A spinning reel that looks quite unlike anything else on the market, meet the Okuma Chroma Limited Edition

Breaking away from Convention: Okuma has always been better known for their mainstream products which deliver great bang for the buck performance, and yet many anglers may not know that they are one of only a handful of manufacturers that develops their own technology and also possesses in-house manufacturing capabilities. This vertical integration is an advantage as it provides more control over what designs and technologies are able to make it to production. In addition to this scale on the other end of the spectrum it also gives the company additional flexibility to create limited edition pieces like the Chroma.

The Chroma shares parts with other Okuma reels but each component was hand sanded and painted to achieve the unique styling

The Chroma is not the company’s first foray into extremely limited edition spinning reels, as the luxury inspired L’amour was introduced two seasons ago. The L'amour featured a robin egg blue color that is reminiscent of Tiffany’s jewelry and was embellished with 13 crystals from Swarovski (12 in the spool, one on the handle knob). This reel definitely took some chances, but also left many anglers scratching their heads wondering just who the intended target market was for the product. At the same time the fact that the L'amour was so difficult to procure drove additional interest in this collectible, yet polarizing, piece.

No matter what rod you pair the Chroma with it pretty much dominates the attention

Fast forward to this season and Okuma surprised anglers with the stealthy release of the Chroma, a reel inspired by modern art. The Chroma features a eclectic finish that incorporates five different colors but it doesn’t stop there. While the L’amour focused primarily on aesthetics the Chroma takes things further with a level of increased tuning and refinement.

Do you love or hate the design? I have to admit I wasn't sure what to think about it at first but it has really grown on me

True colors: The Chroma shares platform elements from the company's Jaw, Fuel, and Alaris reels but internally it has a souped up machined cut brass pinion gear and 7BB + 1RB configuration. The frame and rotor are still made out of graphite but the bright finishes on the reel feature a very solid layer of bright paint. Each of these components are individually hand sanded and painted to give the reel a very unique, and custom made, look and feel. The Chroma also features a new handle design that is more angular and ported than what is normally found on most Okuma reels. The aggressive style matches up nicely with the profile of the frame, and like the body of the reel the handle is also painted matte black so that the yellow cap on the EVA foam knob really pops.

 
One of the most subtle, and cool, branding elements is the Chroma logo that is stealthily placed on the double anodized matte black spool

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