The press release in TTW about the new 3M resin for use in fishing rods says this-

"The $23 billion dollar company has developed what it calls 3M Matrix Resin that when combined with carbon at the prepeg level has the ability to make rods stronger, lighter and more durable.
At the time of going to press, TTW is aware of three companies that are utlising the new technology: St. Croix, G Loomis, and Hardy and Greys - the latter using its own unique and exclusive recipe."

It goes on to say this is similar technology to what Daiwa and Redington used a few years ago to add micro silica particles to the resin which supposedly allows the rod to be flexed further without buckling. Nothing is said about it making the rods actually tougher against abuse. Not sure about that from what I read.

St. Croix said in the same article that they are already begining to use it in "five or six existing rod families" so you may already have a rod with it and not even know it.

[rodbuilding.org]

Follow the 3M link for a wealth of data.

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From the discussions I’ve had with folks already using the new resin, the new rods are not necessarily more resistant to most types of abuse. But they are certain that those same rods will be able to endure greater flex before buckling. This means some amount of high stick failures can now be prevented. Just don't look for an unbreakable rod that will stand up to the kind of rough handling that is already breaking current rods. "Stronger" and "tougher" are not exactly the same thing. And the particular design in terms of diameter and wall thickness will still play a major role in how much abuse the blanks can withstand.

As a side note the new resin is heavier than older types. Nobody wants to end up with a heavier rod as the end product. So most are using a totally new pregeg (fiber and resin) on these rods which when combined allow the overall weight to decrease by a bit at no expense or loss of current durability. And less weight generally means a more responsive rod.

The product, although not a total revolution, does offer an advancement. Just make sure to read the soon to come marketing claims with good common sense. Your customers may want to know just what to expect from blanks made with the new product and you don't want to give them "pie in the sky" promises or claims.

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