Launching our new brand Spiritfish

[Nick Bowles]

We are very proud to launch our new brand Spiritfish today! We have been working on the brand and rods for the last two years. This has been a labor of passion and finally it is coming to life.



The Spiritfish story started a few years ago. We had been testing rods and products for a lot of the top manufacturers like Shimano, Fisherman, Carpenter, Hammerhead, Hots, Race Point, FCL Labo, Temple Reef and a few more and we always gave our feedback but we never really got to involved with further development or final products. So we started thinking well why do manufacturers send us all these products and we came to the realization that we are lucky enough to fish some of the best destinations in the World but more importantly we run a charter operation in most probably the top big GT destination in the World and everyone wanted a piece of the action and have their brands associated with us and big fish. Plus we have thousands of clients fish with us and have been lucky enough to see almost every type of rods, lure, terminal tackle and set up that has been thought of for popping and jigging for big fish.

So we thought well we know what works and what does not, we know what clients want for our type of fishing after a decade of running a successful charter operation for big GTs and running trips to destinations Worldwide and we know what is needed to make a successful rod to land big fish in extreme conditions, and this is when Spiritfish was born. The brand was basically born on our boats fishing and discussing what would be the "perfect rod for this specie or that species" We started to design rods we wanted ourselves for the various species we fish for on our charters and trips. These ideas were then transformed into designs and prototype rods which we started testing and now finally have approved our first rod for production.

A few of the fish caught while testing:

First real test in Cape Cod, fought a demon fish for over a hour


PE8 rod stood up easily to everything this big BLuefin could throw at us.


Bending the PE8 rod on a big Hallaniyat Island GT in 2-3m of water.


50kg+ GT landed in Hallaniyat on the PE8 rod.


Gave the PE10 rod to a first time GT fishing client and landed with ease a weighed 50kg GT in Hallaniyat Island



Spiritfish is a brand and product that is focused on extreme fishing, conditions and lifestyle. We aim to bring the best value top end products to the market that will suit our clients style of fishing. We will bring out a range of rods, tackle and accessories that will suit the traveling extreme angler to catch their chosen target species. In a nut shell it is tackle we ourselves want on any trip from PE10 rods for places like Socotra, Hallaniyat Island and Cape Cod down to PE2 rods for fishing for smaller species when tides are slack or the wind stops you from chasing the bigger offshore species.

We have tested our first rods expensively over the last year from Bluefish Tuna in Cape Cod to monster GTs in Hallaniyat Island. We have made several versions and changes to the first PE8 rod that we will launch and finally we have the final product ready to launch to the market in August 2016. We have been to and worked very closely with our rod factory to ensure design, manufacture, quality control and supply are all guaranteed.

Spiritfish will over the next 2 years launch a range of 10 rods, which will start from PE10 GT/Tuna rods right down to PE2 light spinning rods plus a jigging rod. We are very excited to be offering this new range of rods and look forward to building this market and clients to enjoy our products, have a great experience and catch big fish! For further information please contact us on [email protected] or check out our temporary website http://spiritfishtackle.com or Facebook www.facebook.com/spiritfishtackle

[Nick Bowles]

Spiritfish Hallaniyat 8, our first rod we are launching!

We would like to introduce our first rod that we will be manufacturing and launching in August 2016. We have been through several versions, actions, guide spacings, handle set ups, reel seats etc and now we have the final two prototypes that we are testing in April and May before the final rod will go into production.

The rod is called Hallaniyat 8, this is named after our operation on Hallaniyat Island where we have caught some truly monster GTs and where we have continued to built up our skills, knowledge and experience on big GTs. This rod is an easy rod to fish and has great casting ability and power low down in the rod. The rod is parabolic to allow all levels of anglers to have a decent chance at landing a monster fish. The rod is primarily a GT rod but during testing we landed a big Bluefin Tuna on the rod in Cape Cod with no problem.

