Gary Loomis Edge Rods

[Southcoast Bassin]

Hello
Can anyone offer some insight it to the comparison to the GLX and NRX lines of GLoomis?

I love my GLX MBR 843 and 844 rods ...as well as my 854 JWR and 852S NRax rods.

How do these Edge rods compare ? They are a hell of allot less money and they are running some great specials this week ....
Let me know your thoughts?
Thanks and Tight Lines !

[spec]

Thought they looked good as well. Had a few questions about 3 weeks ago and contacted their customer service. Received an auto reply that they would respond. No word yet. To be fair, I sent same to St Croix a week ago. Nothing from them either.

[Southcoast Bassin]

Thanks ... There must be some guys here that have fished with them ...
Lots of the actions look very similar to NRX and GLX rods.

[jbabin76]

I think you need to call them directly to find out which blanks they are using in the builds. NFC rolls High modulus, Intermediate Modulus, and Low Modulus blanks... If they are building the black widow lineup with the high modulus blanks, then maybe it's worth it provided you like the offset reel seat. Blanks would be traditional Loomis action in the MBR lineups. One thing I've seen is low resale as many don't understand Edge rods and quite frankly the customer service and response from NFC along with website and information is subpar (historically). Just research rod builders experience with them. I'm not convinced the support structure is in place for the business to offer great customer service. They cater to rod builders at best with blank production.

Blanks are great... provided they are at least intermediate modulus. I've got many Kistler rods which use NFC IM and HM blanks, and some using the latest and greatest XRay blanks... which in terms of sensitivity is on par with NRX.

I will add I had a lower end Edge rod previously... I believe it was a line of rods when they sponsored Cliff Pace... It was the lower modulus blanks and I wasn't impressed. The build quality was definitely there, but didn't care for the blank and the reel seat used on that particular line wasn't comfortable at all (not the offset used in the black widow).

[Southcoast Bassin]

Thanks for your insight...
I don’t think it’s worth making any changes.
I absolutely love the action of the new GLX MBR rods ...
The reel seat to me sounds like a deal breaker...
Appreciate your help..
Thank you

[ThomasD]

Back in Oct. '18 I ordered a Delta rod from them. 8 weeks later it showed up broken in half from the cheap rod tube it was sent in. I called and got someone on the phone the same day. He gave me an email to send pictures to and said they would send out a replacement. Aside from being broken in half it looked to be a surprisingly nicely built rod for $149 so I went ahead and ordered a second one. Two months later and over a dozen attempts to get ahold of someone on the phone and email I finally connected. This time the lady I spoke with knew nothing of my broken rod and had no update on the second rod I ordered. After all the confusion was cleared up I think it was another 6 weeks before I got a replacement for the broken one. This one looked to be assembled by a drunk monkey. Lower rod handle was glued on crooked and the sharp edges right below the reel seat sliced my hand open. Instead of even bothering with customer service I sanded down the sharp edges of the graphite handle. A few weeks later the second rod finally showed up. This one had two eyelets on the rod guides glued over. Took it to a local guy to have them replaced. I've wasted more on less in my life by I will never buy another rod from them going forward.

[jbabin76]

Unfortunately there are a lot of similar stories out there.... I really don't understand it. Either roll blanks and distribute or be a rod company... they are muddied up somewhere in the middle.

[1nutinthewater]

Check out their page on the Better Business Bureau website- A grade of "F" for numerous complaints. They even removed the reviews section of their Facebook page after hundreds of complaints.
Another disgruntled buyer here. Good luck getting any response from them.

[fishnhams]

I have 2 BWS 733, 2 BWC 734, 1 BWC 735, and 1 BWS 711. Before these rods I had fished mostly different models of the Loomis IMX pro line. The edge rods are very nice and I bought them all at a large sports show discount. They are my favorite rods to use but I doubt I will buy any more. Their customer service is awful and I assume I will be on my own if a warranty issue ever comes up. To sum it up, they have a great product but a screwed up company and I would look towards other options unless you are okay with the risk.

