Wan Izhan PELAREEF Hookers

Jarak Christmas Party: Dec 24-26, 2011

2012-01-31T21:52:00.000+08:00

My annual trip to Jarak Island. Jigging are mostly used Adhek Bali Ghost jigs 180g and 250g. Found that Ghost jigs are really easy to work with.

Botak arsenal

Nice ang choh on Adhek Bali Ghost jig 180g

Close up on Ghost jig

Jijan 1st GT

Halezan fighting on what appear to be big GT

End up with foul hooked black tip shark

Diamond trevally on Ghost jig 150g

Ghost jig 180g

New Caledonia LPB: Oct 26-30, 2011

2011-10-17T12:21:00.010+08:00

Preparing for the trip of lifetime.
Never been to New Cal. Known close friends that have experience are Darren, Eidi, Fendi and Gobin.
Based on their experience, min rod and reel are PE6 where easily bullied by mama GT. PE8-12 are more advisable.
Based on photos, LPB's Jack Yvan is very nice Antares class boat.
So now sorting what to bring. Also testing how many rods can Carmate or Nature Boys rod case can accommodate.
Big challenge is to limit Qantas luggage 23kg including rod case.
Probably will not bring any jigging rod i.e. will use popping rod to jig. And only bring few (less than 10 jigs - few Hookers and JMs).
List below will be censored to meet the 23kg limit.

Popping Carpenter rods
1. MH80H/40 - confirm
2. MH79XH/ 45 - confirm
3. TBL711/35 - confirm
4. EP82/38 - confirm
5. TBL80/20 - confirm

Reels
1. Stella SW18000XG - Varivas Avani GT PE8 and SOM NL 20000 Varivas SMP PE8
2. Stella SW10000XG - SOM NL 16000 SMP PE8
3. Stella 10000SW - SOM NL 16000 Avani GT PE6
4. Stella 10000FA - SOM NL 16000 Avani GT PE6
5. Saltiga Dogfight 6500H - Avani GT PE8
6. Saltiga 5000H - Ultrajigman PE5
7. Stella SW5000XG - Tufline PE3

Poppers
1. Adhek Bali Gecko
2. Craftbait GT2 & GT3
3. Hammerhead G-cup
4. El Toro & FCL Labo
5. Mura-Mura

Stickbaits
1. Carpenter Gamma 200 & Pandoras
2. Adhek Bali Penipen, Goby, Ocean Lady, Young lady
3. FLC Labo Squidpen
4. Craftbait Realbait & Dartbait
5. Few pintails

Accessories
1. Crimp Plier, crimp sleeves, splitring pliers
2. NT swivels
3. Solid & split rings
4. Hooks - Gamakatsu GT Recoder 8/0, Owner ST76 & ST66
5. Fisherman Leader 170, 200, 240lb - either twisted or with biteleader
6. etc..etc

our bags and rod case

PE6 & PE8, Stellas & Daiwas

mainly Carpenters, 1 ripplefisher n 1 fisherman

MH80H, TBL77/35, EP82/38

Carpenter Pandora

Ocean Lady, MuraMura, Gamma 200g

Craftbait GT3 170g, Sevenseas Valkyrie II, Fullscale Kong, Hammerhead

Orion Cono Cono

Gamma 200

Adhek Penipen

SS Trumpet

EP bending

Endless Passion 82/38

Sevensea Valkryja II 125g

Penipen & GT2

Jackson Pintail

TBL711/35 + 10000SW SOM16k

MH80H + Stella 18k

Fullscale Kong

Carpenter GT Gamma 200

MH80H + stella 18k

Pekan: Oct 8-9, 2011

2011-10-15T22:05:00.001+08:00

2 days of awesome fishing. Good wind but still not GT season.

Azahar MJ

Angah

Our arsenal

testing reels

Sabel Dance PE1

2 Oct 2011 - Japanesse Jigging Style Seminar: Presenting Papa Otsuru

2011-10-02T19:12:00.003+08:00

Japanesse Jigging Style Seminar
2nd Oct 2011
Boulevard Hotel, Mid Valley City
Kuala Lumpur
Guest Speaker: Papa Otsuru

Papa Otsuru

door gifts

nice design

Exhibition El Toro Poppers

Nature Boys jigs

me with darren

new Nature Boys spool for Stella 10000

strange jig

Jigging rods Nature Boys Iron Whip design by MC Works

Rompin Sailfish class popping rod: Kaiser LightCast 73H

swimbaits

this how your line looks like when jigging

Nature Boys spool - very practical

Nature Boys jigs

Accessories for Stella 10000SW

2011-08-04T21:04:00.000+08:00

GT Max knob

SOM No Limit 16k n GT Max knob at Stella 10000SW

Rod socks

Shout Expedition IV bag

need to find bigger box

Shopping spree

2011-07-27T22:53:00.002+08:00

7seas_raptornemo_popper_120g

Carpenter GT-γ 200

Craftbait Dartbait

Craftbait GT2

GT-Max-custom-power-knob

Others

to tighten FG knot for PE 8 and bigger with leader 170lb and bigger

Carpenter: Endless Passion 82/38

2011-07-27T22:28:00.004+08:00

"Endress Passion 82/38" (82/37 prototype name).
please click Brandon Khoo's review

