FAQs

What is Keiryu

Keiryu is the most popular type of fly fishing in Japan. Translated, Keiryu means "Mountain Stream". Keiryu fly fishing incorporates a telescopic rod and a line that attaches directly to the rod tip (called the lillian). There is no reel. Keiryu rods have been used by generations of Japanese anglers, in streams and rivers, as the simplest and most effective way to catch trout & other fish as matter of basic survival. Traditionally used with live bait (river bait found at the source,) more and more Japanese anglers use artificial nymphs and flies. Our inspiration with Keiryu comes from the fantastic actions of the rods, allowing for excellent fly fishing results, particularly nymphing.

Keiryu Rods vs Tenkara

Tenkara rods are very similar to Keiryu rods, in that they are also telescopic rods with no reel, using a line that attaches to the tip of the rod. The primary difference between the two is the length of the rod and the action. Keiryu rods tend to be quite a bit longer. The most common Keiryu rod length is 5.4 meters or approx. 17.7 ft. For comparison, the most common length for Tenkara rods is around 12 ft. 

Keiryu rods are also stiffer, with faster actions, than Tenkara rods. This makes them well suited for drifting weighted presentations (nymphs, weighted bait rigs, use of split shot, etc.) with light, thin non-floating lines. The flexible tip of the fast actions allows the fish to take the fly without feeling resistance, while the stiff mid-section allows for positive hook sets. Because they are longer and stiffer, Keiryu rods can control and handle larger fish.

In contrast, Tenkara rods are optimized for casting dry flies, wet flies, and Kebari flies (traditional Japanese top surface flies used with Tenkara). As a result, Tenkara rods tend to have medium to soft actions, giving them the ability to delicately and accurately load and cast furled and level lines with dry and Kebari flies.

Aesthetically, Tenkara rods will typically feature 2 handed cork handles which help in casting and one handed drifting. Keiryu rods, on the other hand, typically feature no handle, this aids in sensitivity and implementing a two-handed hold on the rod. Keiryu rods sometimes also feature a teardrop style of handle.

Emerging Trends & the Americanization of Keiryu / Tenkara

Now for the fun part. The aforementioned categorization of Keiryu and Tenkara is changing. Some Keiryu are becoming more like Tenkara rods and some Tenkara rods are becoming more Keiryu like, with more length, more backbone and faster actions.

What’s driving this? In the opinion of the author, it is the adoption of Keiryu and Tenkara by American anglers and American companies innovating new products and features to suit fishing conditions in this country. More so, American tradition is not bound by Japanese design convention, which strictly classifies products and establishes “do’s and don’ts” when it comes to product design (in addition to Keiryu and Tenkara, other key categories include Seiryu, Ayu, and Honryu). Call it plain old American ingenuity, but the end result is that fixed line fly fishing is being optimized and re-invented in the U.S.

Our Product Philosophy & Fixed Line Fishing

At Keiryu Rod Co., our philosophy is to design the best fixed line fly fishing rods we can, incorporating everything and anything from Keiryu to Tenkara that helps us achieve that goal. If putting a cork handle on a “keiryu” rod helps make it more balanced, then you better believe that is what we are going to do. At the end of the day, we are putting a tool in your hands and we want that tool to work as best as it possibly can. There are some companies that want to be bound by certain stylistic conventions. That is not us, we are about performance and that is why every product we design starts with putting it in the hands of anglers and professional guides and inviting as much criticism as possible. It’s only then that real results can be achieved.

Tight Lines!