Pflueger has always been an American company. It was founded in the US and has a long and storied history of being an influential part of American fishing history.
Despite being an American brand, Pflueger reels aren’t actually made in the USA anymore – this has been the case for quite some time now too! That doesn’t mean that Pflueger isn’t a true American company anymore though, it simply means that the brand has chosen to move production overseas in order to keep production costs down. This has helped them to sustain their big player status within the fishing reel industry for so long.
Pflueger reels are now made in China. While this might alarm some people due to the inaccurate perception that overseas production results in low quality, Pflueger actually does a very impressive job of making sure quality control is consistent and all the fishing reels manufactured meet extremely high standards.
Millions of anglers use Pflueger reels with little issue. With the company’s fishing reels proving to be very popular within the fishing community, Pflueger looks to have made the right decision when the brand moved its production process to China all those years ago.
History of Pflueger Reels
When Was Pflueger Founded?
Amazingly, Pflueger has a history dating all the way back to 1881 when Ernest F. Pflueger started a small fishing hook manufacturing business. This business was called Enterprise Manufacturing Company which would ultimately end up becoming the Pflueger we know today.
The first signs that Ernest F. Pflueger and his business partners were onto something big came with the release of the Comstock Flying Helgramite lure in around 1883. This was made using ideas and designs patented by one of the partners involved in the business – Harry Comstock.
As the 1900s got underway, Ernest F. Pflueger’s son – Ernest A. Pflueger took over his father’s business and made some pretty big (and successful) changes. The younger Ernest decided to evolve the original business of the Enterprise Manufacturing Company from a specialist hook and lure company into a fishing tackle manufacturing business. To help highlight the change in business direction, he also decided on a name change which was the next step toward the brand of today. The new name was E.A. Pflueger Company.
Just a few years into the 1900s, the first-ever Pflueger reel was released and set the business on its way to becoming one of the most popular fishing reel brands out there.
When Was the First Pflueger Reel Made?
The first fishing reel released by Pflueger was the Pflueger Supreme Baitcaster and was introduced all the way back in 1916.
It was made in Akron, Ohio in the original Pflueger factory. The Supreme Baitcaster proved to be a huge success. Baitcast reels were commonplace back then so the company focussed on these and released several equally successful fishing reels.
However, after decades of success with its baitcasting reel production, Pflueger released its first spinning reel in the form of the Supreme spinning reel series.
What Company Owns Pflueger?
Since 2004, Pure Fishing has owned Pflueger. Pure Fishing is becoming a hugely influential name in the fishing world with brands such as Abu Garcia, Penn, Berkley, Chub, and several others all coming under its ownership.
Even though Pflueger dates all the way back to 1881, it’s not actually the oldest of the reel manufacturers that Pure Fishing owns. The Hardy Brothers is a fishing brand formed in 1874 and is the longest-standing fishing brand owned by Pure Fishing.
While each brand is still operated as a separate entity, they all sit under the Pure Fishing umbrella.
Pure Fishing continues to acquire more and more fishing brands and is quickly becoming something of a dominant force for all things fishing. In fact, it already holds the title of being the world’s largest provider of fishing tackle. With some of the best products now under their control such as Penn reels, Abu Garcia reels, and a huge range of other fishing-related products – Pure Fishing will likely be an even bigger name in the fishing world for a long time.
Is Pfleuger a Good Brand of Fishing Reels
Pflueger makes some of the best fishing reels out there. A huge number of anglers use Pflueger reels and the vast majority of them seem completely satisfied with their choice.
With the internet making finding reviews of brands so easy, the Pflueger name has earned a reputation for making some highly impressive fishing reels.
Some anglers will dislike the fact that the company no longer manufactures its products in America and, instead, rely on Chinese factories to produce all of their fishing reels. However, the high-quality, smoothness, and reliability of all Pflueger reels should give you confidence that, just because your fishing reel is manufactured overseas, doesn’t make it any lower quality than one made in the USA.
As the Pflueger President XT Spinning Reel is slightly bigger than the President SP, it can be useful for landing larger predator fish such as bass, walleye, and pike.
It has 10 ball bearings which help create a very smooth reel that gives you plenty of lure control. This is a very strong Pflueger spinning reel so catching big fish shouldn’t be too much of an issue for you with the President XT.
- 10-bearing system
- Aluminum main shaft
- Aluminum pinion gear
As the Pflueger President XT Spinning Reel is slightly bigger than the President SP, it can be useful for landing larger predator fish such as bass, walleye, and pike.
It has 10 ball bearings which help create a very smooth reel that gives you plenty of lure control. This is a very strong Pflueger spinning reel so catching big fish shouldn’t be too much of an issue for you with the President XT.
- 10-bearing system
- Aluminum main shaft
- Aluminum pinion gear
The first Pflueger baitcast reel was released all the way back in 1916 but the Pflueger President XT is a modern-day baitcasting reel that many anglers love.
This could be a great choice for a more budget-friendly fishing reel but it still performs to very high standards. It can cast braided lines and offers great lure control.
- Magnetic Breaking System
- Aluminum Handle
- Rubber Cork Knobs
