Disappointing Sage DEMO rod repair

[wildabouttrout]

Not sure what to expect from this post... maybe some kind of miracle of insight?

I bought a Sage 99 5wt stamped "DEMO" online from a shop at what I thought was a fair price. Fished it (hard), loved it (harder). Once I broke the tip off in a streamside fall and found out that Sage would not warranty a "DEMO" stamped rod, it turned out to be not such a great deal. Sage rep nicely told me they would smash it if I sent it in for repair. What! AHH-SHUCKS!!!

So, here I sit broken-hearted, scheming, plotting, racking my brain about how I'm going to fix this rod thru Sage, or otherwise get a spare tip...? Many ill-conceived scenarios and innuendos race thru my mind regarding a file, half-backed lies, third parties involvement, and closed door dealing run amuck in my lizard-sized brain! ... all-the-while, from under my rock that reptilian instinctual thought overwhelms me, "muuust... go ...fishing"! What do I do Pinocchio?

Well, I tell my higher-self, (the one that I don't always want to be, but others seem to admire), "what's the big deal... its only an 3/4 of an inch"!, ...get over it. Really though... part of me doesn't want to. This particular rod seems hard to come by.

Tell me, what's a guy to do? Please be kind and understand my plight before schwashing me underfoot. Thanks, I sort-of feel better getting it out.

 

[trweston]

If I'm reading this right, it looks as though you are the proud owner of the worlds only Sage 98-1/4. I would scratch off DEMO and write in PROTOTYPE.

Most fly shops know a rod builder that can put a new top guide on for you.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[el jefe]

I'm a little surprised that Sage didn't say they'll repair it, but for a price. I can understand why they wouldn't warranty a demo rod, but not offering to repair it seems odd. I think Scott will repair rods that don't have a warranty due to a person not being original owner, or some other reason. It might cost too much to be worth your while, though. Maybe all of this has something to do with the rod being a demo, and Sage wanting tight control over those, so that shops are discouraged from selling those or passing them along.

 

[wildabouttrout]

Yes, the file! I like it! lol. Thanks for the tip.

 

[trout trekker]

I bought a Sage 99 5wt stamped "DEMO" online from a shop at what I thought was a fair price.

Once I broke the tip off in a streamside fall and found out that Sage would not warranty a "DEMO" stamped rod, it turned out to be not such a great deal.

Several questions come to mind that all have to do with pre-sale disclosure ( the shop ) and due diligence ( yours ).
I wouldn't take the word of just one rep as the absolute law of the land. Call Sage and be polite..
If there is a beef to be had, it's not with Sage.

Regards, Dave

 

[wildabouttrout]

Thanks El Jefe, Yep. all has to do with the DEMO stamp. A shame, I have some money into that rod unknowing warranty probs. Hence my dilemma... Would buy another if I could find one at a good price, but seldom seen. Gonna say bye-bye to guitar to raise funds for another.

 

[ia_trouter]

Put a new tip guide on it and call it a day. If you can tell 3/4" of the rod is missing you are better caster than a lot of us here.

 

[wildabouttrout]

Yes, thanks Dave. Lesson learned, now shared knowledge here. Maybe the story is not over yet... Hoping for a happy ending still. Good advise though. Maybe a sympathetic soul/kindred spirit at Sage.

As a outdoor professional I have been the best kind of ambassador for Sage rods, fishing nothing but. Former River Ranger at Katmai NP Alaska, had an Orvis Pro account for gear but fished Sage faithfully. Not sure what it will get me...?

---------- Post added at 12:41 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:35 PM ----------

Thanks IA-trouter, Your right, I'm not always so logical in my reptilian brain! I'll take that generous advise, crank my hat down on my head and splash up river If I fail at an easy grip on a new tip. Cheers

 

[luj333]

Perhaps the reason Sage can't repair/replace is that it is an older version that they may no longer service?

 

[throssing]

Not sure what to expect from this post... maybe some kind of miracle of insight?

