Looking to buy a Dead stick

[harvey lee]

Chode is correct, as I understand "the story" is JM bought an assortment of TB

rods sent them to China and had them duplicated. It's a sad state of affairs

but it is what it is. My hypocricy knows no bounds, I'm always preaching "buy

American" and here I am promoting Chinese products. Gonna have to start saving

up for TB rods and a hard case.

One should not deal in hearsay unless you have facts. One could get themselves in a mess.

[Get'n Jiggy]

If you have "facts" Harvey please enliten me. I just checked the tag on the

Meatstick I bought and it has "Made in China" printed on it.

[foulpole18]

I have piles of rods that don't get used because of thorne bros. You can copy them all you want but you won't beat it. Especially mass produced in China. I try new rods every year and every year the new ones get beat by my existing Thorne rods.

[Ed Carlson]

Thorn Bro's has made leading edge rods for many years, and I would also recommend looking at them when comparing models for a DeadStick application.

But there are others too, in all price points and design ranges and features new and old to choose from.

As I understood it, he was asking for recommendations, not evangelistic comments from true believers in the peanut section, or maybe I miss read his original post?

I trust he can evaluate for himself what he needs so lets just stick to recommendations and models.

[fiskyknut]

I gots Thorne bros 32 inch deadsticks and they rule. My book the others are'nt even close! I fish Walleye mainly, if you are a Panfish guy some of the specialized Panfish rods from TB may suit your fishing better?

Seen lots of another brand Deadstick mentioned break, ker-snap. Pretty much everyone of them that was used was broken one way or another.

Guess I have'nt used them all and one can for sure get a purdy darn good rod at a better price than a TB but if you get the TB you will not be disappointed.

Myself I'd be plain leery of any short icerod made in 2 peices but perhaps that stick will end up a nice one. Use bees wax and stick the tip on good so a guy don't see it slide down the line thru the hole!!

fiskyknut

[skippie]

I also have to put a vote in for the TB deadstick, I have a few TB ice rods and love them. I just wish they had a spring system like the St. Croix.

[harvey lee]

Yes the St Croix spring bobber is one of the best out there. I am not sure why you would need to put one on the TB deadstick as the tip is so sensitive.

If you want some of those spring bobbers, one can make them for very little. You will need to purchase the St Croix spring that you would like.

Then, buy a grommet that fits the spring, take a new single foot eye for a rod and lightly glue it to the rod tip and then wrap it with rod thread and I use rod epoxy and seal it. You will need to match the grommet diameter to a eye so the fit is tight but not so tight that the spring cannot slide back and forth.

Works great and looks nice also.

[mozy]

If you want a TB rod at the Mitchell price, look into the TB Hardwater Series. It's a 27" "noodle" rod that is the same as their other noodle rod, but the blank is made in China, I believe.

[castmaster]

Just an FYI for those who dont already know, but the JM Meatstick and TB Deadstick and Quiverstick are NOT the same. Both the TB rods use one piece blanks, while the JM Meatstick has a "lighter" tip attached to a "heavier" main blank. 99% of the JM Meatsticks I have seen broke all broke at the place where the 2 blanks are joined together.

[Dark Cloud]

If you want a TB rod at the Mitchell price, look into the TB Hardwater Series. It's a 27" "noodle" rod that is the same as their other noodle rod, but the blank is made in China, I believe.

Im prety sure they discontinued that series. The whole thing was farmed out. It was a nice rod at a good price but the quality wasnt there...

[harvey lee]

Just an FYI for those who dont already know, but the JM Meatstick and TB Deadstick and Quiverstick are NOT the same. Both the TB rods use one piece blanks, while the JM Meatstick has a "lighter" tip attached to a "heavier" main blank. 99% of the JM Meatsticks I have seen broke all broke at the place where the 2 blanks are joined together.

I have had a tip break on both my Mitchell and a TB deadstick. The Mitchell was the only one that was warranteed.

[Matt Johnson]

We have our own line of ice blanks exclusive to Thorne Brothers. They are made in California to our specs and only our specs. We have spent countless hours critiquing the blanks to get exactly what we want out of an ice blank... and we do that for all of the models/actions. You will not find a higher quality graphite in an ice rod blank, period. Same people who build parts for NASA build our blanks... no joke... they are indeed the real deal... we practically kiss every rod before it leaves the store

Our custom ice rods are not St. Croix or Loomis blanks, but like I said, they are an actually Thorne Bros exclusive blank.

A lot of companies have tried to copy our rods, but it's darn-near impossible unless they want to have similar price tags. Building a rod comparable to a TB rod for a fraction of the price just can't happen. Quality is not there. However, that shouldn't take anything away from the other line of rods out there, because for their price-point they are excellent rods.

