Van Staal
 

FYI--- Just got some new VS's in. VSB250- $799.00 plus tax. WOW. I remember when I bought my first brandy new VS , a 300, in the early 80's for for $195.00. Boy, how things change!

youd think with the economy and prices being down on homes, cars, luxury items, electronics, fishing reels might come down in price as well.

Wow -

On the other hand Steve, I think crabbin' about the price of things is a sign - I told my wife last week that I'm starting to sound like my grandpa, grousing about how expensive stuff is anymore.

Besides, in terms of real dollars $800 is probably worth what $200 used to buy in the 80's...:hs:

All that having been said, I still can't get used to the high cost of low-livin' -

There is a price to be paid when you want something as nice as a VS reel. I hope to get my sometime next off season if all goes well.

Im still wondering why the prices of VS's that sat in a display from over the summer has increased in prices also.

Pliers have jumped too... should have gotten them a little sooner. $314 is a lot for a pair of pliers. What is the main difference between the VS pliers and the Accurate?

Your W-2...:hihi:

I've got Shimanos myself - 19.95 if memory serves...

$799 for a VS250 now, pretty much made up mind that I will get the Saltiga Z.

Circlehook, the VS250 might be cheaper than the bailed VSB250 that I mentioned above. I'll check.

Got any lefty VS's at the shop ?Looking for a lefty 150 no bail.

ADAM, I don't know. I'll check tomorrow for you. Will advice.

Hey Steve,
Working on the next BM for you. Hopefully done by the weekend.

Jamel, when can I get my hands on some of the custom redfins ive been hearing about. Let me buy a couple.

So help me understand this,
biggest recession in years
Luxury goods taking the largest dive in sales
VS outsourced to China to save costs......

they raise prices? Are people brainless?

the "man, I gotta have it" mentality that makes you come out of pocket.

apples and oranges ,, both pissa reels ,, Saltiga is not a swimming reel .. get the one that will serve you best is my plan ..

799.00 for a VS 250. Humm... How does that compare to a ZeeBass?
That is, dollar for reel, what has the better value? Food for thought.

vs250 is $769 vsb250(bailed) is $899, glad i got mine before the increase!

Thank you for the feedback cheferson.

I guess I just do not understand the continual price increases on the VS's. When I first hear of VS, they were $500.00. Generally speaking, pricing increases on a product are driven by inflation, rising cost of production, and new features or improvements. Inflation has not risen that fast. The major new feature is the bail. Has the cost of production really risen that much? Production costs are the first thing that companies try to reduce without sacraficing quality to increase their profit. Given the increasing competion to the VSs and the souring economy, I just do not understanding the VS business startegy with increasing the prices of the reels each year. Bottom line, VS is not the only option any more and the "value" (i.e. price to real ratio) is decreasing with each year the price increases for the same product.

NOTE: I have fished VSs. They are great reals. This comment is not about the product. But, about the annual price increases for the same product.

I got my 1st 3 seasons ago for $619 , now $739. +$120 in 3 years.

RIJimmy,

When were VSs outsourced to China?
Three seasons ago?

-Fish360

I believe I first read about it last year or the year before. It was confirmed on this site by the folks that sell them.

RIJimmy,

I found forum references to the time frame you mentioned.

The only "offical" litterature reference that I found is at:
http://www.tackletradeworldmagazine....id=97&Itemid=1

But, no date.

Thank you for the feedback.

I love there reels and I am a big fan, I really want a VS300 to add to the 2 I have
But to have a price increase that large and no upgrades to the reel seems senseless to me. I think it is totally unjustified and if they want to sell reels they need to rethink there market strategies. Why should I buy a brand new reel when I can get a used one much cheaper?

It's alot of money. I'm glad I bought the high end reels that I have but as I get older and have a little more need to make responsible decisions spending that much on tackle gets harder and harder. Unless you feel comfortable servicing these reels yourself I also think you need more than 1 if you fish alot. A few years ago I could have bought 3 for 1800 bucks and now that basically barely gets you two. Wow......you might as well move this thread over to the grumpy old pharts forum. I'm ashamed of myself for making this post. Who have I become. :eek:

Don't worry Luds, I'm in the same boat as you. I'm glad I bought mine when I was younger. I love my reels to death and will use them to the day I can't fish anymore but I'd struggle to justify buying one now, even with the hindsight of knowing how good mine have been to me for many years. $739 for a 250 just hurts...

Agreed, $739 for a 200!! I'm glad I broke down last year and got it for $669!

VS will have a new style coming out soon at a signifigantly lower price.

Word/rumor is that Penn will as well (next fall)....though how waterproof and at what cost remains to be seen.

Ive heard the same thing about Penn. I hope so.