Josh Holmes
As the editor and founder of Yakass.net, Josh is one of the highest profile kayak fishermen in Australia. He is a man who spends a LOT of time on the water and he demands the very best from his tackle.

I don't just use my rods - by virtue of sport fishing in open ocean water from a kayak, outrigger or trimaran, my rods get used in unnatural ways that would most certainly see the undoing of many others. Ever since accompanying me on a 6-month coastal kayak fishing tour along the east coast of Australia in 2007 and then through to present day, my Nitro rods have consistently proven their worth in every way. Of the trio of rods that I took on that trip - in which they were used almost every day - I still have two of them (original tips still no less) and these still get used each weekend religiously. The third was inadvertently dropped to the ocean depths through the rigours of trolling at high speeds from a trimaran and had I known where it fell out, I'd have dived in after it. Although unable to do that at the time, I didn't hesitate in getting that Viper replaced. Once you've owned a Nitro, nothing else will do.Follow Josh's adventures at www.yakass.net

Brad Yates
Living in the south west town of Busselton, Brad Yates has access to the myriad of bream fishing locations all along the WA coastline. He regularly competes in ABT Qualifying rounds and WA Bream Classic events, helps run a social light tackle sports fishing club and also writes a monthly column in Hotbite fishing magazine.

WA has so much to offer in terms of bream fishing structure. Whether I’m in Walpole fishing 30cm deep crystal clear sand flats, to timber clad rivers in Mandurah and Augusta, to right under the sky scrapers in Perth, I need a rod that is light, sensitive and has plenty of power to pull kilo bream out of their home territory. In the years gone by, I have had to put up with rods that were either not quite right for the job, or I had to build my own. The Nitro Vapor series of rods were first introduced to me when I was involved in a beginner’s day for those who may like to try their hands at bream fishing. Immediately I was impressed at the light weight and stiffness of them. I quickly exchanged my custom rods for a line of Nitro Vapors. And since picking up my first Vapor, I haven’t touched another rod.

When I fish plastics, I like my rods nice and stiff to feel every bite and to impart a real finesse action to my lure. Throwing 1/16th jigs with small 2 inch curl tail grubs or creature baits right into timber, rocky outcrops and down drop offs, I want to feel any slight touch, tap or take of my lure. The bream in those situations are quite often in the kilo plus range and after hooking up I need to be able to get them into the boat quickly. I fish my 6lb line and 6lb leader to the absolute max with tight drags and prefer to bully the fish in.  Having fish taking drag is not acceptable to me. After recently being involved in a teams event first place finish, with a bag of 3.95kg for 4 bream pulled from heavy timber, I’m glad I had my favourite 6'0 and 6'6 models to fish with. Many other rods would not have had the power to stop the big fish from busting me off.

The 7'0 model is also in my arsenal and is the perfect rod for throwing hard body lures across flats. WA is home to some of the 
best sand flats fishing in Australia, and nothing is more exciting than watching a school of bream in water that barely covers their backs, throwing a lure in front of them and slowly rolling the lure back. With the extra length, it casts a mile and a slightly softer feel takes up a bit of the initial energy that a bream dishes out when it chomps down on my lure.

The full set of Fuji SiC guides with the tip guides being titanium framed performs great with modern braided lines that I use. They are smooth and light to keep the rod crisp and make sure I feel each subtle take. The 2 piece rods are very handy in 
regards to travel, with each rod having a sturdy rod tube and bag supplied in the purchase. Add to those features the awesome Innovator Rod Insurance Policy, and the fact that they are designed and developed for Australian fishing styles and the choice of buying a new rod for any tournament angler should never be so hard. They also won best new rod for 2008 at the Australian Fishing Trade Association show.

Nitro Vapor rods were designed for those in the tournament scene using light line and light lures.  If that includes you already, or if you are looking to get into bream or bass tournaments, or even if you want a top quality rod for your social fishing - take a good hard look at them when your considering your next rod.  I’m sure you will be pleasantly surprised!

Tim Hodge
A keen tournament angler who targets the monster bream of Tasmania, Tim Hodge demands maximum performance from his tackle.

I am a soft plastic and hard body freak; nothing excites me more than catching x-large bream on lures, on my newly adopted waters the Derwent River and Lune River in pristine country in Tasmania.

I fish the ABT and Classic comps here in Tasmania and travel to the mainland to pursue my quests there as well to achieve my goals.  I demand the best rods out there and Nitro tournament rods provide the quality and actions required for tournament success.

I first fell in love with my Nitro rod about 5yrs ago being the 7" bream finesse. This was the only rod I could find that would punch a hard body out on the flats at Walpole, Perth where I used to live. It would fool those spooky bream every time as it had power and casting ability which is essential when fishing flats. Since those days Nitro rods have just been getting better and better I now own a collection of the new Vapor rods in various lengths.

