Fly Fishing

jeremy · Location: Portland, Maine

So, its almost 2010 ... What kind of fly rods is everyone using these days? Are there any new fly rods on the market that you'd recommend to friends or that you'd like to get for yourself? ...

rustayy · Location: Islamorada,FL

In my personal arsenal I have a mixes bag of Sage fly rods ranging from 4-8 weights. My latest purchase was a Reddington CPX 10 wt. I bought it for a tarpon fishing trip to the Keys and for an all around saltwater rod. For the money this rod is amazing! It had no problem fighting tarpon in the 50-70 lb range. and did well throwing a shooting head for Albies in RI. I have fished this rod in a 4,5,8,10 wts and all were great! The other company I have taken a liking to is Temple Fork. They are pretty tough, very reasonably priced in about the $200 range, and they fish awesome. I have had the opportunity to fish dries on a Pro series 4 wt, to nymph fishing and roll casting streamers on the 5 wt TICR, and steelhead fishing with a 10' 7wt Pro Series and all I can say is that you should check them out. You can't beat the price! And in my opinion, I would WAY rather have a TFO than any of the expensive rod companies lower end stuff.

greg · Posted: Sun 11/22/09 8:52 am Post subject: Useful tool

I have been using an Orvis switch rod and since we have had high water, loved it. You don't have to get water down your waders to get the cast to get a drift. It casts depth charge as well as it casts the shooting head and on big water thats a plus. It's great for nymphing or swinging wet flies. easy on the shoulders and arms as opposed to over reach casts with a 9 foot rod. It is a rod wich will need different casting skills but easy to learn and well worth the while. Love this rod!

Broadheadscreek · Posted: Thu 12/03/09 5:00 pm Post subject:

I have a good assortment of rods and almost always look to my trusty Orvis powermatrix 10' 7wt I have had alot of fun with this rod catching both salmon and steelhead. It is great for both nymphing and swinging and very light in the hand. I did a trip to the Salmon River for 4 day's over Thanksgiving , And met Patrick Ross a sales rep for Beulah fly rods. I spoke to him about my desire to try out a spey or switch rod. He was more than happy to hook me up with a rod to try out for a couple of days. He suggested an all around rod for the Salmon River a 10'6" 8-9wt switch rod which you could use for both salmon and steelhead.

I matched it with a Hardy Gem and it balanced out perfectly. This rod performed flawlessly it has the right balance of power and flex. You can have the best of both worlds nymphing and spey casting. And it is effortless to cast a flick of the rod tip and you can lay out 50-60' of fly line no problem. The rod is as sensitive as they come when nymphing you feel every little tick on the bottom as well a the lightest take. This rod is on my Christmas list and I will have one of my own very soon!

I like this rod and would recommend it to anyone!! The beauty of this rod is that it brings the fish to hand rather quickly so as not to play them out and kill them.

Matt1515 · Location: Greensboro, NC

I bought a Scott S4 this year and love the rod. Seems to be on the fragile side since the first one I had snapped after very little use. Overall, I love it.

striper69 · Location: woonsocket RI

I got the opportunity to fish a orvis helios switch rod 11'0" for 7 wt on my last trip to salmon river. I would recommend this rod if your going to fish a bigger river with not alot of room for a back-cast.

Flatsguide · Location: Maine-Cape Cod -Fl Keys

I have a feeling the new Scott s4s will become standard on many skiffs.. they just nailed it!!!!!!!!!

GreenHighlander

My current Hardy Marksman 5ft 2wt gives me more pleasure than any rod I've ever owned. It's a 'point and shoot' dry fly rod that lets you react to rises in split seconds.

For a longer river rod, it's hard to beat the Greys Streamflex 10ft 4wt. Fast, accurate and perfectly balanced. A lot of guides in the UK swear by them.

Firstlitebite · Location: Western Long Island Sound, CT

The Scott S4 is dynamite all the way around, I couldn't agree more; perfect for the flats. The Sage Xi3 8wt. is a real workhorse too, it can punch some of the bulky flies around with ease and has a great in-the hand balance/lightness. That's what I'm throwing in the northeast salt; I think Scott is always producing some of the best rods period.

kory_k · Location: New York, NY

I am a Sage man, so a bit biased. Not that I don't like rods from some other manufacturers just that I have always fished with Sage rods since I built my first one, a 690 2 piece Sage RP when I was in high school about 20 years ago. I do have a few Scott older models that I like as well but for the most part I have Sage. My go to rods in my arsenal are as follows:
990-4 TCX for saltwater jetty fishing, stripers, albies etc around NY
990-3 Scott STS for backup to the above rod
1090-4 Xi2 for when a little more rod is needed for very windy conditions etc.
590-3 SP for all around trout (an oldie but goodie)
590-4 SLT for backup all around trout
690-4 Z axis for bigger dries and light streamers for trout
790-3 RPLXi for bigger streamers, heavy sinking lines for trout and also for light saltwater
7110-4 Z axis switch rod for great lakes steelhead and for some west coast steelhead
7136-4 Z axis spey rod for west coast steelhead
8136-4 Z axis spey rod for west coast steelhead

i have many others and some get decent use while other remain unused for many years but those are my go to rods

There are a few rods out there that I would like to add to my collection, but I would likely have to get rid of something to justify it.
1090-4 TCX or 1090-4 Xi3 for heavier Saltwater
890-4 Xi3 for multipurpose saltwater and steelhead
790-4 Xi3 for light saltwater, steelhead and heavy streamers
8134-4 Z axis spey rod
Winston 13'3" 7 weight for lighter steelhead dry line

I am somewhat of a gear head when it comes to rods and reels and love to have a wide range of different models. [/list]

SnookWhisperer · Location: Florida, Colodaro, Illinois

I was lucky enough to discover TFO rods very early in my venture into more serious fly fishing. I've tried other rods but keep coming back to the TFO's and I now have 10 or so of them and 2 new ones heading for Florida on a delivery truck (both Mini-Mag sizes for kayak, Trail and dock fishing). I fish most frequently in Colorado and Florida and use rods weighted from 2 to 9, (3, 6 & 8 wts most frequently) and I just can't justify spending more on a rod if a TFO will do the job. I do like some better than others and lean toward the TiCr, TiCrx and Teeny models. Buy TFO rods and put your money in a good reel for big fish and if you're a trout fisherman just save your money or hire a guide with the savings.

kory_k · Location: New York, NY

I do agree TFO are great rods, but the reason for the price is that they are made overseas. Not that this makes a big difference for a lot of people and I buy my share of products from overseas, but I do have a sense of American pride in buying things made in the USA and Sage rods are and always havel been made here. I buy plenty of things that are made overseas, but if i have a choice and can afford it I like to support American companies.