Tenkara USA Tenkara NetThe tenkara net, or tamo, from Tenkara USA is a very nice net at a very reasonable price, and offers several advantages over western nets. I had resisted getting a tamo for the longest time, and for what I thought were quite valid reasons. Over time, however, the perceived advantages of the western net seemed to diminish, and the disadvantages seemed to increase.
I had thought that the two main advantages of the western net were both related to its longer and narrower shape. The length would allow you to net a fish more quickly without having to rely on grabbing the line, I thought. Not that long after deciding that, I started fishing a slightly longer line, so grabbing the line to net all but the smallest fish was required anyway.
Also, I was pretty concerned that a round net wouldn't fit in my
tenkara bag,
which will easily carry multiple rods (because I always seem to have several rod/line combinations I want to test and thus always carry several rods). Well, not that long after deciding that, I realized that a
backpack
that is well designed for fishing really worked better than my tenkara bag for carrying a bunch of rods while on the stream. The tenkara net from Tenkara USA would easily fit in my backpack. I was more than a little surprised to find that it even fits in my tenkara bag (which is a nice way to keep your rods nad net together when you are not actually on the stream). The center of gravity of the tenkara net is about 3" down the handle. When tucked in your belt, that reliably holds the net with the handle pointed down. The end of the handle is rounded and does not have one of those lethal looking antler tines. (Deer antler is supposed to protect you on the stream, but what protects you from the deer antler?) The handle slides under your belt easily, and comes out easily - but only when you want it to come out. And if you should ever drop your net, Tenkara USA sells a very nice coiled net leash that actually stretches far enough to be truly useful but yet returns to a manageable length when the net is safely back in your belt. The bag of the net, riding above your belt, either at your back or just behind your arm, is out of the way and doesn't catch on brush and twigs nearly as frequently as a western net will if it's not held high on the collar of your vest. And what tenkara angler still wears a vest, anyway - OK besides Dr. Ishigaki? ... OK, OK besides Dr. Ishigaki and Sakakibara-san? Uh, and Fujioka-san. (I've just been told that nearly all Japanese tenkara anglers wear vests - and that those who don't are considered "cheap." What can I say ... other than that I prefer the term "frugal.") I've read that the angle of the round net frame to the handle keeps the wet net bag off your clothes, but the nylon netting doesn't absorb water, so with a quick shake it's almost completely dry anyway. One thing I have noticed about the nylon netting, though, is that I have frequently gotten hooks caught in the net. They aren't nearly as hard to remove as with some netting materials, but when you have a fish flopping around in the net, with the hook through the fish and the barb caught in the netting, well, it's enough to make you seriously consider fishing with barbless hooks. On one recent trip, I twice had to cut off the fly because the fly was so caught in the net that it had pulled through the fish so the fish was effectively "strung" on the tippet. Maybe that's one more reason why a surprisingly large number of tenkara anglers are now fishing barbless. Most TenkaraBum flies are available on barbless hooks, and barbless Daiichi hooks are available in either 100 packs or 25 packs for those who tie their own flies. And as for the biggest fear about the Tenkara USA tenkara net - that the small, 9" opening of the net would make it harder to net a larger fish? Fear not. Fish bend.
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