TackleTour Exclusive: On the
Water with the New G.Loomis Conquest Rod Series
Date:
7/9/17
Tackle Type:
Rods
Manufacturer:
Shimano/GLoomis
Reviewer:
Zander
Introduction: The only way to really experience just what a new
rod has to offer is to use it, and we had the opportunity to not just check out
but actually fish the new Conquest rods in advance of ICAST this year. These new
premium rods combine much of what makes G.Loomis rods so popular among anglers,
including proven actions and design, only this time it is merged with Shimano's
latest blank technology to create a new series with some very interesting
performance attributes and a unique character.
Jointly Branded: Since Shimano's acquisition of G.Loomis the parent
company has allowed the well known American brand to continue to develop and
manufacture rods the only way that they know how, the G.Loomis way, blending
proven rod design with good old American manufacturing. This spawned popular
lines including the updated IMX, premium NRX, and even the affordable E6X
lineups. At the same time on the Shimano side of the rod house the company
focused on driving rod innovation utilizing the latest materials and advancing
blank technology.
A first real look at the new Conquest rods from
Shimano and G.Loomis
The time for the two teams to really integrate the best that both had to
offer came a year ago, with the introduction of the Asquith Fly Rods which were
designed by world casting champion Steve Rajeff and became the first G.Loomis rods built with Shimano's Spiral X
platform. Leveraging premium Shimano blanks these fly rods delivered
excellent power transfer from tip to hand, quick recovery, and increased
sensitivity.
Conquest on Conquest
The Asquith line represented an exploratory step into the future of
rod making for the G.Loomis brand, and in a few days at ICAST 2017 the company
will officially launch the new Conquest Series, which is also a blending of
technologies and design to create a new flagship line within the G.Loomis bass
rod offerings.
These are the first jointly branded bass rods in
the company's lineup
With significant contributions from both the G.Loomis and Shimano teams the new
Conquest rods will be the first jointly branded bass specific rods from the
company.
So what makes this a "jointly branded" product offering?
Let's start with the actions themselves which are straight out of the G.Loomis
proven MBR playbook. G.Loomis team members spent months in Japan helping design
these actions utilizing the wider array of blank materials made available to
them.
The rods get familiar G.Loomis and Shimano reel
seats
To manufacture the new Conquest rods the blanks are first rolled
in the Shimano factory using the company's proprietary Spiral X process combined with Hi-Power X
technology. Once these blanks are completed they are then sent to the G.Loomis
facility in Woodland, Washington to be hand finished into the final rods.
There are a total of eight casting and four spinning models in
the new lineup, all of which are one piece designs and feature fast actions.
