New Multi-Piece Travel Rods at Tackle Warehouse – Fall 2024
This has been a great year in our continued use of travel rods, partially because I’ve found ways to integrate a few of them into my everyday fishing, but especially because of our experiences in Panama. I used a Megabass Valkyrie rod on a massive school of mostly 10-30 pound yellowfins and it performed like a one-piece.
After a few years where it seemed like manufacturers introduced only lower- or mid-range multi-piece sticks, there seems to be a resurgence in premium and/or technique-specific travel rods. I recently conducted an interview with Gary Dobyns, who came out with a line of Kaden travel rods, including models dedicated to swimbaits and crankbaits. Here are some of the other new introductions:
While they’re not true “travel rods” or “pack rods,” Tackle Warehouse now also stocks some new two-piece sticks, including the following:
Notes on New Travel Rods
Okuma’s rods aimed at swimbaiters fill a gap that was left behind when they discontinued their Nomad Xpress swimbait rods a while back. The new series are both 7’11” four-piece models, and come in heavy and extra-heavy powers rated up to 6 and 10 ounces, respectively.
The Daiwa Jitte rods intrigue me both because I’ve yet to fully understand the advantages of a telescopic rod versus a multi-piece model, but also because the handle seems to be made of a distinctive material that might be more durable in travel. We’re thrilled to see Daiwa’s great commitment to and investment in the traveling angler.
With the addition of Dobyns and Okuma, Tackle Warehouse now has at least four brands with dedicated “big bait” multi-piece rods – once you add in Legit Design and Megabass. That gives not only swimbaiters but also peacock bass anglers and those chasing saltwater species more options.
While Tackle Warehouse is primarily a bass-centric store, I hope that the addition of the various Saltiga lineups shows an intention to add more saltwater crossover gear.
