Cheap Tenkara rods on Ebay

I see the originals are made in Japan.

Yah, obviously cheaper knockoffs but wondering if they would do for someone that just casually fishes the few times I go backpacking around streams Thanks

Inexpensive is OK, but I'd avoid rods that were designed for other purposes and sold as tenkara rods. Some of the rods on ebay are okay and some are complete crap. By the way the Fountainhead Caddis rod that I bought was something like $60 and is supposed to be much nicer than the no name ones on ebay. Not sure if they are still available or what the current price is though. I have had fun with mine but ultimately decided that I have more fun with a "normal" fly rod. My cheap 4 wt rod (Wind River from Cabelas) with everything I need to fish is about 8 ounces. My Tenkara and associated stuff is 4 ounces. The 4 wt fly rod is worth the extra 4 ounces to me. If I were to take a rod just in case it would be the tenkara, but when I actually plan to fish it is the 4 wt. The thing is that since I usually hike in states with expensive non-resident licenses I either plan to fish a good bit or leave the fishing stuff home.

Arguably a wooden stick with line will work, but will you enjoy it as much? I know the company that makes those brown rods. They are OK, but not as nice as those slightly more expensive. You will see that they list IM10 or similar for main component used. These will be heavier, not as sensitive. By the way – the company selling them on eBay is not the manufacturer, but a re-seller based in China. My recommendation is to go with either Fountain Head if you want inexpensive or getting more expensive rods. Those you linked will work, … but won't be as nice as more expensive and won't have the same service you can get from US based sellers. Rods do break you know.

I just picked up a shimotsuke tenkara 13 footer for about $90 on ebay, came with level line and tippet too. Looks to be on the stiffer side but for an entry level rod it should serve it's purpose fine :)