Tenryu Rayz 4102B-UL

The Tenryu Rayz baitcasting rods are just beautiful rods, and to my eye are even nicer than their spinning rods. If there was ever a rod that just cried out for the Shimano Calucutta Conquest BFS reel, this is the rod that does!

The Tenryu Rayz baitcasting rods were redesigned for the 2020 model year (probably relevant only to those of you who have one of the older rods and are considering upgrading to the newer model). The new Rayz models are a step closer to the premium Spectra rods. The blanks are both firmer and faster than the original Rayz rods, which has made the rods more accurate. The carbon/glass percentage has been changed. Most of the old Rayz rods were 85% carbon and 15% glass. The new Rayz rods are 92 to 96% carbon, depending on the model.

2020 Tenryu Rayz RZ4102B-UL2020 Tenryu Rayz RZ4102B-UL

The 2020 version of the Ultralight rod is 4'10", five inches shorter than the previous model. The grip is about two inches shorter and the business end is about three inches shorter. I think that will be welcomed by small stream anglers.

Tenryu Rayz RZ53UL-BC, Shimano Calcutta Conquest, Rainbow TroutTenryu Rayz RZ53UL-BC
Calcutta Conquest BFS HG
Tenryu Rayz RZ53UL-BC and Shimano Aldebaran BFS XG with smallmouth bass on boat seatTenryu Rayz RZ53UL-BC
Aldebaran BFS XG
Tenryu Rayz RZ3UL-BC and Calcutta Conquest BFS HG and brown trout on net.Tenryu Rayz RZ53UL-BC
Calcutta Conquest BFS HG
Tenryu Rayz RZ53UL-BC, Daiwa Alphas Air Stream Custom, Northern Pike on back deck of a boat.Tenryu Rayz RZ53UL-BC
Alphas Air Stream Custom

The rod specs for the Ultralight rods are unchanged from the previous model. As the photos above show, previous Ultralight rods were not limited to tiny trout, although I wouldn't recommend intentionally fishing for pike.

For the 2020 models, though, Tenryu gives a bit more information, suggesting that the Ultralight rod was optimized for 3 gram spoons and spinners. I bought an RZ4102B-UL, and can attest that it worked very nicely with 2.5 and 3 gram spoons, but did not seem at all overburdened with 4.5g sinking minnow plugs. 

Tenryu Rayz RZ4102B-UL with sinking minnow plugRZ4102B-UL may not be optimized for a 4.5g sinking minnow, but it works.

However, I do not fish them with the aggressive jerks I often see in Japanese YouTube videos. Underwater videos of wildly jerking sinking minnow plugs fished by Japanese anglers show trout repeatedly missing the plugs they're trying to hit.

Tenryu Rayz RZ542B-LTenryu Rayz baitcaster

Model
Type
Length
Sections
Breakdown
Length
Rod Weight
Line Weight
Lure Weight

RZ4102B-UL
Wild (stream)
4'10"
2

30"
2.9 oz
Max 4 lb
Max 6 g (just under 1/4 oz)
Made in Japan

One last point - when you put the two sections together there will be a gap as shown in the photo below. That is normal. Don't force it.

The gap between sections.There is supposed to be a gap. Don't force it.

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Header photo: Tenryu Rayz RZ4102B-UL, Shimano Calcutta Conquest BFSHG ('17)

Warning:

The hooks are sharp.
The coffee's hot.
The fish are slippery when wet.