Fuji DPS Handle Kit

Our take

The DPS is the reel seat we recommend most often for popping and jigging: no superfluous material, a simple build, a reliability that no longer needs proving. Pairing it with the butt in a ready to build kit saves you cross-checking references one by one before ordering.

8 sizes from 18 to 24, in Dark Emperor or Graphite

• Fuji DPS reel seat, a safe bet for saltwater builds
• 8 sizes: 18-BC, 18, 20, 20-Slim, 22, 22-Slim, 24 and 24-Max
• 2 finishes: Dark Emperor and Graphite
• 6 colours: Black, Titanium, Silver, Rouge, Gold and Cobalt Blue
• Fuji butt on sizes 18 to 20-Slim, Alps butt on 22 and 22-Slim
• Two Slim versions (20-Slim, 22-Slim) for straight butt blanks
• 24-Max size with reinforced reel seat, offered in Graphite only
• Covered uses: popping, jigging and live bait tuna fishing

Choosing the right DPS kit size for your blank

The compatibility chart, size by size

The choice comes down to two measurements: the blank diameter at the reel seat, and the diameter at the top of the handle for the sizes that require it. Take these readings with a caliper before ordering, the blank's stated power is not enough to decide. The chart below gives, for each size, the compatibility, the type of butt supplied and the intended use. For fitting the bushing and reaming to the blank diameter, our article on Fuji DPS reel seats walks through the build step by step.

Straight butts, gimbals and XXH blanks: the special cases

Two versions cover straight butt blanks: the 20-Slim for a 19 mm butt, the 22-Slim for a butt between 19 and 22 mm. The 18-BC is the only size supplied with a Fuji butt without a gimbal, which reserves it for thin jigging blanks where a gimbal adds nothing. Sizes 18, 20 and 20-Slim use a Fuji butt with gimbal, while the 22 and 22-Slim move to an Alps butt. For the heaviest builds, the 24-Max carries a reinforced reel seat and takes blanks whose handle top exceeds 19 mm, which makes it the reference on bluefin tuna blanks and live bait fishing. If your build starts from a different base, the rest of the range is grouped in the spinning handle kits.