The three major Japanese brands are like fish in water in China, in contrast, St. Croix, an American tough guy who is mainly engaged in Luya rods, seems quite lonely, and does not even have a Chinese translation name of Xindaya, let alone compete with domestic manufacturers. After all, this is still an era when the times create heroes, and domestic anglers pursue the speed and catch of Taiwan fishing methods, which makes Taiwan fishing rods prosperous for a long time and occupies the dominant position in the fishing rod category for a long time. With the passage of time, European and American anglers on the other side of the river have regarded environmental protection as the theme of fishing sports, giving birth to the lure fishing method.
Lure is a transliteration of Lure, which means bait fishing, which uses fake bait to simulate the movement of weak creatures to trigger the attack of large fish. Compared with traditional fishing methods such as table fishing, Lure equipment is simple and will not pollute the water quality due to feeding and nesting. It was not until 2007 that the lure fishing method was introduced in China, and due to the higher technical requirements for anglers, it has not yet formed a craze.
In the United States, there is no fishing fan who does not know St. Croix, and the winning general of ICAST, the world's largest fishing tackle exhibition, is the best proof of its strength. Since 2012, St. Croix's Legend series has won the Best Freshwater Rod or Best Seawater Rod in a row, and the Legend Glass has been a succession in 2016 and in the following two years.
St. Croix was awarded by ICAST for its dedication to the process of rod making. Its advanced models, such as the Legend Glass and Avid Series Inshore, feature a self-developed IPC process that further enhances the sensitivity of the rod shaft and makes the casting motion smoother and more actionable. St. Croix's first freshwater sub-pole to be crowned by ICAST, Legend Xtreme, uses ART reinforcement technology to keep the rod body lightweight and increase the strength of the rod body, allowing players to have the upper hand when fighting big objects.
Sometimes the improvement of the technology is limited by the physical and chemical properties of the material, and the solution provided by St.Croix is to optimize the material. Epoxy carbon fiber prepreg is used in the industry, and St. Croix was the first to introduce 3M Silica Matrix Nano Resin into the production of fishing rods. Nano-sized silica penetrates into the carbon fiber crevices along with the molten resin during heat treatment, and when cured, it creates a concrete-like effect and makes the rod more leathery. This material is not cheap, generally only used in advanced models or flagship products above 2000 yuan, users in the purchase of St.Croix Lure rod, where there is FRS marking, can be confirmed to be doped with 3M nano resin. The Legend's range of rods, including the X, Elite, Xtreme and many others, are equipped with FRS technology.
There are two kinds of lure rods: straight and gun, St. Croix does not favor one or the other, and whenever a straight rod is launched, it must be accompanied by a gun handle rod, which is also an industry practice. Generally, the guide ring hole of the straight handle is much larger than the handle of the gun, mainly for smooth casting, and the disadvantage is that it is not easy to control the orientation of the bait. This has to mention St.Croix's flagship Legend Xtreme, its main selling point is the SIC porcelain ring, which is made of silicon carbide reinforced ceramics developed by Fuji in Japan, compared with the alumina ceramic guide ring commonly used on the market, the friction coefficient is lower, and the diameter of the ring hole can be thrown smoothly by reducing the diameter of the ring hole, and its excellent heat dissipation further reduces the probability of disconnection and running fish, which is a rare lure weapon.
St. Croix's 3M Nano Resin Rods and other classic lines are manufactured in the U.S. with a 15-year warranty, while the lesser-known series are manufactured in Mexico with a five-year warranty. At present, St.Croix has not yet entered the Chinese market, and consumers can go to the official website or buy it through overseas shopping.
