Which rod blanks and components are made in the U.S.A. and which are made offshore? I prefer to support American workers before I support American importers, especially when mark-ups on imported rod blanks and components (and fly lines) often rise to several hundred percent. It wouldn't cost much to label products made in America, and might even boost sales.

Are you looking for the "Made in America" in the legal sense as defined by FTC or actually 100% of all components and labor in America?

I am aware of blanks made here in America but I am not aware of any components, like real seats and guides.

For rod building I would like to know which blanks, guides, tip-tops, reel seats, and epoxies were manufactured, built, or produced within the legal boundaries of the 50 states of the U.S.A. and which rod components were produced outside the U.S., then imported and sold in the U.S. . As an American rod builder I feel NO compulsion to enrich importers of rod-building components or their chain of price increases stretching here from Asia.

Can you be specific and tell us what Rod blank and component brands are being marked up several hundred per cent? Where were you able to find the production costs for these brands?

I am not about to compile a list for someone but I can give my $0.02.

I do not mind imported goods from American allied/friendly countries. Fuji/Shimano/St Croix,Rod Geeks...to cite a few examples.

Do I wish more of it was based and made here? Yes.

Do I understand why it is not? Yes.

Do I blame the manufacturers for the anti-business policies that are set beyond their control? No.

Do I hold a deep disdain for the mark-ups? No. If it is of a quality that I believe is worth paying for I will buy it. If I feel it is overpriced I will avoid it. It is called the free market. I voice my opinion with my participation.

There are several makers of reel seats and guides made her in the US. Althought mostly affialiated with Fly rods

At Flex Coat our epoxies are made in the USA, always have been. Also, our equipment is designed and hand crafted in Driftwood, Tx. If you want to call and talk to me, the man that builds every machine and wires every motor that goes out the door, you can. Often we can even customize the equipment at little to no extra charge. I don't think any body else in the industry does that. If you are going to be at the show, I will be there with our latest equipment. I look forward to it.

Flex Coat Company
Professional Rod Building Supplies
www.flexcoat.com

Phil, do your own research ! Quit asking others to do it for you.

Even if it is made in the US it has components that are outsourced in some way. 1000# gorilla in the room is China and the Chinese Communist Party. American enterprises here go to China for cheap labor and production prices. The CCP has heavy influence on both sides of the isle through campaign donations (manipulated and under the table included). You can not buy a car in this country that does not have some other part in it that comes from somewhere else. I think the best we can do is try not to buy anything from China that contributes money to the CCP (this is actually almost impossible). The US has literally made China the richest country in the world, while we destroy our economy.

Phil, I am simply requesting that American made goods be identified as such and foreign made goods be identified as such. I lack the money and the contacts to determine point of origin of rod making components, and our elected representatives have obviously decided their support (including campaign $) will be greater if they co-mingle American made and foreign made goods without identifying country of origin. I regret you are not in favor of requiring such information to be provided to U.S. rod builders. Why do prefer to conceal this information?

There is no specific law that requires that products made outside the U.S. be labeled to that effect. However, if you label your product as being made or assembled in the U.S. there are some requirements that you must adhere to:

[www.ftc.gov]

Generally companies that make or assemble their products here in the U.S. are happy to state such. If they do not, there is a reasonable chance that the product is not made in the U.S.

..........

I believe all REC components are made in the US.

Tom: Thank you. There is good reason to conclude a product for sale in the U.S. which does not cite its country of origin is a product made in a foreign country. I know for fact you can buy fishing products shipped in bulk with no trade name or country of origin - fly lines, for example. You can buy excellent W.F. and D.T. fly lines off the internet.They come in no-name, no nation of origin boxes, sell for less than $20, and they cast every bit as well as $95 fly lines in boxes with English names and claims.

Phil Ewanicki Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Tom: Thank you. There is good reason to conclude a
> product for sale in the U.S. which does not cite
> its country of origin is a product made in a
> foreign country. I know for fact you can buy
> fishing products shipped in bulk with no trade
> name or country of origin - fly lines, for
> example. You can buy excellent W.F. and D.T. fly
> lines off the internet.They come in no-name, no
> nation of origin boxes, sell for less than $20,
> and they cast every bit as well as $95 fly lines
> in boxes with English names and claims.


So you really didn't care where the product was made as long as it worked as well as the American made lines at the higher price?

Every forum from time to time has a "if it ain't made in America I ain't buying it" discussion/rant. This may come as a shock to some but we live in a global economy and just as we sell commodities, products, and services world wide other nations are selling here. You can complain about clothing at Walmart or Nieman - Marcus but then make sure you also complain about the soybean farmer selling his/her crop to China or Japan. The U.S. does not dictate policy to the world anymore and that filters down to all facets of world trade. People make decisions via their spending habits and it is clear the days of American economic hegemony are over.

I'm with Jim. At the very earliest opportunity USA manufacturers moved the work offshore to save on labor costs. Let's not blame the consumer. If Detroit (USA) had top level products way back you would never had heard of ABU, Toyota, Sony, Shimano, Fuji etc. All this flag waving gets old.

Lynn Wrote:
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> All this flag waving gets old.




Flag waving NEVER gets old.



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 01/20/2022 08:50PM by Kent Griffith.

Nothing wrong with a little flag waving from citizens proud of their country - quite the contrary. It's the angler-buyer's $ and he's free to spend it, even if the lion's share of the cost of foreign goods goes into the pockets of importers, re-sellers, and advertisers. But we DO have the right to know the country of origin of the goods we buy - even fishing tackle components.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/22/2022 04:02PM by Phil Ewanicki.

If you want a blank or components that are truly manufactured in the U.S. then your options will be greatly reduced. Most people tallk all the time about wanting to buy U.S. produced goods, but their dollars do the real talking and they buy consumer goods to meet a price point, not country of origin. NFC blanks are made in the U.S. and offered at various price points, yet many here focus on their service and not their origin. People often want it all but are not willing to pay. If you want to wave the flag what waders are you wearing? I think the Simm's higher end units are the only waders produced in the U.S. Fly lines still seem to be a major U.S. produced product with SA, RIO and Cortland produced here. I am not sure if any rod cork is grown in the U.S. Clamor for an American made blank or rod and then drive to the stream in a car from Korea or Germany.