I bought a Sage 99 5wt stamped "DEMO" online from a shop at what I thought was a fair price. Fished it (hard), loved it (harder). Once I broke the tip off in a streamside fall and found out that Sage would not warranty a "DEMO" stamped rod, it turned out to be not such a great deal. Sage rep nicely told me they would smash it if I sent it in for repair. What! AHH-SHUCKS!!!

So, here I sit broken-hearted, scheming, plotting, racking my brain about how I'm going to fix this rod thru Sage, or otherwise get a spare tip...? Many ill-conceived scenarios and innuendos race thru my mind regarding a file, half-backed lies, third parties involvement, and closed door dealing run amuck in my lizard-sized brain! ... all-the-while, from under my rock that reptilian instinctual thought overwhelms me, "muuust... go ...fishing"! What do I do Pinocchio?

Well, I tell my higher-self, (the one that I don't always want to be, but others seem to admire), "what's the big deal... its only an 3/4 of an inch"!, ...get over it. Really though... part of me doesn't want to. This particular rod seems hard to come by.

Tell me, what's a guy to do? Please be kind and understand my plight before schwashing me underfoot. Thanks, I sort-of feel better getting it out.

I, too, have had problems with Sage not being willing to repair a broken rod marked "demo". I am still angry, and I will never buy another Sage rod.

 

[sndmn11]

I am pretty sure Charlies Fly Box has one or two Sage 99s left.

 

[glacierjohn]

I, too, have had problems with Sage not being willing to repair a broken rod marked "demo". I am still angry, and I will never buy another Sage rod.

If you bought it from a shop, the shop should disclose company warrantee policy upfront. If they didn't, your anger IMO should be directed at the shop. I can understand Sage's position on this, they sold the "demo" rods to shops at I presume a deep discount in order for people to demo the rods before buying. These warrantees cost money which is built into the price of the rod. I think too late for you, but maybe the shop would have had better luck getting it repaired.

About 15 years ago I bought a used and abused 590 RPL from a fly shop down in Idaho. The rod wasn't broken but I was interested in having it refurbished by Sage, the shop told me it was a demo, but Sage would probably be reasonable about it. I sent it in to Sage and after discussing it on the phone, Sage gave me a brand new RPL for like $150.00.

 

[sweetandsalt]

trout trekker would know more about this but I believe DEMO rods, provided for free by Sage to shops, reps or guides literally for that purpose are, by agreement with Sage, not for resale. If a polite request and offering to pay for the repair is not going to be entertained by Sage, I would take this up with the shop you purchased it from.

It is my positon that if I purchase a rod second hand, I am purposely acquiring a rod with no warranty coverage. A bargain is what it is but I suspect unscrupulous behavior on the part of the seller.

 

[wildabouttrout]

I am pretty sure Charlies Fly Box has one or two Sage 99s left.

Thanks, That is really helpful,. I'm gonna look into it.

---------- Post added at 03:37 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:35 PM ----------

If you bought it from a shop, the shop should disclose company warrantee policy upfront. If they didn't, your anger IMO should be directed at the shop. I can understand Sage's position on this, they sold the "demo" rods to shops at I presume a deep discount in order for people to demo the rods before buying. These warrantees cost money which is built into the price of the rod. I think too late for you, but maybe the shop would have had better luck getting it repaired.

About 15 years ago I bought a used and abused 590 RPL from a fly shop down in Idaho. The rod wasn't broken but I was interested in having it refurbished by Sage, the shop told me it was a demo, but Sage would probably be reasonable about it. I sent it in to Sage and after discussing it on the phone, Sage gave me a brand new RPL for like $150.00.

In agreement, wish it was disclosed. Don't think I have any recourse with them. Open to any possibility with Sage still. Thanks for the history

---------- Post added at 03:49 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:37 PM ----------

trout trekker would know more about this but I believe DEMO rods, provided for free by Sage to shops, reps or guides literally for that purpose are, by agreement with Sage, not for resale. If a polite request and offering to pay for the repair is not going to be entertained by Sage, I would take this up with the shop you purchased it from.

It is my positon that if I purchase a rod second hand, I am purposely acquiring a rod with no warranty coverage. A bargain is what it is but I suspect unscrupulous behavior on the part of the seller.

