International Sportsmen's Expo 2026 #ISEshow #ISE2026

Event Article

Fresh Gear, Familiar Faces, and Good Vibes at the 2026 ISE Show

Date:	1/18/25
Location:	Sacramento, CA
Show Dates:	1/15-1/18/26
Manufacturer:	Various
Reviewer:	Zander

Introduction: The International Sportsmen's Expo in Sacramento once again kicked off event season for many manufacturers, serving as the unofficial starting gun for the 2026 tackle year on the West Coast. This year's show provided the stage for many top reel, rod, and lure brands to unveil their latest innovations, prototypes, and production models slated for the coming season.

Skeet shows us his latest signature Next 2 Series sticks at the ISE Show. It's hard not to crack up when he always asks us to feel his rod

Adding to the energy on the show floor were some of the West Coast's most recognizable pro anglers and fishing personalities, including Skeet Reese, Ish Monroe, Kent Brown, Randy McAbee, and California Delta legends like Obedie Williams. Throughout the weekend, these anglers shared hard-earned insights, demonstrated their signature gear, and entertained packed crowds with a mix of technique-driven seminars and classic fishing stories. We take a closer look at the standout products, notable trends, and key highlights that defined the 2026 International Sportsmen's Expo in Sacramento this week.

One of the highlights of the show are the Pro Angler seminars. Here Skeet talks about his cranking techniques

Pro Angler and radio Ultimate Bass host Kent Brown is an ambassador for the ISE show and this was his 38th consecutive ISE show

Kade Gewanter, Freshwater Marketing Manager of Shimano, shows us the newest products just launched this past week including the Vanquish spinning reel

The Vanquish 2500 weighs only 5.8oz. and is the lightest reel in the Magnumlite lineup

Kade shows us the new 400B Tranx

This ultra wide Tranx is designed to big baits and big fish like tarpon, tuna, and sturgeon

The Tranx 400B holds 269 yards of 14lb line!

Shimano's Zodias B rods have completely been redesigned

The new rods are high-modulus graphite fortified with Hi-Power X reinforced carbon wraps to reduce twist

Both casting and spinning rods feature a carbon monocoque butt and carbon infused polymer Ci4+ reel seats, a slick looking aluminum locknut, and JDM style keepers

I was also told that the combined Shimano and G. Loomis teams have been busy not only on the product front, but also strengthening their pro staff to help develop and represent upcoming releases. On the Shimano side, Bassmaster Elite Series angler Tucker Smith joins the team and will work closely with the company on product development, gear testing, and sharing on-the-water insights with anglers nationwide.

Kade welcomed Elite Anglers Tucker Smith (left) to the Shimano team and Robert Gee (right) to the G.Loomis team. Both will be involved in product development in the respective brands this season

Meanwhile, G. Loomis has added Elite Series angler Robert Gee, who will collaborate with the rod design team on development, testing, and outreach. Gee is widely regarded as a versatile angler, having honed his skills on the Tennessee River system, experience that should translate well into future rod projects.

Daiwa is introducing a range of new spinning reels ranging from the affordable Freams LT ($159) to the robust Certate HD LT ($699)

Daiwa's X-Braid line continues to be a popular option for both finesse and power fishing applications

Michael Fong of Okuma shows us the Okuma Rockaway reels

The Rockaway reels are designed for surf and inshore fishing and feature a light yet rugged carbon body with oversized gearing and a stabilized drive system. These reels retail for a great price of only $99.99

Stealth Stixx offers some very high quality rods and is known for their excellent Fathoms cranking series

Pro Angler Randy McAbee is a cranking guru and shows us the powerful 4 Fathoms Rod

The 4 Fathoms measures 8 feet and is designed to drive the deepest diving crankbaits weighing 3/8-1 1/2 ounces

Rich of Berkley shows us the new PowerBait Chop Block Soft Glidebaits

Savage Gear is now part of the Pure Fishing

The Scandal swimbait retails for $99.99-$119.99

Delta legend Obedie Williams launched his signature bait, the Youndertail, at the show

