This preference that people have has to be taken in context. It is not in context of fishing canopy. Also, there are degrees of preference. Does the length shortening performance go from a 10 to a 7 or 10 to a 2?
As…with the rhodo. I am not a fan of the casting at the shortest length, but with tight canopy I will use it without much trouble and would say it operates just fine. Most folk do not fish difficult fishing spots. So the note is more about the mechanics of the rod than how good it is in a certain location.
There are a ton of short rods on the market but not all of them will be right for super tight canopy. You will want a rod that can hookset with a flick of the wrist. This needs to be a stiffer rod. You also need something that can take constant abuse. When you ping folk on rod preferences, you really need to ask them the type of water they fish.
Even what people consider tight canopy is variable.
@Gressak, You make several good points. Rod performance and preference is highly subjective and personal. I was mostly trying to start a conversation about peoples short rod preferences and perhaps why they like them. I agree that a good hook set is more important in tight spots than castability. Like I mentioned in my original post I currently have a TB Traveler 27. I am looking for something with a different feel, something that will complement it, not replace it. What I gather from peoples description of the Mizuchi is that it is probably in the same ballpark as the TB 27. I am sure I would love the rod but it would probably be redundant for me.
I don’t have any pictures to show right now, but maybe I can get some in a few weeks.
Ulysses, if you are still in CT we can meet up some time and fish some water. PM me and we can discuss if you are interested. You can test out the nissin and the rhodo. For whatever reason TUSA has lost favor and it is quite common for a rhodo to come to market for 100-150. That rod in my opinion is a gem for its utility…and for that reason I really have not searched for other rods to replace it. I do not like the suntech rods for tight fishing…aka the tb traveler series. I feel they are far to fragile…or would be worried that they cannot take the abuse.
There are several streams I fish; in fact one yesterday with a buddy and we both had Mizuchi rods, where I kneel down under the low canopy. With my Watershed 300 at the choked up 240 length I am able to do accurate 10 foot (line plus tippet) sidearm casts, even using redirection at the last moment, under the branches then lift the rod higher once (if) it gets out from under them. With the Mizuchi at 240 (so far) I must do less accurate flip or slingshot casts. It was (is) not “pleasant”. With practice maybe I can learn to make accurate casts with the Mizuchi at 240.
I agree in fishing a longer rod and adapting posture and hand position can go a long way and it really can cut down on carrying a bunch of rods on the water.
as noted here…
I revisited the tom’s review on the rhodo. He does not note any complaints on the rhodo at the shorter length. My complaint is more that the short does not cast as well for me…but that might be a mental or mechanical issue in my stroke. It is not that it does not cast or flip well it just takes more concentration from me.
I wish I could test the Rhodo and the Mizuchi side by side.
@Brian_Miller how does the Mizuchi at longer lengths compare to the Watershed 300?
I would love to get together and do some fishing. Perhaps this spring or summer. With two young children I don’t see a lot of “on the water time”. Mostly I get a couple hours on a stream near my house or I fish while my son throws rocks into the water. This is how I know I like fishing for fishings sake and it’s not always about catching fish. Maybe as the weather warms up I can try to plan an entire day and we can meet up somewhere.
The only rods I have broken have been suntech and have been the tips…which are comparably thin compared to other rods. These failures can be chaulked up to user error, but I consider this a little bit of a stretch as I am the same user of my other rods that seem to stand up to some harder use. Peder can attest to my hard use of equipment. I demand a lot from my rods and feel they should perform in the field and not fail in what I would consider normal use.
Feel free to track me down when you have time. I am in the same boat as you are and to make matters worse I also surfcast mostly in the classic season months. I am on the NY border, I think you are on the eastern side somewhere…is that correct?
Hi, I hadn’t noticed this before yesterday because I hadn’t found much of a need to use the Mizuchi at the 290 length at the small to tiny stream closest to home I mentioned above which had been the only place I’d previously fished it. I found it to be well balanced and casts quite nicely for me at 290 with little accuracy-busting rebound. IMHO the Mizuchi feels kind of tip heavy but still casts well at 340.
The Watershed 300 is a full flex 5:5 rod and accurately casts unweighted flies on a #3 FC line with an excellent tactile feedback loading at all lengths for me. YMMV.
Short rods are just plain hard to cast. The mechanics are considerably different than a longer rod. You have to modify your cast and your expectations when using a short rod.
Another low canopy rod that I don’t see mentioned here (maybe I missed it) is the Shimotsuke Gen 240. It’s a nice little rod with a good action, and it’s inexpensive.
On the other hand, even though my Suntech GM-53 tip is a much smaller diameter than my Tenkara rods and is rated for 6X or smaller tippet, the fit and finish is waaay better than 2 of 3 of my (and my buddy’s) Chinese rods with perfectly executed lillian joints that easily pass both ways through the 2nd section, and inner surfaces that don’t abrade the butt cap o-rings. What to do?
I agree about most japanese rod company blanks I have purchased. Very nice fit and finish.
If we buy rods that dont break then then we dont have to worry replacement costs. Japanese or Chinese … I am not caught up in that distinction. What is the product and utility?
I will tell you this. I casted the Karasu 36 then the Nissin Royal stage 36 and found my casts far more accurate on the Royal Stage…a rod a fraction the cost. I am not sure if the royal is a chinese or japanese blank. I was told that some Japanese rod companies have builds in china factories…
The royal stage is one nice rod and I am told it can take abuse. I have not hammered on it much…I have been gentle with it because it is still the honeymoon phase…but that 320 I bought is fantastic at casting and catching the trout.
Japanese. Whilst that is true (Shimano and Daiwa), as far as I know almost all Nissin rods are made in Japan. That’s part of what makes the Royal Stage such an incredibly good value. Especially considering it’s very similar and has few differences (though some noticable ones) to their to of the line Zerosum.
Thanks Tom. I would love to get my hands on one but I think they are out of production. I can’t find one for sale, new or used, anywhere. I thought it would be a good small stream rod for me and one that I could teach my son on in a few years. The only one I can find is the 270.
That is correct. The Gen series is out of production. If you look at their website you will see they have a new rod series to replace it. However, I’m not sure when it will be available, nor what the price will be.
I would also briefly add that I kind of like the looks of the finish on the new one and I really like the handle shape. That’s by far my favorite handle shape and the only other company that I’ve seen produce one similarly is Shimano. Which is really a shame because I feel it adapts well to so many hand positions.
Thanks. I tried to send them an email asking when the rod will be available. We will see if I get a response. I don’t speak or read Japanese so I was relying on google translate. Their contact form requires a Japanese postal code. I finally got it to accept all 0’s. I’ll give it a few day to see if I get a response.
I do not plan to carry them (or other Shimotsuke rods). It seems after only a year or two they change models. I have repeatedly had problems with replacement parts that don’t fit. Perhaps Tenkara-ya will carry them, but not me.
