn't bother me at all. I just think you should divorce your interests. My thoughts, that's all.

I remember when information was passed from Ferrari to some guy that worked at McLaren there was a very heavy fine involved.

 

[alan whittington]

Your right Woody,but it doesnt matter anyway as nobody gets a bad review,whether its good or bad(gets
stored in the archives),what a corrupt business journalism really is.

Anyway Gary when i e-mailed to both weeklies with my problem nobody asked if i could prove anything,they were too busy pouting their lips kissing their advertisers rear end.

 

[preston96]

I think you have to try to read between the lines...and knowing a little about the reviewer helps.

For instance, someone i know (most of you do to,or we wouldn't be here!) says "i enjoy fishing with it" is a hint it's OK....then you get the likes of Gary Knowles.....i don't think he would ever recommend a bit of kit he hadn't tried and found to be funtional...there are many others like them.

There are the tossers out for freebies who will say anything etc and then theres the use it or you are a ****** brigade......but over a period of time you can suss em out.

 

[alan whittington]

Yes,Paul,funny enough there is a thread under this one on hooktiers and there is mention of one made by stonfo which i saw a review,went to the tackle shop,had a look and bought,but a total minefield for the inexperienced.

 

[Gary Newman]

Wolfman,
The products that we receive are ones that are already out, or are on the verge of being released, so anyone from a rival company could get their hands on them anyway. I actually get to see a few products from some companies before they are released, so they must trust me.
I personally can't see the point of copying a product, not much point making it unless you can make it better than what is already out there.

I'd be interested if you could name anyone who has a regular magazine column who isn't sponsored, whether it be getting paid or free bait/tackle, i bet there aren't many out there.
The tackle company that i work for pay me for what i do in my own time when it comes to fishing (and will probably continue to do so whilst i continue to catch big fish on a regular basis - obviously I'm not eligible for things such as our Fox Specimen Cup as an employee of AM), Angler's Mail pay me to write about fishing. To me the two are clearly separate as to do my full-time job i wouldn't even need to go fishing or be an angler, and in fact there have been people who've done my job in the past who haven't been anglers.