Wade reels....

[Andre]

Agree. I really hope they do sell well in the future, they look to be very good from what I can see. I think its good that we have another quality product coming from within our shores.

It takes time to "get into the market, to establish a brand, build a reputation as an good product".

It might end up selling better in the overseas market, than in SA.

[swsmith]

Too expensive imho.....can get a 3-tand reel for ALOT cheaper....but maybe they are not marketing your average flyfisher...maybe designed for clients who can afford trips to places like Seychelles.....

[Scythe]

Too expensive imho.....

Not only that, saw one, the lazer etching had been fluffed, the anodizing didn't look cool.

I compared it to my SL7, I preferred the Shilton, it was simply a more polished product.

[saflyfish]

Not only that, saw one, the lazer etching had been fluffed, the anodizing didn't look cool.

I compared it to my SL7, I preferred the Shilton, it was simply a more polished product.

Wow thats a bad start for Wade

[kalgrm]

G'day guys,

I bought a Chanos about a month ago and had it sent to me here in Western Australia. I like it enough to have placed an order a second one and also the Albula. I'm still waiting to confirm that order though.

On the question of why they aren't selling too well, I can't answer in any definitive way. I can say that there are three parts of feck all information out there about them. This single thread has more information than their own web site (which is just a Facebook page), and the vast majority of the information here is (understandably) speculation. The company itself is doing a horrible job of actually marketing their product! So far, their attempts at marketing consist of two videos that are all hype sans substance and a flyer on their Facebook page. Of course, there are "reviews" of the pre-production versions from the guides and although I'm not sure about the commercial independence of those reviews, they are fair reviews based on my own experience to date.

In fact, if anybody is wondering, this is what the spool side of the reel looks like. It may be the first such view on the net:



I found two small design flaws in the Chanos, but otherwise, I'm really happy with it. It's light weight, strong and solid in the hand.

Maintenance won't be hard. It's pretty easy to pull apart with minimal tools.

Sure, the anodising is not "cool": far from it. It's military in appearance (and in specification) but it's tough. That is exactly what I want from anodising in a saltwater reel. I'm more interested in function than form.

The drag goes from full-off to full-on in less than one turn of the knob. The drag is smooth throughout the range and certainly strong enough to fight any fish most people would chase with a 10wt system. The drag knob is big enough for a man to use.

I found it very difficult to actually buy the reel, and I'm still finding it hard to complete the current order. I don't know if it's a cultural difference, but I've never encountered a business so reluctant to answer questions about a product or sell it to me. (I'm not going to divulge the name of the business here though.) This could be contributing to the poor sales of the series.

As to the cost: I don't think it's any more over-priced than any other fly reel out there (They are all over-priced for what you get … ). For a reel of this quality, it think the price is about on par with others in its class, probably cheaper. I sold off my Sage 4210 and my Galvan T10 to pay for the Chanos. Those reels are in a similar price range, but the Chanos is a much better reel. MUCH better!!!

Anyway, regardless of the slow start for the company, I'll soon own three of their reels and expect to get many years of service from them. They are a good reel and you guys can buy them with confidence.

Cheers,
Graeme

[William Ewels]

Sure, the anodising is not "cool": far from it. It's military in appearance (and in specification) but it's tough. That is exactly what I want from anodising in a saltwater reel.

That's good news Graeme ... might be a Wade or two in my future then :smile: The anodising on my silver Shilton SL6 has definitely not stood the test of time - it has numerous oxidation spots, tends to start on sharp edges of porting holes.

[Super_daav]

The reels look really good! Always nice to have some local competition. But there is so much more than having a good product. Sales, marketing and support being the almost 3 pillars. Off those 3 support is the one least considered until you have to wait 3 months for your reel to fixed / repaired / replaced (Not aimed a Wade reels, more a general comment) as it's been sent overseas or parts are not available etc. And that becomes even more of a hassle should the business close its doors (Again a general comment).

So I hope these boxes can all be ticked.

Lastly fly reels are seriously over-priced for the engineering that goes into them and I can only imagine that this is due low volumes...

[saflyfish]

The reels look really good! Always nice to have some local competition. But there is so much more than having a good product. Sales, marketing and support being the almost 3 pillars. Off those 3 support is the one least considered until you have to wait 3 months for your reel to fixed / repaired / replaced (Not aimed a Wade reels, more a general comment) as it's been sent overseas or parts are not available etc. And that becomes even more of a hassle should the business close its doors (Again a general comment).

So I hope these boxes can all be ticked.

Lastly fly reels are seriously over-priced for the engineering that goes into them and I can only imagine that this is due low volumes...

I totally agree with your last comment...for what the reel is,they are way way overpriced...it must be a volume thing(all fly reels)

[Andre]

Its more than a volume thing. The fact that they are overpriced, goes back to the earlier posts in this thread, where I argued that it is difficult for any manufacturer to compete effectively with the imported brands from the East. SA is a very expensive country to manufacture any goods in, and for reels that offer very little over the Chinese, Korean etc. productls by way of differentiation, I fear that the inevitable will happen. Even if marketing and support were very good, the price is positioning a mediochre product, way out of reach of the very price sensitive SA fly fishing market.

I totally agree with your last comment...for what the reel is,they are way way overpriced...it must be a volume thing(all fly reels)