Featured
Article: Show Coverage |
TackleTour's "Best of Show" products from Fred Hall 2003

Date: |
3/19/03 |
Location: |
Long Beach,
CA |
Event Dates: |
3/5-3/9 |
Admission: |
Adults: 10 Dollars
Kids 15 and under: Free |
Reviewer: |
Team
TackleTour |
Introduction: The
task to pick the "Best of Show" products is always a tough decision
for TackleTour, especially when it comes to the 2003 Fred Hall show where each
year more and more worthy manufacturers set up booths to display their countless
offerings. While many manufacturers showcased great offerings these are
the cream of the crop products that turned the most heads and shouldn't be missed.

Nick
Nakao, President (right), and Roy Gray (left) displays a wide range of lures for
both freshwater and saltwater fishing
MegaBait: The development of new fishing lures will never end. Anglers
are always seeking better and different types of lures that will attract and
catch more fish. Many succesful Japenese lures are now becoming a mainstay
for US anglers. MegaBait by Pace Products are
a new line of quality performance Japanese hard baits that are still an
affordable price. Aside from these exciting looking lures, Megabait also
produces other eye catching baits such as the Charlie. Charlie is their
latest suspending swimbait that is designed with slits on the soft plastic rear portion
to achieve a more live-like motion when retrieved. The Charlie comes in
both fresh and saltwater versions.

Ray
Rojes, Greg Perresini, and John Turner (from left to right) explained how
easy and effective their exciting swimbait can be in any situation as long as
you know what pattern and color of the baitfish
Mondo
Baits:
Custom fishing tackle is becoming more popular each day. For example,
fishing rod manufacturers are coming out with many new technique specific rods
to meet the demands of anglers wishing to own specilized tackle. Mondo
baits was created by hardcore saltwater tournament anglers. These unique swimbait
lures are
fabricated to be easy to modify, and remain soft but durable. They developed a
what we will call a swimbait "blank" where the colors are either solid
clear or white baitfish-like plastic. By using Mondo permanent markers one
can instantly have the baitfish pattern and color they desire for any fishing
application. Aside from these neat swimbaits they also offer other shapes that
apply the same concept. Stay tuned for our in-depth review on these
exciting customizable baits.

Don
Hoben, President, took the time to explain in detail on how the new Sickle hook
design adds strength and at the same time uses a thinner wire. Also they
showcased an exciting assortment of quality lures
Matzuo
America: Don Hoben, President of Matzuo America, showcased an entire booth
of quality lures. Highlights from the new lineup included the new Wart Hog
shallow diving lure, a uniquely shaped crankbait that has a tight wobble when retrieved, and the new look and shape
is sure to attract
attention from fish. Matzuo also showcased a patented
hook design that features an angular bend. By applying these bends the
Sickle hook gains a superior amount of strength and at the same time a thinner wire
hook can be used for finer presentations of lures and bait. The thinner
diameter wire also means that the hooks will be exceptionally sharp. In a future
article we will run side by side tests where we will put the Matzuo Sickle hook
against other conventional designs.

Sean
Caples, owner, has the stuff for you if you're looking to fish from a
kayak. He shows TackleTour how his kayaks are swift and stable even when
rigged with all types of fishing accessories
Malibu
Kayaks:
In recent years kayak fishing has become a popular alternative way of
watercraft fishing. Kayaks are easy to carry to any launch area, cut through the
water quickly, are durable, and cost effective. Malibu Kayaks offers an outstanding
fishing kayak package that will impress you. Sean Caples, owner of Malibu
Kayaks, explained how his design is much more stable and hydrodynamic when it's
in the water, especially when rigged with heavy fishing gear such as a trolling motor
and battery. At a price tag that's under $800 for the Pro Explorer is very affordable and comes with everything
you need to get you fishing on the water. Some manufacturers
might not have handy kayak fishing accessories, but Malibu Kayaks
does. They have a good assortment of items that one will find useful to
add to their setup just for the purpose of fishing.

