Nissin Pro Entry II 320 – A Mystery Rod Report

I’ve somewhat recently acquired a (new to me) tenkara rod. The Nissin Pro Entry II 320. It’s a little puzzling because I can’t really find out any information on it. Which is kind of the reason why I bought it in the first place.

Let’s back up to the beginning…

Back in November of last year a gentleman named Tim posted this rod for sale on the Tenkara Trading Post on Facebook.

Now, I’m fairly familiar with Nissin tenkara rods of the last decade or so. But this one didn’t look familiar. I know the Nissin Hiromichi Fuji style rods, like this one or this one, have wooden handles, but this one clearly has a different rod blank. One that was unsanded with ribbing reminiscent of the River Peak Kiwami. So, I figured I’d reach out to Tom Davis for his thoughts. They were brief.

Ok, so I tried messaging Tim, the seller for more information…

Tim wasn’t asking for that much, especially for a Japanese designed rod, so I bought it just to see what was what. I’ve since contacted Nissin directly to see if they could give me any information. Perhaps the years it was manufactured or sold, or where in the “good/better/best” of their offerings did it once reside? Crickets…

The retail packaging didn’t help much either. There was no year listed anywhere. Only the following descriptor, “Mulch Compound High Carbon Technical Model”, which was followed up in fine print with “MCM – Mulch Compound Materials Series Expert Custom Model. For gently outdoor peoples. Designed and produced by Nissin.” Umm, okay?

The MSRP is listed at 19,800 Japanese Yen on the box, which if it were still offered today at that retail would place it alongside the Professional Tenkara or the Royal Stage Tenkara. But not knowing when this rod was sold to account for inflation, I’m not sure that’s a great indicator.

I even tried my best looking it up on Yahoo auctions in Japan, as it usually has listings of rods that are no longer in retail circulation. But no luck. So, a mystery rod indeed.

Summoning the Tom Davis rod reviewing template, here’s an overview of the rod with some additional photos and measurements for those that have gotten this far and still have interest.

Overview

My first impressions of the Nissin Pro Entry II 320 is that it’s a very attractive rod. Unlike most tenkara rods that are either black or loud colors, it has more of a glossy dark reddish brown paint upon an unsanded ribbed blank. It features gold “PRO ENTRY” writing and bronze accents toward the top of each section. The wood handle and natural winding check at the top of the grip are very aesthetically pleasing. It’s a handsome rod.

While there’s nothing unique about the nylon tip plug, the end cap is kind of interesting as unlike most current tenkara rods that have caps/plugs that screw up into the bottom of the grip, this is truly a cap as the male threads extend out from the bottom of the grip. I did a bad job explaining that, but the photo will show you what I mean. The cap is painted metal, has a foam dampener pad on the inside, no counterweighting, and does feature a little drain hole at the bottom.

Nothing much to mention when it comes to the lillian. This is a used rod, so it came knotted. I assume it’s the original length, but who knows. It is glued to the rod, no swivel tip.

Measurements

Here are some of the measurements straight off the retail box, kindly translated by Google images.

Here are my measurements. Very similar, as typical with most Nissin rods.

Characteristic	Measurement
Sections	8
Nested (w/tip plug)	51.45 cm (20.3 inches)
Extended	319 cm (10 ft. 5 inches)
Weight (w/o tip plug)	72 g (2.54 ounces)
Handle Length	19 cm (7.5 inches)
Grip Circumference	8.3 cm (3.25 inches)
CCS	34 pennies
RFI	10.6/ Very Fast, Minimal Flex

For more on CCS and RFI, watch our YouTube video on the subject.

You probably noticed what seemed like a high penny rating and rod flex index. The rod definitely flexes up toward the tip. I’ll discuss what that means for performance and “feel” in the next section.

Performance

I’ve fished this rod twice since obtaining it, both times around New Year’s day. I actually caught my first fish of 2025, a wild Pennsylvania brown trout using this rod. I wrote about the outing a bit on my personal blog.

Comparing the Nissin Pro Entry II 320 to other more well known Nissin rods of similar length, it is not quite as light in hand or as crisp casting as say the Royal Stage or Level Line. However, it was quite enjoyable to fish, and not the “broomstick” I expected it to be based on its RFI. You can see the fish that I caught were far from giants, but it was still sensitive enough to feel the takes and have a fun fight when bringing the fish to hand. I was kind of surprised. The rod definitely outperformed the “wiggle test.”

Conclusion

I like the Nissin Pro Entry II 320 tenkara rod. Will it become a “go-to” rod in my quiver? Probably not, I have several other 300-340 length rods (some already mentioned earlier in this article) that would get that nod. However, the mystery around its pedigree and purpose, as well as the cool wooden handle, earn it a permanent place in my collection.

Sure, I could probably do additional sleuthing by reaching out to Chris Stewart or maybe Keiichi Okushi to try to find out more about it if I really desired. And I might in the future. But for now, I’m cool with it being a quirky and possibly vintage rod nestled alongside its current day counterparts. Plus, anyone who knows me also knows I’m an “11 foot” rod junkie. It just scratches that itch.

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