flicking through the viles online catalogue for the first time in ages this morning(tis easy known im earning the big bucks again) and i cant help but be amazed at the prices..
a black 7ht is £109?? 2-3 years back you would have got this reel for £80...thats like 130 euro or so and ive seen VGC blues go for that on here! and a 535mag for £130 they used be like £90 or something. whats the excuse for the prices?
those akios reels look the biz but in fairness what a rip-of of abu's design(im aware some ex-abu employees designeed them) but cmon would it hurt to be original...
as for abu themselves all the different models are a little hard to get your head around...some models are mechanically identical but the price varies depending on the colours WTF?
the penn 515 however..ill be having one of those shortly methinks
The company that owns Diawa, Abu and Penn each year puts its prices up by a percentage in September which then gets knocked onto the shops....you should notice that the prices of all three manufacturers reels will be going up slightly at the moment if they havent already...its a joke. For a 6500 mag you can add another 10/15 sterling so if your looking at a 6500 for 105 sterling youd now be looking at 115/120.
The abu 6500 mags are all exactly the same except for colour except the red one which has a higher gear ration so I spose it depends on how 'cool' ye wanna look on the beach mate!
Im not convinced with the Akios reels....everyone is raving about them but who knows what theyre going to be playing like in a year or two with a bit or wear.....Im sticking to what I know!
leec wrote:The company that owns Diawa, Abu and Pen
hmm, interesting statement, what's the name of this company?
“Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can't help them, at least don't hurt them.” - Dalai Lama
“Learn from Yesterday, Live for Today and Hope for Tomorrow.” - Albert Einstein
One of the reasons is that the main companies are owned overseas and prices are often based on British prices. With the pound going down the pan they've had to raise prices to get the same in US$ or Yen. It's the same with cars and other stuff too (Ocean Kayaks have gone up significantly the last year or two).
Prices have gone up significantly, possibly more than can be justified by just the exchange rate differences. A 7HT was available for around £70 18months ago, now, as you say, you're looking at nearer £120 which is insane. The old green ABU Mag Elites were being cleared at £70 a couple of years back, you could have made a tidy sum if you'd stocked up.
If you shop around you can get some of them significantly cheaper. ABUs are available for £100/€120 (and yes, they do all appear to be the same but with differing amounts of bling on them) if you hunt a bit.
Akios. Hmmmm, I am tempted. They look good and have a ratchet, something that ABUs (apart from the Hi-Speed) lack, which is useful. I'm guessing they are more or less the same as ABUs, so expect casting and ruggedness to be the same. Good or bad? You decide. I'm tempted but how many of the glowing reports at the moment are from people linked to the company?
Theyre called pure fishing....they dont own Diawa, I got that wrong but they do own - Abu, Berkley, Coleman, Mitchell, Penn, Shakespear, Stren, Trilene and a s@#t load more. So basically theyve covered the majority of the market.....A US Company.
dont get me started on product reviews..the foremost angling mag, which once was just an angling mag, is now just an advertising vessel...40-50% of its pages are advertisements...and the product reviews are the not the REAL opinions of the author anyway...youd wonder would what benefits they get for a good write up as a result i dont buy it anymore.
I remember all the raving they were at when the new red hi-speed came out.."best reel this year"...shortly afterwards gears were srtipping, clutches failing etc...
quality control has gone out the window and prices have doubled
and if you want a deasent review then a site like this is hard to beat.
We are being shafted year after year here. All you have to do is look at the websites from the usa and ye will see that they are getting fishing gear at half the price we are paying here.
flyno wrote:We are being shafted year after year here. All you have to do is look at the websites from the usa and ye will see that they are getting fishing gear at half the price we are paying here.
Depends on what you're getting actually. Some stuff is way cheaper over there, but the likes of Daiwa is pretty comparable when you take into account exchange rate fluctuations. The likes of braid are silly cheap there, and, if you're wiling to potentially flout the odd law you can get it sent without paying tax on it, making it even cheaper.
leec wrote:Theyre called pure fishing....they dont own Diawa, I got that wrong but they do own - Abu, Berkley, Coleman, Mitchell, Penn, Shakespear, Stren, Trilene and a s@#t load more. So basically theyve covered the majority of the market.....A US Company.
thanks for the info
“Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can't help them, at least don't hurt them.” - Dalai Lama
“Learn from Yesterday, Live for Today and Hope for Tomorrow.” - Albert Einstein
gearoid mc s. wrote:
the penn 515 however..ill be having one of those shortly methinks
rant over..
Of all the reels to pic Have you seen the price of the new Penn's? As Roger said....more marketing hype and pre-order ... no thanks. If I do pick one up, it will be after it's in the shop and I can have a good look at it. TBH.... Will they be much better that the Okuma Magnetex 20 You can pick one of these up cheaply and I've battered the level wind version around the boat for 2 years now without any hassles.... The bro in law uses the ct version on the beach and again, still going really strong after 2 years and an annual service. They are not an ultracast reel, but I really think these give the 525 & 515 a run for their money and less that half the price
gearoid mc s. wrote:
the penn 515 however..ill be having one of those shortly methinks
rant over..
Of all the reels to pic Have you seen the price of the new Penn's? As Roger said....more marketing hype and pre-order ... no thanks. If I do pick one up, it will be after it's in the shop and I can have a good look at it. TBH.... Will they be much better that the Okuma Magnetex 20 You can pick one of these up cheaply and I've battered the level wind version around the boat for 2 years now without any hassles.... The bro in law uses the ct version on the beach and again, still going really strong after 2 years and an annual service. They are not an ultracast reel, but I really think these give the 525 & 515 a run for their money and less that half the price
Kev
ya but seeing as the way the prices have gone in the last few years will they ever be any cheaper? when I say shortly I mean ill wait for a good price new/vgc 2nd hand and like yourself ill want a good look at it before I buy....I'm probably buying it out of tart persuasions where as if I was sensible I'd get a few more original 525's.
online catalogue for the first time in ages this morning(tis easy known im earning the big bucks again) and i cant help but be amazed at the prices..
2-3 years back you would have got this reel for £80...thats like 130 euro or so and ive seen VGC blues go for that on here! and a 535mag for £130 they used be like £90 or something. whats the excuse for the prices? 
as a result i dont buy it anymore.
Have you seen the price of the new Penn's? As Roger said....more marketing hype and pre-order 
You can pick one of these up cheaply and I've battered the level wind version around the boat for 2 years now without any hassles.... The bro in law uses the ct version on the beach and again, still going really strong after 2 years and an annual service. They are not an ultracast reel, but I really think these give the 525 & 515 a run for their money and less that half the price