California-based rod giant steaming ahead with new website, factory and processes
BY MIKE STEVENS
GARDENA – Back in June, Western Outdoor News published details on a quiver of new Calstar rods that were about to become available in the wake of their unveiling at the Pacific Coast Sportfishing (PCS) Show. As it turns out, that wasn’t all that was new at Calstar, and it has since become quite clear that a whole new era is underway for the legendary rod manufacturer.
That January prior to PCS, Chris Yamada took over ownership of Calstar, and that new batch of rods was just the beginning of huge changes at the company which will still maintain much of the core values and commitments that led to Calstar standing as the top saltwater rod manufacturer in the West if not beyond.
Last week, WON connected with Yamada for a chat about what’s happening at Calstar, and it’s pretty exciting stuff.
The most visible upgrade at this point is Calstar’s website (now found at Calstartackle.com), which was long overdue for a refresh. While it’s early in the process and a constantly-evolving beast, the new iteration is clean, cut-and-dry and easy to navigate. Content under the Our History tab kicks off with a nod to Calstar’s founders, Leon and Pat Todd who launched “Tackle Specialties” over 40 years ago.
“Of course, we all knew Leon when he was back at Sabre when I was at Art’s Tackle and going to graduate school,” said Yamada. “That was what we had back then, Sabre or Fenwick. When Sabre was sold , Leon started Calstar, and I gravitated immediately to Calstar, and that was all I fished. If I didn’t still think Calstar was the best rod, I wouldn’t have made this investment.”
Leon and Pat’s son, John Cameron, has been at CalStar from the beginning, and he remains in place as Operations Manager. He has over four decades of rod craftsmanship in his rear-view, and he has his eyes on every step of the process.
“All production departments report to John,” said Yamada. “He’s our key blank designer, knows the heritage, the mandrels and the patterns, and all that experience allows us to rapidly prototype new designs.”
Heading back to the all-new CalstarTackle.com, visitors will also notice a fresh new Calstar Logo which was designed in house by Chris’ wife, Marlene, who is also an avid saltwater angler and former sportboat crew member. But Calstar lifers should not fret, the classic eagle logo isn’t going anywhere, and it continues to deliver a strong message.
“Early on when we were at PCS, those stickers and shirts had a new cleaned up logo,” said Yamada. “Calstar Tackle is a new company, but we’re keeping the eagle on the rods, and we have a commitment to USA-made products. It (the eagle logo) is part of our heritage, and I feel like it conveys a USA-made product image. And we have thousands of rods out there with that logo, and we aren’t about to change that.”
There has also been a major change at the Calstar factory, specifically, it’s location, but it’s also built for maximum efficiency and increased capacity.
“Calstar moved into its own facility, owned by Calstar, to facilitate key investments including new equipment: tape machine, ovens, sanders, new additional mandrels and more, where all production areas are on epoxy flooring and segregated process rooms,” said Yamada. “Calstar’s original rolling table was fully rebuilt and was re-installed in our blank production room, joining another USA-made and freshly-rebuilt rolling table. The mandrel investment has also been significant here. We had some, but we added more to increase capacity.”
Yamada told WON that Calstar has two primary missions: to produce the finest saltwater fishing rods and blanks on the planet, and support the fishing community in the USA. He said Calstar believes in USA products, USA jobs and veterans, and they will follow these commitments through their actions and investments.
New model development will continue according to Yamada, who is stoked with the popularity and success of the recently-released glass rail rods that hit a very attractive price point.
Overall, it’s going to be pretty cool to keep tabs on this new Calstar era, starting with fresh-baked CalstarTackle.com that’s set to feature a constant evolution over the next year and beyond.
“This is our first iteration; we’re going to be updating it regularly,” said Yamada.
