06/06/2024
June Progress Update: We are moving along!
Hey everyone, we’re here with some exciting news. I know we’ve mostly been flying under the radar but we’re here and we’re marching forward.
I am going to preface this by stating that we do not have an exact estimate on shipping as our previous estimates have all been way off.
The one thing I can say for sure is that your rods will be delivered in time for the winter season!
Now onto what has been happening in the background.
From our manufacturing perspective, the WonderStrike has 3 main components: Reel, Sensor, and Rod Body.
Reel:
As per our last update: the reel has been finalized and our orders are submitted. We are sending payments this week and expect these to be delivered in 1-2 months.
Sensor:
We’ve partnered with a US steel manufacturer and have samples on hand. Our major roadblock is finding a local machinist or finding a specific machine to assist in cutting the sensor down to size. The difficulty with cutting metal is that we require smooth edges or else the sensor will be as sharp as a knife; we definitely do not want that! We are actively searching for local machinists and/or machines for the perfect cut. This is now our top priority since most everything else here is finalized.
Rod Body:
This includes all the plastic components, the handle, line guides, as well as the ThermaFoam. These components are all finalized with our manufacturer in China. We have had a ton of back and forth to ensure all of these components are constructed to the top level of quality.
After finalizing this order a few months ago we then ran into a problem when submitting it. Unfortunately, language barriers got in the way: our understanding was that we would be able to place a smaller order for our first batch of parts. What resulted was that our minimum order for these parts was in the magnitude of tens of thousands of dollars which we did not have available at that moment.
Financing Challenges:
Our minimum $order amount was more than double our kickstarter funding. At this point we did not have sufficient funds to place the order so we did what any aspiring entrepreneurs would do: we approached banks for business loans. This was all happening in April/May of 2024.
Financing Success:
After many applications, processes, and back and forth with banks, we have finally finalized a business loan! Again, this has been our primary focus for the last 2 months.
I’m excited to say that our funds were deposited in our bank account on May 29th. On June 4th we sent a deposit to our manufacturer to begin the rod body manufacturing process.
Current Timeline
Our manufacturer expects the rod body parts to be delivered by the end of September. This should be the last part to arrive to us here in Canada. The reels will be delivered before that date and we hope & expect the sensors to be completed before that as well.
Once we have all the parts, we will begin assembly and testing. This process should only take a few weeks.
This means we are hoping to begin shipping Kickstarter rewards in October/November of this year, just in time for the winter season!
A Note on Colors:
We will be upgrading everyone to HI-VIS colors. Unfortunately, due to results from our manufacturer and cost constraints, the HI-VIS colors resulted in a much better looking and feeling final product. The matte rod body did not live up to our standards as well as the standards of a few of our backers. Our surveys also showed that over 80% of you wanted HI-VIS colors.
You will be able to make your FINAL color selections when we send our FINAL survey out before shipping this year.
Closing Thoughts
I know this was a long read but we wanted to be transparent with our backers and give everyone a clear picture of what we are working on. We are still here and we’re putting in 110% effort to get the WonderStrike into your (and our) hands for this winter season!
Thank you all for your support
Gene, Gabe, and Igor.
Rozwin Outdoors.
You can view the same post on Kickstarter here:
Hey everyone, we’re here with some exciting news. I know we’ve mostly been flying under the radar but we’re here and we’re marching forward.I am going to preface this by stating that we do not have an exact estimate on shipping as our previous estimates have all been way off. The one thing I...
