Wade’s
skills in rod design
and engineering later helped to
launch premium rod brands Seeker and Sage, both still going strong today.
It’s taken about two years to take Cousins Tackle from an idea to where it is today. Before they could even think about building their first rod, the cousins first had to build an entire factory. Touring the rod- building portion the facility (Cousins also makes vinyl lure skirts and offshore trolling lures), you see piece after piece of specialized equipment. Some of this has been acquired from other rod building operations and modified to meet Cousins’ requirements. For example, the company’s 13-foot tall blank curing oven, which Wade and Bill extensively re-wired with sophisticated electronics and controls. This oven is capable of curing up to 1,000 rods per day — giving Cousins plenty of room to boost production as demand grows. Other equipment throughout the fac- tory has been fabricated from scratch. And from what we could see, there was plenty of building still going on.
During our tour, we saw special- ized machinery at every turn. From mechanized blank rolling tables, to cellophane wrapping machines, to mandrel pullers, to drum sanders, to two entire rooms of rod “dryers,” where the rods are con- stantly rotated for a smooth appearance and even cure of the final finish. And, of course, there are the count- less precision- ground steel mandrels that line the walls of the Cousins
factory, each
used as the “core” for a
particular rod or series of rods. If you’re getting the idea that starting a rod company is equip- ment and capital intensive, you’re right. According to CEO Buchanan, the company had to invest an undis- closed seven-figure amount before they could even build their first rod.
Building a fishing rod requires many handcrafted steps, as well, making people just as important as machinery. Cousins brought in some of the region’s most experienced rod-building craftsmen, including several whom they’d worked with before. For ex- ample, we met Blank Department Supervisor Phalla Thach, who worked with Bill and Wade at Seven- strand and helped Cunningham start Seeker Rods back in 1989. We were also introduced to Wrapping Department Supervisor Sonia Freire Carrera, who has been perfecting her rod crafting skills for more than 20 years and has helped train a new team of rod-wrapping professionals. Sonia’s son Miguel Car- rera is Cousins’ Rod Assembly Supervisor. His job is to make sure that every rod — whether it’s meant for bass or bluefin tuna — is flawless in its construction
“Bass fishing has always
driven innovation in
the fishing tackle
industry,” said
Cunningham. “Staying
ahead of the changes
and on the cutting
edge of rod
development is a
great challenge
for designers like
myself. But it’s
this challenge that
fuels our passion.”
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