Which rod is better for fishing a G Loomis or a St. Croix?
I heard from a person who has been selling G Loomis and St. Croix for over twenty years that a St. Croix is going to be better than a G Loomis now because Shimano bought G Loomis and is using their blanks and sticking a G Loomis sticker on it. He said that G Loomis is not what it used to be and St. Croix would almost be the equivalent of an old G Loomis and I would be happier with that?! I was wondering what anyone thought on this and if I should go with a St. Croix or not? The rod will be casting for freshwater lakes and saltwater flats.
Both rods are very good. Both offer technique specific rods for fisherman. Both have excellent warraties. But only one is a G Loomis. Yes they cost more but you made no mention of price in your question. If price is not so much an issue you might want to look into Kistler Helium rods. Ultimately the "best" is determined by which performs best in the hands of the fisherman and their style of fishing. I think maybe your friend was misinformed about G Loomis using Shimano blanks. They don't.
IMHO the Shimano Crucial series of rods are better than the St. Croix Elite series.
Considering price as a factor, the rods made by B&R Outlaw rods, All Star Rods, Airrus Rods are great products, very affordable and have very much to offer as well.
I hope this gives you a few things to consider that will help you.
Edit:
This ownership of G Loomis by Shimano Corp. is not new news as it took place in May of 1997. As for corporate takeovers in the outdoor goods industry it happens, usually to the good of all parties. For instance, the Jarden Corp. (parent Corp. of Coleman Industries) just took over Pure Fishing Inc. which is composed of Abu-Garcia, Berkley, Fenwick, Johnson, Mitchell, SevenStrand, Spiderwire, and Stren. It will be safe to assume that Berkley Trilene, Spiderwire and Stren will remain competitors.
Good Fishin'
St. Croix is a great rod too.
A G. Loomis GL3 would be far better then one of the St. Croix Triumph series.But if you are looking at the St. Croix Legend Inshore, those are pretty nice high end rods and could be concidered in the same league as the IMX/GLX rods.
The "crusher" recoil guides are great feature for those that are slightly rougher on their rods... But with a high end rod you should be taking really good care of it anyhow.
As for the Shimano buyout, it has not effected G.Loomis at all from what I have seen other then them revamping their softgoods line.
I sell both and I fish both but I am slightly biased to the G. Loomis. Returning a Loomis and using the "Expeditor service" gets you a new replacement rod for around $55.00, no questions asked. St. Croix's warranty is very good also but I have seen them charge more then that for a repair/replacement.
Look at the warranty, then decide.
You might also want to check out a new rod ( other than fly rods ) company named Powell http://www.powellco.com/.
I have used both G Loomis and St Croix, I only have one G loomis left and now have mostly Powell and H & H rods http://hhfishingrods.com/home.php?cat=2&sort=price&sort_direction=0 with a few Falcons left.
St. Croix Mojo