Quality Bobber

The Quality Bobber is a fishing tackle that increases the quality of fish caught by one level, such as from silver to gold. It is crafted using a recipe obtained from Willy during the cutscene that plays after completing the Special Order “Juicy Bugs Wanted!” One Quality Bobber is also awarded for solving the puzzle in Journal Scrap #4 on Ginger Island.

When equipped on a fishing rod, the Quality Bobber improves the quality of caught fish, making it useful for increasing the value of standard catches and for meeting quality-based bundle, quest, or gift requirements. On an Advanced Iridium Rod, using two Quality Bobbers raises fish quality by two levels instead of one.

A few important details make it especially valuable:

• Aside from perfect catches, this tackle is the only way to catch iridium-quality fish.
• It cannot be bought from Willy’s Fish Shop.
• It is one of only two fishing tackles unavailable for purchase there, the other being the Curiosity Lure.

Because of its effect on catch quality rather than catch rate or bite speed, the Quality Bobber is best used when the goal is to maximize profit from fish or to obtain high-quality fish consistently. Its effect becomes even stronger on the Advanced Iridium Rod, where stacking two of them allows fish to jump two quality tiers in a single catch.