# Just wasted my money on another avery product



## Hoopermat (Dec 17, 2010)

So it is time to grass the boat for the new season. I pulled off all my old grass and purchased some avery real grass. This stuff is junk. It is very loosely woven and is very brittle. I have always used fast grass but thought I would try this as it is less money. 

Guess I'm ordering some fast grass tonight.


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## Pumpgunner (Jan 12, 2010)

It's a sad fact that pretty much anything that says Avery on it is guaranteed to be crap. I don't understand how they have such a huge share of the market when they make such terrible products. You can't beat Fast Grass for grassing your boat, it's a bit more expensive but it will last for years. If you haven't ordered it yet LL Bean has free shipping on fast grass plus it has the LL Bean lifetime guarantee.


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## Gee LeDouche (Sep 21, 2007)

I believe Avery simply buys their grass from Jstern then resells it. I think you can get it substantially cheaper in bulk directly from Jstern and its the exact same stuff.


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## Josh Noble (Jul 29, 2008)

Hoop,
Sorry RealGrass didn't fit your bill. I know quite a few fellas that run RealGrass on roll blinds, fixed blinds and boat blinds and really like it. Fast Grass is good stuff and you can pick it up locally down at Mud Buddy. I'm assuming you purchased your RealGrass at Sportsman's which I'm sure will gladly take it back that way you don't feel like you "wasted" your money.

Pump,
Funny how we glump over 2,500 individual Avery/GHG products into the crap pile. I've presonally had really good luck with _most_ of the items I've ran. To each there own I suppose, it's just a wonderful country we live in that doesn't mandate what we have to purchase and from who.

Gee,
We don't purchase grass from them. We have our own facilities and import directly.

Is it duck season yet!!?
Noble


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## SidVicious (Aug 19, 2014)

I personally really like Avery products. I've had some issues with paint on some of the decoys, but I still think they are the best looking on the market. Sorry to hear about the grass not working out, though.


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## Pumpgunner (Jan 12, 2010)

Josh-each to their own indeed. I can only speak for myself but every time I've bought an Avery product (and I haven't bought anything from them in several years) I've been burned. Another problem I have with Avery stuff is that everything I've ever seen from them has been made in China. Granted nearly everything is these days but I personally try to buy American made stuff whenever I can. I guess I'm old enough now that I'd rather buy something expensive and well-made once than buy something cheap several times over. 

Nothing personal, just speaking from my own experience.


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## Hoopermat (Dec 17, 2010)

Noble nothing personal but I can't see how anyone would be satisfied with this grass. You would have to put two panels deep to try to conceal anything and it still isn't even close to as tight as fast grass. I paid 49.99 for it and yes I took it back to SW but fast grass is 69.99 and ten times better. 

Ps just looked at Jsterns web site they claim to supply avery and cabelas with their grass.


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## Josh Noble (Jul 29, 2008)

Hoop,
I didn't take it personal and never do on an internet forum. Glad you got your money back, love SW for that! 

Pump,
I understand the concept of USA made products, I really do but in this day and age it's extremely tough to find them. There are a few decoy manufactures based out of the US, but I don't know one that makes bags, cases, blinds, apparel here. Tough deal but it's simply consumer driven.

Enough...enough...I'm going to burn some fuel in the airboat! 
Have a great day fellas!
Josh


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## JuniorPre 360 (Feb 22, 2012)

Josh Noble is an Avery Bro-Staff. Avery must have a line of decoys with invincible flake free paint tha ONLY the reps get. Do a google search on "Avery decoys AND paint flake." Great thing about the internet is that every regular Joe hunter can review crap products truthfully, even though the lynch mob retaliates and defends their crappy product. Kind of reminds me of the church of scientology or westboro baptists. Don't mean to start anything, but holy crap! There are maybe 1,000 ignored complaints.


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## Josh Noble (Jul 29, 2008)

JuniorPre 360 said:


> Josh Noble is an Avery Bro-Staff. Avery must have a line of decoys with invincible flake free paint tha ONLY the reps get. Do a google search on "Avery decoys AND paint flake." Great thing about the internet is that every regular Joe hunter can review crap products truthfully, even though the lynch mob retaliates and defends their crappy product. Kind of reminds me of the church of Scientology or westboro baptists. Don't mean to start anything, but holy crap! There are maybe 1,000 ignored complaints.


