FISHO checked out an array of nifty new gear at the annual AFTA tackle trade show, held on the Gold Coast last weekend. Stand-out product included the Fin-Nor Marquesa lever drag overheads, which are high quality jig-style reels which will retail for around the $500 mark. Shimano and Daiwa also released new lever drag jig reels at the show. Shimano’s high-end Talica range is extremely light and well-engineered while Daiwa’s budget priced Saltists feature fancy blue anodised aluminium spools and tough gearing.
Fishos keen on dropping heavy metal for tough sportfish like kings and tuna will have plenty of options to consider this season. Anglers who prefer using threadlines should definitely consider the new Torque spin reels from Penn. These awesome-looking “minimalist” reels were the pick of the show for us. A unique design and impressive features make these new Penns well worth checking out. They will be available in five, seven and nine sizes in gold and black colours. The downside is that they won’t be onsale for at least a year.
Blade or vibration lures were omnipresent throughout the show with many companies displaying new models and sizes. Mayfly Tackle released its new Little Max range at the show. Fisho has had a play with these larger style blades and we reckon they should prove effective on reds, jew and big lizards. Other interesting blades we checked out included the Eco Gear ZX30, a very cool prawn imitation blade featuring an Octa jig hook arrangement. TT Lures released its Ghostblades, which feature a metal head and polycarbonate body. Spanyid, the company behind the popular Raider, Maniac and Sniper range of metal lures, also released a range of blades, including bream/bass/flattie sized models and much bigger hi-speed trolling lures suitable for tuna and wahoo.
The usual array of expensive Japanese hard-bodied lures were on display at various stands. As with previous shows, we were blown away by the quality and finish of these exquisite lures. The various products from Lucky Craft, Ima and Mega Bass earned our pick as the smickest on display.
Other interesting lures we spotted included the Micro Uzi from Pakula Tackle, a pocket sized skirted lure which should be great for a whole variety of pelagic sportfish. Yamashita’s Yoshushi ran us through the various high-end squid jigs featured at the EJ Todd stand. Squidding is huge in Japan and guys like Yosushi and his mates have developed it to an art form. Hopefully we’ll get a fish with the Yamashita guys later in the year and will be able to write about the very latest in squidding technology and techniques.
As usual, the boys from Halco came up trumps with their new Twistie Jigging range, a jig series based on the popular Twistie shape. These new Aussie-made deep jigs come in 55, 70, 95 and 125 gram sizes and should be very effective for use on reef systems to about 50m.
Classic Lures also had its new Bluewater F18 120 divers on display. These medium-sized plugs will troll to a depth of eight feet and hold in at up to 12 knots, Basser Millyard’s Sam Baillie told us. They should be the go for tailor and inshore tuna.
On the soft plastic front Gulp released a series of groovy colours in its Shrimp range, including “Pink Prawn” and “Jelly Prawn”. We spent quite a bit of time examining the Damiki product at the Searing Tackle stand. Damiki is a giant South Korean based tackle company with a range of interesting lures including the Armor Shads, Bings (hollow flickbaits in various sizes down to 1.5 inches) and the Monster Miki “creature baits”, which are 2.5 inches in size and available in 10 different colours. Damiki also produces a range of Vault blades in 25, 42 and 55mm sizes and a range of pretty cool-looking hardbodies. Keep an eye out for Damiki product on your local tackle store – it’s good stuff.
Check out the October edition of Fisho for more detail and pictures from the 2009 AFTA tackle show.
Shimano’s stand featured plenty of nifty new gear for keen fishos
Daiwa’s affordable Saltist range were well received
Fisho’s Ben Diggles being presented with Best Environmentally Friendly Product award for Bioline.
