Fuji Guide, Icon of High Quality Rods
“Fuji Guide” You may have seen it on the tag hanging on your rods. The rod with the tags is equipped with the highest quality line guides, made by the company called Fuji Kogyo Co., Ltd. Fuji Kogyo is a Japanese company, which has revolutionized the fishing rods with innovation on line guides. This article […]
How to Make Bamboo Poles in Japan
Before the graphite rod was invented by Dr. Arthour M. Howald, of Sakespeare Company, in 1947, the bamboo was the major materials for fishing rods. In the other side of the world, it was the same that the rod was made by bamboo. However the characteristics of bamboo rod in the west and in Asia […]
Japan’s Largest Lake for the World’s Largest Bass
It is well known that Japan’s biggest lake gave the world record (not Japanese record) of bass, Largemouth Bass (Micropterus nigricans.) It is better to see it before reading about it. Here is the link to the video of the record fish. On July 2, 2009, Manabu Kurita achieved a historic milestone in sport fishing […]
Daiwa and Shimano; Mirroring Leaders in Japanese Angling Industry
There are two giants in the Japanese angling industry; Daiwa and Shimano. They are significant players in the global market. They are the best producers of highest quality fishing reels. I assume this is the fact and almost every angler knows about them. But have you thought about what made them who they are now? […]
Fishing for River Prawn
East Asian river prawn (Macrobrachium nipponense) is a popular target in Japan, among the expert fishermans. Despite the first impression of this 7 cm prawn, it makes a nice game on a thin and short whip telescopic rod. In this article, we will see how it is caught and what makes it interesting, first. Secondly, […]
Keitech, the Quality Lures Thoughtfully Produced by a Legendary Angler
Have you seen the soft lure labeled as “Keitech,” in the stores near you? Do you know that they are one of the best soft lures, made in Japan? While many of you have heard of or even used Keitech’s high performance lures, there is not much information about its history and background of developments. […]
Seiji Kato, the Master of Lure Building and the Winning Practitioner
Do you know what is common among these lures? Peanuts 2, Shoreline Shiner, Team Daiwa Vibration (TD Vibration), Bevy Shad, Flash Minnow, Pointer, Flick Shake, Vayron, Cross Tail, Scad Minnow etc. These are lures which Mr. Seiji Kato has developed in his career. As you see, these lures are from three brands, Daiwa, Lucky Craft […]
The Man of the Strong Style, Norio Tanabe
This is an article of the man who became the first non-US citizen winner of a US bass fishing tournament, Mr. Norio Tanabe. He is one of the top anglers in Japan who has been one of the pioneers in bass fishing in Japan. He is not only the top tournament angler, but also a […]
Toshi Namiki, Palmares of Tournaments to Born O.S.P Lures
What does the name Namiki remind you of? Machine gun cast with rubber jig? The art of skipping? Actually, he is more than that. He is a champion tournament angler, a lure designer, and an entrepreneur. In this article, I will introduce his biography, some of his lures and the philosophy of his design. Life […]
Kazuma Izumi, the Legendary Pioneer in Japanese Bass Fishing
Have you heard of HMKL? Recently, DAIWA had launched their lure which has this name. For some of you this Daiwa product is the first one with this HMKL name. Actually, HMKL (to be pronounced “han-kle”) is the brand name which produces its own lures, and the name of the company which was established by […]