[ttranger]

Back in Oct. '18 I ordered a Delta rod from them. 8 weeks later it showed up broken in half from the cheap rod tube it was sent in. I called and got someone on the phone the same day. He gave me an email to send pictures to and said they would send out a replacement. Aside from being broken in half it looked to be a surprisingly nicely built rod for $149 so I went ahead and ordered a second one. Two months later and over a dozen attempts to get ahold of someone on the phone and email I finally connected. This time the lady I spoke with knew nothing of my broken rod and had no update on the second rod I ordered. After all the confusion was cleared up I think it was another 6 weeks before I got a replacement for the broken one. This one looked to be assembled by a drunk monkey. Lower rod handle was glued on crooked and the sharp edges right below the reel seat sliced my hand open. Instead of even bothering with customer service I sanded down the sharp edges of the graphite handle. A few weeks later the second rod finally showed up. This one had two eyelets on the rod guides glued over. Took it to a local guy to have them replaced. I've wasted more on less in my life by I will never buy another rod from them going forward.

Wow - good to know as I was tempted to order one of their Delta series rods that are on sale. Sad that a guy like Gary Loomis would allow his company to offer this kind of crappy service.

[Fishin is life]

Another disatisfied customer here. I ordered and paid for a rod. 2 months later, no rod. Had tried calling and emailing multiple times without so much as a peep. I finally found a page of theirs on facebook and started bashing them until i managed to get somebody to respond. They said my rod was “being built”. Another month goes by with no rod. Back to the facebook bashing until they responded. My rod was supposed to have been shipped. Piss on that, at that point i just wanted a refund. After some back and forth i was finally able to get my refund and asked not to run their business into the ground on social media anymore. They deleted all of my comments on facebook (none of which were rude, lewd, or disrespectful). I will continue to strongly advise anyone not to purchase a rod from this company

[1nutinthewater]

Another disatisfied customer here. I ordered and paid for a rod. 2 months later, no rod. Had tried calling and emailing multiple times without so much as a peep. I finally found a page of theirs on facebook and started bashing them until i managed to get somebody to respond. They said my rod was “being built”. Another month goes by with no rod. Back to the facebook bashing until they responded. My rod was supposed to have been shipped. Piss on that, at that point i just wanted a refund. After some back and forth i was finally able to get my refund and asked not to run their business into the ground on social media anymore. They deleted all of my comments on facebook (none of which were rude, lewd, or disrespectful). I will continue to strongly advise anyone not to purchase a rod from this company

Ditto- that was also they only way I was able to reach anyone. They no longer have a review section on FB after hundreds of unhappy folks.
They have found ways to mute the unhappy customers rather than address their issues...............

[jbabin76]

Mr. Loomis must have just been the technical genius behind the brand GLoomis, because ever since starting NFC and Edge it's been nothing but poor customer service.

[rfdong]

Just do a search on edge rods. I’ve posted my issue with them somewhere here too. BAD company, ended up tossing my broken rod away.

[2eachhisown]

My experience with Edge Rods is as follows:

I bought a 7'MF First Strike spinning rod from a discount store for $125 about 4 years ago. I was very happy with the rod. The build quality was good and the rod fished well above the price point I paid. It was built on the IM blank and was an MBR model. I fished it side by side with the previous model IMX 802s and the IMX Pro 803s and it measured up very well. It was about a 1/2 oz heavier, but balanced about an inch closer to reel seat (without reel) than the IMX's, it was a little stiffer but also a touch more sensitive than the 802s and a touch less than the 803s. In my hands the IMX Pro JWR's are noticeably more sensitive than the previous Gen. Overall I was very happy with that rod.

The second rod I bought, about 3 years ago, it was used (I think I paid about $190) and it was a Black Widow 705 MBR (7' MH F) casting rod. I had very high expectations for this rod (at the time the BW was their flagship model) given my experience with my First Strike, but overall it was good, but didn't blow me away. The rod quality was good, but it was mislabeled (I knew this when buying), it was heavier than the IMX 843c MBR, but balanced a bit better. Although it was a BW (Edge's Flagship at that time) it was built on the same IM blank so the sensitivity, like my First Strike, was very similar to the IMX MBR. It felt a little stiffer so the tip didn't load quiet as well (for my taste) when casting. Casting distance & accuracy were a little better with my IMX but fairly comparable and the BW felt slightly more powerful (may have been because it was stiffer). The IMX was a hair better at keeping fished pinned in my experience but both rods were very good in this area. In the end I would suggest saving money and buying the First Strike MBR casting model if you were to choose between the two. Granted I never fished the casting MBR First Strike, but given my experience with the spinning version I think it would be very close to the Black Widow version. As a side note I believe the original Black Widow MBR's were built on the NFC HM blank, but I read Gary Loomis preferred the IM blank for MBR's so they changed to the IM. Other Black Widow models use the HM blank.

