Springfield Pedestal Stand - Buying Beware

Im not a small guy, but not by any means am I a big guy. So when I purchase items meant to hold me up while on the water I kind of expect them to last.. more then one season that is

But thats not the case for this one year old Springfield pedestal. It started to fail mid last year, and after two outings this season its pretty much unusable. I purchased it from Cabela's so I  reached out to them to see what kind of warranty they offered on it. They let me know that the product has a 5yr warranty but its through the manufacturer and they were nice enough to provided contact their contact info.

So I reach out to Springfield and I got a fairly quick  reply stating that it is under warranty and all I need to do is box it up and pay to ship it back to them.. oh yeah, I also need to enclose a cheque for the return shipping $52.36USD!. Once received they will repair it for me, or might (if I'm lucky) replace it. I found this hard to swallow because  after paying to ship it to them, and the outrageous return shipping fee, I could simply jump on the Cabela's site and get a brand new one! cheaper and quicker..That's right these stands retail for $49.99!

I'm tired of companies hiding behind flimsy warranties, why would anyone pay the price asked when you could simply replace the stand, and I believe Springfield is banking on this. I bet they don't do too many warranty repairs

All in all I'm pretty disappointed, mostly in Springfield but also a bit in Cabela's who are known for backing products. If you go to their site now you will see that over the past year this product repeatedly gets bad reviews due to this pin bending and in many cases breaking. Let me tell you, if mine broke and sent me falling, this short post is not the last they would have heard from me. but in this case its easier to write off Springfield and second guess myself the next time i choose to order from Cabelas 

End of Rant

The Rant: The Frog Clone Wars

I work in an industry in which "imitation" is not seen as flattery, but instead as a way to cheat and steel from another company. So when I started to notice this trend creeping further and further into the fishing industry, I could not keep my mouth shut.. and thus a Rant was imminent

This is not new, and as mentioned above it is not limited to the Fishing industry. One can look back at the introduction of the Senko worm years ago, and the lengths at which bait companies have gone to copy its success, and still do to this day. That being said the copying of baits was really limited to worms for the most part, but over the years it has started to spread into other areas of the bait market and this year the frog market has seen an influx of "knock-off" baits. Some coming from small companies and hand pourers making their own bait mould and some knock-offs are coming from over-seas from the same factory or plant that the original bait comes from!

Live Target is a great example of this. I dont know about you, but I have seen a remarkable amount of knock-off Live Target frogs on the market. I actual a angler who told me that he could order me "copy" Live Target baits from China for pennies on the dollar, all he had to do was get a 500 piece order together, and the company would ship him these frogs. I was annoyed by this and I tried to explain to him that by buying these baits, not only is he taking money out of the pocket of the company that paid for the development and production of that product, but he is taking money out of the register of local bait shots, and down the road, this will take money from the pocket of every angler that buys Live Target products.. When people rip off their baits before they can recoup the cost of development companies are forced to do one of two things.. raise their prices, or stop developing new products, and in the case of Live Target, this truly would be a shame as they are responsible for some of the coolest bait designs on the market today

Ok, so that covers off the bigger companies getting ripped off by bigger companies.. now lets look at the small guy, who at times, is doing just as much damage

I recently placed an order for various soft plastic frogs from various companies. I will not list them here, but as you can see from the images I was not super happy to see that two of the frogs I ordered were clones, they are the exact same frog, other then colour options and price.  I dont pretend to know how or why this happens, maybe one company created a knock-off of the other companies product or maybe one company sold the moulds to the other company. All I do know is as a consumer I feel a little ripped off. I bought these fogs to test and review them for the Frog Pond, but really I could have saved myself some money and just ordered one, and then switched the names.. thats kinda what bait maker has done? 

Why do companies do this? The baits a company produces directly reflect how that company is seen in the industry, so why let someone else make or break your reputation for you? why create brand confusion? If you have a new idea for a great frog design, then created it, if not, don't add a frog clone to your product line.. and if you are going to use a clone mould, then try to switch up the materials, the plastic, the scent, something that tells me as a consumer that you improved this bait in some way, that you care about your products.. Innovation over Imitation is how to grow this industry


Rant Over!