Model	Length[mm]	Section	Packing length(mm)	PE(No.)	Lure Max (g)	Drag (kg)	Rod wt(g)
EP 82/38	2510	1 + H	1780	6-8	190	11kg	414

Carpenter owner Kenji Konishi testing the prototype EP82/37

Carpenter Endless Passion 82/38

Eight is Enough??

Pekan: July 16-17, 2011

2011-07-27T21:21:00.000+08:00

Tan

Anas

Branzino & Stella SW5000XG

FCLLabo Ebipop

26lbs

Adhek Bali: Ocean Lady & Gecko

2011-07-13T14:43:00.002+08:00

Pekan: July 9-10, 2011

2011-07-11T21:43:00.000+08:00

Matanani, Sabah: 25-27 June 2011

2011-07-08T15:34:00.001+08:00

Eagerly for this trip, as i never fish in Matanani area. Although the earlier plan is to fish at Mangalum Island area, the skipper decided to go to Matanani. Water depth for us to fish between 40-220m!!!!

My fish calender application, shows 54-11% chances, i have high expectation from the story i heard from my friend who previously fished these area.

I considered this trip is my poor fishing trip as the biggest fish is only a 6kg mangrove jack, caught using Pak Nico's handline. :(.

No bigeyes during nighttime. No Gts. On jigs, i caught a small rainbow runner, which to embarrass to take photo. But i do enjoy the company of friends who have "same head". Jokes and stories were shared during fishing. In fact three of us, played skin game for each hole the boat stopped. Who catch the 1st fish and the biggest.

Stunning discovery Stella SW2008: JDM SW10000XG vs US 10000SW

2011-07-07T12:41:00.003+08:00

Got a opportunity to compare Stella 2008 Japanesse DOmestic Model (JDM) Stella SW10000XG vs US/Export version Stella 10000SW. The best part is reel weight and spool weight and its size.
I have not yet test the spool capacity. From Shimano Catalogue, PE5 = 300m.

Notice the colour difference

left : US right: JDM

10000SW = 668g

SW10000XG = 638g

Body with handle 10000SW = 506g

Spool 10000SW = 142g

Spool 10000SW with cap = 162g

Body with handle SW10000XG = 505g

Spool SW10000XG = 114g

Spool with cap SW10000XG = 133g

left : US right: JDM

left : US right: JDM notice the spool lip thickness

left : US right: JDM

notice diameter difference

JDM has smaller diameter

JDM spool: notice the SR label

US spool: notice the same SR label - got gap!!!

Carpenter: Wild Violence 80XH - 45lb

2011-06-21T16:47:00.002+08:00

Wild Violence 80XH is high torque type GT rod.
Tough torque was obtained by lowering the flexibility of a carbon material.
It is the optimal model for locations, such as the Tokara, Komodo islands, Great Barrier Reef and New Celedonia.

Model	Length[ft]	Section	Packing length(mm)	PE (No.)	Lure Max (g)	Drag (kg)	Rod wt(g)
WV80XH	8.0	1 + H	1765	8-12	270	15kg	450

from Carpenter website

Carpenter: Monster Hunter 79XH and Blue Chaser 83/40 R-Power Max

2011-06-13T01:15:00.006+08:00

Monster Hunter 79XH
Heavier version of MH80H.
quoted from Brandon Khoo "This rod is another step up in power and I see this as a serious PE10 rod. The tip is probably approaching the EXH is stiffness and while the action is still relatively fast, it has a more forgiving taper than the SP rods like the EXH and UHL. Down low, this rod has loads of power. I found that this rod could take anything I was capable of dishing out on a fish and still had heaps of power in reserve down low. I feel this rod is suitable for poppers up to perhaps the 200g size although I would see around 170-190g as ideal. I will say that I feel that the tip is not strong enough for a King Kong or an I Cup. It will pop lures this size but I think there will be some degree of saturation in the blank. I would, however, see this rod as powerful enough for 95% of anglers who want to work big poppers. "

Length: 2390mm
PE: 8-10
Max lure: 300g, from my experience - ideal chugger 170-200g excl hooks
Max drag: 14kg
Weight: 415g
Guides: 5 + tip

MH79XH

Blue Chaser 83/40 R-Power Max
This rod is designed for both King Fish and GT's... it is a very good stickbait rod and is the first of it's kind especially designed for very large kingfish.
Length: 2540mm

PE: 6#-10

Lure: 70-200g, ideal swimbait 120-160g (excl hooks)

Max drag: 20kg

Weight: 407g

Guides: 6 + tip

BLC 83/40 R-Power Max

from left: LR86/35, TBL711/35, MH80H/40, MH79XH/45, BLC80/40R, TBL80/20R

Also did few shopping during school holidays. Very tempted to buy the new release Carpenter Gamma GT 200. Nemo color.

