Review of the Tenryu Lunakia LKT79M

Long story short this was my first premium fishing rod the Tenryu Lunakia LKT79M. Gave it to a friend for a day of fishing. He was an inexperienced angler. By accident he broke the rods upper part. Since then (around 2015) I have been searching for the same model. The rod even back then was no longer in production. Thus finding one was hard. One popped up on facebook classifieds I did not hesitate to purchase it.

A description of the Tenryu Lunakia LKT79M

The Tenryu Lunakia LKT79M is a Japanese rock fishing rod. Gained popularity in Europe due to its premium build, materials and unique fish play. Anglers use it with ultralight jig heads, minnows, spoons. It is a 2 part rod with a declared action of extra fast. Closed it measures at 120cm, assembled 240cm. The recommended lure weight is from 0.8gr. to 5gr. Accurate on both ends. A 1gr. jig heads cast well in calm weathers and with thinner lines. Although the 1.4mm tip is tubular you will see and feel delicate fish bites. When casting a 5gr. lure the top half feels loaded. A heavier lure might damage the rod. The rear grip length is 357mm. Comfortable when jigging and casting in open areas. Yet when fishing in small rivers one handed casts feel awkward. The longer grip interferes with the wrist action during casts. It is a small gripe that will not affect most anglers. Further more I am used to my main rod the Megabass Shoreluck which has a grip of 247mm. So for me it might be a force of habit to cast a certain way. For a ultralight rod it is heavy. At 114gr. it cannot compare to modern rods which in some cases weight 70-80gr. Although it does not cause fatigue even after a days of fishing some anglers might view it as a deal breaker. At the time of production some companies saw fiber glass as an inferior material to carbon. This led to rods being almost 100% carbon. But Tenryu produced the Lunakia to be 77% carbon and 23% fiber glass. This unique blend is what gives the rod a forgiving and unique fish play. Though some brands are reverting to incorporating different materials in their blanks again. For example the Palms Sylpher series. The Tenryu Lunakia LKT79M has FUJI SIC guides with titanium outer rings. The black eva handle fits into the design. The rod has a white/pearl color blank with a glossy finish. The deep blue accents on a white background pop.