Guess I won't hold it against the seller, burden on me as buyer. I worked that rod hard and got my moneys worth I suppose. I have fond memories of catching a few Land-Lock doubles on tandem rigs (no indicator for me) in front of a gang of empty-handed FFman, watching with steam blowing out of their ears. Guess I'm still ahead, but sore a little to think there is no resale value in it.

 

[spt2]

Wow, I can certainly understand no warranty on a demo, but I'm surprised they won't even fix it for their normal repair fee. I wouldn't hesitate to buy a used Sage because I know I can probably get it repaired for a nominal non-warranty repair fee that really isn't all that more than the standard $50 processing fee for a warranty repair, but if they refuse to even look at it? And I would be surprised if they simply don't have the parts, the 99 wasn't discontinued that long ago...

UNLESS, maybe they have limited parts on hand for the 99 that they are saving for the inevitable warranty repairs for people who paid retail for a new rod? I do seem to recall that Sage had some sort of machine that could roll virtually any taper, with any material, just by dialing in the code, but I can't confirm this.

I would be curious as to how much you paid for the rod - if it was, say, half of retail, I'd be pissed that I couldn't even get it fixed for a non-warranty repair fee. If, for the sake of argument, i got it for 25% of retail, I might figure I rolled the dice and lost. One thing to consider; by reputation, Sage rods seem to be more 'breaky' than say, Loomis or others, maybe something to consider if Sage is not doing repairs for their demos, or for that matter, OTTOOs (other than the original owner, I just made that one up).

 

[wildabouttrout]

Thanks for the weigh-in spt2, I purchased the rod for $350- a decent chunk of change for me considering at the time I made a pittance as a trailbuilder for a non-profit. Yeah, I guess I do feel burned by Sage. I was told they would "probably smash it if I sent it in", (Ouch) "Nothing they can do for me". An explanation would have eased the shock alittle. Right?

 

[jayr]

Thanks for the weigh-in spt2, I purchased the rod for $350- a decent chunk of change for me considering at the time I made a pittance as a trailbuilder for a non-profit. Yeah, I guess I do feel burned by Sage. I was told they would "probably smash it if I sent it in", (Ouch) "Nothing they can do for me". An explanation would have eased the shock alittle. Right?

Unless the dealer told you the caveats to purchasing a demo rod, my beef would be with the dealer and not Sage. If in fact the rod was given to them as a demo, they had an obligation to inform you the buyer what the "rules" were and it sure sounds to me they made out like a bandit selling it for what they did.

 

[deceiverbob]

My understanding was the same as S&S. The Demo was given to the shop, with no warranty. When we had a local shop here, the owner loaned me a demo Xi2 to use while the one I ordered was back ordered. He specifically told me "try not to break it there is no warranty. I got it back to him unscathed.

 

[spt2]

$350 is NOT CHUMP CHANGE! Yeah, if the dealer paid $0 for that rod and sold it to you for $350, and Sage will not even entertain working on it, the shop should do something for you... maybe $200 store credit? That would be fair... Or at least try to intervene with Sage on your behalf.

I had a Winston LT rod I bought from a dealer and it was marked as a 'demo' - fortunately, I sold it a few weeks ago for more than I paid, but it was hardly used, basically as-new. I hope the buyer won't face the same problem with Winston, as he paid me (I think) about $450 for that rod. Gorgeous rod though... worth it, if Winston is willing to do a non-warranty repair.

 

[wildabouttrout]

Thanks for all the perspective. This REALLY helps to hear others opinions.

Decided to pursue it further with Sage Warranty because they DO mention on the warranty page, repairs are possible for DEMO rods, but no mention of "warranty only for shop repair".

I would agree with the idea that the shop owner may be somewhat liable for selling a rod that according to Sage, "DEMO stamped rods are not meant to be sold". You would think Sage would want to hold their retailers accountable as ambassadors of the "worlds finest rods". They never asked whodunit. Would I have paid that much for the rod if I knew the warranty was void...? Probably not.

Any more useful info would be appreciated. I'm keeping the faith for a resolution. Damm, I really like this rod.