Jeff
Robles showcased a booth filled with Rapala tackle that included new tools and
Storms lures. The Lock 'n Weigh is one of the most exciting new products
for 2003
Rapala:
While walking up to the Rapala booth you will immediately notice the wide range
of fishing tackle they have displayed. The name Rapala is well known
throughout the fishing community and that's because they make a vast assortment
of lures, rods, tools, and basic tackle. New to their lineup for this
year are many new products for saltwater fishing, crankbaits that quickly dive
and stay within the striking depth, and most exciting is the new Lock 'n Weigh
tool. The Lock 'n Weigh is a tool used to land that big fish without
hurting your fingers, and at the same time it weighs the fish without having to
transfer the fish from the gripper to a scale. Rapala design this tool to
eliminate any hazards as a result of handling to the angler and to the fish. Once landed, the fish
can be weighed, photographed, and then quickly released with the effective Lock 'n
Weigh tool from Rapala.

John
McAfee, President (left), and Don Holliday, Secretary-Treasurer (right) are two
happy guys and really enjoyed being at the show. They demonstrated their
effective lure retriever and it works every time!
Mac
Squid:
Lure retrievers are a big thing nowadays especially when you snag your favorite
hardbait on underwater structure. John McAfee, President, and Don
Holliday, Secretary-Treasurer of Mac Squid, explained to us about their new and
effective lure retrieval tool that will get your lure back each and every time. At their booth they had a demonstration tank that tells no
lies. Infront of a crowd, the lure is first purposely snagged onto some
branches, then the Mac Squid goes to work, and sure enough the lure was
retrieved every time. With a retrieving mechanism that works, anglers will not have
to fear losing their expensive or favorite lures anymore. TackleTour
will soon put the Mac Squid to the test against the nastiest bottom structure we
can find.

Harout
Alajajyan, President of Avet Reels showed us each and every part of the reel,
its abilities to free spool, speed control, the drag, components, and much more
Avet
Reels:
Lookout saltwater anglers, Avet Reels has something that deservers some
attention. We all know that saltwater tackle, especially reels need to be
high performance, extremely durable, and everything must work right when
battling big game. Avet Reels bring all this to you at an affordable price,
and with some added features that are especially useful. Avet reels are quite
impressive in that they are the only reel that uses a lever drag and at the same
time boast an ultra-smooth drag with the ability to free spool at a full drag
setting. Another feature that caught our attention was the terrific planetary gear
system. Which allows a smaller gear case that lightens the overall weight of the reel
to match the lighter weight rods of today.

Kenny
Kawakami, President of Kencor demonstrated the new line of rods, the ZiBRA, and
it's truly amazing. The rod tip is so durable and it takes all the
pressure off of your hands when fighting big fish
Kencor:
Fishing rods have come a long way and each manufacturer is always looking for
improvements in material and design. Some have resorted to using exotic
materials while some incorporate hi-tech tools to develop a working blank. Kencor might not be the most well know throughout the world, but they are
right up
there with the big guys in terms of durability, high performance, and
design. While visiting the Kencor booth, Kenny Kawakami, President,
demonstrated his new and amazing blank called the ZiBRA. The Graphite TWIST
ZiBRA material is like no other big game rod on the market today. While
the traditional graphite blanks take all the pressure through the entire rod when
the fish runs, also pulling your arms off when the monster hits, the ZiBRA uses
a different concept. This graphite takes all the stress from you and let's
the rod do all the work at the tip. Kencor is known for soft and very
durable tips so breaking the tip will be the least of your concerns when
fishing the mammoth saltwater species. Kencor also offers a full line of freshwater rods
that are high in quality with a soft tip as well.
Conclusion: Held in the Long Beach Convention center in Southern California,
the Fred Hall Fishing Tackle and Boat show is massive. The three show
floors are packed with hundreds of manufacturers all displaying their latest and
greatest fishing tackle is a really impressive sight, and an angler can really
lose himself in the cornucopia of exciting offerings that line the aisles. Many of
the manufacturers have very nice and unique designs,
but the above mentioned manufacturers were the ones that caught our attention as we browsed
through the showcase of products from personal watercrafts, lures, rods, reels,
and other tackle.
Congratulations
to all our "Best of Show" winners, all of which showcased extremely
exciting product offerings...all of which we will cover in more depth shortly.
Thanks for a wonderful show guys!
