Prior to 2009 I had not owned a custom rod, nor had I owned any Kistler rods for a variety of reasons; mainly a lack of exposure due to no local dealer, plus rumors of warranty issues scared me aware from internet purchases. But in 2009, I had the opportunity to fish with some early production ZBones / NFC HM blanks. I was very impressed with the build finish, rod actions, and sensitivity. After that experience I decided to take a chance on building a custom ZBone: 7’3” LE4MH to be used as my all purpose go-to rod. After just 8 wks, I had my first custom rod and I was not disappointed… to the contrary I was very impressed. That rod has become my “the one” rod. Within a month, I made my next custom order and began the process of selling my stock rods. I now own 9 Kistler Zbones and another on the way. I have not had any issues with the blanks (NFC by Gary Loomis) nor the quality of the components or assembly. I know that most of you custom builders can get very elaborate on the decorating which is great, but for someone like me, this has been a very pleasant entry into custom rods… I like the idea of having a say so on my builds. Yes, I know that the Kistler Custom Rod shop is somewhat limited, but I will say that if you don’t see it on the website, just call and Lance or Brion will probably be able to accommodate you. They have for me. Kistler recently posted the reliability report on the blanks:
http://www.kistlerrods.com/fishing-rod/ ... ge234.html
If you are new to custom rods and want to get your feet wet with the best blanks from NFC, you should give them a call. I have been very pleased. I have attached a few pics of my tastefully custom builds by Kistler.
JT.
- ZLE 2M w TD Sol
- ZBone Custom 2M Spin2 - Copy.JPG (38.22 KiB) Viewed 1270 times
- Custom Composite Z Cranker w MGX
- ZBone Custom Cranker w MGX copy.jpg (20.36 KiB) Viewed 1270 times
I bleed Orange and Blue.... Go Gators!