My third purchase was 1 year ago and it was the Silver Widow 732 SJR (7'3" L XF) spinning rod. I bought this directly from Edge Rods during their annual sales event (like the current one) and I think I paid low to mid $300's for the rod (I believe they raised the price since I purchase it). I bought this model after consulting with Edge Rods. I communicated with them via e-mail (Alex this was the gentleman who responded) answered all my questions the same day, so I would say their communications were excellent. I received the rod about 6 days after ordering it so that was great also. I bought the rod to try the new LMX X-Ray blank and to specifically compare it to my NRX 872s.

The workmanship was good overall. The Good: The blank was very clean, the guides perfectly aligned, wrapped great, and no excess epoxy/glue. The Bad/So-So: The reel seat and nut feel cheap (plastic) and the decorative wraps on the handle look like they have some small imperfections (this is strictly cosmetic). Honestly I'm not the biggest stickler on cosmetic details, what I really care about is how it fishes, so others may have different opinions.

Compared to the NRX 872s the SW weighs 1.25 oz more than my NRX (5.1 oz vs 3.85 oz) , but it balances a full 3" closer to the center of the reel seat (without a reel). When fishing rods side by side I like to spend at least 100+ hours fishing them together, unless of course one is head and shoulders above the other. Unfortunately I didn't get as much time on the water last year as I would have liked so my time testing equipment was limited. Because of this I would say the following comparison is more of a initial observation than a definitive opinion. Both rods had Tatula Lt 3000 reels with 10lb braid and 8lb leaders. I fished light jigs (Ned/Hair/Walleye (Round Heads),...) with finesse plastics. I targeted for LM, SM and Walleye.

Casting: The SW (like the other Edge rods) felt a bit stiffer than the NRX, but casting was effortless with both rods and both really launched the lures incredible distances. When switching back and forth I did have to adjust my casting form to account for the difference in taper/tip. Accuracy was excellent with both, I might give a slight edge to the NRX, but that may come down to the type of tip (stiffer vs softer) you prefer.

Sensitivity: The SW has amazing sensitivity. This is the first time when I fished a rod side by side with an NRX that I couldn't determine the NRX as the clear winner. I will need more time fishing these side by side, but whether it was bottom contact or light bites the SW has that "electric shock" feel that I had only felt with the GLX/NRX JWR's. Bottom line: the X-Ray blank in the SJ model is the real deal. I was informed the SJ models were more sensitive which is why I chose this rod. I can't speak to the Edge MBR models, but for me there is a fairly significant difference in the sensitivity between G. Loomis JWRs and their MBRs. I think the Edge SJR are kind of like the G Loomis JWRs.

Action/Power: Despite the fact the NRX872 is a Med and the SW 732 is listed as a Light power the lure rating are similar as was the true power. Alex at Edge walked me through this and that gave me the confidence to purchase despite the "Light" rating. I always look at lure rating when considering a rods true power. Action: the NRX is X-Fast and the Edge listed as Fast, but I think the SJ models are on the "faster side of fast" so I felt the the action was very similar between the two. Alex helped me with this too.

Landing Ratios: Both rods were fantastic at keeping fished pinned. Whether it was walleye, largemouth or hard charging smallies, (even landed a 41" Musky on the SW while fishing a Ned rig) they both had fantastic landing ratios, I would say they were equal in this regard.

Other: The NRX has a split grip with cork, the SW has the Edge full carbon handle. This to me comes down to personal preference. I don't have a strong opinion as I own both, but if I were to pick I prefer full handle rods primarily because the extra weight in the handle provides better balance (all else being equal), but that is just my opinion. Carbon or cork again is personal preference. Customer Service: I have no complaints with either company, but obviously you can't ignore what many have said with regard to problems with Edge. Warranty, brand recognition and resale value would all have to go to the NRX.

