Ep. 86: Grant Beck of Waterman’s Collective on Rod Building & Two Waters Tournament

Guest: Grant Beck (Waterman’s Collective)

Hosts: Daniel Dahlin ([FISH]rx), El Charly, Luke Dean (Bait Slingers / Artemis Charters)

Episode 86, recorded live on May 27, 2025, was part Two Waters tournament raffle, part Glizzies event planning, and part a major announcement from Grant Beck: his last day at the 9-to-5 is Friday, and starting Monday he’s running Waterman’s Collective full time. Five years of building, R&D-ing, and breaking rods on purpose, and now it’s the only job.

In This Episode

• Grant going full-time Waterman’s Collective: last day at his 9-to-5 is Friday, with 40 rods waiting to be wrapped, 80 blanks in the house, and another 50 at a shop down the street
• Two Waters tournament results: first place prize is the HM79 Heavy Fast (25-50 lb) Waterman’s x Bait Slingers collab rod, built by Grant and wrapped by Luke, the same rod from the viral halibut catch
• How they R&D the rods: they break them on purpose. Finesse rods rated 8-17 lb tested with 3/4 oz at the wall, then the broken ones go back to the drawing board
• Harbor Master development backstory: Grant fished those blanks for five years before releasing them, resulting in a core four-piece quiver designed to be affordable, versatile, and warrantied for life
• Two Waters rod origin: Nate Stilo helped narrow it down from five blanks to one, a largemouth fast-action rod (8-17 lb) built with saltwater components that already has PB spotties on it
• Trifecta tournament: calico, sand bass, and spotted bay bass in a 12-hour window. Nobody has completed a trifecta yet. Ends June 6th, winner announced at Tackle Meet June 7th in Costa Mesa
• Glizzies event logistics: fishing starts 6 AM at Cabrillo Beach Launch Ramp, food at noon, free entry, first 100 people get a goodie bag with a free raffle ticket. Sudden Impact, Waterman’s, and a dozen community brands in the raffle
• PCS 2026: Waterman’s already received the exhibitor email for both Orange County and Del Mar. Planning starts now, September-October at the latest

Five Years of Breaking Rods to Get It Right

The Harbor Master story is one of the more straightforward product development stories in the catalog. Grant started building rods out of a one-car garage, fished every blank for years before releasing anything, and used the same three criteria across all of them: does it perform, can it perform across multiple applications, and is it budget-friendly. The core four-piece quiver that came out of that process is backed by a lifetime warranty. He hasn’t seen a Harbor Master blank come back broken.

The R&D process for the newer rods is more aggressive. They’re putting 3/4 oz on finesse rods rated for 8-17 lb just to see what breaks and where. PB spotties have been caught on the prototypes. Luke has taken them to the wall on big weights. “We want to know that if you accidentally hook into a big one, this is going to perform,” Luke said. When the rods break, Grant rebuilds the iteration. When they don’t, they drop. That’s the testing standard for anything with the Waterman’s name on it.

Why Going Full-Time Changes Everything

Grant didn’t make the decision lightly. He’s been running Waterman’s alongside a 9-to-5 for years, building in the garage at midnight, taking calls from Luke and Daniel about booth setups at PCS. The PCS 2025 booth was the tipping point. “Seeing the community really get behind us, I didn’t think it would happen this quickly,” he said. “But it’s time to start really running with this.”

Full time means 200 rods built before mid-July, the Charter Master offshore series finally getting the time it needs, and his five-year-old son getting his birthday rod blank that’s been stashed in the garage waiting. The collective model ([FISH]rx, Bait Slingers, Waterman’s, Loss Prevention Lures, and others all under one roof at events) only works if the builder behind it has the time to actually build. Now he does.

Why This Episode Matters

This episode matters because it documents a real transition point in the SoCal fishing community. Waterman’s going full time is part of a broader moment where brands built inside the scene, by anglers, for anglers, tested at the wall before they’re sold, are becoming real businesses. That’s new. Five years ago it was a garage operation. Now there are 170 rods in various stages of production and a PCS 2026 email already in the inbox.

For anglers interested in the rod side of the SoCal inshore setup, the Harbor Master quiver philosophy connects directly to the SoCal structure fishing guide. The same thinking about versatility, sensitivity, and durability applies to both the gear and the fishery it’s built for.

Watch the full episode on the Time On The Water YouTube channel. New episodes every Tuesday at 6 PM.