Thread: Tenkara Rods?

Hey guys just recieved my September copy of Field and Stream and it featured a fly rod called the Tenkara Rod Tenkara fly-fishing - YouTube. Apparently it is an ancient Japanese method of fly fishing without a reel, the best I could tell it is a cane pole with a fly line attached to it. Has anybody seen this or used one of these rods? And could anyone tell me how this is different from one of those telescopic bream poles from Walmart?

The bream poles at Walmart are almost always fiberglass. The tenkara is graphite. It's lighter and much higher quality. I don't have a tenkara rod, but I do have a hera rod. It's similar to the tenkara but much stronger.

have you fished with your hera rod much? Is it worth it to buy one of these style rods, or will a bream pole do the same job?

Guys who are really into tenkara usually spring for a tenkara rod. I think a lot of them ask the same questions you are and start out with some type of bream pole. If you're fishing for small trout and bluegill, the bream pole will work. It won't be as light, but it will work.

I have not fished a lot with my hera, but I've fished enough to know it's very strong. I had heard stories of guys catching carp in the 18-20 lb range and even redfish on them. I've caught catfish to about 5 lb on it. I hooked a carp once, but the line broke, so I have no idea how big he was. Tenkara rods, however, are not this strong.

Hey Dude -
One of the best ways I have found to satisfy my curiosity about someone's wierdo tackle/techniques is to ask the perpetrator the simple question, "Why?". And do you know what? I have never received a justifiable answer.
Oh, and do know what I answered a friend when he asked me why I sometimes fished a 4-weight, 4-pound leader, and size 4 flies for reds a while back?
"Just for the hell of it", I responded. And that's the best answer you can give to something like this.
Bon chance.
Pete

Well I went and bought a 10 ft, telescopic, shakespere wonderpole at dicks for like 7 bucks, and I figured I will use that as my "Fly Rod" for the small water up in Boone. Ill pair it with about 10 ft of 4 lb mono and grab a handful of flies from the Orvis up there. What do y'all think? Poor boy's Tenkara?

Originally Posted by talldude33

Well I went and bought a 10 ft, telescopic, shakespere wonderpole at dicks for like 7 bucks, and I figured I will use that as my "Fly Rod" for the small water up in Boone. Ill pair it with about 10 ft of 4 lb mono and grab a handful of flies from the Orvis up there. What do y'all think? Poor boy's Tenkara?

Sounds good, but I would change the line. I have a book on tenkara, and it suggests using 15 lb fluorocarbon plus a tippet. So, you might try 7-8' of fluoro plus 2' of tippet.

Are you sure on Floro? I would have thought mono or braid with tippet because they float. What size tippet would you suggest?

I wouldn't use braid (way too limp), but mono would be fine if you're using a floating fly. Traditional tenkara flies are wet flies, so fluoro makes sense for that. For tippet, I would use 4# mono/fluoro or 4X or 5X fly tippet.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

This thread made me dig in my closet and pull out a Tenkara Ayu I bought a couple of years ago. I used it a little on a trip to the Smokies and then came hope and put it away. For my fly fishing I normally use fiberglass rods and picked up the Ayu sorta just to see what it was about. I had planned on trying it for Spring Crappie but forgot about it. I have a fly fishing trip planned to the lower Mountain Fork in Oklahoma at the end of October so I'll take it and give it a shot there. I just came back from Colorado but didn't fish much and didn't even take it with me. My best guess is it's suited for very small streams and small trout or bream. Mine came with a furled leader that you attach a small amount of mono or flouro to, depending on whether you want it to float or sink. That furled leader works real well. I usually use furled leaders on my regular flyrods also. I have five vintage Fenwicks but use my modern Diamondglass and TFO more often.