(P.S: In no way am i suggesting the companies listed or pictured above have "knocked or Ripped off" another company. As stated they may have purchased the moulds or rights legally to these baits)

The Ish Frog by Snag Proof.. Are You High ?

I must admit, when I first started to look at the Ish series frog by Snag Proof, I got a bit of a kick out of his naming choices, but then it started me to wondering? how many companies would let a high profile sponsored angler name a bunch of their products after the various types or street names for marijuana? .. not many I would guess.

well Snag Proof is showing that they are hip, cool and down with the times (insert sarcastic tone here), by letting their top tier pro angler Ish Monroe name his series of frogs whatever he likes.. even if those names can be directly linked to common drug references.. so if you have ever wondered about some of the crazy names for the frogs in the Ish signature series,, here is the low down.. with a little help from the "Urban Dictionary" and MarijuanaStrain.com

Chronic: 

1. Very potent, high-grade marijuana. Typically categorized by it's lack of seeds (sensimilia) and high concentrations of white or opaque crystals (trichromes)

Sticky Green: 

Another word for weed. Sticky Green is used by Biggie Smalls (in one of his songs, Going Back to Cali), Devin the Dude, The Smugglaz, and other hood rats

Purple Kush: 

Purple Kush is one of the 10 most powerful ganja strains in the world. It originated on the Northwest coast region of the U.S. Mainly in Humboldt county. California and Portland, Oregon. And up until the last 3 years it could mainly only be found in the region covering the southern cal up through Oregon,washington, and B.C.

Crystyl (or Crystal)

Crystal Marijuana is White widow crossed with Northern lights. You get a bushy plant with large sticky buds. The Crystal bud smell is a candy sweet aroma which adds to the good cerebral high. As the name suggests the buds are covered in THC glands. This gives an unusually clear buzz and a slightly delayed effect

Please dont get me wrong I'm not trying to start a battle or heated discussion about the use of drugs references in products, Im just having a little fun. I recently purchased an Ish Signature series frog and the names brought a smile to my face and made me laugh a bit.. ahh.. old high school memories. Overall I was just surprised that Snagg Proof approved the names, or maybe they just didnt catch on, or clue into some of the double or triple meanings. When all is said and done all that really matters is that this is a quality frog bait, and the names are not really hurting anyone... I just wouldn't recommend trying to smoke one of these frogs, plastic does not go down well at all 

P.S: and in case you still dont get that Im just joking around here, here is a disclaimer.. Not all Frogs in the Ish series are named after types of marijuana, some are named after terms that simply mean "getting drunk" or to be "flush with money, fame, power or girls, and some are just random song lyrics that mean little to nothing ( I dont know if this is helping or not).. but if you get a moment of free time, have some fun and play the "Ish Name game" and see if you can find the double and triple meanings behind some of these frogs names.. I bet Snag Proof couldnt

Down with Brown: UPS a Canadian Anglers Worst Enemy

This is written as a plea to both Canadian and US retailers to stop using UPS as your sole service provider. The rates, fees and service is not something you want to subject your customers to.

As a Canadian Angler that spends a lot of money on cross border on-line shopping, I have grown to fear the Brown Truck. Any order that crosses the border with a value over $20 will be hit with a brokerage fee on top of your duty. I have no issues paying Duty, it is the price I pay for ordering from the US, what I do have issue with is the crazy brokerage fees that come with that duty fee. On average between duties and brokerage I can expect to pay an additional 30% on top of my product and shipping fees just for the privilege of picking up a package from UPS.. FedEx does not have these fees! so why does UPS, why is a brokerage fee based on product value? does it not take the same time and manpower to clear my $10 order as it does for my $500 order? why the cash grab? 

