I just ran across this subject while considering a switch rod purchase. I'd like to say I take everything I find on the net with a grain of salt. There are too many monday morning quarterbacks spewing all kind of dribble. The fact that someone that speaks his mind good or bad is something I respect. So I did a little research on the net(grain of salt, remember). I found that all rod brands had people that were happy and a percent that were not. All rod brands had breakages, misuse and normal use. So for some to say "Everyone I know who has owned a st. croix either single or double handed has broke the rod." seemed a little far fetched, I have owned and fished St Croix fly rods for a little over 20 years, 4wt, 6wt, and 8wt. Some of my photos can be seen on this forums pics. So I looked up "thenewlushlife's" info. All this opinion is from a 29 year old Orvis employee. I don't know this person, or have an axe to grind, or wish to start a war with. But I have been using St Croix rods for almost as long as this person has been alive, all without any breakages. I have no vested interest in St Croix or care all that much what anyone else uses. That is just my opinion, (take it with a grain of salt). There are no absolutes in anything but taxes and death.
Mike
P.S. I found plenty of "broken Orvis rod" stories on the net, about the same percentage as all the other manufactures
No wars will be started here. I can appreciate your scepticism given that "you've been using st. croix rods longer than I've been alive", and the fact that you have been fly fishing longer than I have. Your experience tells you that you haven't had breakage problems with them and thats great, unfortunately for me and many others I know, we haven't been as satisfied as you. I should tell you I've been in this game for 15 years and as for the anglers I fish with frequently, they range from age 25-60, many of which are guides and shop owners, some just friends I've made over the years. Given that this is a forum, most people here make claims and give opinions based on thier experiences on the water and with various gear, so you will hear things you don't like or agree with. MY experience and the experiences of many anglers I know and fish with is, that the st. croix rods we have all used broke at some point. Is it coincidence or user error? maybe, however its hard to ignore when other brands we use such as sage, winston, loomis, beulah, burkheimer, r.b. mieser and orvis didn't break with as much frequency in OUR experience.
I work for Orvis, but that doesn't mean I'm biased, I happen to use and own rods from many different manufacturers, in fact I own only 2 orvis rods, most of my rods are sage and winston. There have been orvis rod models that people felt were seceptable to breakage, and yes there have been unsatisfied customers with our rods like all manufacturers, like you said. I'm sorry that it makes you uncomfortable that I have seen so many st. croix rods break. Here's a question for you; If you and almost all your fishing buddies broke multiple sage rods over the course of 10 years, and your other brands held up when the sage rods didn't, what would you think of sage? maybe you would chalk it up to user error or coincidence, or maybe you would become weary of sage blanks. Again, this is a forum, and us anglers are a fickle bunch, your going to read things you disagree with because we all have different experiences and opinions with gear we use.
I think using my age and the fact that I work for orvis as a way to kick me down a few notches, or imply that my opinion is biased, is a cheap shot. I spend 150+ days a year on the water, and have fished extensively with many of the rods out there, does that make me more knowledgable than the next guy? No. Still, my experience, and the experiences of many other anglers I know, have shown us that st. croix rods break often, maybe its coincidence or user error, either way its irrelevant, we have simply seen many of these rods break end of story. If I sounded overly opinionated, or made it sound like I was making negative blanket statements about st. croix in my past posts, excuse the wording, at the time I must have been feeling passionate about the problems I had seen with these rods. Let me also say, its unfair for me to claim all st.croix rods are seceptable to breakage. But for US, they are seceptable to breakage, I'll admit that I worded it poorly in my past posts.
I don't wish to create bad-blood with anybody here including you, even though I don't particulalry appreciate the manner and context in which you mentioned my age and status with orvis, but hey, your entitled to your opinion here too, just like me. I'm glad st. croix has worked out well for you over the years, thats fantastic. Unfortunately I, and others I know, had a very different experience with st.croix. best of luck to you
-lush
