How many of you have broken rods while casting?

[stasher1]

A little while ago I picked up a sweet little 7'6" 3wt for harrassing the sunnies and 'gills, paired it with a Medalist 1492 and some Aquanova DT3, and it had been great for the few times I'd used it.

I was out on my local pond earlier this evening and noticed some sunnies hitting the surface about 15'-20' past the point I had been casting to, which was about 30' or so off the bank. Determined to catch the little buggers, I stripped off a bit more line, made a couple false casts to get the line out and my poor little 3wt rod snapped in half, about 3"-4" above the joint.

There was nothing behind or above me, and I didn't hit anything with it. It just snapped.

Was I just pushing it too hard trying to make a 15 yd cast with a rod that length/weight, or was it just defective? It's still under warranty, but I don't think they should have to replace it if it was my fault.

 

[axle27]

Sounds to me like it was defective. A 15 or 30ft. cast should easily be done with that setup.

 

[Davo]

Sounds like a defective rod. It could also have been a hook nick, if you have ever hit the rod with the line while casting. Sometimes all it takes is a little insignificant scratch to make a weak spot in the rod. No sure fire way to tell. Send it in under the warranty and they will check the rod. If it is a defect they fix it for free if it was some type of abuse they will charge you.
One thing is for certain, you did not break they rod by trying to cast to much line!!

 

[stasher1]

That's kinda what I was thinking but I wanted to be sure before I contact the manufacturer. It easily handled the 20-25' casts, but gave up the ghost when I went for the 40-45' cast.

 

[MoscaPescador]

To answer the title of your thread, yes, I have broken a rod while I was casting. But I will attribute that to use and abuse.

In your situation, it could be anything. It could be a little nick or some sort of impact. It could be a defect.

Take it back to the shop that you bought it from to deal with the warranty. Most manufacturers will charge the handling fee regardless if the problem was theirs or yours. Currently most manufacturers charge $50.

MP

 

[cwg]

Yanno, I keep reading about rods breaking and its in the back of my mind certainly when I'm humping longer casts.
Sorry to hear about that stasher, wasn't that the one with the broke handle? Lemme know what happens.

Onto graphite, its spooky stuff- I'm an archer and have seen first hand what can happen to those stronger than steel magic shafts when an unseen flaw or nick is in it.
I broke one graphite rod when they first came popular, mid 80's- leaned heavy into a salterwater sheephead, set the hook but the line broke at very upside of my power stroke, snapped in two spots, weird, happens
hope it gets replaced promptly

CWG

 

[Ard]

Snapped a 7wt when I thought I was hooking a King but was ripping into the boulder he was lying beside. The swing stopped the line went tight, I knew he was there so I gave it the old make it or break it hook-set and that one broke. As I type this I seem to remember snapping an Orvis 9' 9wt on the Salmon River NY during a very similar scenario. Sounds like abuse on those two but the Orvis was replaced at no cost. The Grey's Platinum X............ they charge $165 for a new mid on one of those.

While casting............... hum, only one occurrence comes to mind. I fished Francis Branch of Slate Run with my bamboo flea rod for about 11 years on a very regular basis. The branch wasn't the only place I used the flea but I was there between 30 - 50 days each season. One day (I'm not sure what I did wrong) I was fishing along and suddenly something felt really out of sync with the rod. I stopped the cast and examined my little friend and found a long splintering area in the tip section just above the ferrule.

After a hike to the Bronco (also known as The Thunderbolt Grease Slapper) I was able to get hold of my extra tip but there was a looming pale of uneasiness about the remainder of the day. I hobbled through the remainder of the summer season with a single tip and then sent the rod to an old acquaintance in Vermont who had built it. He reported that he could neither determine a material flaw (bad node) or any abuse / misuse (hook strike) made by me. Since this man was set to retire from his work soon I opted to have two extra tips produced for the rod and can happily report that all three tips are still strait and whole.

The company replaced the broken tip at no cost and supplied me with the extra at a cost of $100. Always inquire with the maker when there is a problem with a rod regardless of whether you have friends there or not a reputable rod builder will be there for you. Send your rod in...............

