I stopped in at Bob Marriott's today and they have a close out on an Echo 'Trip' rod - reg $279, now $127.95. If I had known I could get a new rod for that I would have done so. May still stop back and pick it up. 9' 5wt, 8 pc, comes with case, very nice.
There is good advice on this thread and I cannot disagree. In general, a basic setup will serve just fine and save money. However, know thyself! I have been through many, many rods starting with basic. Today, I buy one of something that I do not think I will outgrow so I don't have duplicates hanging around I wont use. Rods, GPS devices, downhill skis, MC gear (helmets and other gear), camera gear, camping gear........this list goes on. Anymore I try to buy things once. Its not always true, but you generally do get something with cost. The flyfishing industry has gone way overboard. I would not suggest one needs a 700$ rod, but, in my case I have a whole quiver of kit rods, rods I built for specific purposes, used rods I bought to save money, etc.. I have 9 6 weights but only really like 2. Creek rods, saltwater rods, wind/streamer rods........if I could do it again I could have saved a ton in the long run by buying 4-5 quality rods. For trout, DO NOT spend much on a reel. The SciAnglers System 2 is great, Orvis Battinkill is hard to beat, some cheaper Ross. Something around 100$. My motto anymore is just to buy the best I can at the time and realize the assumption may cost money. (Oh, and shop the internet sales. There are tremendous deals to be had when gear changes over every year for the next great thing).
browneye- Nice looking 1495 in the photo. I have a whole bag of those and use them all the time. They really are quite popular with bamboo rod enthusiast, due to their weight. In order to achieve a proper balance, bamboo rods require a heavier reel than a similar graphite (bamboo is heavier), that's why the USA made reels are always going for a premium in used sales. Usually you hear companies saying that you need to replace your fly line every "X" number of years...don't buy into it. If it is still stiff enough to turn a loop and has not started cracking then you should be fine (I've got a couple from '97 that I am still using and they are fine). If the plastic coating starts to crack, then it is done, especially on a floating line, since water will be able to saturate the core and cause it to sink. Sanders- Grandpa started you out well, medium action is easy to cast, when you get one remember to "wait for it to load". Most any of us can explain that term...when you are ready for it. MTDuke- I agree on buying the best you can, when you can, it's usually worth it in the long run. BTW, I think the sweet spot in fly rods of cost vs. value is usually in the $400 range. More than that, and you are usually just paying for a name. Less than that, and you are getting that company's older technology, not that that is always bad (for those that know what I am talking about...Gary Loomis is wrapping his new designs in IM6 and Moderate to Mod/Fast... he left Shimano who owns G.Loomis a couple years ago, and YOU cannot buy his rods). FWIW...one of my favorite trout reels is an old South Bend "clicker" that I bought off e-bay for $5 plus shipping. Bought it just for the visual value for product shots, but now it is in the regular rotation. I've got to tell you guys that I love Sage rods, especially an old RPL, but don't always like what they try to do with their marketing. They really changed things in the industry trying to get people to buy a new rod every year to "keep up with the Joneses" by touting the newest technology or faster, line rocketing tapers. Sound anything like the skiing industry? That's because the guys at Sage...came from K2. Just last year the super fast TCX was the king of the hill, now the less fast ONE is the new flagship. edit: Sanders, if you can get your hands on that $25 Cabelas rig from Lonestar, do it. It's just like a motorcycle...you can't know what you really want, until you have something to tool around on and find out how you really want to use it. Use it for a while, then when the time is right, get what fits your needs based on experience.
Flashmo, We think alike. My favorite rod was (with tears) a 9'6" RPL 6. I bought it used as a student and fished the crap out of it. I broke it along with 3 other rods about 8 years ago right after getting my first drift boat. This led to one of my never break under any circumstances rules when fishing: always hand carry rods to the drift boat when launching. Hard lesson to be learned, I had 4 rods hanging out the back of the boat and the anchor on when I backed into the water.......the wheels dropped off the ledge and the anchor swung around the tips of the rods and snapped all of them. So now, carry rods, never put anchor on until boat is launched. Interestingly, I have offered some humble advice to others when I see this happen and tell my own dreadful story and its seems to have no effect.........I see it all the time on the Bighorn, Madison, and Missouri. Anyway, I digress. Sage is my flavor too. After the RPL I got an RPL+ to substitute and I still fish that rod. I have a couple of XPs I really like now as well. You might say I drank the cool aid, but, I do like the TCR fast action although I have been too cheap to buy one (I know, that was replaced). The wind on the Yellowstone and Missouri can be dreadful and that fast action if you can drive it is helpful. My wife still fishes a slower action sage (cant remember which one). Her tailing loop with faster rods keeps me in the guide seat too much. Damn, now I want to go fishing!