A few of the design points on the rod that make it special for us. First and foremost we wanted a rod that could cast well and made the rod 8.1ft, this allows us to cast larger lures and still get the required casting distance to cover maximum water. The blank is parabolic allowing almost any angler to hook up a big fish and be able to handle the rod and fish. We strongly believe against the broomstick concept of GT rods, were not many anglers can handle the rod and trying to get any action out of a broomstick to get hits is virtually impossible. The rod has a softer tip to be able to work both big and small lures from 100-200gr. The rod will fish both stickbaits and poppers. The rod will fish poppers to 180gr and stickbaits to 200gr well, but the sweet spot is 140-160gr lures.

We have used high spec carbon and resin to build the rods and all the components are high end Fuji components. We have made the reels seat wind up from the bottom so not to interfere with your top hand when casting or working a lure and reduce the reel seat loosening. The top fighting grip has been tapered towards the top of the rod to allow for the grip to fit comfortably in your hand with a large diameter when casting so that the rod will not twist as easily and then tapered towards the top of the grip to allow for a better grip when fighting big fish and will reduce hand and forearm fatigue and cramp. The rod is two piece like most travel rods and has a very snug fit allowing for the rod to be secure and minimal movement when fishing but still easy to separate the butt section and top piece when fishing is finished.

We have used several guide positioning to test the casting ability, line slap both when casting and working lures and now have the positioning sorted out to ensure the optimum casting and performance. We have used Fuji MNSG guides. The guides have an under wrap and triple over wraps to ensure the guides are secure. One of the main issues on rods we have broken in the passed is the guide spacing not being correct and/or guides not secured properly meaning to much pressure on the guides and they pull out of the binding and rod breaks. Lastly we went for a slightly slower action on the rod and made the rod solid to ensure that the rod is strong, can be fished all day and will handle any big fish you may encounter! We are very excited about this rod and after all the testing and work we finally have a rod we are truly proud of.

These are the rods specs:
Length: 8.1tf
PE Class: 8-10
Lure Weight: 100-200gr

For more information, orders, dealership enquiries please contact us at [email protected]

[Cameron Mundy]

I trust you still have my postal address?

[Nick Bowles]

I think so Cam, Street 2, Forth Tree on the left, Karinda, Sri Lanka? Got one headed your way when the rods arrive.

[Joshua Fifis]

Very cool indeed. I can only imagine how you must feel being so close to full production. Good luck with it mate!

[Nick Bowles]

Thanks Josh, very exciting to see it coming together. Really looking forward to the day get the first shipment arrives!

[Andrew Johnson]

I wish you every success with the new venture Nick.

Just out of interest, what will the new rod weigh!

Cheers

Andrew

[Nick Bowles]

Hi Andrew, Many thanks! We aiming for the rod to be between 410-450gr. We have got the final samples to test with different EVA so will confirm the rods final details in May before production.

[Nick Bowles]

We would like to introduce our second rod in our range that we will be manufacturing and launching in November 2016. We have tested the rod in Cape Cod and Oman on several big fish and are very excited about the prospect of this rod as a heavy duty big fish rod with places like Oman, Socotra, Tanzania, PNG, Komodo, Tokara, Cape Cod, Gib Rock, Cape Town, Hatteras etc in mind.
The rod is called Socotra 10 and is a 7.10ft PE10 rod, this is named after our trips to Socotra where we encountered monster GTs in very strong current off small boats and the requirement for a shorter rod with a lot of power that is easy on the body and this is what we designed using our experience from Socotra and other extreme destinations.

A few of the design points on the rod that make it special for us. We wanted a rod that was strong enough to cast big lures specifically stickbaits in tough conditions both boat wise, current wise and for the angler to be able to control and land a big fish without being pulled out of the boat or damaging yourself. The rod is still long enough to get good casting distance but short enough to lift a big fish. The rod has a lot of power towards the butt and although a parabolic rod is able to lift big fish while still not killing your body in the process.
The rod is parabolic so does not max out and does not put max pressure on the lower back when fighting a big fish. The rod has a fast taper and is able to work big stickbaits up to 250gr.