Also got few lure i.e. CraftBait GT-3, Smith Baby Runboh, Sevenseas Valkyrja II 210mm-120g, Tailwalk Gunz Sinking 140-160-160

Rarest of all: Carpenter Gamma

Craftbait GT-3 150g

AnglerOutfitter special color

Tailwalk Gunz

Smith Baby Runboh

Sevenseas Valkyrja II 210mm, 120g

Gamakatsu GT Recoder

____________________________________________________________________________

Adhek Bali Ghost Jig

2011-06-08T03:33:00.001+08:00

I have the opportunity to visit Pak Adhek house cum factory during my last trip to Bali. Bought some jigs i.e. Ghost Jig from him.

These jigs are already proven to me, catching golden snapper at Jarak and my frens catched rubbies and doggies in Alor. Whenever there is a need for centre-weighted jigs, Adheks Ghost jigs are the go to choice, bar none.

Ghost Jigs comes in different sizes i.e. 80g to massive 700g. These jigs can be retrived at high and low speed. Jigs weighted more than 150g has slim design at jig head to ease jigging even in fast current condition, proven easier than other design. It also has proven fast sinking during fast current.

Shining hologram sticker finish to attract pelagic and bottom dwellers. There are few hologram design i.e. wavy design, zig-zag, small dot, plain hologram. Colours are pink, blue, green, purple, natural and few combination. Dunno why, but i still preferred pink for my deep water jigging.

Also at the belly of the jigs, thin strips of luminescence color is added and i think it is the most important part during my deep jigging trip. These "lumo" colour last more than 1/2 hour.

As for quality, these jigs are second to none. Paintjob, sticker assembly, weight distribution were QCed before these jigs goes to the jigger hand.

Currently, these jigs are "made to order" format, since the local demand is very high.

me n Pak Adhek

several sizes and colors of Ghost Jigs

Asymmetrical design

2 type of design: sardine like and center weighted like

New Gecko color scheme

sanding poppers

meticulous paint job

me with the ever friendly Pak Komang

rarest of all: no 2 of 10 Ocean Revolution aka Carpenter Sea Frog
with Abalone finishing

adding my Penipen and Goby collection

i wish i had these too

My Hani with some of Pak Adhek popper collection

Bali & Lombok: 29-30 April 2011

2011-05-11T11:49:00.002+08:00

Not much to say about this trip coz the catch is so poor due to many factor i.e. current, moon phase, wind etc. We did popping at Batu Abah on the 1st day, no GT. The only fish landed is a slimey tuna aka Tongkol on my light tackle. Later in the afternoon we tried jigging at 120-140m water depth using 500g jig. No bite.
2nd day, we decided to venture to Lombok. Only 2 baby GTs landed. Very frustrating trip.

High hopes

3 Nature Boys

Arsenal: Stellas, Saltigas n Carpenters

Slimey tuna on Volador

Gunung Agung

Baby GT on Penipen 140

TBL 711/35RF with Saltiga Dogfight PE6 GT Avani SMP

TBL 80/20RF with Saltiga 5000H PE5 UltraJigman

Like navy SEAL outfit. Hots Gipang 78MH with Saltiga 5000H

Another baby

Pekan: 17 April 2011

2011-05-11T11:31:00.000+08:00

This trip dedicated to find spanish mackerel. Lures used are mainly Jackson Pintail Tuned 40g and 50g.
Azhar took us to new unjam spot. Forgot to take photo of all catched tengiris. Total tally is 15 tengiris and 1 GT ranging from 4kg to 7kg.

Stella SW2008: JDM vs US

2011-04-07T16:23:00.007+08:00

Now i am trying to understand Shimano Stella SW 08 series. There 2 versions i.e. US market version and Japanese Domestic Model (JDM) version. There are hundred of threads in fishing forum discussing the above topic.

In term of price in Kuala Lumpur, the JDM version is more expensive up to RM500-600.

From my observation, the main difference is cosmetic and the handle. JDM SW4000 to SW8000 has carbon knob and is very expensive. In 10000, 18000 and 20000 series, they have the same rubber knob.

Posting from various forum stated that there is no difference in the reel body, drag, spool etc are all the same and no need to spend up on the JDM version.

Special thanks to toppuntawong for his write up below:
permalink
quote "First of all, the way to tell them apart between JDM and USDM is this, JDM will always have the SW in from of the number model. As you can see USDM will say ******SW and JDM will say SW*****. Also, JDM will have the "gear" PG, HG, XG on the back of the number SW*****PG (HG or XG).

