by CM_Stewart » Sun Jul 26, 2009 8:00 pm
fflutterffly,
Tenkara rods don't carry line weight ratings like a regular fly rod. As you know, fly rod weight ratings are based on the weight of 30 feet of flyline. Tenkara lines are much shorter and very much lighter. The lines that TenkaraUSA sells are 10 1/2 feet long, and are essentially very long furled leaders that are matched to the rods. Even though the action of the different rods varies tremendously, from the relatively stiff Yamame to the relatively soft Iwana and Ayu, they can all cast the same line very effectively. For each rod, the last few sections are very flexible, and will "load" with an extremely light line. For each rod, tippet of 5x to 7x is recommended (I've never used 7x myself).
You will not be able to use your existing fly lines. They are too long, and even if you were willing to cut one down to the right length, it would still be too heavy. A tenkara "line" is really just a leader. And although you can use level line as grampa suggested, you'll probably find the furled lines easier to cast.
grampa,
For level lines, 20# test is way too heavy. I've used 14# test mono, and both 10 and 15# test fluorocarbon. The 15# test fluorocarbon is too heavy, and I think the 10# may be heavier than necessary. Similarly, you could probably cast a lighter mono line that 14# (at least with the shorter Iwana) but I haven't tried it.
