Just got back from a week long fishing trip with the wife and was performing maintenance on reels and suddenly realized, I'm possibly a minority here...... I'm not brand loyal at all. Lol

 

I certainly understand a cult like following for Shimano and Diawa, proven quality.

 

As I spent time cleaning and retieing line it became obvious that I am not brand loyal, not on purpose but rather convenience at a given time, what my tackle shop had on sale maybe.

 

Today I serviced a Shimano, Lew's, Okuma, kast King, pflueger, Abu and not 2 of anything. Lol

Is this acceptable? ?

 

 

 

 

 

 

For rods I'm brand loyal to G Loomis because my local shop has a no questions asked warranty policy....break 3 of them in a car door, sure bring them in.   Got a few other nice rods by Daiwa, and Shimano but I've never liked anything as much as G Loomis.

 

For reels yeah I'm brand loyal to Daiwa, with the exception of a few Shimanos

 

For tackle, I'll buy anything that will catch Bass.....I'm thinking of a King of the Hill episode lol.   

Yes it's acceptable. Whatever floats your boat. I personally am brand loyal to Lew's reels. I love BPS Johnny Morris Signature Series rods. I started switching to Dobyns during covid because I couldn't find BPS rods in stock in the store. I am brand loyal to Sufix line. Lures are something that I'm not brand loyal to.

My reels are only shimano or diawa.   Other brands don’t measure up in my opinion…..but I have all types of rods. 

Just now, Deeare said:

My reels are only shimano or diawa.   Other brands don’t measure up in my opinion…..but I have all types of rods. 

LOL !!!!

I have a bit of darn near everything that’s been made. I don’t care what the name says on the side, if it works, it works. That said, I don’t have anything from some of the newest company’s as far as reels go, mostly just cause I haven’t bought any new reels in a few years now. 

i own all shimanos. not because i think they are better than anything else but just because i know what im getting. if i need a spinning reel i buy a stradic if i want a casting reel i buy a curado. ive never had any issues with them so thats just what i buy.

If it works for you, yes, it's acceptable. I'm the same way with lures, terminal tackle and soft plastics. Not so much with rods and reels. Daiwa and St. Croix make up a big majority of those two items.  I'm contemplating picking up another Daiwa with some casino winnings I came into last week. 

Charmin. No other will do.

I am extremely brand loyal. I only use BPS Platinum casting rods, Crankin' Stick crank bait rods and Patriot spinning rods. I use Platinum casting reels. My one deviation is I use Shimano spinning reels. Started using them back when the BPS spinning reels had those crazy large diameter spools.  Now that Diawa is making the JM signature series and Platinum spinning reels, I may try one.

I am loyal to pfleuger as i have 5 of their spinning reels and now I have a good parts source from a tackle shop a phone call away so i am sticking with them.

 

Rods, i buy the cheapest that i feel will work for my application only after countless minutes of my in store bending test comparing side to side against top brands.

The most expensive rod i own is the Ugly Stick Carbon Lite graphite at $80.00, the cheapest and very effective rod cost $15.00.

As far as rods and reels, yes. Baits, somewhat. I'm willing to try most anything and I have a garage full of slightly used baits that I bought and didn't like.

5 hours ago, Bird said:

Just got back from a week long fishing trip with the wife and was performing maintenance on reels and suddenly realized, I'm possibly a minority here...... I'm not brand loyal at all. Lol

 

I certainly understand a cult like following for Shimano and Diawa, proven quality.

 

As I spent time cleaning and retieing line it became obvious that I am not brand loyal, not on purpose but rather convenience at a given time, what my tackle shop had on sale maybe.

 

Today I serviced a Shimano, Lew's, Okuma, kast King, pflueger, Abu and not 2 of anything. Lol

Is this acceptable? ?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Heck yes. I am not brand loyal either. The brand that makes the item that meets the needs of what I am trying to fill, gets the bill. Period. ?

I have a lot of tackle tray ornaments stored away from a lot of years back. But now not so much now. Strike King and Zoom get the most of my fishing money now. There are so many bait companies out there now, one cannot keep up with them. Bass Pro gets my rod and reel money.

Nope not brand loyal. Reels own Shimano, Daiwa, Lew’s, Abu Garcia, and Kast King. I’ll say I won’t buy another Kast king but any of the others are green lights. Rods, sure, I own 4 iRods but a few that are not ?. 
 

Ya’ll that think Daiwa or Shimano in reels is it, or even Daiwa/Shimano/Lew’s need to try the REVO Winch. The gen 5 one coming out looks sweet but who’s to say. Not sure if a left handed version is going to be offered? If left-handed Winches are being phased out then I got them before gone ?

All I can say is "it is not what's best but what is best for you" I am brand loyal to KK have many reels and never had one issue.

No brand loyalty here for fishing stuff or pretty much anything else.  

 

I will seek out stuff Made in the USA when possible.   

For most fishing equipment, I’ve found what I like. My rods are now mostly St. Croix and Fenwick. Line is Yo-Zuri, Power Pro or Berkley Trilene. Hard baits are mostly a mix of Megabass and Rapala. Soft baits are YCB, Rage, Z-Man, Netbait and Zoom. Jigs, bullet weights are 100% Siebert. Hooks are all Gamakatsu. If I’m “loyal” to these, it’s because I’ve found what I like and works for me, and don’t need to keep changing it up. But if something new on the market intrigues me, I’ll gladly give it a shot without thinking about my brand loyalty. 
 

I’m only brand loyal to fishing lines,

Sunline and Power Pro only. 
 

 

 

 

 

Mike

I used Lew's rods and reels for years and I really liked them. One day I decided to be a Curado and an Expride and I really liked those so I bought a few more Curado's and Exprides.

 

That being said, I'm not afraid to try something new. But if it involves raising the bar on price I usually put some thought into it before pulling the trigger. I don't want to end up with a $300 paperweight.

I am semi brand loyal but it is about consistency for me.  I like havign rods that are the same for the most part so I know when i switch it isn't some drastic change.  For fly rods I am pretty brand loyal to Sage and recently TFO.  Baits, I don't care as long as they catch fish.  Flies, I tie my own so I am super brand loyal to those

I'm not brand loyal at all.  Reels are Shimano, Lew's, and Qauntum. Rods- all over the place.

I never made mention of my rods.

Their all over the place as well.

Lew's custom and KVD,'s, Fenwick, kast King , Cashion, Shimano, even see a couple of lightning rods hanging out there. Lol

I was completely brand loyal to one rod maker for years. The brand is made in the USA and has a good reputation for quality and warranty, and I don’t disagree.
 

That said, one day I bit the forbidden fruit of another brand. In comparison, I found my favorite brand in MH and Heavy was really heavy, thicker in the blank, and quite tip heavy. No wonder I was fatigued after an hour of using them. 
 

After that experience, I have forced myself to try different brands and discover new actions, weights and sensitivities. I have close to 20 rods and not more than 3 of any single brand. I think I’ve learned a lot and also found much better overall rods at least for me. 
 

I still have one rod in that old brand, but it is a medium and serves its purpose well. All the other MH and Heavy in that brand have been traded in through A.L.F.