Customer Service @ Scientific Anglers;

[Ard]

I made a post on a Spey fishing forum responding to a question about Scientific Anglers Fly Lines. I stated that I like all my lines and had only ever had one problem. I had a welded loop break this past spring on one of my sink tips. I mentioned this very matter of fact and not as a warning or a complaint.

I was surprised when I got a PM from a SA rep who read my post and he took my mailing address and three days ago a UPS truck pulled in the drive and the driver handed me an envelope. Inside the package were two new tips, a 120 grain type 4 and a 160 grain #4. It seems the company nor the rep could guess which I had broke so they sent both. :faint:

So if you were ever wondering what will happen if you have a problem with a SA line, there you have it! I think I own between 12 & 14 SA lines.

Ard

 

[wonderfulremark]

The first day I bought a SA Mastery GPX line and went fishing, the very same thing happened.
I cut it off and put a braided loop on... I really wished though I would've contacted SA right away.
After I cut the loop off it just hasn't casted the same.

:S Next time this happens again I'll contact them...

Im glad SA helped you out. Great CS!!

 

[Ard]

I would contact them anyway, I remember you posting about this. It was not that long ago, what the heck, you have nothing to loose send an e-mail.

 

[wonderfulremark]

I guess you are right...
the worst thing they can tell me is no.....

 

[Jimmie]

Love to hear positive "customer service" stories. Those are the people that get my business.

 

[boser]

WOW, Ard, that is amazing. I would say they have some savy personel in their company. I mean to actually search web sites such as ours and pick up posts where people are discussing their products. Good story and good for you friend. Really amazing when you think of how cut throat todays company's can be.

Boser

 

[Fly2Fish]

. . . After I cut the loop off it just hasn't casted the same. . . .

Wondering if you covered the cut tip with Pliobond or some other waterproof flexible sealing agent to keep water from wicking into the line's core. Don't know if that would affect its casting, but it certainly could affect its floating ability (assuming it was a floating line).

 

[mcnerney]

Ard: Thanks for posting that information, it really says alot about Scientific Anglers and their customer service!

Larry

 

[Ard]

Larry, I have invited the rep to join our forum, I hope he does.

 

[Rip Tide]

When I lost a drag part off one of my System II reels , I email SA as to where to buy a new piece. Someone called me within an hour, and in a few days I had 2 parts in the mail.... free of charge

 

[patyer]

That's great to hear. I bought one of their lines last summer and this year the welded loop cracked and broke. I fixed it on my own but decided it wasn't something I felt like dealing with fixing again so I've been looking at a few other brands of line. Hearing this though sounds like they will take care of me should it happen again which is good because I've been curious to try the sharkskin line.

 

[eldermike]

It's good to hear customer service stuff. Line are expensive.

side note:
I am new here on the forum. I use SA lines. I did no know many people used those loops. I always cut them off right out of the box. I seal the ends with wicking Super glue and use nail knots only. On lines I have loops they are made up of 40lb mono about 4 inches long.

 

[Ard]

I hear you Mike,

I use 18" of Amnesia on all my salmon lines but this was a 15' type 6 sink tip for a Spey line. The loop broke while I was trying to free one of my precious flies from an evil underwater log (too deep for me to go after) and when I tried the Nail knot and Amnesia cure (on site) the sinking line seemed too soft and the nail knot just ripped the line when I would test the connection.

Being a resourceful type I threw a small perfection loop on it and it has held through perhaps 70+ more salmon and some trout. Rather than push my luck I put on the new 120 gr. tip and it is working fine.

[Note] As for obtaining service, my experience through the years has demonstrated that with most tackle manufactures the only block to getting excellent customer service is we often fail to contact the company and ask for help.

 

[eldermike]

I hear you Mike,

I use 18" of Amnesia on all my salmon lines but this was a 15' type 6 sink tip for a Spey line. The loop broke while I was trying to free one of my precious flies from an evil underwater log (too deep for me to go after) and when I tried the Nail knot and Amnesia cure (on site) the sinking line seemed too soft and the nail knot just ripped the line when I would test the connection.

Being a resourceful type I threw a small perfection loop on it and it has held through perhaps 70+ more salmon and some trout. Rather than push my luck I put on the new 120 gr. tip and it is working fine.