2002 (FA = US Model)
Stella 4000FA Spool interchangeable with 5000FA.
Stella 5000FA Spool interchangeable with 4000FA.

Stella 6000FA Spool interchangeable with 8000FA.
Stella 8000FA Spool interchangeable with 6000FA.

Stella 10000FA Spool interchangeable with 16000SW or 20000FA. (16000SW is JDM upgrade spool.
Stella 20000FA Spool interchangeable with 16000SW or 10000FA.

2008 (SW = JDM Model)
Stella SW4000PG No spool interchangeable.
Stella SW4000XG No spool interchangeable.

Stella SW5000PG Spool interchangeable with SW6000** and SW5000S (SW6000 is more capacity and SW5000S is shallow spool)
Stella SW5000HG Spool interchangeable with SW6000** and SW5000S (SW6000 is more capacity and SW5000S is shallow spool)
Stella SW5000XG Spool interchangeable with SW6000** and SW5000S (SW6000 is more capacity and SW5000S is shallow spool)

Stella SW6000PG Spool interchangeable with SW5000** and SW5000S is shallow spool.
Stella SW6000HG Spool interchangeable with SW5000** and SW5000S is shallow spool.

Stella SW8000PG Spool interchangeable with SW10000**, SW12000, 10000SW (USDM), SOM8000, SOM16000
Stella SW8000HG Spool interchangeable with SW10000**, SW12000, 10000SW (USDM), SOM8000, SOM16000

Stella SW10000PG Spool interchangeable with SW8000**, SW12000, 10000SW (USDM), SOM8000, SOM16000
Stella SW10000XG Spool interchangeable with SW8000**, SW12000, 10000SW (USDM), SOM8000, SOM16000

Stella SW18000HG Spool interchangeable with SW20000PG, SW20000MAX, SOM18000, SOM20000
Stella SW20000PG Spool interchangeable with SW18000HG, SW20000MAX, SOM18000, SOM20000

2009 (SW = USDM Model)
Stella 5000SW Spool interchangeable with SW6000** (JDM) and SW5000S (SW6000 is more capacity and SW5000S is shallow spool)

Stella 8000SWPG Spool interchangeable with SW10000** (JDM), 10000SW (USDM), SW12000, SOM8000, SOM16000
Stella 8000SW Spool interchangeable with SW10000** (JDM), 10000SW (USDM), SW12000, SOM8000, SOM16000

Stella 10000SW Spool interchangeable with SW10000** (JDM), 8000SW (USDM), SW12000, SOM8000, SOM16000

Stella 18000SW Spool interchangeable with SW20000PG, 20000SW (USDM), SW20000MAX, SOM18000, SOM20000
Stella 20000SW Spool interchangeable with SW20000PG, 18000SW (USDM), SW20000MAX, SOM18000, SOM20000

2002 spool are not interchangeable with the 2008/09 spool. " end quote.

Also very special thanks to Mr Alan Hawk for his comprehensive review in stripersonline.com .
quote "Anyhow, in Japan they offer 13 domestic reels in different combinations of sizes and gear ratios. The list is too complicated to explain in whole, so check Shimano's Japanese site for the entire line up and feel free to ask me any specific questions Those Japanese models are named SWxxxxxPG/HG/XG. Where PG is Power Gear (low ratio for jigging), HG is High Gear (high ratio for popping), and XG is Extreme Gear or Extra High Gear (even faster ratio). For the US, they offer only 6 of those models. They are named xxxxxSW with no gear designation expect for a single model called 8000SW PG which is a slower ratio version of the regular 8000SW. For the US, the 5000 reels are the smallest of the series, 8000 and 10000 reels have similar bodies with different spool capacities, and the biggest are 18000 (high ratio) and 20000 (low ratio). These two big reels have the wonderful hyper twin disk drag that works on the top and bottom of the spool, and the line capacity of each is safe enough to go after cow tuna and billfish. My 20K took 650 yards of 80# Varivas Jig max power (PE5), and it's supposed to take 320 of 30# mono, but I did not load it with mono. This is roughly 20% more than Saltiga's biggest capacity models, the Dogfight and the Expedition.

It is important to mention here that even though some will swear that they are different, both US and JDM Stellas are identical except for cosmetics and colour schemes. Rumours are all over the net about the US model being made of inferior materials (!) with crappy gearing (!!!), reconditioned components (!!!!!), and cheap bearings (!!!!!!!). I did a disassembly of a JDM last summer as I mentioned in an earlier thread, then in November I was handed a US model to take apart and put those rumours to rest, and I can assure you they are 100% the same reels internally, made by the same people on the same machines using the same components. Period." end quote
-------------------------------------III--------------------------------------------------------------

Ok, after reading the above, i am quite satisfied that there are NO difference internally in between Stella JDM and Stella US version.