Jr.,
Seriously just laughed out loud and I thank you for that! I'm actually a Territory Manager for Avery Outdoors first and a Pro-Staffer second, which I'm sure you already knew. Being just a hack sales guy I had a hard time following your post but I will say this is the best line in your comment...."Don't mean to start anything, but holy crap!" On a different note I suppose you could group waterfowlers into a wacko group that is is very passionate about their sport but then again you could do this with most groups couldn't you. Rounding out this comment and like I mentioned earlier no one is making you purchase a product you didn't want to. Heck buy what you like and use it as often as you can.

(Are you going to the Youth Festival this Saturday @ Farmington? If so swing by the Avery booth and I'll show you some of the new product we're bringing to market this year)
Josh


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## JuniorPre 360 (Feb 22, 2012)

Josh Noble said:


> Jr.,
> Seriously just laughed out loud and I thank you for that! I'm actually a Territory Manager for Avery Outdoors first and a Pro-Staffer second, which I'm sure you already knew. Being just a hack sales guy I had a hard time following your post but I will say this is the best line in your comment...."Don't mean to start anything, but holy crap!" On a different note I suppose you could group waterfowlers into a wacko group that is is very passionate about their sport but then again you could do this with most groups couldn't you. Rounding out this comment and like I mentioned earlier no one is making you purchase a product you didn't want to. Heck buy what you like and use it as often as you can.
> 
> (Are you going to the Youth Festival this Saturday @ Farmington? If so swing by the Avery booth and I'll show you some of the new product we're bringing to market this year)
> Josh


 No thanks on the new products. I bought a lot of the Avery decoys on closeout right after Cabelas gave them the boot. I got them for so cheap, I couldn't resist buying them to repaint them into divers. Thanks to that, I now have maybe 3 dozen divers (bufflehead, redheads, canvasbacks, coots, goldeneye) so far that don't chip paint with a fingernail. As far as the whakos, I was comparing, in general, companies' reactions to a bad online review and not to waterfowlers. Bad talk a company and fit hits the shan! I won't get into anymore detail than that for my own safety and to avoid suspension. Even though this is the internet, most think it's a seriuos business. Glad I gave you a laugh though. Great way to start off a Monday morning!


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## Fowlmouth (Oct 4, 2008)

I want to jump in here and say that I have used a lot of different brands of waterfowl equipment, and with every brand I have found positive and negative things. I don't believe any one company produces the very best of every product they make, and I certainly don't believe any one company produces all crap. Take it for what it's worth, but most expensive doesn't always equal best quality. I have 4 dozen GHG hot buy Mallards that I have beat the hell out of and they have been some of the most durable decoys I have. I don't think I paid over $20 a dozen for them.


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## JuniorPre 360 (Feb 22, 2012)

Fowlmouth said:


> I want to jump in here and say that I have used a lot of different brands of waterfowl equipment, and with every brand I have found positive and negative things. I don't believe any one company produces the very best of every product they make, and I certainly don't believe any one company produces all crap. Take it for what it's worth, but most expensive doesn't always equal best quality. I have 4 dozen GHG hot buy Mallards that I have beat the hell out of and they have been some of the most durable decoys I have. I don't think I paid over $20 a dozen for them.


 Interesting story, in 2005, I bought some hotbuys for $20 a dozen and the paint to this day won't come off even with a wire brush. I lost all but 6 on the freeway traveling at 80 mph. The ones I salvaged still have no paint loss. In 2009 I decided to buy the new hotbuys and they flaked right out of the box. I was told by their customer service over the phone and email that they were having someone new paint them and that could be why. In my opinion, Avery decoys have that "professionally hand-carved" look to them and appear very realistic. But that paint chips out of the box and it's a turn off. It's a topic that begins hundreds of times with a fight and ends in a locked thread.