[Note] As for obtaining service, my experience through the years has demonstrated that with most tackle manufactures the only block to getting excellent customer service is we often fail to contact the company and ask for help.

Good information, thanks.

You are correct about the nature of us fishing types, we tend to chalk up issues as experience and move on to some other product expecting a different result.

 

[oregonsteel]

I made a post on a Spey fishing forum responding to a question about Scientific Anglers Fly Lines. I stated that I like all my lines and had only ever had one problem. I had a welded loop break this past spring on one of my sink tips. I mentioned this very matter of fact and not as a warning or a complaint.

I was surprised when I got a PM from a SA rep who read my post and he took my mailing address and three days ago a UPS truck pulled in the drive and the driver handed me an envelope. Inside the package were two new tips, a 120 grain type 4 and a 160 grain #4. It seems the company nor the rep could guess which I had broke so they sent both. :faint:

So if you were ever wondering what will happen if you have a problem with a SA line, there you have it! I think I own between 12 & 14 SA lines.

Ard

I have had 2 sharkskin lines loops break. One, after the loop broke I took it to a fly shop so they could professionally put on a but section. That broke off too! I told the rep, Jon Kovich about it, and he said to send it back but did not give any special treatment. I have NEVER had a problem with a rio loop.

Are you just a average retail buyer? Do you work at a fly shop? Do you have any relationship to the fly fishing industry? Any relationship to the rep?

 

[Ard]

Hi Steel,

Nope, no relationship at all.................... However I am a Scorpio Really, it happened like I said, a rep saw my post and sent my story and address to 3M and they ponied up the new tips. I was surprised.

Ard

 

[wonderfulremark]

it seems as SA's loops aren't very durable, not just by my experience.. but so many of us have had the same problem... this ain't right...

maybe I should try RIO lines..

 

[FrankB2]

I bought a SA GPX line a couple of years ago, and the coating had a thin spot about 15 feet from the tip. It covered the core, but the core could be seen through the coating. I called SA, and they asked for my phone number. The guy in charge of line production called me back not long after, and said
that he would send a new line out immediately. He also asked that I stuff the old line into an envelope, and mail it back (cheapest way possible) for examination. The new line arrived FEDEX in two days.

 

[eldermike]

I hear you Mike,

I use 18" of Amnesia on all my salmon lines but this was a 15' type 6 sink tip for a Spey line. The loop broke while I was trying to free one of my precious flies from an evil underwater log (too deep for me to go after) and when I tried the Nail knot and Amnesia cure (on site) the sinking line seemed too soft and the nail knot just ripped the line when I would test the connection.

Being a resourceful type I threw a small perfection loop on it and it has held through perhaps 70+ more salmon and some trout. Rather than push my luck I put on the new 120 gr. tip and it is working fine.

[Note] As for obtaining service, my experience through the years has demonstrated that with most tackle manufactures the only block to getting excellent customer service is we often fail to contact the company and ask for help.

If you use 420 loctite (or any wicking type) on the end of the cut before you nail knot the line will not be soft at the tip. Just a suggestion.

 

[Ard]

Solving The Problem;

it seems as SA's loops aren't very durable, not just by my experience.. but so many of us have had the same problem... this ain't right...

maybe I should try RIO lines..

Hi Mark,

I haven't had trouble with any of the regular DT type fly lines that came with the braided loop connector on the tip. My difficulty came with lines that have the 'welded loop' in vinyl at the tip. The line I had the first failure with was a multi tip line that came with 4 different tips from floating to extra fast sinking.

This spring I changed to a floating line, now these are Spey lines but the 120' floating line still had a welded loop on the tip. By the time I had hooked and struggled with one king the loop was noticeably cut by the mono leader butt that was looped through the vinyl tip loop. After returning to camp and giving some thought to the problem I faced I dug around in my tackle bag and made the connector pictured below. These are about 3.5" long and solve the problem. They are fairly easy to make from braided mono and will protect the welded loops while standing up to the mono butt that is attached to them.

[/IMG]

I like this better than the idea of cutting off the welded loop and going to the nail knot. Since I put a connector like this on my line it has withstood the landing of 100 pounds of king salmon so I would say they are strong. The connector is step one of a complete custom leader that I built that day and I will photograph all of the components of that leader and post it soon.