To compete in the pro boater’s league I require the best rods available and the Nitro Vapor rods provide me with an edge over my competitors. I recently qualified for the ABT final using these rods, now some of you will argue its not just the rods but on the this day, Nitro Vapors were pulling fish away from the snags before they knew what had happened and into the net while other guys kept losing theirs.

Shane Dyason
Being self-employed fitting irrigation systems and landscape gardening, Shane can suit his working hours around tournament angling and his passion is the ABT Bream tournament circuit around the country.

Fishing journalism and tournament fishing allow me to travel around the country and, fortunately, I get the chance to experience some great fishing in many different locations.  One main aspect of traveling with fishing gear is being able to transport it with minimal fuss, especially rods.  I find it a major advantage that no matter what models I will be fishing with from the Nitro range, I know they will be at least two piece and that is always an advantage especially when flying can restrict the length of rod tubes you can carry.

These days I would have to say that 90% of my fishing time is spent casting lures, whether it is in a tournament situation or just fishing socially.  I spend a lot of hours on the water and usually make hundreds of casts in a session so it’s important to have rods that are not only light,  but are comfortable to use for long durations, yet still have enough power to stop hard running fish when I need it. Nitro tournament rods fulfil all these requirements.

I am fortunate enough to have been involved with Innovator since the start of the Nitro range and it has been exciting to watch the range grow into the product it is today.  Apart from there exceptional blank quality and components used, the main advantage the Nitro range has over many competitors is the company and brand is Australian owned allowing each model to be specifically designed and built to suit Aussie fish in Aussie conditions.  Go and fish with one, you won’t be disappointed.

Neil Grose
Neil Grose was one of Tasmania's leading trout and bream fishing guides and is a highly regarded fly casting instructor and the author of two highly acclaimed books on fly fishing. He is currently the editor of Victorian Fishing Monthly incorporating The Tasmanian Sportsfisher magazine - here he talks about Innovator and their rods.

There is only one choice for anglers looking for a fly rod for Australian waters- a fly rod designed and refined by Australian experts - and that choice is Innovator.

The Innovator brand is synonymous with quality, commitment to customer satisfaction, and value for money. Add to this an unparalleled level of service and you can see why this Australian fly rod company is such a success. No other rod company has such a level of commitment to Australian anglers.

There is an Innovator fly rod to suit every fly-fishing situation, from casting tiny dries to fussy stream browns, chasing trout chasing mayfly duns, to drifting the lakes loch style, or tackling blue water pelagics. Each rod has been carefully designed to give you the angler the best performing rod for each occasion and at great value for money. Not to mention that unbeatable Rod Insurance Policy. These rods will maximise your potential, and to help you to catch more fish. And we all want to catch more of those!

There are many rods in the Innovator range, from the incredible value of their entry level Distance rods to the stunning new Velocity rods which, once the basics have been mastered, will have you on the cutting edge of technology. So which rod will suit your personal situation? An extremely good question, and as you would expect, Innovator can match you to the rod that best suits your fishing situation.

There are three main aspects to Australian fly-fishing, stream fishing, lake fishing, and salt-water fishing. And while there is always an Innovator rod that allows you to specialise, Innovator also has rods that allow you to fish effectively across these separate methods.

Paul Dolan
Paul Dolan from Fraser Coast Sportfishing provides his opinion on the Innovator range of spin, Baitcaster and Fly and why he believes these rods ensure a steady return clientele to his guiding business.

I have been using Innovator Nitro rods on my Charter Boats in both fresh and saltwater for the last 3 & 1/2 years and have found them to be fantastic fishing rods. They have handled the rigours of charter fishing and still show no signs of undue wear and have landed many great captures for my clients and have had quite a few purchase these rods for there personal use after trying them.

During my guiding the clients are provided with the Ultralight spin for bass and bream, the Dominator Extreme Barra and Viper for large impoundment barra. I utilise the Viper and magnum butt for open saltwater angling chasing longtail tuna, Mack tuna, Mackerel, Golden Trevally along with reef and bottom dwelling species.

I have found the versatility of these models to be outstanding during my guiding as they cover such a broad range of situation from casting metal slugs and soft plastics to surface feeding pelagics allowing incredible distances to be cast with their sensitive tips but then having the low down grunt in the mid to butt section to subdue these powerful tuna.

I have found the Viper a great rod for working plastics for reef species like snapper, coral trout and other reef dwellers, as they have the sensitivity in the tip to feel the most timid bites but then have that incredible power in the mid to butt section when needed to stop these rampaging species from finding their homes amongst the reef.

