Expensive fishing tackle, is it realy worth it. : eBay Guides

After a break of some five years I decided to take up fishing again. On visiting afew tackle shops I noticed almost identical rods & reels at vastly different prices , on enquiring why the answer was always the same when the chinese were asked to produce a rod or a reel for a western companies they almost always made the same item which they put thier own brand name on or offered to put western retailers names on. On Ebay recently I bought two rods from a company called F.T.D. ( Fishing Tackle Direct ) & guess a fellow on seeing my rod chimed in with Oh another cheapie .I then asked him if if he would like to compare rods & you've guessed it they were the same we both caught fish (roach,perch,dace, carp & eels) neither rods broke or let us down. my friends it  the old branding game .I still will compare the expensive & the cheapie! but I bought my two rods for less than a third of what he paid his one . If you want to have that snobby name feel free but your the one that being conned not me.