How do they do it for the money?

symonh2000 · Sep 26, 2013

I am new here, so sorry if this has been posted before, but I am just getting back into fishing after a break of a few years.

The price of gear has suprised me. Back when I started fishing in the late 1980's, rods and reels were quite expensive, even at the entry level end of the market rods were rarely any cheaper than about £20 or so.

Today I just took delivery of a Silstar X performance spinnong rod, which cost me £14 all in.

I haven't fished with it yet, but the quality of it looks to be as good as my £100+ (Back in 1992) Diaflex Kevlar carp rod.

How on earth can they be made so cheaply still be of such good quality and still make a profit?

I see that reels have also come down in price too. I paid £40 for my Mitchell predator reel, but now you can better reels for £20 or so.

Simon.

chefster · Sep 26, 2013

Because they are probably made in china or in some sweatshop somewhere.....decent gear still costs decent money....

binka · Sep 26, 2013

chefster said:
Because they are probably made in china or in some sweatshop somewhere

You're right there Gaz.

Even a nice Hardy which has had the plastic sleeve removed from the cork handle in the showroom will reveal a "Made In China" sticker on the one that's been taken from the stock room once you've purchased.

I think technology and increased market competition are also factors.

beerweasel · Sep 26, 2013

Your right, everything is cheaper if it's made in China.
Because they can pay workers 10 dorrahs a day.
Jaguars and Land Rovers will be made there soon
it won't mean cheaper cars but the share holders will make more money. Grrr

symonh2000 · Sep 26, 2013

Thanks guys, I wasn't expecting it to be the best rod in the world, but what I seem to have got for the money looks pretty good.

I have just been looking at lures, and a couple of those will cost as much as the rod.

binka · Sep 26, 2013

Keep an eye on Ebay Simon, you often see perfectly usable job lots of lures going for a fraction of their price as new.

Soft jig baits don't work out too bad either, you can interchange various soft body patterns on the same jig head.

terry m · Sep 26, 2013

Low cost manufacturing regions are no longer as low a cost as they once were - although I accept they are still significantly less than Western Europe or the US for example. But, the gap is closing, meaning that the benefits realised by moving to those regions are much less than previously, and unless you have a manufacturing base already established in China or India or Korea etc, then the cost of changing to those regions may mean that a switch is prohibitive.

smufter · Sep 27, 2013

symonh2000 said:
Thanks guys, I wasn't expecting it to be the best rod in the world, but what I seem to have got for the money looks pretty good.

I recently bought a couple of rods for my Son for his birthday.
Hardwear/TFG "Atom" 10' 2.25tc for £20.00 each.
They are fantastic rods for the money, I was so impressed with them when they arrived I went to buy two more for myself but they had all gone!
Would have made ideal rods for a bit of stalking or fishing smaller venues.
Can't believe how they did it for the money

chefster · Sep 27, 2013

As Steve(Binka) said as well modern Technology and increased competition has an effect...You,ve only got to look at budget companies such as Dragon Carp,and their rods that they are knocking out at £10- £20,and even they are better than tackle we used 30 years ago,as regards weight,strength,action etc,To be honest if someone is only an occasional angler or only lightly using their tackle then cheaper budget rods are brilliant,for the money....Chef

badgeroo · Sep 27, 2013

Hi!
You can get 2x Shakespeare carp rods AND matching reels for under £90 including postage if you shop around

stillwater blue · Sep 27, 2013

Around 1988 I bought my first real fishing rod, a Daiwa Sensor Match for the price of £16. My first carp rod was bought around 1992, a Shakespeare Kelvar carp rod for £25 and if I remember it was half price in a sale.

You can still pay the same amount for rods today, I would guess the fitting would be a lot better and the blanks lighter, thinner and crisper. Fishing tackle has vastly reduced in comparative price and got better.

I would guess a mixture of competition and the far east are the main reasons.

How do they do it for the money?

symonh2000

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chefster

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binka

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beerweasel

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symonh2000

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binka

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terry m

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smufter

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chefster

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badgeroo

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stillwater blue

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