FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

WHO WAS BERT OF BERT’S CUSTOM TACKLE?

Captain Bert Cummings was a special breed.  He loved fishing and life. He always had a story or joke that brightened up your day.  Yet he was a serious fisherman, licensed Charter Boat Captain and traveled the country to fish and held national records for fish caught. His presence could light up a room. He weighed in at around 350 lbs and his heart was bigger than his body. If you were in trouble he was there to help. Customer service and satisfaction were a given as far as Bert was concerned.  Bert passed away unexpectedly in February, 2006. Read more about Captain Bert below.

DOES BERT’S CUSTOM TACKLE STAND BEHIND ITS PRODUCTS?

Customer service and satisfaction are a given because we’re following Bert’s legacy.  Email or call us if you have a problem or question about your Bert’s custom tackle.  CONTACT US

WHY WON’T YOU SELL TO ME DIRECTLY FROM THE FACTORY?

We support our dealers and distributors so that as our customer you get the best of both worlds – the high customer service standards of your local dealer’s friendly and knowledgeable staff, and the integrity, quality and effectiveness of our product line.

WHAT DO I DO IF I CAN’T GET THE PRODUCT I WANT?

Call or email us and we will work with our dealer network to get you what you need.  If you have custom work you are interested in having done, we’d love to work with you in making your boat an extension of your personality and style.  All of our products have come from designs that we have developed while spending time on the water with our friends, both new and old!  We have seen a lot, but we are certain we haven’t seen it all!! The sky truly is the limit with our products, which is why we have developed such a passion for what we do!  CONTACT US

CAN I HAVE LOCKING TEETH ON MY RATCHETING ROD HOLDER?

This is easy.  Your ratcheting rod holders have five ratcheting gear teeth and five locking gear teeth.  To use the locking gear teeth remove the gear tooth pin. Rotate your rod holder to the locking side and reassemble the pin.

DO YOU OFFER ANY FINISHES OTHER THAN THE “BUFF BRIGHT”?

Yes!  You can get our new Satin Anodized Finish that is low glare and is easy to clean up.  Most Fiber Glass Boat Owners still like to match up with our Buff Bright Anodized finish.  And our Satin Anodized Finish matches up extremely well with the O.E.M. components on most Aluminum Boats, Flats Boats and the rails on most pontoon boats! 

We have a Gold Anodized Finish & Powder Coating also available as a special custom option. Additional set up charges may apply.

WHY IS YOUR RATCHET ROD HOLDER BETTER THAN THE PIN PLUNGER AND HOLE TYPE?

We found through years of use by us and our customers that our old pin plunger design would eventually fail due to natural wear of the pin in the hole.  Boats vibrate the rod holder and this wears out the holes.  So the rod holder gets sloppy. Also salt water causes the pin plunger to stick.  Besides you can’t ratchet your pin plunger rod holder! 

With our cross pin design--the stainless pin runs across the gear--creating a larger bearing surface and creating a more positive lock.  And it’s easier to lock and unlock to adjust your rod holder.  The cross pin touches just the sides not the bottom of the gear slot.  Wear on the gear mechanism causes the cross pin to seat deeper in the gear tooth but the pin stays centered in the tooth so that wear is compensated for.

WHY ARE YOUR NEW SWIVEL BASES BETTER THAN THE OLD DESIGN?

Through 110 years of marine manufacturing for boat companies around the world, we build our parts to exacting standards.  We put this experience and standard into our swivel base.  We utilize the same bearing surface and tolerances that you will find on a fifth wheel travel trailer.  This technology takes out any slop in the swivel base to allow for light touch operation under heavy stress situations.  Pull the lever and turn your down rigger/ electric reel, inboard with one finger, even if you have a 16lb drop ball on a 4ft boom! 

Every fisherman knows and will appreciate from experience… the first time you need to swivel an out down downrigger in that your buddy forgot to, while pulling into a gas dock or restaurant!!!

Try doing that with the old style Pin Plunger swivels!

HOW HARD IS IT TO MOUNT BERT’S CUSTOM TACKLE TRACK ON MY BOAT?

Easy!  We provide stainless mounting hardware to mount our track directly to your gunwale, or if you prefer, utilize our rail clamps.  We provide mounting instructions, check out our “Rigging” page under product on this website, or just give us a call/ email and we can walk you through some pretty creative ways to utilize our track.  All of our accessories slide in and out of our track with ease.  Our new improved design end caps keep your accessories in place, and provide security while dockside, or traveling down the road to your next adventure!

