NEW flagship poles arrive quite regularly, but nothing gets everyone quite as excited as a release from Daiwa.
The market may well be getting tougher, and the difference between many top-end poles is getting smaller, but Daiwa is still the undisputed market leader.
Although everyone is expecting the Air Tech to be light, stiff and strong, all top-end poles boast these qualities, so I don’t think these attributes alone are why Daiwa poles are still considered the best.
The first big reason is the UK-made badge. You shouldn’t be surprised to learn that all budget-priced poles are manufactured in China. What might come as a shock, though, is that many premium ones are made there as well!
Although there are the obvious cost benefits in this, nothing quite beats a pole made in a UK factory. It’s not just the attention to detail and quality control, but also the shipping and supply. When you start running short on stock, you can do something about it quickly when you have your own factory.
This is probably why Daiwa’s customer service is so highly regarded. Have an accident with a top-end Daiwa, and chances are the team will get you fishing again very quickly!
Reason two is durability. If you see an angler on the bank fishing with a 10, 15 or sometimes even a 20-year-old pole, it’s almost always a Daiwa. This is probably also the explanation for reason number three – Daiwa poles hold their value.
Some top-end poles from elsewhere are nearly worthless after a few years. Sell your flagship Daiwa, though, and there’s a good chance that as long as you’ve looked after it, you’ll recoup a significant lump of your hard-earned cash. The thing is, if you own a Daiwa, you will already know all this. So let’s cut to the chase – just how good is the Air Tech?
To find out, I took it to Green Farm Fishery, a membership-only water near Towcester, Northants, with the aim of catching a load of carp and F1s shallow – a method where every scrap of additional rigidity results in more bites connected with and extra weight in the keepnet.
Starting with the pole as ‘standard’ with a commercial kit on the end and all the silver sections up the back, but no Phex attached, meant I was fishing just shy of 16m. The weight, balance and feel had me convinced from the word go that this was something exceptional.
I’m not the biggest guy in the world, yet I was able to control and slap the rig exactly as I wanted to. Not only that, it felt manageable enough that I reckoned I could do it for hours! I have to stress that most of the fish were F1s. Get a decent slap with a carp, and chances are it will rip the elastic out.
F1s are different – you have to get a controlled slap that results in a rig landing straight and the line tight to the pole tip. Let the pole flex and bounce a little too much, or drift off a little as you fight its weight, and all you will do is miss bites.
I soon got this off to a tee as fish after fish lined up.
As if this wasn’t good enough, like most modern poles, the Air Tech has a couple of cheat cards to improve things further.
First up is a Pro F1 kit – a one-piece 1.83m top kit that is 57cm shorter than the Match, Commercial and Power kits. It not only stiffens the top end but also speeds up the netting of fish as they rise closer to the angler.
The second is called a Super 6, a shortened sixth section that replaces the normal section, reducing the pole’s length by approximately 85cm.
By first feeding a section closer and fishing for a bit to re-acquaint myself with the pole, I then added the Super 6 and the F1 kit, before putting the 16m section back on to compensate for the reduced length.
My jaw nearly hit the floor! The difference was out of this world! I thought I had plenty of control before, but this was ridiculous! I know short No.4 sections are hugely popular for this style of fishing, but in my opinion, the Super 6 is even better, as it doesn’t just stiffen the top end – it transforms the whole pole!
You could always use a short No.4 and a Super 6 at the same time, but that would just be silly – could anybody possibly want a pole that stiff?
The best part of this remarkable section is that it is also available separately for £180, which allows any current UK-made Daiwa pole owner to use one on their existing pole.
It’s now that this review moves on to the tricky subject of price. This pole sells for around £6,500, albeit with a very healthy selection of top kits and spares. Even so, this still puts it around £3,000 more expensive than most other flagship poles. So, is it worth the extra cost? Going on strength, weight and rigidity alone, I’d be struggling to decide.
However, once you have taken into account all the benefits mentioned at the start of the review, plus the Diamond Satin and ITS taping which, combined, make a huge difference to shipping… the blinding balance and feel… the fact that despite relentless shipping and slapping, not a single section loosened… plus the durability and strength… and the answer has to be yes, it’s worth every penny! And that’s without even mentioning the outstanding new Dual Roller pullers, the section and elastic alignment systems, and the optional extras like short 4, F1 Speed Extension and the now overdue Armlock Phex.
In my opinion, every single aspect of this pole is complete perfection, right down to the smallest detail. If you want the very best and you are willing to pay for it, do not hesitate – you really won’t find better.
BANKSIDE TEST VERDICT
+ A stunning balance makes this pole feel even better than the sum of its lightness, strength and stiffness
+ Outrageously stiff as standard, but the pole is improved further with use of the supplied Super 6 section
+ Amazingly easy to ship due to its rigidity and low-friction ITS and Diamond Satin finishes
+ Supplied with an excellent package, featuring enough extras to get you going on any kind of water
- Although Daiwa tells us the team are working on it, depth markers are not included on the top kits. These are a useful feature well worth incorporating on the next production run
TECH SPEC
DAIWA AIR TECH
• Hyper MSG and improved Nanoplus carbons
• Bias Carbon V-JOINT
• Diamond Satin on 9, 10 & 11
• ITS on sections 5, 6, 7 of the 13m version
• Section alignment system
• All kits cut and fitted with PTFE bushes
• All No3 sections fitted with PTFE nose cone
• Dual Roller side puller fitted on Commercial, Power and F1 kits
• Dual Roller side pullers supplied with pre-wrapped Match kits
• Weight: 1395g (1595g including PHEX)
• Pro Match x 3 (spare side puller x 3)
• Pro Commercial x 3
• Pro Power x 3
• Pro F1 x 3
• Pro Cupping Kit
• Pro F1 Cupping
• No.4 section x 2
• Super 6
• Super Light PHEX 9/11
• Holdall
Price: 16m pole package £6,499; pole only, including Super Light PHEX9, £4,900; 13m pole only, including 8/9 reversible extension, £2,940
OUR PICK OF THE ALTERNATIVES
SHIMANO AREO COMPETITION PRO
Price: £4,999.99
SENSATIONALLY well balanced and jaw-droppingly light with a superb finish – few poles handle as well as this.
www.fishshimano.com
GURU AVENTUS ZERO 900
Price: £4,999.99
ARGUABLY the strongest and toughest flagship pole ever made. A true all-rounder, this one is capable of tackling any kind of long pole fishing in the UK and Europe.
www.tackleguru.com
PRESTON INNOVATIONS SUPERIUM X95
Price: £3,499.99
AN UNBELIEVABLY high-performing pole considering its quite modest price tag. A sensational range of well-thought-out spares and top kits make it a firm favourite among anglers. www.prestoninnovations.com