But, yesterday, i came across with a topic in www.deepjigging.com , showing both version was striped down showed that both has identical parts except for the main gear which the JDM model looks polished. The author can't tell if they are of the same material. Please find below pics from his posting for your reference.

left JDM........right US version

main gear back : left JDM.......right US version

main gear front: left JDM....right US version

side by side - left JDM, right US ver

I do not know the authenticity of the above pics, but at the back of my mind the are questions.
IS THERE ANY DIFFERENCE INTERNALLY BETWEEN SHIMANO STELLA SW JDM and SW US version? IS THERE ANY REASONS WHY THE MAIN GEAR COLOR AND TEXTURE ARE DIFFERENCE?

Shimano Ocea Pencil

2011-04-03T21:46:00.000+08:00

Introducing the new OCEA pencil popper from shimano. This series of big game poppers have been designed to tackle the large saltwater brutes such as GTs large Mahi Mahi tuna and sailfish. Aerodynamic bodies give these lure superior casting capabilities while lifelike appearance attracts fish like no other. A through wire construction with a tensile load capability of above 100kg gives you the assurance every time you have a monster on the other end of the line. Available in floating (45 and 90g) or sinking variants (60 and 125g), the pencil is ideal even for every rough water when a conventional chugger cannot be easily seen by fish; or situation when the fish are extremely spooky and wary of conventional poppers. The OCEA pencil has frequently been sneaking in trophy fish while other anglers miss out the action.

Lures: FCLLabo

2011-04-03T21:29:00.000+08:00

About Yoshitaka Tsurusaki.

He has been a lure design engineer involved in the development of DUEL and the Ａtelier GL - TSURUJIG - TOBIMARU swingminnow javelin jig and now proud to be part of evergreen pro staff. Mr Tsurusaki’s is an avid writer for top Japanese fishing magazine, his favorite fishing style is lure casting for Trout, Barramundi, Tuna, GT (Giant Trevally) and Seabass, inspired by his passion for lure production.

My humble collection

Squidpen. Note trailing hooks at the eyes.

Squidpen

Ebipop

Sinking lure.

Ebipop Ext

Poppers: Patriot Design XTX-140

2011-04-03T17:53:00.002+08:00

Patriot Design XTX 140 is a great rough water GT lure providing a combination of both surface and sub surface presentaions. A very easy popper to work the XTX will pop and splash when worked aggressively but when worked slower the lure will swim just sub surface with a nice wobbling action. This sub surface action sees a rise in hook-up ratios whilst still getting the thrill of a topwater explosion. Also comes with a bigger version of XTX 175.
from the site : Patriot Design

It can dart, it can dive. It will really open your eyes with its fantastic wobbling action.
The X.T.X. is an incredibly responsive super GT lure. Whether you use weak rod action or strong; high speed reeling or slow, the X.T.X. will respond wonderfully. When jerking and twitching the X.T.X. will not only dart to the left and right but dive to between 50 and 80cm below the surface. Any following or watching GT’s will be unable to resist the temptation of the X.T.X.’s wobble as it rises back toward the surface. The X.T.X. floats between horizontal and 35°to the horizontal. Its balance is such that is always holds this pose when no rod action is applied. The position of the hooks and the excellent balance mean also that the ‘hook up’ rates are very high whatever method you are using. The great balance and the bullet like shape of the X.T.X. allows for long smooth casting. In fact, we encourage you to use the X.T.X. in a variety of ways. From no action to slight shaking of the ‘neck’, darting, diving, popping and casting with minnow like wobbling action, the X.T.X. is an all round GT hunting lure which performs at an incredibly high standard in all games.

≪How to use≫
Ⅰ	Cast the X.T.X. and start reeling to produce “minnow like” wobbling action. Stop reeling and start twitching to produce the dart/dive action.
Ⅱ	Use jerk and jerk method to produce wide left and right darting and diving. Stop jerking and reeling to allow for the wobbling action as the X.T.X. rises towards the surface.
Ⅲ	If you want to try some popping please be sure to keep the rod in a vertical position for best results. Due to the design and shape of the X.T.X. if the rod is not held vertical then it will dive instead of pop when action is applied.

Nature Boys rod case

2011-04-03T17:45:00.000+08:00

Stores up to 10 jigging rods, 5 GT rods, and 13 Bass rods.
Made of recycled bumper from the car for enhanced protection.
Equipped with 6 lock parts and two magic belt for the complete seal.
Includes open-slide (external side) and non-slide (internal side) case.

Poppers: HammerHead E-Cup and CraftBait RealBait, GT2 and GT3

2011-03-09T00:39:00.004+08:00

really expensive poppers.....but at least available in the market.

