2026.10.21

Daiwa Blind Bolt 140F / 140S: A Search Minnow for “Blind” Spanish Mackerel Fishing

minagiman

This autumn is all about Spanish mackerel (sawara). Social media is full of them, and tackle shops put Spanish mackerel lures front and centre.

Daiwa’s entry is the Blind Bolt – a 140 mm minnow built for “blind” fishing, when there are no visible boils and you keep casting to find fish. Here is every feature.

Released in 2026 in two models – the floating 140F and the sinking 140S – its tagline is “distance, flash and draw: the trump card for Spanish mackerel”. The key idea is that it is designed to be found before it is designed to be eaten.

Contents

Specification
What is “blind” fishing?
Features
140F or 140S?
Colours
How to fish it
From shore?
Compared with similar lures
Minagiman’s take
Summary
Read next

Specification

	140F	140S
Length	140 mm	140 mm
Weight	27 g	32 g
Type	Floating	Sinking
Depth	approx. 0.3-1.2 m	approx. 0.5-1.4 m
Tungsten weight	7.5 g	11.5 g
Hooks	#4 x 3	#4 x 3
Ring	#3	#3
Eye colour	Blue	Red
List price (excl. tax)	2,500 yen	2,550 yen

Floating models have blue eyes and sinking models red, so you can tell them apart at a glance in the box.

What is “blind” fishing?

Style	What it means
Casting at boils	Find Spanish mackerel chasing bait on top and cast to them
Blind	No boils showing: keep casting where fish should be

Spanish mackerel move fast and boils last seconds, so most of the day is blind fishing – and that is where catches are won or lost. The key is making unseen fish notice the lure. The Blind Bolt is built entirely around that.

Features

1. 140 mm of presence

Most recent Spanish mackerel minnows are around 120 mm; the Blind Bolt is a size up, to get noticed by fish further away in open water.

2. Laser Impact flash

Daiwa’s Laser Impact finish uses a 3D multi-reflective structure to throw bright, bait-like reflections in many directions – including the flicker of a swimming baitfish. It flashes even in faint light, for low-light days and dawn and dusk.

3. Oscillating tungsten weight transfer for distance

A through-wire oscillating tungsten weight system – 7.5 g in the 140F, 11.5 g in the 140S. On the cast the weight slides back for stable flight; after landing, a spring and silicone tube help it return, so it starts swimming right away. That reduces the dead first few metres moving-weight minnows can suffer from.

4. A wobbling roll that holds at any speed

Wobble plus roll, stable from fast to slow. Some days Spanish mackerel only take a fast retrieve, others only a slow one – not breaking down at any speed matters for a lure you cast all day.

5. Deliberately restrained dart

The part I find most interesting: the dart width on a jerk is deliberately limited. Spanish mackerel are said to sometimes reject lures that move too wildly. The Blind Bolt keeps the dart in check to create more of a “pause” – chase, show, eat. A wild dart is eye-catching, but fish can fail to catch it. “Stand out with light and size, keep the movement restrained” shows real understanding of Spanish mackerel.

6. Three hooks for short strikes and body-slams

Three #4 trebles. Spanish mackerel bite from behind or slam into the side; three hooks raise hook-ups on short strikes and body contact and reduce lost fish.

140F or 140S?

Situation	Pick	Why
Boils on or near the surface	140F	0.3-1.2 m; rises quickly, holds the top layer
Fish responding but not rising	140S	0.5-1.4 m, one layer down
Strong wind, need more distance	140S	32 g with 11.5 g weight – stable flight
Want to stop it and show it after jerks	140F	Floats up when stopped – easy pauses
Fast current or waves	140S	Sinks, so resists rising

For a first one, the 140S covers more situations. Add the 140F where surface boils are common.

Colours

Colour	When (Minagiman’s view)
LI Bullpin Iwashi	Start here – the base colour for sun or cloud
LI Maiwashi	Natural, for sardine days
LI Katakuchi	Anchovy days; natural even in clear water
LI Sayori	Slim bait days (halfbeak, silver-stripe round herring)
LI Orepin Iwashi	Dawn and stained water – orange and pink to stand out
LI Fuyajo	Low light, dawn and dusk
LI Max Laser	When you want maximum flash – bright daytime

All seven have Laser Impact. To start: LI Bullpin Iwashi and LI Orepin Iwashi cover day and dawn.

How to fish it

Straight retrieve, medium to fast – search widely; the wobbling roll and flash announce it.
Jerk and pause – two or three jerks, then stop; the restrained dart creates the bite window.
Jerk plus retrieve – when fish follow but will not eat, add a single jerk mid-retrieve.

In blind fishing, rather than hammering one spot, change direction a little each cast to cover water. Prioritise anything different: birds working, visible bait, current lines.

From shore?

Daiwa’s videos are boat fishing, but the 140S at 32 g casts fine on shore tackle. Where Spanish mackerel pass breakwaters or open beaches, it works as a search minnow from shore too. 140 mm is big from shore, though – on small-bait days, combine it with smaller minnows, jigs or blade jigs.

Item	Shore guide
Rod	9’6″-10′ shore jigging or seabass rod rated to about 40 g
Reel	4000-5000
PE	1.2-2
Leader	Fluorocarbon 6-8 (Japanese sizes) – heavy, for the teeth

Compared with similar lures

Lure	Size	Weight	Type	List price
Daiwa Blind Bolt 140S	140 mm	32 g	Sinking	2,550 yen
Daiwa Blind Bolt 140F	140 mm	27 g	Floating	2,500 yen
Aquawave Step Magic 120S	120 mm	21 g	Sinking	2,000 yen
Shimano MD Loud Jerk 120S	120 mm	19 g	Sinking (about 3 m)	2,400 yen
Magbite Dempsey Roll 120SF	120 mm	20 g	Slow floating	2,200 yen

Step Magic 120S: a jerkbait specialised for triggering bites. Search with the Blind Bolt, then switch to the Step Magic when fish show.

MD Loud Jerk 120S: dives to about 3 m with a maraca rattle. Surface to 1.4 m: Blind Bolt; deeper: MD Loud Jerk.

Dempsey Roll 120SF: a popular Spanish mackerel minnow with a flashy, wide dart and a sharp stop. Dempsey Roll gets bites with a wild dart; Blind Bolt with a restrained dart and a pause – opposite philosophies, worth carrying both.

Minagiman’s take

The Spanish mackerel boom has split minnows into “searchers” and “biters”. There are plenty of lures for getting bites inside a boil, but surprisingly few built specifically to search when there are none. The Blind Bolt raises search performance – 140 mm size, Laser Impact flash, tungsten distance – while keeping the dart restrained to leave a bite window. It tries to do both jobs in one lure. On tiny-bait days, 140 mm may be too big – pair it with blade jigs and small minnows.