DAIWA PRODUCT FOCUS: Daiwa Interline 7’6” Yuudai – Dale Baxter

There are a number of benefits of Kayak fishing and one of them is being able to fish shallow flats with a stealth approach, and most know that long casts and light lines are a key to success in these areas. Sometimes this can be limited by our gear and there has been a long association of short rods with Kayak fishing, they do have their place, however when fishing these vast shallow areas most would know that distance is important.

Kayak storage over the last couple of years has certainly improved and most of the newer vessels can now accommodate these longer rods. The longest rods I usually use are 7’2” as I have generally found most rods longer than this handle like an Al-dente piece of pasta. They also don’t really balance well with a light 2004 reel that I like to use. Here is where the new Daiwa Silver Wolf Interline model, the Yuudai fits the bill. At 7’6” it will effortlessly cast a small crank well into the distance and slightly heavier lures will cover even more ground and get it into the strike zone of those un-spooked fish. I really liked the fact the the way the new blank has been designed and built you can feel and twitch a hard body lure even on 3lb fluorocarbon line. At a rating of 2 – 4kg it will also handle most estuary species with ease.

Interline rods were introduce by Daiwa back in 2009 the with the Tournament Master X & Z. They were extremely popular and quickly gained a large following in the Australian Bream scene. With the advancements in rod technology namely SVF Carbon the new Silver Wolf range have been able to be made with a more crisp blank that is not only lighter but more sensitive as well. Making it easy to feel every rock, bump and most importantly hit.

“The line runs internally through the centre of the blank, distributed evenly along a raised spiral structure that has up to 200 linear contact points where the line is in direct contact with the carbon blank. Compared to a traditional guided rod that is in contact with the blank only through the guides, Interline rods are inherently more sensitive.”

 Other advantages of Interline rods that Daiwa use is their Hyper Dry Technologywhich assist’s in keeping the internal walls of the blank dry so that line flow through blank is not restricted. I found this worked really well with no loss in casting distance what so ever, even after landing a fish where you may have and the tip of the rod in the water, or after using the rod all day there was still no issues with casting.

I like the way the rod loads up, super sensitive tip section for feeling those all important bites and plenty of low down grunt in the blank to really be able to steer the fish where you want it to go. Being guide-less the line internally when loaded up has over 200 contact points which allows the friction to be more evenly distributed and makes for silky smooth drag when fighting fish.

The finish on the Silver Wolf Yuudai is what we have come to expect from Daiwa, components that not only look and feel good they also have great functionality as well. The air foam grips are very comfortable in the hand and not overly thick which I find helps in being able to use the rods for long periods of time and gives great sensitivity. The reel seat has a very cool ratchet to it, so securing your favourite reel is easy and it is hard to over tighten as well. The gold and red highlighted Alloy fitting’s look great too. The split grip is on the longer side to help balance the rod once the reel is fitted but I also liked this when you are really trying to punch a long cast out, especially into the wind. One area where the rod performed very well.

If you find yourself getting hooked into flats fishing and I can tell you it is one of the most addictive types of lure fishing for sure, then distance casting will be important to you. Have a look at the new Daiwa Silver Wolf Interline Yuudai 762LFS-I you will not be disappointed for a long rod, it feels and handles like something shorter but will all the benefits of the longer version. I know it helped me catch more fish on the flats.