+1 on Temple Fork Rods. I own a lot of these rods from the old Professional Series to the Finesse and BVK. All are real quality rods with the differences really being in the actions (fast, medium, etc) and line weight obviously. I have sold every Sage I have owned on eBay. TFO's customer service is awesome. How people break a fly rod ranges from horrifying; a tip snap loosing a killer fish, to the hilarious; vacuum cleaners, ceiling fans, cats, car fires, now apparently motorcycle nuts. They don't care how it broke they want you happy and fishing again. You would be well served to check them out.
Sage advice, eh? They have always been my favorite too. My 5wt is a GL and I called Sage to find out if I could make it a 4 piece from a 2 and of course learned that the ferrules are machined into the blanks. Did not realize that. In WA I had a 10' 8wt RPL and it would cast the whole 85' shooting head. Great rod for steelhead up there. Hooked a few 20 pounders but never landed one. Sold the rod a couple of years ago but I may still have the Lamson reel, I think it's a saltwater one. Somebody should snap up that Echo, that's a steal deal. They are discontinued and there are a couple on ebay but they are closer to $200. Reported to be a very good budget rod, good medium action. Of course the fly shop told me my flylines should be replaced every few years but some of the forums and how-to's explain stretching the line out, cleaning and treating it, and inspecting it for cracking. Good ol' 303 protectant works on them. I'll probably replace my floating line and checkout the sink-tip and sinking line spools and see if I can get by this year. They also said I should replace all my tippet spools and leaders - what do you all think? I still have my float tube but haven't used it for more than 12 years. Probably needs a new innertube, it's an old style with a tire tube in it. Anyhow, it's fun to discuss fishing gear on a motorcycle forum. I am actually thinking I may do some fishing trips by bike this spring in the sierras. What a fun combination of entertainment. Ride, hike, and fish.
x10 on that!! I slammed my camper shell closed on my last one. They replaced the rod no questions asked.
...and now for some waders... Thanks to Lonestar I've got a beginners #5 wt rig on its way. Thanks to the other inmates for some great info (next stop this weekend is to the library) I keep checking back here for more. I even had a nice offer for some vintage equipment from an inmate, but I don't know what its worth, so I passed. Browneye--that echo rod looks sweet, and I am very tempted. REI has a #5 wt Reddington knocked down from $180 to $71.00. Fast-action though
Damn, that's a bargain. This economy has sprung so many bargains out there it's mind boggling. I'm tempted to get one of them just because they're only $70. I can handle a fast action. Gee, what a deal. Recommend stocking-foot waders and some boots. It's a more verstatile system. You can use the boots alone or the waders in a float tube. Seems they've gotten away from the neoprene ones. Gee, guess I've been away from this for a LONG time.
Get real Sanders! Cabelas and their ilk are for KLR riders. You'll need an Orvis rod/reel/waders/stream booties/gizmo vest/hat/etc. to complement the BMW rider wear.
I like my neoprene waders but Im looking at some of these new ones coming out. THe neoprene just dont pack small enough for on the bike. Between them and the boots, they take up ALOT of space.
Fly-fishing is similar to motorcycling, in that there is always something more to purchase. You can really find yourself chasing your tail with gear, but the suggestions already posted have been very spot on. I live in the Adirondacks, and like to fish ponds for big trout, both speckled and brown, so I grew up using old soft bamboo rods with Orenmatic reels for trolling wet flies deep. Once I got into casting and dry fly fishing, these heavy old 9-footers just didn't work very well, especially on small streams. I built my own rod using an older Diamondback blank, and it was a medium fast action that worked pretty well for everyting, but not great for any one thing. I finally decided to get two rods, one larger for ponds and big streams, and one smaller for the little ones. I ended up building the 8.5 using a Hexagraph blank, and then bought a little small stream rod from Hexagraph that was a demo. I love both of these rods, because they have the old, slower action that I am used to, and their synthetic bamboo construction makes them very strong. The little rod has handled browns up to 4 pounds with no trouble, something I think most hollow rods could not do as well. My only advice would be to get the smallest rod that will meet your needs, as they are much more fun to fish, and if you expect to be getting into some larger trout, I would get a better reel with a good drag. I have a Battenkill Barstock for my little rod, and it is one of the only products that Orvis makes which is actually a bargain. No one has mentioned all the other stuff, like flies and nippers, etc., but you can find tons of stuff online. Often, the best way to get flies is to stop at a shop in the area you are riding and ask for their local recommendations. The last thing I would say is the fluorocarbon leaders have worked better than the older style for me. Good luck!