Obedie has been developing and fishing the Youndertail for some time and is now making them available to the public

The Youndertail features a supple body with living rubber and twin rattles inserted in the end of the claw appendages

The Youndertail can be used as a punch bait or fished Texas rigged weedless

The Youndertail also makes an excellent trailer for jigs and bladed jigs like the Donkey Slayer

G.Ratt has been on a tear lately and has expanded far beyond their original Glide Baits. New this season are Webber fuzzy urchin-style baits

The Webber is made from TPE and the appendages and colors look great. A pack of two retails for $14.99 which is considerably cheaper than many competitors for this style of bait

G.Ratt continues to introduce new hollow body frogs and colorways

Garrett Dixon, Owner of G-Ratt Baits, is always working on new designs and continues to make them accessible to mainstream anglers

Pro Angler Ish Monroe shows us the new Skeeter ZXE bass boat

The Skeeter ZXE comes loaded and features a new reinforced fiberglass deck and box layout

The Skeeter ZXE is a lot of boat for around 79K

Kent Brown with the latest Ranger boats. This season the brand is launching a Z521R Ultra flagship boat

Kayak City was at the show and showed the Bonefide XTR130 that blurs the line between a bass boat and a kayak. Troy of Kayak City chows us the giant deck

This is a nice rig. The Bonefide XTR130 has a very open deck design and even an elevated platform to cast from

The show also included a number of saltwater rods and reels and a collaboration between Hi's Tackle and 310 Rodworks caught our attention

310 Rodworks is legendary in Southern California for their custom fishing rods designed for big game

Darin of 310 and Jonah of Hi's are working together to bring application specific rods for more Norcal applications like Striper and Salmon fishing

The Deviant 7 rods is a trolling rod for bluefin tuna and is available with a billet aluminum butt

The rod is also available with a slick butt for $707

The Terminator Winthrop adjusta-butt is very cool and this rod retails for $1095

Darin and Jonah are also working on a number of lightweight rods for targeting Pyramid Lahonton Cutthroat Trout

These rods are very light and provide the leverage to launch baits far from shore and the parabolic action to keep fish pinned

The show also featured many overlanding and adventure vehicles including the robust Rossmonster Baja Plus

The Rossmonster Baja Plus is a dream overlander that can ride and sleep up to six. Oh did we mention it retails for $444,611

Remote Vans are designed for adventures on and off the grid

These vans retail from $174,900 to $247,000 and feature a flexible interior layout including a kitchen, bathroom, and robust power system

The "Cyber Shower" is stowable and capable of a 10 minute shower using less than 3.5 gallons of water

Pro Angler and Bass Angler Magazine and BAM Tournament owner Mark Lassagne talked to attendees about the BAM Tournament Trail and the new partnership with Vexus

This year's show was well attended and offered a wide range of interesting products and opportunities to learn more about fishing and just enjoying the outdoors

Our Quick Take: We were pleasantly surprised by the strong turnout and upbeat vibe surrounding this year's International Sportsmen's Exposition in Sacramento. Top-tier manufacturers including Shimano, Daiwa, Pure Fishing, and Okuma were out in force, showcasing new products and giving anglers the rare opportunity to not just see, but actually handle, the latest gear. This was also a particularly strong year for new baits. Companies like G-Ratt continued to expand their offerings, while well-known anglers made successful moves into baitmaking, including Obedie Williams with his Youndertail. On the lifestyle and mobility side, the show featured a number of standout vehicles, ranging from the innovative hybrid Bonafide kayak to the undeniably impressive, but decidedly wallet-crushing, Rossmonster overlander. For us, however, the true highlight remained the chance to reconnect with manufacturers, pros, and fellow anglers, trading insights and talking tackle face-to-face. As the weather begins to warm, events like ISE do more than fill a calendar, they spark anticipation and get us fully ramped up for the fishing season ahead.