OUR FAMILY WANTS A MULTI USE BOAT THAT WE CAN WAKE BOARD, TUBE, BAR-B-QUE AND DO SOME SERIOUS FISHING OUT OF.  HOW CAN BERT’S CUSTOM TACKLE TRACK HELP ME TO DO THIS?

Our track system allows you to reconfigure your boat from a serious high performance fishing machine to a family cruiser or extreme sport utility vehicle literally in a matter of minutes.

Our track accessories slide in and out.  Once replaced with our non skid step pads, you have a functional finished look.  Our step pads slide in flush with the top of the track.  Our end caps keep the step pads in place.  This is very important when getting in and out of the boat, from the dock or the water.  

For those that have flush mount rod holders from the factory, check out our gimbal track, downrigger and plain mounts.  These gimbal mounts allow have the versatility of using our system directly with your existing factory rod holders.  In most cases, using our gimbal track in conjunction with our rod holders, you may increase your rod holder capacity three times over the factory flush mount!

BERT CUMMINGS – FOUNDING FATHER OF BERT’S CUSTOM TACKLE

Bert Cummings, the ultimate fisherman, was born in Wyandotte, Michigan.  He graduated from Lincoln Park High School and then spent many years in college, finally receiving a degree in the “School of Hard Knocks”.  At the age of 28 Bert started his own adventure and became the owner of a hard chrome and machine shop.  After twenty years in the business Bert decided to call it quits.

With time on his hands, Bert channeled his energies into fishing and became an avid fisherman. He fished all of the United States and Canada from coast to coast, and won numerous prizes and fishing tournaments.  Bert could and would fish in any body of water. He holds two light line records in Florida for ocean fishing, where he used an 8-pound test line to catch a 65 lb. Wahoo and a 58 lb. Dorado.  He was just as skilled in freshwater fishing.  He caught numerous 14 lb. Walleye, a 15-¾ inch. Perch, a 10 lb. Bass and a 55 in. Muskie, many of which are displayed on the walls of the famed Cabala’s sporting good’s stores.

In 1989 Bert’s Custom Tackle was founded.  With all the fishing that Bert did he realized that the equipment available to him was not meeting his needs.  With the unique design of a track system--that Bert believed was first invented by Jim Fleshower.  Bert did some research and decided that it could be made with aluminum extrusions.  He then added grooves to lock down the accessories, keeping them from rotating.

Bert and his friends--many of whom were charter boat captains and tournament fishermen--tested the products.  Eventually, Bert’s Custom Tackle began selling to local dealers and sporting goods stores.  Due to its high quality and heavy-duty construction, the new equipment was an immediate hit.   Bert say’s, “When you're a big guy and fish in many different conditions you don’t make light gauge products that won’t hold up.”

After 10 years in a business that had outgrown his workshop, Bert decided to move on. In 2001 Bert’s Custom Tackle became a division of Tecla Co. Inc., a company that has been in existence since 1897.  Tecla Co. celebrates 110 years in business in 2007. It is a supplier of marine hardware to the major power boat builders all over the world.  Their products must meet the rigorous marine industry salt water requirements.  

Tecla Company, Inc. redesigned some of Bert's products to enhance performance, added features and maintained or lowered manufacturing costs.  All under the watchful eye of Bert, of course!  If he didn't like the change, we didn't change it.  If he liked the changes, then we built prototypes and tested them.  All of Bert's products must take the abuse of the marine environment as well as being productive to fisherman. If Bert and our engineers liked the product, then and only then did we build it. 

IF YOU HAVE A STORY ABOUT BERT THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH US—WE’D LIKE TO HEAR IT!   EMAIL OR CALL US. 

BERT’S JOKES

WHERE DID YOU CATCH THAT FISH?  IN THE MOUTH.

 Artist/Band: Paisley Brad
Lyrics for Song: I'm Gonna Miss Her
Lyrics for Album: Part II
Well I love her
But I love the fish
I spend all day out on this lake
And hell is all I catch
But today she met me at the door
Said I would have to chose
If I hit that fishin' hole today
She'd be packin' all her things and she
be gone by noon

Well I'm gonna miss her
When I get home
Right now I'm on this lakeshore
And I'm sittin' in the sun
I'm sure it will hit me
When I walk through that door tonight
Ya I'm gonna miss her
Oh, lookie there, I've got a bite

Now theres a chance
If I hurry
I could beg her to stay
That waters right
And the weathers perfect
No tellin' what I might catch today

So I'm gonna miss her
When I get home
Right now I'm on this lakeshore
And I'm sittin' in the sun
I'm sure it will hit me
When I walk throught that door tonight
Ya I'm gonna miss her
Oh, lookie there, I've got a bite.