My Story:

I placed a few rod orders back in the summer, at about $350 in value. When the product arrived at my door I was greeted with a $160 fee to free my package from the hands of the driver. I called UPS to inquire to why this rate was so high and I was told by a rep that these brokerage fees apply to all ground shipments but not air orders.. I thought, Ok, thats easy from now no I will up my shipping to Air and avoid the fee. So a month later I place another rod order and and pay an extra $30 for air service, yet when the product gets to my door I have yet another huge brokerage fee.. I call UPS, and the rep explains that they have since changed there policy and that really Im just out of luck and need to pay the fee to free my order. 

To add insult to injury, a month later I get a notice in the mail from UPS claiming that I owe them $160 for an order that I picked up. Since they wont give you your package without payment I was baffled as to how I could owe them money? I called in an quoted to my order number and offered to scan my debit receipt as proof of payment. Thinking all was clear I was surprised when two weeks later I got the same past due notice.. this on top of the brokerage fee has sent me on the mission to warn other anglers of the troubles you can expect when ordering cross border with UPS.

 I place regular monthly orders valued at a min $100 each, I was using Tackle Warehouse for 90% of my tackle and equipment orders, but they will only ship UPS and I was paying close to an additional 30% or more on each order.. so I found another retailer.. LandbigFish, they ship USPS, so guess who now gets my $100 a month or $1,200 a year (min)

If you are a Canadian Angler I recommend that when placing an order with your on-line retailer of choice you let them know about the issues we encounter when our orders are shipped via UPS. If they dont know they cant change anything

Retailers.. please look into your options, if you value your Canadian customers, please provide us the option to ship either USPS or FedEx, they treat Canadian customers well and dont smack us with obscene fees to pick-up or orders.

I say Down with Brown.. who's with me

The Rant: Boaters Exam card replacement policy

Let me start off by saying that I support this program and have had my card since 2005, long before it was mandatory. But recently the now 6 year old card has become brittle and has now broken into two pieces.

I emailed the BoatersExam people to ask for a replacement card.. and guess what, they want $19.99 to replace my card. or $29.99 for 3 cards. Am I missing something here? does anyone know of any other companies that charge for replacement cards (other the the government)

There has been many a rumbling that the boater exam was strictly a cash grab, and they always responded that "oh no, this is a one time fee" but now to charge nearly $20 to replace a card. thats is a cach grab. That is above and beyond the replacement cost and shipping of these cards. I had no issues paying for my exam and card up front, and hell if I constantly lost or damaged cards i would have no issue being charged, but to damage one card in 6 years, and then be asked to pay $19 to replace it.. brutal

Customer service goes along way. I support the Boater Exam program, but they will not be getting $19 more out of me.. time to laminate and tape up this beast.

http://www.boatsmartexam.com/en/lostCards/

The Rant: Reaction Innovation Sex Sells, but not in fishing

I  have a bit of a rant about Reaction Innovation when it comes down to the marketing and packaging of their product. What kind of fishing company decides that the best way to package their product is to include cartoon drawings of busty scantily clad women? what is your target market, 14 year old boys? what angler that you know goes into a shop and says "hey this one has a naked lady on the pack lets buy it? 

I know, I know sex sells, I work in the Tattoo Industry, it is a predominant theme, but this just does not work. How about standing on the quality of your bait and not the packaging. (and yes I do realize that not all the packs have the image of the women on them). If you go to Reaction Innovations website (here) you will also notice they lead off the home page with the picture of a women next to the their logo.. is she the owner, or the girl I get on the line when I call in to place an order? if not why is she important to your brand? This just seems odd, and kind of dumb. what's the purpose? whats the value?

Tacky bait names are part of fishing,  fisherman love them, sure "sweet beaver" is a pretty funny product name, but do we really need the image of the women on the pack to reinforce the joke? I got it! I understood.

I dont want to make this rant sound like women's rights speech,  Im not worried about my wife or kids seeing the packs,  these are not the point of my rant. I think using images like this degrades the product, not the women, what you are telling me is that this product cant sell itself.. and since I use a few of RI's products, I know they can.

