Dragontail Shadowfire 365 12ft Tenkara Fly Fishing Rod

Chris Plemmons: I really liked the fit/finish of this rod. Felt great in the hand. But at 12', thought it was too large for the small blue line streams here in western NC. Ended up returning it for a 9'-10' rod from DragonTail, which I am super happy with. DragonTail, from my experience is a great company, and you can't really go wrong ordering their products. Just make sure you're OK with the size of rod you get for the streams you'll be fishing.

United States on Oct 25, 2023

Josh: Casts amazingly and seems really well made/durable!

United States on Aug 23, 2023

Bruce: Came with aluminum case and soft cloth one as well.

Canada on Aug 06, 2023

Lester Simmons: I caught several Rainbows on my first trip. The only thing is by time you tie on a tippet I found it cumbersome to get the fish in. Maybe it’s just lack of experience with the new outfit.
I’ll just have to tailor the outfit to my liking by adjusting the terminal tackle.
Other than that it’s a great great outfit and a joy to catch fish on.

United States on May 16, 2023

Hawaii Customer: I bought this to catch small saltwater bait fish off a boat dock using a sabiki rig. It works well for this purpose. Also very compact when not using it.

Japan on Dec 27, 2022

seth: Great all around rod for streams, creeks, and small to medium sized rivers. Great for the waters in the foothills and mountains of Colorado.

For me the best part of this rod is the minimalistic approach one takes while fishing it. I take a hip pack with some flies, nippers, a spool of level line, and tippet just in case. I like a landing net too. No reel, no waders, no vest. It simplifies the process so you can focus on the fish. In two minutes you are ready to go.

Twelve feet seems large for a rod designed for smaller waters, but it's the size you want. The fit and finish is awesome. The materials are solid and flexible. It feels the nibbles and fights well. Great rod that gets you in the water and catching fish at a heck of a value.

Most of the techniques and maneuvers used while tenkara fishing are intuitive. The Shadow fire can do them all.
Blending tenkara with western styles is easy too. Euronymphingg? Skating dries? Tandem rigs? Check. This rod is a great entry into the style and mindset of tenkara yet capable enough for anglers of all skill levels.

I purchased this rod after spending the spring with the dragontail talon (10.6ft). I figured I...

United States on Aug 27, 2020

Chris: After fly-fishing for several years, this is my first tenkara rod. Being intimidated by the $$$ TenkaraUSA cost and leery of the <$ budget imports, the Shadowfire seemed to strike a good balance in price versus product. I bought the 12' rod & starter package, which included the rod, a rod sock, a hard case rod tube, a knit sock that goes over the rod tube, a 12.5' furled leader, a spool of 4x tippet, and 3 unique tenkara flies, each about size 14. In other words, everything that I needed to start tenkara fishing came with this one order. The seller shipped promptly and it arrived 1 day earlier than advertised by Amazon.

The quality of the rod appears very good. Not being familiar with tenkara rods, I'm reluctant to say excellent, but haven't found anything to complain about. The cork handle, for example, seems as good or better as that on my other fishing rods. I don't know how the action is rated, but compared to my traditional 9' 6-wt carbon fiber fly rod, the action is v-e-r-y slow. Like make a backcast, look at my watch to see the time, then start thinking a forward cast. Maybe it's the furled leader, maybe it's the rod, but it's not entirely...

United States on Sep 03, 2015