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## Greenhead_Slayer (Oct 16, 2007)

IMO at one point Avery made the best duck decoy on the market for the price. That is a huge reason why they are so prolific in the sport. It's tough to go into many sporting goods stores nearby and not see Avery brand something whether it is blind bags, goose flags, dog training gear, decoys, or whatever. They hold a huge market for a reason. They made some top quality products that very pretty price friendly.

IMO the quality has decreased and the price has increased, so I don't purchase much Avery gear anymore. I too miss the glory days of getting hot buys on clearance at cal-ranch for $15 a dozen that lasted a long time!


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## Josh Noble (Jul 29, 2008)

JuniorPre 360 said:


> No thanks on the new products. I bought a lot of the Avery decoys on closeout right after Cabelas gave them the boot. I got them for so cheap, I couldn't resist buying them to repaint them into divers. Thanks to that, I now have maybe 3 dozen divers (bufflehead, redheads, canvasbacks, coots, goldeneye) so far that don't chip paint with a fingernail. As far as the whakos, I was comparing, in general, companies' reactions to a bad online review and not to waterfowlers. Bad talk a company and fit hits the shan! I won't get into anymore detail than that for my own safety and to avoid suspension. Even though this is the internet, most think it's a seriuos business. Glad I gave you a laugh though. Great way to start off a Monday morning!


It sure was!!! Thanks

Josh

(How do you know Cabela's gave Avery the boot?)


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## Gee LeDouche (Sep 21, 2007)

I personally love the way Avery decoys look. I think they are the most realistic looking decoy made. I haven't had much of a problem with the paint, but I have had some randomly fall apart. My very first set of Avery buffleheads I ever bought within the first month of use 2 heads split and cracked to the point they were unusable! I was kinda pissed that I had spent 50 bucks on 6 decoys and 2 of them were now broken within a month, and not due to any misuse that I know of. Now, that being said,, Noble has set me up with plenty of decoys since then and I haven't had any problems with any of them, and he has always done me a fair deal on them. I wish they were a little less expensive, but I think they are fantastic decs.


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## rjefre (Sep 8, 2007)

I agree with the notion that most companies will have a few issues with products now and then. It is how they deal with them that will distinguish the winners from the losers over time. I've had a some great experiences with Avery products and have had a couple of issues too. They have always been addressed and corrected. The same can be said for other manufacturers that I have purchased products from. There are a few companies that I now avoid because of poor customer service. I still have a bunch of Avery products in my arsenal and they work well. 
*Nothing, however, will ever match the old G&H decoys for durability.* Holy mackerel, I am still using 20 year old mallard floaters that I have never babied at all. They still look awesome! Probably painted on with poison-based paints that cause cancer...but dang, they hold up well!
R


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## High Desert (Sep 25, 2007)

The first year or two, I had serious paint issues with GHG decoys. Since then, the paint and durability have been good. Recently, all decoys seem to have gone way up in price and have tried to be too intricate with the paint schemes. Any duck that is close enough to discern that you have individual feathers painted on your decoy is going to be either dead or lucky. 
The most successful waterfowler I know uses the rattiest, ragtag group of beat-up, paint-bare decoys you will ever see. They are a hodge podge of different styles that go back several decades. The ducks come right in. Other than taking the wind into consideration, he doesn't get fussed up about complicated placement patterns. Right side up and somewhat spaced out is all that matters. What he does understand is where the ducks want to be on a given day.


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## Josh Noble (Jul 29, 2008)

rjefre said:


> I agree with the notion that most companies will have a few issues with products now and then. It is how they deal with them that will distinguish the winners from the losers over time. I've had a some great experiences with Avery products and have had a couple of issues too. They have always been addressed and corrected. The same can be said for other manufacturers that I have purchased products from. There are a few companies that I now avoid because of poor customer service. I still have a bunch of Avery products in my arsenal and they work well.
> *Nothing, however, will ever match the old G&H decoys for durability.* Holy mackerel, I am still using 20 year old mallard floaters that I have never babied at all. They still look awesome! Probably painted on with poison-based paints that cause cancer...but dang, they hold up well!
> R


R,
I often wondered what caused you to act the way you do...lol


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