Orvis Clearwater line and Encounter line made in China !

Got a relative that bought a Clearwater combo from Orvis at a fly shop. He sent me a picture showing it was made in China. Well on their websites they state they're made in USA . SO I EMAILED Orvis and asked them about it and their reply was the Clearwater is not made in USA and the Helios is and says so on their rods. So I checked every single rod on their website and seems the Clearwater and Encounter are not made in USA but are designed in USA. All other lines that are more expensive are made in USA and says on their websites. I was going to buy the Clearwater line but have changed my mind. I'll have to go more expensive or buy a Sage outfit.

The Clearwater series has been made internationally for many years. This isn't a recent change.

It's new news for me and maybe for some others that might be interested in Orvis flyrods . Just passing along news that I received from Orvis mouth verifying the Made In USA on their website.

Heck my Cabelas RLS combo is made in China too but they don't advertise made in USA either.

Who's pissed off?

I erased the bad comment , sorry . It just kinda sounded like i made you upset with my posting .

TFO rods, while based in Dallas, are made in Korea. Many rod manufacturers have entry level rods, or even their entire lines, made overseas.

Having said that, I've had the opportunity to visit the Orvis Rod Shop in Manchester, VT, where many of their higher end rods are made. It's an impressive facility and process, with many hand-crafted steps along the way. They also have a decent amount of floor space devoted to repair and replacement, in keeping with their 25 year warranty, which means, among other things, that they need to keep an inventory of parts and materials for every rod they've made for the last 25 years.

We can thank American's for it's luster of "lower" priced options.

I sell office furniture and people love buying the cheapest, which comes from China, then they gripe about the quality. Go figure.

I won't even present foreign made products to my customers....cause I don't want to assemble that cheap stuff and make no money. I rather sell American any day, but customers don't want to pay for it. We are our own enemy when it comes to China.

I'm very surprised by that . From way all TFO owners talk i thought the base was out of Dallas somewhere ?

How true it is ! Sad but true !

TFO is based out of Dallas and all of there rods are manufactured overseas. Never been a secret. All warranty repairs and replacements are sent to Dallas, and I have always had the replacement rod or section back in the mail to me within the next business day.

TFO's headquarters and distribution operation is located in Dallas, but their rods are made in a dedicated factory in Korea. Only TFO rods are built in that location, both their fly rods and their casting rods.

As Mick mentioned, most of the rod companies offer some version of an internationally built rod. Some companies such as Orvis offer both international and domestic rods under the same brand label. Other companies offer their rods under different brand labels, for example the company that owns Sage also owns Redington.

If you look at the warranties offered by the major rod brands, they obviously stand behind their products. You can't offer a lifetime or even a 25 year warranty on a poor quality product and expect to stay in business.

So, does that mean all internationally built rods are well made? Of course not. There are rod brands that use whichever supplier is the low bidder when they need more rods. The practice of using multiple factories means that it can be very difficult to control consistent quality. The rods built in one factory may not cast the same as the rods built in a different factory. Many of the rod companies that try using this model don't stay in business very long.

The topic about where rods are made comes up on bulletin boards fairly often and it always seems to turn into an emotional issue. So, I'm going to bow out of this topic with the best advice I can offer for buying a rod: Go cast the rods you are interested in and then get the one you think casts best, regardless of what someone on the internet or what the marketing materials say. After all, you'll be the one using it.

G Loomis is built in Washington state as is Gary Loomis' new Edge rod brand. I own G Loomis and TFO rods and will own Edge when introduced. That said, Rex had the best comment I have seen in his post above. I would only add the obvious "that fits your budget".

I have a couple old outfits at home that i bough some 15 yrs ago . They are "Martins" , 8' 6-7wt . The reels really suck and are frozen up but the rods themselves are still in great shape . I can still use the rods , just would have to get new reels and line . The Cabelas RLS i already bought , i have not fished with but have played around with it outside and it really seems to be a very nice rod and reel . I got the 9' , 5wt, 4-pc. with case . I'lll be testing it out soon as i go on vacation and get close to a body of water i can fish in .