Shimano Hikage 125S Jet Boost: A Seabass Lure That Is Really a Surf Lure

Note before you read: this is a September 2026 release and I have not fished it yet. Everything below is read off the published specification. I will add a proper impression once I have used one.

Shimano lists the Hikage 125S Jet Boost under seabass, sinking pencil. That categorisation is why people are confused about it – if you fish the surf, a lure filed under seabass looks like it is not for you. Look at the target species Shimano publishes and the story changes completely.

Specification

Filed under seabass, built for more than that

Shimano’s own published target species for this lure are seabass, hirasuzuki (blackfin seabass), pelagics and flatfish. The fields listed are big rivers, surf, rocky shores and casting at surface-feeding fish, day or night.

In other words this is a general-purpose heavy sinking pencil for shore saltwater fishing. It sits in the seabass category because of how Shimano organises its product pages, not because of what it does. If you fish the beach, treat it as a surf lure.

The 96 m claim, and what produces it

96 m is a test figure, not what you will do on a windy Tuesday – it assumes a tailwind, matched tackle and a good caster. But the design behind it is real, and it is a hybrid: Jet Boost weight transfer combined with a fixed weight.

That combination is the interesting part. Heavy sinking pencils usually trade swimming quality for distance; this one moves its balance point after it lands to get both.

Why distance matters more on the surf than anywhere else

On a beach, casting range is search area. There is no structure telling you where the fish are the way there is on a breakwater, so the further you can cover, the better your odds of finding the day’s fish. It matters most in two situations: when the break you want to fish sits beyond a shallow bar in front of you, and on days with a headwind, where 40 g and a stable flight attitude keep you fishing when lighter lures stop working.

125 mm and 40 g – how to actually use it

Bait size

125 mm matches a sardine-class baitfish, roughly 10 to 18 cm. Where that works against you is autumn beaches with small anchovy or whitebait around – when the bait is 5 to 10 cm, a 9 to 11 cm lure is the honest match. There is a counter-argument for deliberately showing a bigger silhouette to get noticed on a day when everything else is small, but do not expect it to be the default answer.

Depth and retrieve

• Wind immediately after it lands: works the surface and mid layers, holding a horizontal posture.
• Count it down: drop it near the bottom, then wind up through the column.
• Lift and fall: this should be the flatfish presentation.
• Fast retrieve: for pelagics and for casting at surface feeds.

Since the selling point is the horizontal posture, a straight retrieve is where it should show best.

The durability numbers are the quiet story

• Body wall thickness is about 1.6 times that of the Silent Assassin series.
• Tensile strength is stated as more than three times Shimano’s previous saltwater standard.

Plugs fail by breaking. A pelagic crushes the body, a rock chips it, a big fish opens the eye. At this price, each loss stings. What makes this interesting is that it is not an isolated decision – DUO’s new Flipper iTMB33 also went thick-bodied with a punched stainless eye. Japanese makers appear to be attacking the assumption that plugs are the fragile option in a surf box, and if you fish where big fish and hard structure both exist, that is a good trend.

Three #4 trebles: pros and cons

Flatfish often nip at the back of a lure rather than engulfing it, so three hooks is a defensible choice for that target. If you fish rough ground, expect to lose more lures than you would with two.

How it differs from other sinking pencils

Tackle to match

At 40 g a stiffer rod is easier to cast. If you fish mostly beaches, a long rod like the 26 Nessa XR is the natural pairing for squeezing distance out of it.

Questions people are asking

Is it a surf lure or not?

It is not surf-only, but surf is an officially intended field. Shimano’s product page simply files it under seabass; the published target species include flatfish and pelagics. Put it in your beach rotation without worrying about it.

Will it really cast 96 m?

Not in normal conditions – that is a maximum under test. What is fair to say is that it is designed to out-cast comparable lures, and the hybrid weight system is a real mechanism rather than a sticker.

Will it catch flounder?

Flatfish are on the official target list, and three hooks should help with their shallow bites. Working it near the bottom with a lift and fall is where I would start.

Summary

• 125 mm, 40 g heavy sinking pencil, released September 2026 at 2,400 yen excluding tax, 10 colours, #4 x 3 hooks.
• Categorised as seabass, but surf is an official field and flatfish and pelagics are official targets.
• Jet Boost plus a fixed weight: rear-balanced in flight, centre-balanced in the water.
• 96 m maximum cast under test conditions.
• Body about 1.6 times the wall thickness of the Silent Assassin series.
• Too big for small-bait days; that is the main reason not to tie one on.

Read next

• DUO Beach Walker Flipper iTMB33: the other tough 2026 lure
• Shimano Silent Assassin: every model explained
• Shimano 26 Nessa XR: which surf rod to buy
• Japanese metal jigs for shore fishing

MINAGIMAN

JAPAN ANGLER

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Born in 1994. Originally from Hyogo Prefecture, I moved to Iwata City in Shizuoka Prefecture in search of the sea. I am an Enshunada surf angler who enjoys surf fishing. I am also active on YouTube, and my fishing grounds range from Irago to Iwata.