critique of the Sage TCR 6wt

[Subtlety]

I just bought one and I took it out for the first time this week.

First off this rod is a friggin rocket. I can take two false casts with a steelhead taper dry line and shoot out 40-60 feet so it is really easy to cast and get line out and I spend a lot more time fishing with my fly in the water instead of the air.

It is really stiff. As far as the actual cast it is the best rod I have ever used.

Once the fly hits the water this rod makes you work a ton though. Since it doesnt have any give it makes mending busy busy work. if you miss a small mend instead of flexing the rod and giving you some time to toss in an extra mend before the fly is affected it just dunks the fly due to drag and then you have to toss in a couple fast mends to get it to pop back up on the surface.

Nymphing this rod rocks though. I used my old XP 4 wt a couple casts after using the rod an hour or two while I let my buddy reel in an 18 incher I had hooked. After switching back my buddy busted up laughing when the first words out of my mouth were 'oh my god I cant believe my xp sucks that much for casting.. it used to be the holy grail".

[D3smartie]

it is a great rod for certain applications but dry fly fishing is probably not one of them. I love the TCR for the salt and nymphing but probably wouldnt use it anywhere else.
To get the most out of a TCR you have to be able to cast. I have several friends that hate the rod because it exposes their casting weaknesses.