Given my experience with Edge and my SW SJR732 rod I decided to purchased the SW 736 SJR casting rod this weekend. Again all my emailed questions were answered the same day and they were very thorough. I hope to run this rod up against the NRX893, NRX894, ZBONE734, and the FMJ next year.

To be clear I am not doubting the bad experiences expressed by others and I don't know how long ago they occurred, but I can say in my very limited experience over the last year I received very good customer service from Edge rods. What I can say with certainty is that the Silver Widow SJR rods and X-Ray SJR Blanks are among the most sensitive blanks I have ever fished.

Again, just one man's opinion. I hope this helps for those looking at Edge rods.

[droy]

@jprovencher80 has had some crazy interactions with Edge. Both positive and not so positive. He also did a factory tour of their place, which was very interesting and kind of explains the lack of engagement and or ability to contact a human being. I'll leave it up to him to share here is he wishes to do so.

I personally own 1 Edge rod that I bought direct, and had to wait quite a long time for it. It took a few phone calls after several weeks, but it made its way to me. Luckily I've never had to contact them since lol

[willwork4fish]

I can't speak to the finished quality of Edge rods as I've never had one in my hands but I can speak to their blank quality and customer service, I've built on 30 or 40 of them over the past 3 or 4 years. To answer your question first though I'd say that the blank characteristics are not in the same class as NRX but closer to GLX.

NFCs highest line of blanks are the HMs and Xrays, I have rods that I personally fish from both and IMO the HMs are more sensitive though some will say the Xrays are more sensitive. The blanks themselves are both extremely light in weight. I have experienced several instances of their "high quality" blanks to have what I would call quality defects. Many are not acceptably straight from my perspective. I would guess that their finished rods get the pick of the batches but don't know. The amount of time for delivery is also unacceptable. I've waited 3-4 months in most cases to receive an order. I've also gotten incorrect blanks and had blanks substituted without my knowledge. When I did get a substitution it was always for a "higher" level blank (IM for Delta) which is great unless the Delta was specifically ordered to see what they're all about.

They run "sales" very often. I think that's mostly the case because I can't imagine anyone would pay their retail price after experiencing the length of time it takes to get one and the hit or miss quality. When I buy them I get 8 or 10 blanks at a time basically just to have in stock because I certainly don't expect a customer who wants a rod to have to wait 4+ months to get one.

Here's an example of a real common rod someone would want built...just a 7' MH 1/4-3/4, 10-17lb line

NFC MB705HM retail prices is $266.76 on sale right now for $93.37...sounds like a great deal, and at the sale price it's not bad...as long as it shows up straight.

I could get a St Croix SCVMHF for $190 retail, Point Blank PB701MHF for $163 retail, Phenix K2 TX715H for $239 retail or a Rainshadow Immortal IMMC72MH for $100.

If someone said I'd like you to build me a high end rod right and I'd like it in a month I'd pick one of those and it would be just as nice if not better than the NFC and I could reliably deliver it to them in a reasonable amount of time. Also I've never had problems with Croix, PB, or Phenix not being straight or at least acceptably straight.

Having said all of this, I am waiting on a NFC order. I haven't ordered from them in 2 years but I've heard that things have improved. I ordered on 11/24. I called earlier this week for a status and they had 2 of the blanks I wanted available. I can say though that I called, someone answered at is at least trying to help me. I've pretty much just accepted that I'll get em when I get em. I just want them to be straight.

[spec]

Over 6 weeks with no response. How does a company go out of business? One customer at a time.

[2eachhisown]

[QUOTE=willwork4fish;11552412]

NFCs highest line of blanks are the HMs and Xrays, I have rods that I personally fish from both and IMO the HMs are more sensitive though some will say the Xrays are more sensitive.

Interesting. The feedback I received showed a preference for the Xray blank over the comparable HM blank, although I only know a handful of people that had fished both with comparable models (SJ Fast/X-Fast). Have you fished similar Xray and HM blanks in the SJ fast and/or X-Fast models or are you comparing MB models?

I'm asking because I may need to borrow an HM SJ X-Fast model rod to test against my XRay. Thanks.

[Southcoast Bassin]

I’ll say this .... After posting this

I’ve heard enough that I wouldn’t touch these rods ...
Can’t believe the amount of customer service and warranty issues
Really a shame