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[fishingbuddha]

can anyone recommend a local(lower mainland) rod builder for a loomis steelhead(baitcasting) blank?
thanks
fishingbuddha

[Fish Assassin]

All my rods are made by Brian Ford of West Coast Tackle (254-0004). Some lodges at the Queen Charlottes have their rods repaired by Brian in the off season.

[fishingbuddha]

thanks for the connection guys. i will definately be calling him to build my rod. 

[blaydRnr]

FA,

I have to agree with you on that one bud, Brian at WestCoast does one hell of a good job at building a custom for you.  I have had a couple done by him and love them, to bad I didn't get my others built by him.

My last one I think ran me $120.00 for the build up.

C.F

do you also get the blanks from him, or do you go elsewhere?

[Fish Assassin]

Once I decided on the blank I shop around and get the best deal.

[Rodney]

Give Russ a call in Surrey 604-585-6958.

Blanks: http://www.rodandreel.ca/casting_blanks.html

[Gooey]

Brian is an excellent craftsman, he showed me how to wrap rods when I was building my first one.  I would feel extremely comfortable taking a blank to Brian.

Any reason you want a loomis?  I hear they are a little brittle.  As well, if a sage and loomis are roughly the same price, why not go with sage as their warranty is by far the best.

[Sam Salmon]

  I would feel extremely comfortable taking a blank to Brian.

Brian does all my rods now.
Flawless work reasonably priced and always on time.

 

As well, if a sage and Loomis are roughly the same price, why not go with sage as their warranty is by far the best.

It depends
Some people like a faster action rod-as to warranty Sage has had it's challenges too.
They manufacture certain models in batches-remember they are primarily a fly rod company.
So your rod might have to wait for the next batch to be run through before it's replaced.
People have sometimes waited months and months-it's something to consider.

[Fish Assassin]

I've never had any problem with Sage replacing my rod. 4-5 days max. (Knock on wood)

[dennisK]

anyone know roughly what the markup on blanks are for retail buying people like us? 50% 100%? 150%

[allwaysfishin]

i am a rod builder for berry's bait. call me and we can discuss a build cost. I can supply loomis blanks and a range of components as well.
as far as some of the comments above..... loomis rods are not brittle, they are of exceptional quality. there was however a previous run of GL2 and GL3 blanks 3 or 4 years ago that did have some breakage issues, this has been rectified. As far as warranties go, a comment made above about a 4 to 5 day sage warranty turn around is , well, I've never seen it go that fast and I have processed hundreds of warranties for both brands. generally turn around time on warranties is faster with loomis. As far as the actual warranty, there is no difference, lifetime for both, similar fees and similar turn around time on blank warranty, generally 2 to 4 weeks.

[fishingbuddha]

regarding the loomis vs sage questions. i like my fly rods to be sage but i like my steelhead rod to be loomis only because i am used to the feel. ( i use a cheaper fenwick hmx, daiwa and shimano rods for salmon so if i break the rod on a big chum or spring i won't be too upset) 
also, this rod blank is a replacement that i got from a warranty from my previous rod. broke my last loomis at big horn - thompson river after hooking into a snag...breaking it near the joint, then having the rod whip back and hit the bank...breaking the tip off. great rod,especially the custom longer butt end. a guy from kelowna named bill lynch from benshona rods built my last one. i just don't have the time to drop the rod off all the way up there. the loomis that i broke was made in 1985 and loomis still gave me a replacement which i thought was great. also, loomis has a longer history of making drift/steelhead rods.

thanks for your tips and referrals.
fishing buddha

[allwaysfishin]

C.F.
i suppose because you probably live out near west coast tackle you will of course recommend that shop. Don't go slagging berry's here on the net though, your "couple of experiences" could have been had in any shop. As an employee for berry's and as a rod builder, I give my customers the best service and when I can, on a first name basis. For any retailer "it's all about the money" ( or why bother with retail?) coupled with the best service and selection that a retailer can provide to a paying customer. Berry's reputation has been what has paved the way for 33 years of serving lowermainland fisherman, and business is getting busier.

so... fishingbuddha, loomis is a great choice and no matter where you go to have it built up I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

[mooch]

I've dealt with Berry's for years and I can say they are super nice people and they are helpful to a fault. I have nothing but positive things to say about them. People at Highwater are nice as well.