So first off let me say thank you to David for giving up a vintage (well vintage now bc you cant get this model haha) tenkara USA Ito. I wanted to do a little write up on a rod that is pretty well forgotten and I believe it was the first of its kind for us in the US being a zoom rod. Most of us have moved on to lighter and better rods but let’s just reflect back for a second to a classic. Now let me just say yes this rod is heavy and I know that’s most people’s complaint, there are so many lighter rods out there why fish with an Ito… Well for me there are a couple reasons 1) it takes me back to when I first started tenkara and 2) I really like how long and soft this rod is! It’s kind of like your grandfathers old bamboo fly rod, is it light?? No but it has soul and you just love that deep flex each time you cast and catch a fish! That’s kinda how I feel about the Ito, I love the deep flex the rod gives you with a fish on and I love how slow it is when you cast! Is that everyone’s cup of tea no but it’s mine haha. Another thing I love about this rod and you don’t see with other tenkara rods is the 14’7 length. When I first started fishing it I wasn’t even going to extend it bc I was just going to fish it in the 13’ length (which might I add is much lighter when not zoomed) but once I started fishing I extended it and really enjoyed it! The Water I was fishing gets a lot of pressure and that extra little length made a HUGE difference. Most guys euro nymph here and these fish see that same drift all the time, the 14’7 length gave them something different and definitely got them hitting. What a nice way to spend the past two days with a rod that I thought I would never fish again bc when I sold my original one 10 years ago I was already moving on to bigger (well not bigger nothings heaver then the Ito haha) and better rods… and yet here i am 10 years later coming back full circle! I hear they have stiffened up the new one a little maybe I’ll have to pick one up just to see! So why not the next time you go out take a rod that got you into tenkara and just go back to a simpler time! Enjoy!
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Luke, looking forward to hearing about your adventures. Tight lines!
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