which effectively replaces the Rinfu as Daiwa’s seiryu rod. It comes in four lengths: 3.5, 4.5, 5.4 and 6.4 meters. The 3.5 is a surprisingly light rod that is just a wonderful small fish rod. How small is “small?” I honestly don’t know. The rod is pretty soft but it is rated for 5X tippets, so it might be quite a bit more capable than I think! The progressively longer rods can handle progressively longer fish (up to a point).
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Daiwa is not the only company that has a seiryu rod. Gamakatsu has the really nice Ryokei, of which Tom Davis is particularly fond. Shimano has one model, which I saw and wiggled at the Osaka Fishing Show one year but have never fished with. I do not know of anyone in the US that has one. Suntech has several models. Suntech’s Kurenai HM series has developed a bit of a cult following in the US, and even has its own fan club on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ 469019429971019/
Of all the Japanese rod companies, Nissin has the most extensive line-up, with eleven seiryu rods! What I find most interesting is that Japanese anglers use seiryu rods mostly on lowland streams rather than in the mountains. In the US, though, we often use them in the headwaters – what would be considered “genryu” in Japan. Genryu fishing could be tenkara, western fly fishing, lure fishing or bait fishing. If you look for “genryu rods” in a rod catalog, though, what you’ll find are stiff bait fishing rods, the very antithesis of the ultra-light, ultra-soft seiryu rods that we in the US use in the headwaters for wild brookies and ‘bows. Seiryu rods also make great panfish rods. Although the sunfish in Lake Havasu can get surprisingly large, the sunfish that most people catch are well within the capability of a soft, sensitive seiryu rod. Even a Suntech Kurenai or Nissin Air Stage
Seiryu X Brown Trout
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