The blank snapped while splining the blank....Never had this happen, and I wasn't even applying heavy pressure with my splining mechanism. Has anyone had this happen to them before? I called mudhole, and they said they would get back to me.

Even though splining is unnecessary, it's good that it happen while doing it, rather then later during or after your build.

It would also - if just at that -- have failed while giving it a good test flex .

Bill - willierods.com

I suspect they'll take care of it for you. Sometimes these things happen and better for it to happen now than after you had the rod built.

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I had something similar happen to me, with a Mudhole blank, and they were very great in dealing with it. They'll take care of you.

For the sake of a good sponsor, please post, either here or in a new post, the resolution of your issue. It's only fair, when something like this is mentioned, to post the resolution to it, especially if you are dealt with fairly, as you almost certainly will be. The good folks at Mudhole are top notch when it comes to customer service.

Chris: I will most definitely do so! Mudhole has been nothing but good to me, and I'm sure they will resolve the issue. I would never try to tarnish any business's name on this website! I just just merely stating what happened to me, and if it was a common issue--or not. I'm just glad this didn't happen after I epoxied the guides on and everything. Nothing would be worse than to give this rod to someone, and this happening on their first fish.

Michael,
Great News.
Great news that the blank broke before you spent any time on it.

It is generally always a good idea to give any new blank a very good flex in all directions before ever doing any work in the blank.
Better to break it before you spend any time on it.

Obviously you shouldn't flex it past expected limits, but you should certainly flex it up to the expected limits for the blank in question before working on it.

There is always a chance of receiving a blank with a manufacturing defect. Better to find the defect with 0 time and material into the blank rather than after spending $$$$$$ on materials and many hours of labor on the blank.

REW

I dont see anything wrong with letting other consumers know of the issues your having and if a sponsor doesnt stand behind their products I dont see any problem with you warning other builders/consumers about your experience. Protecting a company just because they are a sponsor is weak IMO. Not speaking about this issues specifically just in general. As consumers its the only layer of protection we have beyond the whims of retailers and manufacturers decisions. What if the person handling your issue doesnt like you? What if their having a bad day? You should just eat the costs and frustration to protect a sponsor? I wont.

So, my opinion is speak freely. When Mudhole handles this issue for you (no brainer since you've made it public) please let us all know so we can be confident they stand behind their products and service. Consumers sharing their experiences goes two ways and both should be endorsed.

The only problem is that often you don't get both sides of the story. Many sponsors could just as easily come here and spill the beans on well known rod builders who are deadbeats, don't pay their account bills, stop payments and/or institute chargebacks on delivered items, falsify statements, etc.

Mud Hole already has a good reputation for replacing any MHX blank that doesn't live up to expectations.

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Tom there's collection agencies for that. :P Who's gonna keep a company to their marketing if not the consumers?

Just speaking in general terms. Maybe this isn't the place to air out disputes. I get that, but where is the right place for rod builders to know who they can be confident in and who is skipping corners? I love hearing good customer service stories bout would appreciate the heads up if a company is a bad apple. Sorry to go off topic.

Adam Curtis Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I dont see anything wrong with letting other
> consumers know of the issues your having and if a
> sponsor doesnt stand behind their products I dont
> see any problem with you warning other
> builders/consumers about your experience.

I don't see any problem with this, either, but please re-read this thread: the original poster -- who was understandably frustrated, and was just asking an honest question -- posted an issue before the vendor even had a chance to respond to him. Is this fair? How can you say that they "don't stand behind their products" when they were never given a chance to stand anywhere?

Stuff happens, and while a post like this is not, in my opinion, out of bounds, I think it's only fair, if the vendor deals with the issue satisfactorily (as I'm sure Mudhole will; it's how they do business), that the original poster comes back and says this. Otherwise, it's a raw deal: if the vendor stiffs the guy, it's posted here; if the vendor satisfies him, a post like this stays out there without the readers being informed that the vendor did the right thing.

I am not a sponsor here, and I have no allegiance to Mudhole, other than the fact that as a consumer I like them. I just think that it's only fair to be fair to the them, the same as we need to be fair to everyone here. I am 99 44/100% sure that they'll do the right thing here -- and that they would do the right thing even if this issue had not been posted on a message board -- and that from the original poster's standpoint, the right thing to do is to acknowledge it, publicly, when they handle this correctly.

