Black Betty Program, who is gonna use?

[Agronomist_at_IA]

Black Betty Upgrade Program

So you purchased a Black Betty last season, and it was awesome….now your buddy went out and bought the brand new 2014 Black Betty and its even cooler than yours. We know this is a total bummer, and we want to make sure we have a program in place so that you can send in your older model and get it upgraded to the latest and greatest. Thank you for purchasing our gear and please understand we want to keep you fishing 13 gear for years to come.

Original Black Betty:

The New 2014 Black Betty has a drag knob that clicks so you can adjust the drag tension much easier and have a audible sound so you know just how far you have adjusted it. Most shallow water panfish anglers use very light drag, so it is very nice to know how far you turned your drag without having the knob fall off because you went too far. To make this change we also upgraded the stainless steel mainshaft that holds the spool. We have a awesome new Black Betty Fender that help keeps your hand and thumb pad from coming into contact with the spool, this is a must if you fish with a “pencil” or “pistol” grip. We will add the fender and get your Betty all pimped out!

Upgrade Price $24.99 and it includes the shipping back to you.

(USA only, a reasonable shipping fee will be added from anywhere else in the world)

Black Betty 6061:

This upgrade is pretty extensive, we have made many design changes to the 2013 model. The new 2014 Black Betty 6061 has a completely new Carbon Drag System, a new stronger main shaft, a redesigned clicker system, a new gear set, new frame, new handle knob attachment system, new spool attachment knob, and of course a new color. We thought the Black and Silver design was pretty epic and matched the Wicked Series Rods that most guys seemed to like to match up with the 6061. We won’t be upgrading your 6061, we will be replacing it with the all new 2014 model.

Upgrade Price $50.00 and it includes the shipping back to you.

(USA only, a reasonable shipping fee will be added from anywhere else in the world)

[dfeste]

I signed up to get a new pair of 6061s. Not as impressed as I should be with the originals so I figured I may as well dump another c-note into them and see what happens. I'm liking the fact that 13 Fishing is looking outside the established lines a bit and bringing new gear to the ice fishing market. I'm sure before the end of the season I'll own at least one of the new Teardrop reels as well.

[Eric_Kruger]

so you already paid an overly rediculous price for a reel that wasnt really what we promised it would be, please send it back to us with more de nero so we can give you the product it should have been.....

Sounds like another year should have went into the original....

[fisherman-andy]

The cost to upgrade or trade in your last year Black Betty to this year's models is absolutely ridiculous. To be honest I hope no one who have been loyal or a customer who has sticked with their products attempt to go with or justify this program. Its appalling.

I hope a 13 Fishing representative see's this thread cause I have already spend hundreds and am not going to spend a dollar more for something that shoulda been done right in the first place.

[Gus]

I say good for them. Great move in my opinion.

When I buy a new truck and they come out with changes to the next year model, is there ANY option at all besides selling the truck and buying a new one?

Keep in mind these are not design flaws, the reels are not "broken" with out them. They have made design improvements.

Just my .02

Personally, I'm not even a fan of my 6061. Doesn't suit my fishing style as much as I had hoped it would. But for what it is, I found no issues at all with it.

[DTro]

For those of you that purchased these last year, what more would you like from the company?   I do agree that you already paid a premium price but isn’t offering the upgrade option better than nothing at all?  

 

Honestly though, I don’t understand why they want the old reels back.   Are they going to refurbish them?

 

I can also see why people would read into this as an admission of shortcomings of the first generation.  Making the changes sounds so good can’t make those that purchased the “lesser” ones last year feel very good about it.

 

Kind of a tough spot for the company and I’m sure that is why the upgrade option is on the table

[CAMAN]

I did not buy one last year but my view is, if the reels are still functional and they have only made design improvements to make them easier to use then if you think about it you are paying $150 for a reel you can get for $100. Why not keep the old one and if you really do want the new and improved one go buy it, and throw the old one on another rod and use it for a technique it would be good for. I would rather pay $200 for two reels that $150 for one. Admit it we can never have enough equipment.

[ib_jigged]

Does not sound like to bad of an idea...

I wish Lowrance would do something like that... LOL

[Alagnak]

so you already paid an overly rediculous price for a reel that wasnt really what we promised it would be, please send it back to us with more de nero so we can give you the product it should have been.....

Suckas. They got you right where they want you. I'm sure these reels accounted for multiple personal bests, tournament wins, and freezer doors full last season ;-)

All while the old timer 20' from you is fishing circles around you with the original 'non spinning' reel- line wrapped around two wood dowels sticking out of the handle of a jiggin stick. LOL

[bobbymalone]

I'm sorta of the opinion that those that dropped $100 on an ice fishing reel are likely gearhead suckers, so why not dip back into the pool and sucker them out of another few bucks.

Pretty sure Apple has a similar thing with every new iteration of the iphone. Because my phone is garbage without siri v2.0.