Craft Bait

Hammer Head

HammerHead E-cup Special Color Watermelon

HammerHead E-cup, 145g, 180mm

Collectors item

CraftBait RealBaits and GT2

From top: HammerHead E-cup, 2 CraftBait Realbaits, 3 CraftBait GT3 and 1 GT2

CraftBait GT-2, 150g, hooks ST66 5/0

CraftBait RealBait 170g, Hooks Decoy GT SP#8/0 or Owner ST66 5/0 or ST76 5/0

CraftBait GT-3, 150g, ST66 5/0

CraftBait GT-3, 150g

Shimano 2008 Stella SW18000HG and comparison with 2001 Stella 10000FA and Daiwa Saltiga 6500H DogFight

2011-03-09T00:12:00.001+08:00

Pairing with Carpenter MH80H, Stella Japanese Domestic Model JDM Sw18000HG is perfect. Only thing to do is replacing the ugly knob with lighter aluminum knob i.e. Fisherman or Yumeya Carbon Knob and fill the spool with ridiculously expensive Avani GT PE8.

Nice box

Specification in Japanesse

Loike the bag

Whats in the box - washer, spool band, right handle setup, manuals

Goldie

1 pice bailarm + nice spool knob

New roller system

JDM model

845 gram

Stella 2001 10000FA = 886gram

silvergold vs bluegold

Dogfight = 831gram

the pairing

New in family: Carpenter Monster Hunter 80H, The Blue Lagoon TBL80/20FR and MajorCraft Crostage CRJ-S60/3 and CraftBait GT-3

2011-02-27T00:51:00.022+08:00

shopping this weekend.....

p/s...i need a new rod rack....

5 carpenters????

Carpenter Monster Hunter MH80H

This model was designed by new carbon crossing and a new process by using DJ series as a base.
The model corresponding to high load drag. The power of this rod is almost the same as DJ-83MH. However, since the quality of the materials differ, large load can be caught direct.
The power of a rod is not spoiled even if it does a fight by 20kg of drag setup.

8'0" PE8-10, Lure Max 250g, MaxDrag 13kg, wt 430g

Carpenter TBL80/20RF

The Blue Lagoon is a great display of technology applied to fishing by Carpenter. Among the most remarkable facts about this rod is its multi-layered graphite blank, which gives almost unbeatable attributes of power and strength. And that is accomplished without compromising the rod's lightness and management.

Working lures is easy with The Blue Lagoon thanks to a sensitive rod tip that provides a delicate feeling – nothing further from reality: with a good GT at the end of your line, The Blue Lagoon shows all its strength and lets you konw why it is renowned as an almost unbreakable rod.

The rod was built with 'Multi layered carbon' technology. This technology is very costly to produce but can make the ideal rod, have a softer tip so that it's easy to cast but have a strong backbone and very difficult to break. This is the perfect rod to use with stickbaits. The softer tip will keep the stickbaits in the water.

This rod pairs fighting power with a sensitive tip that has the optimal stiffness to work poppers with ease.

Length: 8'0'' (2.470 mm)
Line: PE #3-4
Lures (max): 100 g
Drag: 7 kg
Pieces: 1+handle
Weight: 367 gr
Length (broken down): 1.760 mm

Carpenters with red tape: LR86, TBL 711/35RF, MH80H, TBL80/20RF

MajorCraft Crostage CRJ-S60/3

6'0" PE1-3, Lure 60-120g, MaxDrag 3kg, wt 170g

K-guide

few CraftBait GT-3 poppers + sunglasses strap

Stella 08 SW5000XG, Stella 01 SW6000PG, Golden Mean Sable Dance

2011-02-21T01:08:00.004+08:00

New family member

08SW5000XG

ratio6.2

drag 8.0kg/max 13kg

wt 390

PE3-240m, PE4-170m

105cm/rev

bearings 14/1

Carbon knob

Got this reel from Atoq, nice comes with Fisherman handle and another extra SOM 8000 spool. 01 SW6000 body shares the same body size with SW8000 series. So this reel is planned as jigging backup for my 8000FA.

01 SW6000PG

ratio5.0

drag 8.0kg/max 13kg

wt 670

PE3-300m, PE4-210m

93cm/rev

bearings 15/1

Extra SOM 8000 spool + Fisherman Handle...nice

Got this rod after decided to try PE1 class.

SDS-60UL-II, PE1, Lure, Max jig 110g, wt 140g

Love this line roller

Rompin: 12-13 Feb 2011

2011-02-20T22:57:00.003+08:00

2 day strip with Ah Liang of Rompin.

Ah Liang 2nd bot

Rumah Rehat Kg Bernas...my 3rd time

Kg Bernas Jetty

Pelareef Hooker Gang

Kamarul's arsenal....Poseidons

Mine...with new PE1 Sabel Dance

RM5 photo with Ah Liang

Mr Blues

Well equip with GPS tracker...just in-case of emergency

Peace...Love..Harmony and Have Some Fun

Ciggie time.......PE1 SabelDance with Branzino 3000

Kamarul's cobia

Underwater casing NICE....

