The Yamasemi ended up being delayed on shipping by a couple days but still arrived pretty promptly and safely today. Fantastic packaging by japanlureshop and the little extra inclusion of a hook holder is appreciated. I wouldn't hesitate to be a repeat customer. Stunning how small the rod packs down. The tube it came in was only 29" which is crazy to me for what is at heart a bass rod. The prospect of traveling with a tiny tube of a few Trizas as a carry on for my next trip is really, really appealing.

As for the rod itself, it looks great. Each piece has a little indicator dot to make it super easy to line up the connection perfectly which is a nice touch. Curious to experiment with both the fast and solid tips for crappie. Fast tip loads nicely into a solid backbone. Solid tip feels really fun, it's what I'm looking forward to experimenting with the most. Excited to get out Wednesday and try the rod out. I really hope it works out as a heavier bluegill/crappie rod, but I can already tell it will be a killer trout and light saltwater rod which I've been lacking so I know it'll be a winner for me either way.