I also use the Innovator Fly rods range for my flyfishing clients and have landed many good Golden Trevally to 12kg along with big Queenfish and Longtail tuna to 20kg on them.

I would not hesitate for a second in recommending these rods to anyone looking for top quality fishing rod for all of the above mentioned species and more.

As a professional guide I cannot afford to use inferior products as my livelyhood hinges on client's success and I truly believe these rods give my clients the edge while on board my boat to a successful days angling.

You can see for yourself the fish these rods have captured, and continue to capture, in the photo gallery on my web site. www.frasercoastsportfishing.com

I have been using just about the full range of Nitro Rods for the past four years and have experienced nothing but satisfaction,useability and reliability- what more could any angler ask of a rod.

This Testimonial is especially for two of my most used the Undertaker (Classic Barra/Cod) and the Dominator (Extreme Barra) both are 6’6” . These rods have had several trips to Weipa and many trips to Queensland's Barra Dams and have survived everything asked of them without failure or any hint of a problem.

Both rods are super strong and offer exceptional fish stopping ability, coupled with a good quality reel they are extremely light and accurate to cast and allow even us older anglers to cast for many hours without fatigue.

I was fortunate to be part of the Nitro Tournament Rods team that participated in the recent southern rounds of the ABT Barra tour held at Lake Awoonga and Monduran dams and these rods ably assisted the team to take first place at the Monduran two day morning event.

Whether casting plastics into crazy bust ups in the rip at Port Philip Heads or chasing Snapper in Corio Bay. One thing is for sure, you need kick ass rods! Our choice is the Distance Spin 7’6”and its big brother the Magnum Butt 7’6”. We have been using these rods for 3 seasons and I love them with a passion (slightly over the top, I know)!

The Australian Salmon and Kingfish can be spooked if you get the boat to close. This is when the Distance Spin comes into its own. Having the ability to cast light jig heads and stick baits long distances is often the difference between catching fish and not catching fish. The high-modulus graphite and the extra length, gives us the ability to be able to present our lures and then the finesse to be able to twitch these lures through the schools. On hook up is when you really feel the quality of the rods, in my opinion many rod builders these days concentrate on accuracy and distance, and forget the most important part, you need the gutts to be able to stop fish and put the hurt on! The rip at Port Philip heads can scream out at up to 10 knots, it is crucial the rod has the balls to turn the fish and these rods have!

We also use the Nitro Distance Spin 7’6” to work soft plastic and hard body lures when chasing Snapper in Corio Bay. The Bay is well known for its massive Snapper, on many occasions we found ourselves under gunned. That was until we started using the Distance Spin, the light tips on the rods give you the ability to feel even the smallest of knocks and most importantly allows you to impart the action required to make the soft plastic as deadly is it is! When you hook the Snapper of a life time and he screams off into the backing, you have confidence in these rods, you will stop him, no doubt!

Firstcast Fishing Adventures has built its reputation by using only the best products across the board. In my opinion Nitro Rods are second to none when it comes to this type of fishing and I would absolutely not hesitate in recommending them to anybody that wants the best.

Want some proof? Check out our website at www.firstcast.com.au

I might be a relative newcomer to using Nitro rods, but over the last nine months I can tell you I’ve made up for lost time! I fish the wonderfully rich and expansive Gippsland Lakes area, and plenty of regular sorties into Far East Gippsland. My love for hauling big nasty four pound bream out of snags is challenged only by doing battle with even bigger estuary perch. To have any success over these brawling opponents, you have to use tough, extreme, hardy and reliable gear. I have to use 8lb gel spun main line and 16lb leaders.

My biggest asset however, has now come with my use of Nitro rods. In particular the Ultrabream Finesse 6’6” and the Ultralight Spin 6’6”. These rods have a flexible tip for pin point casting into tricky structure, but reinforced with an incredibly strong backbone for horsing out spiteful snag dwelling fish. To make matters worse, I fish out of a kayak and at times when doing battle with these fish it’s hard to know who has who! I need the pulling power of a Mack truck to turn fish before they even know they are hooked. Nitro rods have the horse power I need, yet allow for finesse presentations.

When it comes to fishing, I do not suffer gimmicks lightly and I don’t like to follow trends or fads. I fish hard, long and often so I just want gear that works. I even admit to being a little sceptical in the past that any rod would suit my needs - and at the right price. Well I now admit to being wrong, and I have even had great success chasing flathead with the Powerbream Finesse 7’0”. This rod enables me to make super long casts over vast sand flats to efficiently cover large areas. Also, my love for surf fishing has seen me use the Distance Spin 7’6” for casting heavy ¾ ounce soft plastics way out into the surf for Salmon and Tailor. Again both these rods have the right balance of a tough backbone and the flexible tips for easy and efficient casting.

My final comment is simple - Thanks Nitro.