Ard

 

[stasher1]

Yanno, I keep reading about rods breaking and its in the back of my mind certainly when I'm humping longer casts.
Sorry to hear about that stasher, wasn't that the one with the broke handle? Lemme know what happens.

Onto graphite, its spooky stuff- I'm an archer and have seen first hand what can happen to those stronger than steel magic shafts when an unseen flaw or nick is in it.
I broke one graphite rod when they first came popular, mid 80's- leaned heavy into a salterwater sheephead, set the hook but the line broke at very upside of my power stroke, snapped in two spots, weird, happens
hope it gets replaced promptly

CWG

Yes, it was my little Gremlin 3wt. Looking over my records, I rec'd the first one on the 14th with a cracked grip, and replacement butt section showed up on the 17th.

So, it made it less than two weeks before giving up the ghost.

The guy who sells them is away for the weekend, so it'll be Tuesday before I can talk with him. Hopefully I can get it replaced, but I don't know if I'd trust the replacement. It's a nice little rod, but its performance so far is not inspiring confidence in its durability.

I was trying to save a couple bucks by buying an inexpensive rod and it appears to have bit me on the butt. Might need to look into something in the $150 range like a TFO Pro or Sig., Redington RS4, or possibly another Redington CT. Something with a lifetime warranty...

 

[wetworth]

Does losing a fight with a pine tree count? :sweatingb

 

[cwg]

FWIW, I'm real happy with my "entry" level Grey's G-series.
Very inexpensive, life time warranty, and so far, their customer service is more than I expected.
I'd like to actually fish a bunch of brands vs. wiggling them like a nit in some store, but I'd buy another one if need were there.

 

[cwg]

The guy who sells them is away for the weekend, so it'll be Tuesday before I can talk with him. .

Its toosday mang, what did he say?

regards, CWG

 

[stasher1]

Fired off an email yesterday afternoon/evening and no response so far.

I've already started shopping for a replacement 3wt from one of the larger companies...with a lifetime warranty.

 

[FrankB2]

I was trying to save a couple bucks by buying an inexpensive rod and it appears to have bit me on the butt. Might need to look into something in the $150 range like a TFO Pro or Sig., Redington RS4, or possibly another Redington CT. Something with a lifetime warranty...

I had a Redington RS3, and while it was a nice rod (closeout price of $99!), it seemed a bit stiff for my tastes. The Redington CT has received some glowing
reports here, and I know that the folks at Redington answer the phone instantly. I've had similar instant phone contact with Sage, St. Croix, and even Diamondback, with no problems being connected to a tech or CS person.

*Actually, I had two RS3 rods. The RS4 is supposed to be stiffer, and I don't
know if that'll be something you want in a 3wt.......

 

[stasher1]

I have a Redington CT already (8'6" 5wt) and it's fantastic, but I find that I prefer a slightly faster action for panfish. Maybe a med-fast instead of the mod-fast of the CT.

I've had a little bit of experience with Redington's customer service and while the "service" wasn't exactly stellar, they did offer to take care of the problem...eventually. I opted to solve the problem myself in the mean time, but they did eventually get back to me.

The more I ponder, the better TFO looks...

 

[cwg]

I have had excellent response from Hardy North America
and stasher, per our chat, you made an excellent comment about that rod we were talking about- customer service, worth the not so much extra.
either Greys or Reddington for me next time.

 

[Rip Tide]

I've broken 3 rods while casting..... all three on the first day of use. They were obviously defective and I had no problem replacing them.
Other rods that I've broken (and that's quite a few) I've either fixed myself, or stripped for parts.
IMO, rod warranties drive up rod prices, promote carelessness, and allow people who tire of their rods to just snap them over their knee and get new ones, and every year if they please..... and on your and my nickle.
The whole rod warranty system (as started by Orvi$ in the late 70's) was a huge mistake. People need to take some personal responsibility and either take care of their gear or deal with it

 

[stasher1]

While I agree with most of what you said, I believe products come with an inherent guarantee of functionality for their stated purpose. If a drinking glass (as manufactured) will not hold water, it is defective and should be replaced. If the same drinking glass is broken due to careless or reckless behavior on the part of the user, it should not be replaced.

Fishing rods are no different.