Jason Mitchell makes a nice line of rods, but yes, they are a lesser-quality version of the TB rods that are created in a factory. Someone indeed grabbed a line of our rods and went overseas trying to duplicate what we build but at a lower price-point... and with lesser-quality parts... thus birthed the Jason Mitchell rods. Definitely not the same components, but decent rods for the price nonetheless. Clam Corporation is now the proud owner of the Jason Mitchell line of ice rods, but Jason still has his foot in the door for design and he is one of the best ice anglers out there, enough said. However, you will notice a difference in quality when comparing a rod like the Jason Mitchell series to the TB custom.

If looking for a deadstick, we make a variety of options and can custom build a rod to your liking. We can build deadsticks up to 40+ inches and have over a dozen handle types to choose from... close to a dozen different guide options... an endless amount of colors options for thread wrapping... and the list goes on and on... just give us a ring and we will walk you through the options... and this goes for any rod, not just the deadstick line... everything from panfish to monster lake trout

Those who have used our rods are good testiment for their quality and performance. The rods speak for themselves and you won't find many people who have/use TB rods that are dissappointed.

We truly appreciate all the support! Thank you!

[harvey lee]

If you have "facts" Harvey please enliten me. I just checked the tag on the

Meatstick I bought and it has "Made in China" printed on it.

That does not mean Jason copied a TB rod. I know they make them in China but you state they copied them from TB's and thats quite a statement without proof.

I would imagine that came right out of the TB store from an employee.

Sad when the competition has to tell people they got our rods and then copied them all to make a sale.

[Esox_Magnum]

I have TB custom rods, just not ice ones yet and they are by far the best out there. I'll soon have a TB and JM rod to play with I already know without seeing the TB rod it will be top notch, time will tell with the JM.

[slipperybob]

If one ever gets a chance, just ask Jason Mitchell where he'd got his prototype meatstick from... ...that's enough from me.

[harvey lee]

I only asked why some have to bash Jason and say he copied the TB rods.

If we take a trip back in these posts, chode was first to start and say that JM rods were knock off. My first post stated that the TB rod was a good one. Then it went from there.

check it out please.

nuf said.

[TylerS]

I was turned on to TB rods a half decade ago. My dad borrowed a friend's rod with the spring bobber. He was outfishing me 10:1 on crappies, and I got so PO'd that I stole it and wouldn't give it back.

I've tried almost every type of commercial rod available, but TB's hands-down blow them away in every aspect. And can you say "customer service?" I'm fairly certain TB is the gold standard. I broke my panfish rod (my fault) and brought it in asking what could be done. They cleaned it up, put on a new rod guide and sent me on my way, free of charge. I was so impressed, I bought another rod that day just for a backup.

So while JM may have some decent rods at an affordable price, I'd sell every rod I had in my arsenal for just one more TB rod. Kinda like potato chips: you can't settle with just one

[Chode2235]

I only asked why some have to bash Jason and say he copied the TB rods.

If we take a trip back in these posts, chode was first to start and say that JM rods were knock off. My first post stated that the TB rod was a good one. Then it went from there.

check it out please.

nuf said.

Whoa, whoa. Its pretty obvious to anyone who has been following 'the biz' the last few years that we have seen some huge improvements in quality rods available, and that the trend is toward specialized rods. And it is pretty indisputable that Thorne Bros. were way ahead in offering these rods, in fact one could argue that they created the market.

I find it hilarious that these board have been filled with posts about how awesome the TB Noodle and Deadstick rods are, and then what do you know next winter there are lower priced competitors. Thats how the market works.

It is a lot like the Wii. There was nothing like it, and now xbox and Sony both have motion controllers out on the market. They're knock offs too, but in the case of the xbox version are probably superior. That's how the market works. Blue Ocean, disruptional products.

I never said anything bad about the JM rods, theyre a great rod. My only point is that it is pretty disingenuous to pretend that these rods are cutting edge, innovative, or whatever; and that they're not a 'knock off' of the original.

I would bet $1000 bucks that during the development of these rods the following phrase wasn't uttered in some capacity, "Let's try to make a rod as close to the deadstick, but at half the price."

Let's give credit where credit is due. And this isn't so much about TB vs JM, it's about being able to be honest about products, equipment, and companies.

Nothing personal to you HL, or to JM for that matter; but there is no need to blow smoke.

[harvey lee]

I am glad you like your TB rods. I also own some and as I stated earlier in my posts, they do make a great rod.

I guess every one has an opinion and you know what they say about that.