Sebille lure disappointment

[Back In Black]

I bought 4 of the Sebille 150mm high speed trolling jerk shads for about $70 each. Because I do a few runs out to the Barwon Banks & The Hards, I wanted something to troll back at a reasonable speed. Was recommended these as you can drag them at 18-20 knots. The orange one accounted for a 17.5 kg wahoo a few weeks ago, the only fish it has ever caught, & the front treble broke off, the ring breaking away from the fibreglass, but at least I got the fish. Yesterday, coming back from the Hards, the mahi coloured one got hit by something which ripped the rear trebles out. The teeth marks are quite visible where it got hit. I am very disappointed that something so expensive are so poorly made. They looked great, had very heavy trebles fitted, but can't handle much punishment. I would have though the rear treble would be wired through the body. Anyone else had any issues with these?
Tony

[Midnight]

I have considered these lures also, but I am yet to buy any. How fast we're you trolling them and how much drag did you have set?

The Mahi colored one sure is a nice looking lure.

Cheers,
Myles

[Back In Black]

Myles,
We run them anywhere up to 18 knots, which seems awfully fast, but they were designed for, & at that speed have a beautiful action. As you can imagine, there is a bit of drag set to stop line peeling of at that speed. I run them on 100lb mono, as I was told if a fish hit them going one way at 20 knots, & I'm going the opposite direction doing 20, I better have something solid with lots of give. They are beautiful looking lures no doubt, but a bit dear to have problem with every time something touches them.
Tony

[Sevric]

I would be disappointed in any lure i purchased regardless of brand or reputation for $70 that did not have heavy duty wire connections built in. The lures you have purchased had a designed application of high speed blue water trolling where fish have teeth and power, no wonder you are a little disappointed. In my opinion you should contact either the point of sale or Sebile themselves perhaps both, and make your disappointment known.

[randell]

I saw the designer on TV last year, he was out here promoting the new lures. I think he was french.
http://www.sebile.com.au/
Leave your story at their website......
randell

[Midnight]

Thanks Tony,
Yeah mate, I would be into Sebille about it. Not good enough, especially given how expensive they are.
I can't see myself buying any after seeing this. It will be interesting to see what they say about the failures.

Cheers,
Myles

[hooknpull]

Wow! I have bought a few of these and haven't struck this problem. Mine has caught quite few already so maybe you just got a bad batch. Not that that could be much of a possibility. Let them know, they should replace them.

[clevelandv8]

yeah i wouldn't bag them out too much till you contacted them too..... $70!!!!! theyll give you something for the info, but not if you bag them out on thier website!

[Floating Rib]

Hi Tony, i was actually given one of these but forgot to even give it a try trolling on Monday, reasonable approach should see them come to the party i imagine as they should want good feedback, in reality if they are a decent company they would be asking for yours back to inspect.
I have used one of the smaller Sebile vibes in white with the red blood like fluid running in it to nice effect on the lizards, of course no real strain to show up any weaknesses. Keep us posted as like the others said if they dont stand by their product we wont buy them.

[Midnight]

I once had an issue with a Halco Laserpro 190, I just couldn't get it to run right. I rang Halco about it, and had a great chat regarding all facets of running their lures. Tim, I'm pretty sure it was, said send it back, reply paid, so they could have a look at it, and they sent me a new one. I was very surprised at such great service.
I had always been a fan of Halco lures as they had caught me a lot of fish, but after the great follow up when I had an issue with one lure, they will certainly have my continued support.

Hopefully Sebile will respond in the same way.

Cheers,
Myles

[hookinin]

Hey Tony i think hooknpull could be onto something. He says his have caught quite a few already, maybe you just aren't catching enough fish:P
Cheers Gaven

[macspotty]

Mate, you have to go the SALT & SUN series in the SEBILE BONGA JERK SERIES , they have the full wire assembly inside linking the attachment points & are filled with foam with heavy duty hooks to handle brutal attacks.The colour shown of your lure isn`t in the salt & sun series, I`ts in the standard bonga jerk series which is`nt designed for the blue water series. Have a look on there web site for the salt & sun series you will see the difference.

[Back In Black]

Gaven,
Thats a given, as I know I am not catching enough fish! I'll definitely forward the images & if required the lures to Sebille to see what they think.
Macspotty-I'll look at the Salt & Sun series, as I do like their gear. These seem to be so strongly built, I thought they would handle anything.
Sevric- I would have assumed they be hard wired right through for that price.
Randell-Thanks for the address. Hows Bundy treating you?
Clevelandv8- haven't bagged them yet, but will scream from the hilltops if they ignore me!
Midnight- Good service from Halco, so hopefully I'll get a similar response.
Thanks for the feed back guys,
Tony

[randell]

Back in Black,
Leave tomorrow for Bundy, just changed my addresses early.
Can't wait, so much fishing gear............... to try out on the estuaries..
Good luck with Sebile
randell

[Back In Black]

