A 70-year old company that stands as the world’s largest fishing line manufacturer is impressive, to say the least. Add in that their premium house brand—XBRAID—is now available to the North and South American markets via DAIWA, and serious freshwater and saltwater anglers are in for a real treat.
XBRAID states that being the world’s number one fishing line manufacturer requires bringing together skilled employees and fishing’s most advanced manufacturing facility. The brand charter goes on to say they want to create a sustainable society where people, the sea, and the forests coexist in harmony with the morals and spirit of people who love fishing.
“We have a gratitude for nature in our hearts and will gain the support of anglers around the world and pave the way for the future.”
That’s deep…and meaningful.
PARTNER AND NORTH AMERICAN DISTRIBUTOR
“XBRAID is the ideal addition to DAIWA’s already wide spectrum of fishing lines,” said DAIWA Marketing Manager, Marc Mills. “It sits at the top of the food chain amongst all braided fishing line brands in the North American market and is much more technologically advanced. It really caters to the angler that wants to take his or her fishing techniques and performance to another level—a level they’ve never dreamed of achieving.”
Developed for elite-level anglers who have fished every option on shelves, XBRAID presents a species and technique-specific fishing line to align with their arsenal of species and technique-specific rods and reels.
“XBRAID takes fishing to a performance level anglers have never been, or thought of going in freshwater and saltwater,” said Mills. “Do yourself a favor and fish a spool. Its performance will trump anything you’ve ever cast.”
XBRAID TECHNOLOGY
The company’s proprietary “WX Method” has revolutionized the manufacturing of PE (polyethylene) braided fishing lines.
Most competing PE lines are braided using a method called “Kakuuchi.” The raw threads wound around the bobbins, which rotate clockwise and counterclockwise, are pulled out little by little and are braided while crossing each other to form a single line. And like when line is released from a spinning reel, when the raw thread is pulled out from the bobbin, the thread becomes twisted. In the case of XBRAID and its WX Method, the clockwise bobbin is turned clockwise, and the counterclockwise bobbin is turned counterclockwise, so the combined raw threads result in a straight, well-balanced line with high linear strength and no twists.
Just like a rubber band returns to its original shape when you let go of it after twisting it, even if XBRAID twists during fishing, one of the threads becomes over-twisted and the other thread is untwisted, so it returns to its original shape.
Reducing twist means that when a knot is tied it’s less likely to float, too, reducing any loss of strength. In addition, because the knot is turned, it is firmly solidified, like a tightly wrung rag, so it has the advantage of being highly abrasion-resistant and drains easily.
Above all, because XBRAID returns to its original shape by its own force, the structural stretch and strength are maintained to extend the life of the line.
Further evolving the technology, in 2019 XBRAID launched a double-structure PE line whereby a sheath thread is braided around a core thread using the WX Method. In addition to the increased structural strength due to the core-sheath structure, the coating is applied with pressurized resin processing, which makes the coating last longer.
XBRAID HISTORY
XBRAID’s 70 years history began with the establishment of the Yotsuami Tsuriito Nakanishi Factory in 1949. Company President, Nakanishi Saburo, trained in the days of real and artificial fishing line. In 1949, the company was founded as “Yotsuami Fishing Line Nakanishi Factory.” In 1950, the Four-Strand Fishing Line Research Institute Fishing Line Factory was established behind Fukura Station on Japan’s Awaji Island. In 1953, the company obtained a utility model patent for “Yotsuami Fishing Line,” a fishing line with a twist that does not move and does not slacken.
In 1989, the manufacturing department of the Yotsuami Fishing Line Nakanishi Factory was separated and incorporated, and Nakanishi Shigeru established YGK Co., Ltd. During the era when fishing lines were changing from nylon monofilament and polyester braided lines to PE lines, Nakanishi made numerous inventions, and in 2005, he created the string-making method that became the basis of the now WX Method.
“Thinner and stronger fishing lines change the tools and fishing methods. If you make a good product, it will surely be accepted. I want to show the world the best line under the brand name XBRAID someday,” Saburo said.
Those words became the trigger for launching the new brand.
Then, in the first year of the Reiwa Era (232nd era of the official calendar of Japan), the baton was passed to new management. With the words of the previous president in mind, the team combined the inherited technology with new ideas to bring the best lines to the world, and this was the birth of XBRAID.
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