On 12 July 2023, Shimano North America Fishing introduced the Stradic FM reel, an addition to its Stradic spinning reel, at the upcoming ICAST trade show in Orlando, FL
Strictly speaking, it is not an all-leather offering and the Kodiak Augustine is actually mostly waxed canvas, with full-grain water buffalo leather detailing around the zip, edging and handles of the bag
I paired the new rod with a Shimano Symetre FL spinning reel, which is a really good reel for the money
It provides just-enough storage for overgrown smartphones, large wallets, and even a makeup kit or two
The clicker drag system also sounds great if you wind up hooking into a big fish