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Canadian made, let's make a list


Dave Bailey

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Brecks bought Williams about 20 years ago ... JUST after we signed gajillion dollar deal for the patented http://www.google.com.tw/patents?id=mdk4AAAAEBAJ&printsec=abstract&zoom=4&source=gbs_overview_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false - "DEEKER" tm ... it was developed right here in Scarborough (in my living room) :)

 

But you won't find it on any shelves (never quite got there)... Brecks wasn't interested in producing them (maybe the royalty agreement was too rich) not sure ... and not sure what they did with all the 50,000 units they had just produced - but to their credit they did offer to let me out of the contract if I bought all the stock from them... :tease:

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Well the Williams lures (Wobblers etc) were actually all being made in the 'Williams Gold refining company' - they actually gold and silver plated their lures in Fort Eerie plant back in those days (late '80s) ... and the assembly work was actually being farmed out to local ladies (to put the split rings and treble hooks on ... white bucket brigade cottage industry ... not sure how they do it today but I see no reason for them to change .. it was really working well and was profitable for them... loved that company !

 

In fact I'll never forget an incident with Dick Dimberio (who apparantly bought the Gold refining company when Brecks bought the lure company) ... Dick had organized a day on his boat with a writer from Ontario Out Of Doors magazine so they could do a feature article on the newly patented yet to be released 'DEEKER' ... my wife was actually DUE with our first child on that very day ... so of course I declined the offer ... Dick said "Jon, young fella - you have a lot to learn. You need to start em off like you want em to finish, and besides they never have them when they say they are going to. I'll meet you at the boat at 5:00am sharp don't be late." ... I went (with the blessing of my wife) and we caught 8 fish on the deeker/williams mooselook combo to 3 fish on all other lures combined (mostly Lure-Jensen dodger fly type combos)... big fish was on the DEEKER/Fly combo ...

 

 

But I have no idea if they still manufacture in Fort Eerie or if they moved elsewhere.

Edited by camillj
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Any still made there.... they're building Lunds and Princecrafts side by side in the US plant. Lund closed up Manitoba's production line just as I was ordering my 2007 Lund in October of 2006. Is Quebec's Princecraft line still operational?

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  • 5 weeks later...

Built there, but it's an American company.

 

Dave, what's your criteria for getting on the list?

 

An American owned company with their plant in Canada and all parts manufactured in Canada doesn't pass.

 

But a Canadian ownership with all manufactured parts in South East Asia or elsewhere is ok?

 

Just wondering cause we could probably modify this list pretty quick.

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I think with all of the blending of the worlds resources and the spreading of manufacturers names few products can pass the made in Canada litmus test. Most of the ones that can are either use resources that are local to the area or the craftsman are partial to the area. To take it further what is the difference between a Canadian made boat built with parts from another nation and a Canadian store with made in China lures? My thought is when you get past the grass roots shops then it becomes immaterial as to were it is hailed from if the money is going outside of Canada back to corporate or to purchase material from abroad. If you look at the company called Moen it is a USA company that has spent millions to bring jobs to Canada and to also bring a good product name for the average consumer. Teleflex is a company that hails from Canada but has factories in both the USA and Canada and the USA accounts for 65% of its sales. It produces a fine product for both sides to enjoy and brings home a nice profit in jobs and money but it falls short of your requirements to be listed as a Canadian made company.

 

 

Art

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Dave, what's your criteria for getting on the list?

 

What I would like is to have the entries as 'Canadian' as possible. I realise that it's very difficult (at least for me) to find out where the metal was mined, smelted into steel, and turned into the hook dangling on a Lucky Strike lure, but if the company is based here and the bulk of the manufacturing is done here then I'll include it. If it's based elsewhere, or if they manufacture off-shore, then no, I wouldn't consider it Canadian made. There are some things that are unavoidable, for instance if a bass plug was made from balsa, a wood that doesn't grow in Canada, then I'll make allowances.

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  • 10 months later...

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