[pushbutton]

Lol. I kind of got suckered in and got the original last year, and can say it was a little nicer than the competitors versions, pole in the combo was actually very decent. Can also say it landed the two biggest fish of the season, but that was just plain luck of which reel I was using at the time, as well as which rod....and probably the lure as well, not to mention the choice of bait, which auger to drill the hole, and type of flasher and .....slusher. Can't wait for the talking heads to start a slusher war. Nope, not going to spend 25 more to upgrade. Thanks to all of you that do though, it helps keep the economy sputtering along. Am going to be downgrading this year, and taking a hiatus from all of the newest and bestest.

[Esox_Magnum]

Since my 6061's are mymain reels they did account for the vast majority of my fish last season and will account for most this upcoming season... I'm totaly happy with the 2 I already have and will be swapping out at least 1 more spinning reel for a 3rd this season....

[BigDogRob]

Sounds about as good as AT&T's phone insurance program...lol. Maybe this is the best they can do right now, and will get better.

[buzbunni]

I am going to try one of these reels this year.

Not sure if it will be the Teardrop reel or the Black Betty 6061, but one of them is going on my new rod.

Curious to know if the teardrop model in freespool is sensitive enough to drop tiny panfish jigs?

[Agronomist_at_IA]

I am going to try one of these reels this year.

Not sure if it will be the Teardrop reel or the Black Betty 6061, but one of them is going on my new rod.

Curious to know if the teardrop model in freespool is sensitive enough to drop tiny panfish jigs?

Worry about backlash

[LakeDocktor]

You can adjust the tension of the free spool on both models to accommodate your jig weight. If the tension isn't set right, backlash could occur, but you can still add tension with your thumb. I have used both without issues.

[Kodiak]

i think its dump....how about take one for one trade back and the customer pays for shipping.

[Lusid]

This is a good program but do the math and see the outcome...

HIGH LEVEL ANALYSIS: DO NOT BE MAD BRO AT FIGURES.

Cost of new 6061 Year 1 = 100

Cost of new 6061 Year 2 = 100

Total Cost for 6061 = 200 but you have two reels

Cost of new 6061 Year 1 = 100

Cost of upgrade 6061 Year 2 = 50+shipping

Total Cost for 6061 = 155 but you have one reel

No thnx on upgrade, I will just buy two to keep two..

BUT

If the upgrade was half that, I would totally bite.

[DrJuice1980]

Seems like a pretty solid PR move by a company who have now given away too much and the public now wants MORE!!!!

[Kodiak]

what do you mean GIVEN?? i bought a 100 dollar plus POS.

[mainbutter]

I'm so angry that they kept engineering and didn't stagnate. If they release better models in the future, I can't imagine how furious I'm going to be.

Seriously though, the only way to pay for R&D is to sell products. I also didn't buy one last year because it was pretty obvious that there are going to be new and improved inline reels released in the next few short years, and we should see some pretty massive improvements in a short period of time.

[Kodiak]

I didn't even get my shirt with a big S on it yet

S for sucker

[castmaster]

I wonder if the old boys who bought Lowrance green boxes are still pizzed at Lowrance for the improvements they have made over the years!

I wonder if the fellas who bought old flat head Ford V8 F100's are pizzed Ford isnt offering an upgrade program on the new F150's!

I wonder if the guys who bought Benelli SBE's are pizzed at benelli for not offering an upgrade program when they came out with the new SBE II!

Gee I could go on an on and on and on. Cant really think of a single product I own that isnt either an improvemnet on a past design, or something that has since been improved upon. Many items are in BOTH of those camps.

Heck, Clam and Otter must be complete arses, they keep improving and upgrading their portable dang near every year.

[Kodiak]

Not even close.

It was a total reboot for 2014 cause the 2013 reel is trash and they know it. Recall the junker and trade them out for ones that actually work good and like they are supposed to. Why would they spend money to redo it if it was so awesome in the first place???? Cause they had a million complaints!

[Chad Holst]

kodiak...the product wasnt junk. it worked exactly like it was supposed to, but with a full year of suggestions and learning from the original, they made a huge change..not because the original was bad, but because the info they have now allowed for an even better one.

This company is nothing but class. Have a bad product, send it in..no questions asked, fixed or replaced.

Like several have said, they are offering people the option to buy new gear, OR if they will never use their old gear, they will take it on trade for a 50% discount on a new one. Thats UN HEARD OF..and you give them grief?

BTW, for the people that asked why they even take the old ones back, and what they do with them...they donate them to organizations that put kids on the ice, to promote the future of our sport.

look at their wicked/whiteout combos. You cant tell me that you can get anything CLOSE to these combos for the same money. They are inovative and exactly what the customers are looking for...quality for a great price...and then the "new thing" for those that what to try the latest and gratest.

Beam outdoors is doing the same thing... You pay for it, up to $200 a combo, but you are then using something that is WAY better than anything on the market.

you are right, i could still catch a fish on a stick with a shoe string wrapped around a rusty nail...but it sure is nice that i dont have to. You go ahead if you want, but if your going to throw a fishing company under the bus, you better re-adjust your sites a bit. Cause these guys are ALL class.