21kg Cobia

cherry pop Carpenter with sailfish

Another sailfish

Our quarry

Another one

Another

2 days results

Pekan: 22 Jan 2011

2011-01-24T20:29:00.000+08:00

A gap during monsoon season. 3 days of slow wind. Off to Pekan with Eidi.

Poppers & Swimmers 2010 Collection

2011-01-19T10:01:00.001+08:00

Its monsoon season in East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia. Wave height reaches 3-4 meters. Very dangerous for small to medium vessels. So to kill time, i took several photos of my popper collection using studio light.

Lets start with the newest Adhek Bali Penipen. These excellent floating swimbait needs a softer rod tip to make the "GT Crazy" action. Short and long soft jerks with "tip side n down" method is needed for ones to master them. It comes with 3 sizes i.e. short, medium and long Penipen.
Long 160g, 25cm hook 5/0
Medium 140g, 23cm, hook 4/0
Short 100g, 20cm, hook 4/0

Next is the Ocean Lady and Young Lady. These pencil ladies are suitable when the sea is choppy or you can cast them when there is a lot of baitfish. Ocean Lady weights 160gram, 30cm and uses 2 5/0 trebles. It smaller Young Lady weighted at 100g, 25cm and 2 4/0 trebles. These pencils are easy to cast and easy to play with. Parallel and high sticking with fast reeling produce "panic-baitfish-movement" and I found it to be highly effective when facing with rough sea.

Young Lady

Ocean Lady

Next Adhek Bali swimmers are the Long Goby and Short Goby. With softer tip popping rods, these beautiful swimmers emulate perfectly livebait movements. Long Goby is 120gram, 22cm long and need 2 5/0 hooks. While its smaller Short Goby has 100grm, 18cn and uses 2 4/0 hooks. I used these lures and cast them into/side of baitfish schooling/frenzy and apply alternately long and short soft jerks - walk the dog.

Short Goby

Long Goby

Below swimmer/pencil is Adhek Bali Dragonet. This unique 100gram, 18 cm popper uses only 1 4/0 treble at a time. If i opt to put the treble at the center swivel, Dragonet with sway sideways, zig-zagging with relatively high frequency jerks. If i put the treble at the end, this swimmer has the " head-nodding" actions. Highly effective at calm, shallow sea with multiple bait at the surface.

Dragonet

Now we go to chuggers.
What the best chugger for me? Adhck Bali Gecko.
Gecko comes in 4 sizes i.e Big Gecko, Mini Gecko, Baby and Super Mini Gecko.
Big Gecko uses 2 5/0 hooks, weighted at 160gram and 19cm body. In my opinion, this super popper is good for long range casting, produced big splashes with loud sound. Standard straight popping technique is enough for all sea condition.
Sometimes when my arm fatigued, i used the smaller 120gram, 16cm, Mini Gecko that requires 2 4/0 hooks. It has the same action as Big Gecko and excellent for all sea condition.
I used Baby Gecko to pop in Pekan waters. This small chugger weighted 50gram, 13cm and uses 2 3/0 hooks.

Mini Gecko

Big Gecko

Mini Gecko

Big Gecko

Baby Gecko and Mini Dragonet

Below are the Mura Mura Poppers. Comes in two? sizes i.e L and M. The M weighted at 120gram while the L is 130gram. Excellent lures that creates big splashes. Easy to cast too.

Next is one of my favourite i.e Atelier GL-Tsuru Pop 160mm chugger type, 130g, hooks 4/0-5/0. I dont think Atelier produce these anymore. Extict poppers. Large splashes but need a strong tip rod.

Below is the legendary Carpenter Sea Frog. I only have 2. Very well balanced poppers.

To be continue....

New Daiwa Saltiga 5000H

2011-01-10T17:04:00.000+08:00

click below for review:
Daiwa 5000H reviewed by Alan hawk

New rods in the family: Carpenter Long Reef, Carpenter The Blue Lagoon, Hots Gipang TideLez, Tenryu Spike

2010-12-29T16:50:00.000+08:00

CARPENTER Long Reef LR-86 Custom
Length: 2615mm
PE: 6-8
Lure Max: 180g
Drag: 5-7kg (max 10kg)
Rod weight: 420g
Simply the best long distance casting rod available. It is ideally suited to a range of lure weights between 80-170grams and 80-100lb braid. A very versatile tool, and great fish fighter considering its length. LR ( Long Reef ) series are most suitable for those who have passed the initial stage of mastering the popping technique. This rod is an " all purpose " rod that can cast surface / pencil poppers and stickbaits a long distance. If one only aims to own one popping rod for all the tasks, LR86 is the rod for such person.