If a company isn't on the up and up - if they're a "bad apple," they won't be a sponsor here for long. I can't be bought.

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can you explain why you dont need to spline the blank?

Hi Chris. I definitely was not pointing my concern towards this situation or mudhole. Made that clear twice. In general is fair to ask. Im a new builder so id like to hear about consumer concerns just as much as good service. Granted, each must be appraised case by case. Im into consumer rights. That's all. If a dude does have an issue he should feel confident in looking for support and telling his story. Again sorry to go off topic and I appreciate the ability to share my opinion. Tight lines fellas!

Tom, I can get behind that. :)

Guys, my intention was not to cause any problems! I just wanted to know if anyone has had this issue with the new blanks that came out. I know it's most likely just a "bad" blank out of the bunch, and I'm sure mudhole is going to take care of it(management was in a meeting). I was just curious if anyone has ever had that happen to them while splining,. or mildly doing a test flex on the blank.

Michael,
I've only built a couple of hundred rods, but I've never had that happen during my spining days, years ago when we thought it was crucial, or during a stress distribution test, or during hookups with a fish. But, I've never bought an MHX blank either. Let us know how this turns out.

Scott,

It might be better if you can explain why you feel you do need to spine a blank. Since rod spine has nothing to do with rod twist nor has any effect on casting accuracy, what exactly is it done for?

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Re: Got The New MHX White Blank And.....
Posted by: Adam Curtis (74.7.62.---)
Date: September 06, 2011 07:46PM


I dont see anything wrong with letting other consumers know of the issues your having and if a sponsor doesnt stand behind their products I dont see any problem with you warning other builders/consumers about your experience. Protecting a company just because they are a sponsor is weak IMO. Not speaking about this issues specifically just in general. As consumers its the only layer of protection we have beyond the whims of retailers and manufacturers decisions. What if the person handling your issue doesnt like you? What if their having a bad day? You should just eat the costs and frustration to protect a sponsor? I wont.

So, my opinion is speak freely. When Mudhole handles this issue for you (no brainer since you've made it public) please let us all know so we can be confident they stand behind their products and service. Consumers sharing their experiences goes two ways and both should be endorsed.




I respectfully disagree with this. I think that internet forums are the absolute worst place for airing out dirty laundry. Most of them the poster is hiding behind a "handle" and has the option to say anything they want about anything they want. We as readers really have no idea if there is any truth in what they are saying or if they are just angry at someone and inflicting their revenge.

The thing that makes this site hands above most of the others, is that these things are not allowed in either direction. What if an unexpected error occured in a transaction, and a vendor splashed your name all over the web? All of these issues can be resolved in a one on one manner.

Yes, there are forums that allow and seem to enjoy this kind of thing, but in my opinion it just exhibits a real lack of class. Also it seems that at least one vendor relishes in that, and that is also a lack of class.

Tom, I was curious about not splining the blank myself.

Michael had a problem and asked if anyone else had had a similar problem from there it got twisted into this mess. I just placed an order with mudhole over the weekend and it will not be my last with them. They have always been courteous, helpful and quick to respond to questions and get orders out quickly. I have always been impressed with their business practices and they are truly a top notch company.

Scott,

Years ago somebody flexed a rod blank, felt it turn, and decided that if you didn't orient it in that position you'd get rod twist while fighting a fish. But it doesn't happen that way out on the water.

Each guide frame is a lever arm and as you load the rod via the line, those lever arms will turn in an attempt to face the direction the load is being applied to them from. Guide position determines if your rod will twist under load, not spine orientation.

However, if you wish to spine your rods, that's fine too. It won't hurt a thing. The fact is, there is no wrong, nor necessarily correct way, to orient a rod blank.

The first time you really put a good bend in a rod, if it's defective or has been damaged in shipping, etc., it may well pop. What happened to Michael is rare, but certainly not unheard of.

As far as this "mess," I don't see any mess here. Just a brief civil discourse on why I don't allow comments about dealers or builders to stray too far off course.

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