We have used high spec carbon and resin to build the rods and all the components are high end Fuji components. We have made the reels seat wind up from the bottom so not to interfere with your top hand when casting or working a lure and reduce the reel seat loosening. The top fighting grip has been tapered towards the top of the rod to allow for the grip to fit comfortably in your hand with a large diameter when casting so that the rod will not twist as easily and then tapered towards the top of the grip to allow for a better grip when fighting big fish and will reduce hand and forearm fatigue and cramp. The rod is two piece like most travel rods and has a very snug fit allowing for the rod to be secure and minimal movement when fishing but still easy to separate the butt section and top piece when fishing is finished.

We have used several guide positioning to test the casting ability, line slap both when casting and working lures and now have the positioning sorted out to ensure the optimum casting and performance. We have used Fuji MNSG guides. The guides have an under wrap and triple over wraps to ensure the guides are secure. One of the main issues on rods we have broken in the passed is the guide spacing not being correct and/or guides not secured properly meaning to much pressure on the guides and they pull out of the binding and rod breaks.
Lastly we went for a slightly faster action on the rod to cast bigger lures and made the rod solid to ensure that the rod is strong, can be fished all day and will handle any big fish you may encounter! We are very excited about this rod and after all the testing and work we finally have another rod we are truly proud of.

These are the rods specs:
Length: 7.10tf
PE Class: 8-10
Lure Weight: 120-250gr

For more information, orders, dealership enquiries please contact us at [email protected]

[Nick Bowles]

Thanks Amr, it took us a long time to choose and sort out the logo, wanted something simple but something we can relate too. The logo was a mix of new and old. The GT in the logo is a modified version of what we use on our shorts. Next time you this side we will get you bending one of a big fish!

[Nick Bowles]

One of the lucky parts for us is that we have unlimited fishing in Oman with our 5 charter boats we operate to be able to take our rods and test them against some of the biggest GTs and Yellowfin Tuna available. We are able to test the rods from Musandam in the North down to Hallaniyat Island in the South. This is one of the reasons we are confident in our rods and testing as they have been put up against big fish during our testing phase.


Our testing ground! Hallaniyat Island Lodge.

Capt Damon and Cuan were heading down to Hallaniyat Island towing our boat Al Sayyad 2 from Musandam to meet up with the Southern Oman team. We sent them down a few days early to do some rod testing and had some great results in the continued development and testing of our prototype rods.

Hallaniyat 8 was designed with places like Southern Oman in mind, a rod that can cast medium to big lures a long way and land big fish with minimal stress on the body. Capt Damon is the top Fishing Guide in Oman running trips throughout Oman from Musandam to Muscat to Masirah to Hallaniyat for many years, so his experience and knowledge is a big asset for us. Damon has given us his input and was time for him to try out the Hallaniyat 8 rod.


Boats ready for action in the Hallaniyat Marina.

The guys arrived on the island and quickly got to work. The first big GT Damon hooked up was a 42kg fish off a shallow point and he quickly put the brakes on the fish and after a short fight landed his first GT on the Hallaniyat 8. The rod handled well but he felt there was a lot more under the hood.


Damon locking up on the first fish on the Hallaniyat 8


Damon with a nice 42kg Hallaniyat GT!

Second big GT Damon hooked was a different story, Damon hooked the fish in about 1.5-2m of water in one of the meanest GT spots we have with shallow rocks, drop offs and razor sharp reefs. Damon locked up on the reel and put maximum pressure with Capt Cuan using the boat to try keep the angle. After a short but physical fight Damon landed the first 50kg GT on the rod in a couple of minutes! Great test for the rod and Damon only comment back was "You not getting the rod back!" Think that speaks volumes from a guide that has seen most probably every GT rod under the sun in action.


Big fish shallow water!


Big 50kg Hallaniyat Island GT on the Hallaniyat 8

The next versions of the Hallaniyat 8 and Socotra 10 will be arriving this week to complete our testing to make sure we are happy with the final version and the QC, it is coming to life!!

For more information or dealer enquiries please contact us at [email protected]