Well I returned my noisy Vanford and Cabelas deemed it defective so with the money I got back, I invested in a Johnny Morris Patriot rod. I haven’t found much on these but what I have heard are good things. I’ve never spent more than 120 on a rod before because I’ve been happy with Furys and Carbonlite 2.0s, but I figured why not. I’ll never know what higher priced rods are like if I never get one. 

Initially holding the rod in the store you can tell it’s very high quality. The Winn grips are harder and tacky, almost like a football glove. I’m not worried about wet hands and the rod slipping into the lake with the grips it has. It’s very very light too. It felt even better when I put my Curado K on it, a match made in heaven. 
I got the 7ft med heavy fast action to replace my Carbonlite 2.0 of the same power and action. I’ll still have it for when I wanna switch up presentations fast but the Patriot/Curado is my new workhorse combo.

Anybody who’s used these, do you like them? I’ll do a comparison with the Carbonlite when I go fishing next time but I’m interested to see what y’all think of the Patriots

   Wait for @dodgeguy. He's our resident Patriot expert.             jj

Doing a little research it looks like they might be rebranded Temple Fork Outfitters Tactical Elite rods. Or at least they are maybe similar. They look exactly the same other than color and are the same price. TFO is owned by Gary Loomis if I’m not mistaken, or at least was founded by him

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Temple_Fork_Outfitters_Tactical_Elite_Casting_Rods/descpage-TFOTLE.html?from=gshop&gclid=CjwKCAjw3_KIBhA2EiwAaAAlimNogvmzgeuSMue4k6D597XjfM2IZbZ6BdDTj2blrqjFzsR2Nx5mgxoCPEUQAvD_BwE

TFO was founded and is chaired by Rick Pope.  You're thinking of North Fork Composites.  Gary has consulted for TFO, though.

That’s right lol, at least I had 1/3 letters correct. Yeah I’ve heard people say it’s an NFC blank and one person say that Bass Pro told them it was a TFO blank. Surprising that there’s not any reviews on it really besides their site. Which I don’t trust retail site reviews. I’m sure whatever it is it’s a good rod. Can’t wait to fish it when all this rain let’s up

The grip on mine peeled. Going to return tommmow.Other than that it's awesome. The grip on the other one is ok.

5 minutes ago, dodgeguy said:

The grip on mine peeled. Going to return tommmow.Other than that it's awesome. The grip on the other one is ok.

At least it has that 10 year warranty lol, glad to hear it’s a good rod though, thank you

10 hours ago, PBBrandon said:

At least it has that 10 year warranty lol, glad to hear it’s a good rod though, thank you

I love the blank. Light sensitive and strong. Fuji SIC guides are the standard.

So I went to customer service at the Bridgeport Bass Pro Shop and returned my Patriot. The guy said it's a 30 day return policy. I said it's a 10 year guarantee.He asked for recipt and I said it was a gift and I don't have it. So up the authority level we go and I finally got a new rod. No Patriots were available but I knew going in I wanted a Johnny Morris Signature series with cork grips.wound up with a 6-8 medium extra fast. Rod was 149.99. Patriot was 199.99 .I got credit for extra 50 plus tax. I threw in another 50 and bought a new Lews lfs left handed 8.3 to 1 to replace an old one I have. Had to order online from store but no shipping charge. All together it was a good experience so I will keep on shopping there.

My other Patriot Rod has had no problem with the grip

4 hours ago, dodgeguy said:

So I went to customer service at the Bridgeport Bass Pro Shop and returned my Patriot. The guy said it's a 30 day return policy. I said it's a 10 year guarantee.He asked for recipt and I said it was a gift and I don't have it. So up the authority level we go and I finally got a new rod. No Patriots were available but I knew going in I wanted a Johnny Morris Signature series with cork grips.wound up with a 6-8 medium extra fast. Rod was 149.99. Patriot was 199.99 .I got credit for extra 50 plus tax. I threw in another 50 and bought a new Lews lfs left handed 8.3 to 1 to replace an old one I have. Had to order online from store but no shipping charge. All together it was a good experience so I will keep on shopping there.

 

I was at my local Cabela's today to pick up an online order and noticed a guy having issues with returning a Carbonlite combo.  It had not been used and still had the plastic wrapper on the handle.  The guy said he got it as a gift and wanted to exchange it without a receipt.  The Cabela's manager at the customer service desk said we can't, here is our policy (gave him a print out that was several pages) and said to call the 800 number.   The guy was not happy to say the least.  When it was my turn, I asked why they did not let him exchange it.  I was told, as a company, they have been getting too many returns where people are damaging their gear on purpose and returning it.... but that was not the case here.   Makes me wonder what the future will hold for Cabela's/Bass Pro Shops. 

 

 

  Hey @dodgeguy! How is that Lew's Custom Lite SLP doin' for you? That's the real light one with the Tanso frame. I'd love to hear your opinion.          jj

So far so good. Casts far. No backlash

 Handles big fish with no issue.great with small baits like a new and for pitching jigs. Definitely want another.