This is the reason I posed my question to the members here. If I carelessly broke the rod in my attempts to attain more distance, I don't want it replaced. If, however, the rod broke due to a manufacturing flaw I would expect it to be replaced.

 

[jose]

I guess there are fly fisherman out there that might do what Rip Tide is saying. I don't know any of them (that I know of) and I want to keep it that way. All the fly fishing folks I have ever met seem to be rather careful and considerate about their gear and the craft, though I have gone by many streams and seen the garbage that people leave behind, which breaks my heart. I guess those might be the same folks who just have their heads too far up their bottoms to think of others. Moving on...

I did break an Albright rod (the A-5) in mid cast. The blank broke while in the ferrule and I was not sure what just happened. It was only the 3rd time fishing it, but months after buying it. I was bummed with the return policy, since I had to pay much more than I felt I should, especially since I wanted to pay nothing for a problem that, as far as I say, came from the manufacturing process. I did end up paying for the replacement and it's been fine, but it left me realizing that I wanted to buy from a company that had a good policy. When I accidentally ran over my Cortland rod, it was no problem- small fee and a new rod came in the mail. The fee for Albright made no sense to me, and I still resent it. I do agree that this must drive the price up, but I also think we come back to those companies again and again because of it. I still triple check my rod when placing it near my car. It was a traumatic experience

 

[FrankB2]

Having been in the retail bicycle biz, here's a little warranty story. In the early 1990's, Bell Helmets included a little warranty card in the box, stating that if
the helmet was damaged, the owner could send it to Bell along with $20, and receive a replacement. LOTS of people stomped on their helmets after a year,
and got a replacement for only $20.....LOTS. I don't believe Bell still offers this gift of perpetual helmet replacement.

I've often wondered how many fly anglers snap a rod after it gets scratched too much. An $700 rod made perfect again for $50....I'm sure many people would take advantage of that. I've broken one fly rod, and two spinning rods: both in car doors. I've never broken a rod while fishing, but my wife has bent rods in half when trying to net a fish! Still, no breakage. Sage offers a spare tip for about $150 (for a ZXL rod), and I called last week to find out what their turnaround time was. The woman told 6 weeks, but I have enough rods that I don't need to spend another $150 to continue fishing. The $50 regular fee seems kind of steep considering the price of the rods! They are nice rods, but I don't know if I'd spend that sort of money again. I cast another angler's Sage Vantage a couple weeks ago, and that was a very nice rod (at 1/3 the cost of the premium models!).

YouTube ff'ing videos display lots of rod abuse, especially after the fish is caught: the rod gets dropped onto rocks, the bottom of the boat, into themwater, so that the angler can get a pic with the fish. I have warranty coverage, but treat my rods as if I don't.....

Reels are another issue altogether. I view them like women view jewelry, but I don't look too long and hard, or else I'd be broke.

 

[Brewmaster]

I just had a rod replaced last week due to a defective snake guide. While talking to the TFO Customer Service I casually mentioned that they had a great warranty and it was worth the extra cost when purchasing the rod. The CS rep stated in absolutely no questionable terms that TFO does NOT leverage the warranty costs across the purchase price of the rod, and thus others are not carrying the cost of replacing someone else's rod. According to the CS rep, the $25 warranty fee covers the marginal (incremental) manufacturing cost of the replacement rod, but not other costs associated with development, sales, advertising, etc., etc.. Of course this made me reflect....if the incremental costs for a replacement flyrod are only $25, there must be some very high fixed costs and administrative & development costs! And obviously some pretty decent profits too!

The warranty is just another item to be factored into the overall cost of the rod. If there were no warranties, would the rods be cheaper? Possibly, but then the first manufacturer to offer a warranty would have a sales advantage over their competitors. I take care of my rods, but have used the warranty program on rods four times (twice for defects & twice for broken rods). Do I feel bad for using the warranty to get a rod replaced? of course not - one of the many considerations when I chose a rod is the warranty (hoping to never need it, but darn glad it will be there).

Personally I have never met anyone who has intentionally broken a rod to get it replaced under a warranty, although I am sure they exist. If I do meet one, I am very sure I will not hang-around with them for any length of time.