Wal-Mart donates 36 Million to Anti-Fishing Groups

My confusion level was on high yesterday as word spread from board to board in many fishing forums in both Canada and the US.. the topic was this.. Wal-Mart a major sponsor of the FLW fishing circuit donated $36 million to an anti-fishing group!

The press release that really got things moving was from the "Recreational Fishing Alliance" and can be found here. The release claims that walmarts donation will help "fund the demise of both the recreational and commercial fishing industry" in the US. Furthermore the report is calling for support from anglers to stop purchasing tackle from Wal-mart and adding the giant to the anglers boycot list.

I personally have been a long time anti- Wal-mart consumer, and this double speak now adds fire to the flame. How can a company that sponsors one of the worlds most popular fishing tournament series, turn their backs on the everyday angler? Obviously they are protecting their interest ($) and will hide behind the enviromental impact of this issue. To me this stresses the fact the big friendly walmart cant be trusted with my tackle money

I encourage all anglers to read the release and read any other info that comes your way on this topic. I believe that this info needs to be shared.

Pet Peeve: Music on the Water and Anglers who Love it

I have always considered myself a bit of an audiophile, I love and appreciate music in all forms (well almost all forms). But one pet peeve I have has to do with music on the water.

I bet you think Im about to delve into a diatribe about those annoying people who blast their music while cruising the lake, and it would have been a good guess, because I dont know any angler who likes those guys, but my pet peeve is the guy cruising the lake with is ipod or mp3 plugged into his ears and ignoring all the sounds of the lake and fishing in general.

Obviously this is getting more and more prevalent, and although they are not bothering their fellow fisherman, like the music blasters, they are endangering themselves and others, by tuning out any warnings that could be heard on the lake. Similar to driving a car, wearing ear buds should not be aloud, it distracts the boater of whats going on on the water and put him/her in his own little world.

The Safety issue is only one small part of the issue I have with anglers wearing ear buds. Fishing is a sport of senses, sight, sound, touch, all play a key roll in finding and catching fish. Sound should not be discounted in the process as it is just as important as sight and touch. It helps key the angler in to what is happening in the water around him while still keeping focus on the bait. Audio distraction has made me miss more then one bite while fishing, so closing your ears off entirely to the sounds of the lake is making you deaf to what the water, fish and other sounds are telling you.

Last of all, it is annoying to be a co-angler or partner with a guy who is tuned out to you and the fish, and is in his own little word. Fishing is about communication, what you are seeing, whats working, whats not working, if you cannot easily communicate with your partner you are going to miss fish, and missing fish could mean the difference between a 1st place finish and a 10th place finish

Leave the tunes at home, focus on fishing

Support Your Local Bait & Tackle Shop(s)

Recently while listening to the radio on my way to work I heard about a national event called "Record store day". A group of well known musicians are the brains behind this event (and website) and are trying to give notice to the Independently owned record shop (over 700 of them in the US alone). With MP3's, Ipod's and other forms of digital music, a good chunk of the population has never been in a classic record shop, and as a music lover I find that sad.

But since we are hear to talk about fishing, the above got me thinking about the small independently owned bait & tackle shops in all our backyards. They are suffering the same fate as the record and books stores, Internet shopping and the rise of the super store (BPS, Cabelas, Gander Mountain, etc.) has left them nearly obsolete and the younger generation of anglers spends more time in on-line chats forums telling fishing stories then on the floor of the local bait shop.

Independent shops are an important part of fishing in the community and need to be supported. They can help grow fishing in the area and help pass along the rich history that the fishing community or local lakes hold.

Im not here to say boycott the big guy, that is not the message I want to get out, they to have an important roll to play in the growth of this sport we love, But we do need to remember the little guys who paved the way, the guys who sold you your first rod, that told you about the secret fishing hole that no other kids knew about, and the guy who handed a dozen worms to my dad each sunday morning before we hit the lake those are the guys we need to support, and maybe one day we will even have a "national Bait shop day"