I used to be a die hard Loomis Fan and will be again if they bring back the blank line to a decent selection. I have a bunch in my garage and use all of them at different times. I wrapped all of them but one and that is my HS9000, it is a factory rod because it was going to take 3 months longer to get the blank then it was for the factory rod. Last Loomis I built is a 1143 spinning rod for bobber and jig fishing.
Like TH said once you have fished a custom rod you won't want to go back and once you have built a few of your own you are in deep trouble . I have started using Rainshadow blanks and really like them, also hard to beat the price if you know the right people to get them from . also going to pick up a couple Rogue blanks and try them out. A lot of good Rods/Blanks out there and just like Trucks we all have our opinions