Tenkara Rods Are Designed for Small StreamsTenkara rods did not get to be the way they are by accident. Over hundreds of years they have evolved from simple bamboo poles to the modern ultralight high-tech carbon fiber telescopic rods we use today. They are designed specifically for fly fishing small streams. Because the line is tied to the rod tip, the rods have no guides and no reel seats. US anglers might think "cane pole" and UK anglers might think "whip." Tenkara rods, or tenkara fly rods as some call them, can cast an unweighted fly on a very light line and protect a very light tippet, something neither a cane pole nor a whip could do. Similarly, they are on a completely different level than the telescopic crappie poles that they vaguely resemble. Before I could buy a real tenkara rod, I bought quite a few crappie poles trying to find a good substitute. They just aren't the same. The action is different, and the quality is in another league. From time to time, I go back and fish one of the crappie rods. You can do it, but it really isn't nearly as much fun. Tenkara rods are lighter and much more responsive. Crappie rods are pretty much designed to fish a light jig or to fish with bait under a bobber. Tenkara rods are designed to cast a fly on a very light line. Very different requirements, very different rods. Actually, they are quite a bit different from fly rods as well. Beyond the lack of guides and reel seat, the most obvious difference is that the rods are telescopic rather than having ferrules like a fly rod. This allows the rod to collapse down to between 16 and 26 inches, depending on the model. The small size and light weight makes them a great choice for backpackers, for whom every ounce counts.
Both of those scenarios also illustrate why you must use a light tippet. Do not fish with tippet stronger than 5 lb breaking strength (4x or 5x depending on the brand of tippet). The rods are very good at protecting light tippets, and light tippets are necessary to protect the rods. In the case of the snag described above, pulling back on the rod will tend to jam the rod segments together, and a light tippet will help prevent them from getting so tight that you can't collapse the rod. Collapsing the rod is the cause of most broken tenkara rods, as the last few segments are delicate. That's why I feel so strongly that all tenkara anglers should have a Tip Grip - so strongly that I am giving them away. Some rods have been broken when an angler gets the fly snagged and then tries to jerk it out (or does an aggressive hook set on what ends up being a snag). The quick jerk (as opposed to the steady pull of a fish) puts a strain on the rod for which it wasn't designed. Treated with care, the rods are quite durable, and Tenkara USA's overall breakage rate has been much lower than I had anticipated.
Tenkara Action Index
Tenkara rods are not grouped by line weight like fly rods. Instead they are grouped by what Tenkara USA calls the "Tenkara Action Index" and All Fishing Buy calls "Tenkara Action" with 5:5, 6:4 and 7:3 being the most common ratings. They all have soft tip sections and much stiffer butt sections. The action index gives an idea of where the softer sections transition into the stiffer sections. It is not specifically 6 sections are stiff and 4 are soft, because most tenkara rods don't actually have 10 sections. It's more of a percentage split, like 50/50, or 60/40 (60 percent of the rod is stiffer and 40 percent is softer).
If you've ever taken a rod and just wiggled it, you've seen the butt section move to the left while the tip moves to the right, then the butt moves to the right and the tip moves to the left. There is a point on the rod that is stationary, the point where the tip section goes one way and the butt section goes the other. On a 7:3 rod, that point is closer to the rod tip than on a 6:4 rod, and it's closer to the tip on a 6:4 rod than on a 5:5 rod. However, the action index does not necessarily indicate the overall stiffness of the rod. It indicates where the rod bends, not how much effort it takes to bend the rod. Similarly, it is a bit misleading to describe a 5:5 rod as "ultra light" a 6:4 rod as "light" and a 7:3 as "medium light." Tenkara Rod ReviewsReviews have been completed on the following rods:All Fishing Buy 9' Motsugo Other Tenkara Rod EssaysNine Foot IwanaRethinking Rod Choice II - Ito for Bass Rethinking Rod Choice Where to Buy Tenkara RodsCurrently, rods are available from Tenkara USA, Fountainhead, tenkara-fisher.com, Bear's Den in Taunton, MA, Blue Ribbon Flies in W. Yellowstone, MT, Creative Sports Fly Fishing in Pleasant Hills, CA, Mossy Creek Fly Fishing in Harrisonburg, VA, RIGS Fly Shop in Ridgeway, CO, RoundRocks Fly Fishing in Logan, UT, Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply in Grand Marais, MN, Wildfly.com, allfishingbuy.com, tenkara-fishing.com, tenkaraglobal.com and, I suspect, other shops I don't yet know about.If you have any questions about any of the rods, or which rod might be the best choice for where you fish or what you'll catch, please go to the Contact US page.
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