CARPENTER The Blue Lagoon TBL 711/35RF
Length: 2450mm

PE: 6-8

Lure Max: 170g

Drag: 5-8kg (max 11kg)

Rod weight: 415g

TBL ( The Blue Lagoon ) series are specifically designed to work with stickbaits, a relatively new technique in targeting GT / YFT. The best rod for stickbaits in the 100-150g class. The technique has proven to be effective to catch other " colateral " catches such as wahoo, tenggiri, etc.. 80/30RF SHP is for use with PE6 and 711/35RF is for use with up to PE8 line.

Repaint 711 paired with SW18000

High pumping with nice bending

HOTS Gipang Tide Lez 78MH

PE: 4-6

Length: 2377mm

Lure Max: 120g
Drag: 4-7 (max 9kg)
Rod weight:
Designed for poppers and stickbaits in the 60-110g class. A light rod with a medium action. Ideal for 30-50lb braid.

TENRYU Spike Offshore SK 762-20

PE: 1-2.5
Line 12-20lbs

Length: 1780mm

Lure Max: 28-90 gram

Drag: max 3.5kg

Rod weight: 240g

Designed for light lures eg. Jackson Pintail 35-50g and small up to 70g popper and stickbaits. Ideal for PE1-3 braid.

My whole popping collection till end of 2010 - Carpenter Long Reef 86, Carpenter TBL 711, Sevenseas Trevally Magic Infinite 81, Shimano Caranx Kaibutsu Long Cast, Hots Gipang Tide Lez 78MH, Shino GT Pop, Extreme Graphite Custom, Tenryu Spike Offshore 762

Adhek Bali

2010-11-20T14:26:00.000+08:00

Mokhtar, Faiz, Pak Adhek, your truly, Bukit

My good friend Adhek Amerta of Bali. He is the owner of Adhek Sport Fishing (ASF) which produce the legendary Adhek Bali poppers i.e Gecko, Ocean Lady, Bell, Goby, Mars, Venus and its latest swim bait Penipen. I have the chance to visit his house a.k.a factory to see how its poppers were made.

Raw mohagany wood

Natural drying

Cementing pores

Where it all begin

Varnishing....each popper is balanced and tuned, note the sizes of the new swimbait Penipen

First coat colour

Natural drying

Natural drying. Note the new hologram Penipen.

Oven drying

Oven drying

These popper's colour is unique. Customised by Pak Adhek himself.

Pak Adhek collection....

Penipen swimbait...highly effective

Bali & Lombok: 5-11 Nov 2010

2010-11-01T14:23:00.000+08:00

note the wave ripple at Batu Aba, Nusa Penida....

Ha...my last trip this year. Trip with Pak Adhek. Members = me, Mokhtar, Bukit & Fahiz. Been plan this trip for the past 10 months...Hmmm what to bring???

Popping

1. Daiwa Saltiga Dogfight 6500 ==> YGK Ultra Jigman PE5 78lb & Varivas Avani GT PE6 80lb

2. Sevenseas Trevally Magic 81 - PE6-10

3. Shimano Stella 10000FA ==> Tufline 50lb

4. Shimano Carnx Kaibutsu Long Cast - PE6-8

Jigging

1. Daiwa Expedition 6500 ==> Tufline 65lb

2. Calstar 760L - PE3-8

3. Shimano Stella SW20000 ==> Tufline 80lb & YGK Ultrajigman PE6 86lb

4. Calstar 760M - PE4-10

Poppers

Adhek Bali Ocean Lady, Young Lady, Gecko

River2Sea Dumbell Popper

FCL Labo

Jigs

300-500g Jigs

Pekan: 28 May 2010

2010-05-31T01:49:00.000+08:00

Another trip to Karang Luas, Pekan. Consider so-so trip. Plenty of baitfish but bites are rare. Highlight of this trip is the 9.5kg spaniard on popper.

Mazuin new Poseidon Ocean Hunter + Daiwa Certate Hyper Custom

Daiwa Lover

Mine: Branzino & Stella 5000

Iskandar

Golden Trevally

Spaniard on popper

Diamond Trevally on Caprice Kid

Another Ebek

Yours truly

Total catch - so-so la...

Pekan: 1st May 2010

2010-05-03T00:57:00.000+08:00

An auspicious date for fishing in Pekan with Labour Day holiday, full moon and favorable wind condition. So after confirm with Atoq the date, me, my boss - Awin and Eidi saw our ways to Pekan on 1st May. By 7am, Azhar MJ already waits us at his private jetty with bot ready to go. I asked him got ice ka? He said plenty...i asked him why plenty ice...he said...you'll see...

By 7.30am, we already cruising to the river mouth. With favorable wind and sea condition, it only took us ~ 1 hr 15 minutes to Karang Luas with avarage bot speed ~ 23knots.

Total tally: 7 macks, 3 cobias, 2 banded trevally, 1 black tipped shark, ~ 4 coral trouts...

p/s: Unforgettable experience is to see the mack boiling frenzy just like GTs...jumping n flying...wow...cast anything to them 100% sure hantam!!!!!