LOL. Nippers and zingers - you need both. Ssevy is right, you can go nuts with gear. On a bike space is limited, so you won't need a lot of gear along. I'm thinking about getting something like a fanny pack or something instead of trying to take a whole fishing vest. I have quite a lot of gear and a couple of vests. They are just so handy though, so I dunno. A local flyshop can always provide some pattern suggestions for your distination. Fly costs seem to be fairly consistent, a couple'a bucks a piece. A small assortment might make sense for a starting place, seems to me Orvis has something like that at a good price. And then there's practice. Tie a short length of yarn on your leader and practice casting in a grass field to a target circle. A hula hoop works, but anything can be used as a target. Short and long. On pavement is okay but it wears out your flyline, so not the very best if you intend to also use that line for fishing. Practice roll casts, mends, high and low back casts, etc. Will make a huge difference out on the water. I always get flys snagged on brush on backcasts, that's my nemisis. Oh, and you'll need at least one extra spool, two if you're going boat or floattube fishing, for sinking line, sink tip, and floating flylines. Then leaders and tippet. If you get good at tying tippets on then you only have to replace the leader occasionally. Once you've nipped off a couple of feet of your leader you can tie on a couple of feet of tippet. Many flyshops offer an introductory course for the basics - money well spent. Or if you can hook up with an experienced angler that can help you get started. Either will dramatically reduce frustration out on the water. I wind and cast with my right hand, so my rods and reels are setup that way. I just transfer the grip to my left hand when I need to wind the reel. All of this needs to become second nature to you so that you can concentrate on casting to fish rather than tending to your gear.
I will also recommend an excellent book on fly fishing and fly tying written by Fran Betters, who was famous here in the eastern US. He had a small fly shop in Wilmington NY, and his approach to tying and fishing is absolutely down to earth and practical. I have read dozens of books on fly fishing, and this one is the best. It was out of print for a while, but is now available again. I have tied many of his patterns, and have caught some huge browns on his dry flies, especially the Ausable Wulff and the Usual. His patterns are not just limited to the eastern US either, as the Haystack series is a great generic pattern that can be used anywhere there are mayflies. http://ausablewulff.com/franflypattern.html
My favorite nipper avaialable here LINK now $16 is a lot to spend on a tool for a guy who just got a rod and reel combo for $25 but I love this thing and have one on each of my "vests".. yes I have more than one.. a rig for saltwater and a rig for freshwater... anyway.. everything you need all in one place... if you buy cheap flies then the needle on the end is an absolute must.. and the once or twice a year I need to tie a nail knot..that tool is indespensable... I honestly dont ever use the hook sharpener because I always lose my flies before they become dull
For starting out a pair of toenail clippers works just fine. Ive been fishing my whole life and only recently bought an actual nipper. Just for cutting tippet and trimming the tag end nice and close after you tie on a new fly.
Here we go...this is what I need for the bike. $59 BTW, they have a really good sale going on right now for flies.
Holy Wah! This could escalate into me becoming a gear slut quickly :huh I'm going to look up that book, and I'm off to the library after entering this reply. Hauling stuff locally within a 100 miles or so for a day trip on the bike won't be a problem. I've got a Hack. I do want to keep it frugal for big trips like Idaho this summer, and future LD excursions. So size does matter. I've got a spin cast trail rod/reel combo and I'll likely bring that along also. I used to be pretty good at plunking in the smallest Mepps spinners in fast deep pools in tiny streams up in the U.P. (loved the little known Tacoosh), or floating a bit of nightcrawler downstream, but alas, that was back in 1980 ish. Been ice-fishing for the last 15 yrs, but very little else. So thanks to you guys, I've got a bid in on a Phlueger 1494 and I'm looking at some other rods, notably the Grey's Stremflex series, but I'm going to wait and see before shelling out more for better equipment. I think that will happen, but not right now. Going to find a class maybe, and a book definitely.
Lots of good vids on youtube, just search 'fly casting'. The neat thing about flyfishing is that it is so much more productive than bait casting. In my younger days I did a lot of backpacking in the PNW, Cascade mountains and high lakes. You could see large schools of trout circling out there in crystal clear water. I started bringing my fishing rod and would cast an egg or bait out there and several fish would always swim up to it but then they would turn around without striking. That's when I decided I had to learn flyfishing. It's quite entertaining in its own right. Later I built a classic wooden skiff for oar or sail, and we would fish the lakes in eastern Washington. Was always a lot of fun, very peaceful. Even the wife liked to go. When the wind picked up we'd stow the rods, hoist the sails, and crack open a beer.