Guys,
I just left a detailed email on the Sebille website. The distribution centre is only in Banyo, so I offered to drop them in to inspect. Whilst on the webpage, I checked out the detail on the Bonga Jerk Shad, & they claim to be wired right through?? Don't see how that is possible if trebles keep breaking off?? If I don't get a response by end of day trading, I won't be a happy man!
I will keep you posted as to the response.
Tony

[Back In Black]

Macspotty,
Just did some more looking & found the box the last lure came in, & it says "Salt & Sun" series. Got back onto the webpage & found I have the Salt & Sun Bonga Jerk 165 FL which is the mahi mahi coloured one. They call it Natural Dorado, so yes, I do have the blue water series, & I can see where the wire has broken away.
Tony

[Tim Hutchison]

Guys,
I just left a detailed email on the Sebille website. The distribution centre is only in Banyo, so I offered to drop them in to inspect. Whilst on the webpage, I checked out the detail on the Bonga Jerk Shad, & they claim to be wired right through?? Don't see how that is possible if trebles keep breaking off?? If I don't get a response by end of day trading, I won't be a happy man!
I will keep you posted as to the response.
Tony

I think you will find it is Nomad fishing charters and I am sure you will walk out with two or more brand new lures they are very helpful guys

[Back In Black]

Hi Tim,
Are Nomad the distributors for Sebille? They might be helpful but they have not responded to my email!
Tony

[Tim Hutchison]

100% sure google address they are the same unit 12/25 Depot st Banyo

[Aussie123]

Warehouse /
Head office: Unit 12/25 Depot Street Banyo,
QLD 4014. Australia
Phone: (07) 32568780 Email: info@sebile.com.au

[Back In Black]

Thats the address I had & where the email was sent. Trust me, you'll see another comment from me Monday should I not get a reply.
Tony

[macspotty]

Back in Black,Thanks for the feedback. It dosn`t sound real good for there claims on the build, especially at $60 to $70 A pop. The real test is going to be on what they do next, there after sales back up. Please get back to me on what there going to do, I`d be extremly disappointed if they palmed it off .

[Back In Black]

Macspotty- you & me alike.
Tony

[Brent_P]

$70???!!! I bought a Sebile Bonga Jerk 125 Salt & Sun Sea Chrome from the US Tackle Direct last year, and I'm glad I only paid $16.99 for it, when they were on sale. I bought it because, like you, I thought it would be good for trolling between spots at high speed, but I've never gotten round to trying it. Now, I don't think I will. Thanks for the heads up.

Let us know what response you get and good luck.

Brent.

[Stuart]

Faaark Thats a bit of a mark up then. I would be pised to if I spent $70 only to see the trebles go walk about.

[Back In Black]

Got a reply from Sebile today via email apologising for not contacting me last week. The sales rep will give me a call when he is back in the office in the morning. I'm in Brisbane tomorrow, so I'll save him a call & drop in with the offending lures. Be very interesting to see the response & what their after sales service is like. I'll let you know tomorrow night as I won't be back till late afternoon
Tony

[Back In Black]

Dropped into Sebile in Banyo this morning with the 4 lures I had, the 2 stuffed ones, one that is showing signs of corrosion & one that hasn't got wet yet, just to show them the stages of collapse. Young bloke by the name of Glanville (yes, he wondered what he had done as a kid to deserve that) came & spoke to me. Very understanding, as I am not the first to have this problem, to the point Sebile have stopped making that model & are bringing in a new model early next year. The difference is instead of being wired through, they are using a steel plate right through to hold everything together, & they are doing them in a 165mm & a 215mm size. He replaced the 2 on the spot with the same model as that is all they have until the new arrivals. He admitted corrosion was the cause, & suggested very nicely in future when I come home, soak them in a bucket of warm water to break the salt down. I rinse them off, but this is obviously not enough. I suggested Saltaway, but he said not necessary.
Juna was with me & she couldn't help herself so she bought 2 new bling lures & some heavy duty 7/0 & 8/0 hooks (haven't asked her what she is chasing with those) Claire gave me a Nomad Fishing promotional pack & we spent another $112 with them, purely because they were great to deal with, very helpful & I can only recommend if passing, drop in to the retail shop in Banyo, as they have a brilliant range on show. Found it a bit hard to get Sebile lures up Sunny Coast way, so I will definitely go back.
All in all, they turned a very negative situation into a positive experience- something many business' could learn from.
Well done Sebile & Nomad!!!
Tony

[Horse]

Its great to see they stand behind their product. I did not realise that they had a shopfront retail outfit. I thought it was all online. Oh well another spot to relieve me of my hard earned.

[deepfried]

Great outcome and thanks for sharing it with us. Glad they have fixed the fault because I have been going to get some of these lures for a long time. They were hyped so much but very few stores stocked this model so I was suspect of them so never went ahead and got them. When the new ones come out a couple will be added to my lure collection.

[Sevric]

It is always good to have a good news story. I think well done to all.

[Back In Black]

I agree Sevric, thats why I gave them a good rap. Big believer in shouting peoples praise, but equally, I would have bagged them from the roof tops if I was ignored.
Tony

[macspotty]

Good `o, mate good result. I canceled a order I had for a Bonga upon hearing of your plight, I`ll be now reordering with that result you had. Thanks for the info.