Salty is at ICAST: Day 1

International Convention of the Allied Sportfishing Trades aka ICAST is going on now thru Friday in Las Vegas.  This is the tradeshow where all the manufacturers trot out their new gear for the retail buyers to put in their stores.  I’m here getting the scoop on all the new gear that you’ll be coveting when it hits those stores.  Here are just a few of the cool finds so far:

This is Ehsan, CEO of a new company called Oliso.  They make a new vacuum sealing system that is very different from other systems currently on the market.  It also has a much smaller countertop footprint than what you are used to seeing.  I asked Ehsan to send me a review sample as I’d like to do a head to head comparison test with the Foodsaver product I’m using now.

Daiwa Seagate reels

This is the new Seagate line of saltwater reels from Daiwa.  This line replaces the popular Sealine reels that have been a mainstay for us SoCal Salties.  They will retail at around $150.  They’re light, they’re strong and if they are anything like their predecessor, they’ll cast very well.

These are a new line of hooks from a company called VMC.  They call these the Spinshot.  The hooks are mounted on a swivel with eyes above and below the hook.  The idea is that they allow the hook to move more freely in a drop shot rig.  They used plastic worms in their demo, but I want to try these with a squid strip.  Pro bass angler, Mike Iaconelli uses these.  I have a review sample and I may be able to use them as early as this weekend.

Much more to come.  Follow me on twitter to get updates throughout the day from the show floor.  Tight lines!