Need reccomendations for a Fly rod

willametteriveroutlaw · 06-10-2003, 10:13 PM

I am pretty muvh a flyfishing virgin, but I want to hammer some big bows and dollies up here (i am in AK right now) and a fly rod seems like the only way to keep it interesting. I need some reccomendations on a good quality rod, reel, and basic line set ups. The dollies avg aroound 2-3 lbs and bows up to 15lb, usually around 3-5 though. Any help?

draggin bottom · 06-11-2003, 06:20 AM

W...,
Man do I envy you being in the great white north for awhile. As to your question, put most of your money in a reel, not a rod. I'd say a 6 wt rod sounds in the ballpark. Echo makes a very good rod for under $150. They are a NW company (although not made here). There are others. You'll need a good drag for some of those whoppers. I really like the Lamson. The Velocity can be had for just over $200. Great drag, better price than most. Everyone has their own school of thoughts. Those are mine. Hope it helps.

DB

[ 06-11-2003, 07:21 AM: Message edited by: draggin bottom ]

lost_sailor · 06-11-2003, 07:36 AM

I just replaced my floating line, and I waffled between DT (double taper) and WF (weight forward) ... picked DT and as soon as I used it I wished for the WF. Easier to roll cast, works better in the wind ...

That's my $.02

greenbuttskunk · 06-11-2003, 07:58 AM

W,
spend some money on a reel with a decent drag. 5-6 wt. rod is good for all around, but you may want to go 6-7 if you want to fight some sockeye too. We used primarily 5-6 up there on the dolly's and bows and did catch reds too, but we all flyfish alot so we were prepared. A reddington or st. croix will run you about 150.
Aboth have good repair/replacement policies. You can spend more, but for a new guy, it's pretty silly too. Reddington has some decent reels for the price. Mid level reel that has a decent drag for the money. There are some for sale on the tackle classified here. Make sure you get some 20'lb backing before you put on the line, those bows will take you into the backing often.
One little tip off the rod/reel subject. Get some
translucent red/orange beads, liek the ones you put on spinners and such. Slide one up on you line, then tie in a scud hook. Take a small piece of toothpick and jam it into the bead hole to hold it just above the hook, this just kills the bows and dollies, and over 90% of the time the hook is in the top or edge of the mouth.
hve fun up there, take pics, and post some fish stories.
GBS

marko · 06-11-2003, 08:02 AM

Buy one of the complete balanced setups. You will be up and running faster than trying put it together yourself. A 6 weight ought to do just fine for what you are after. If you have a choice between WF (weight forward) and a level line, go for the WF it is easier to cast for a beginner. DT (double taper) lines are a bit harder to cast, especially in the wind. It looks great on TV but limit your false casts to one or two at most when you first start, just get the line in water and fish out the drift or retrieve.

Riverkeeper · 06-11-2003, 08:52 AM

If you want to go real cheap, you can get a NorthXNorthwest rod and same reel from gijoes, for not much more than a hundred bucks. Someone gave me one in a 4 weight and really like it. I think it cost $60. You can probably get them off gijoes.com. I agree that a 6 weight would probably be good for what your doing.

Old Coot · 06-11-2003, 09:51 AM

My two cents.

If you want to stay within a reasonable price range, I second the St Croix rods as a choice. I have an older 8wt that has taken about 30 chinook and twice that many chums. I would guess that their lighter rods will be of similar quality - and there is that great warranty.

I paired that rod with an STH cassette reel made of cast pot metal. If you can get past the esthetics, (the reel is as homely as they get), the reel has performed far better than I had any right to expect. The cassettes are a LOT cheaper than spare spools for most other brands. I managed to bugger up the spool retention lock through my own error, sent the company a drawing of the part and $5 hoping that would be enought to replace the part. They sent me an envelope with enough parts to replace half the reel. Good service.

Unless you are going to be roll casting a lot, go with a weight forward line. If you are going to roll cast - double taper. If you are new to flyfishing, you might go with a line 1 weight heavier than the rod is rated. This may make casting easier, especially if you are going to use big or weighted flies. As for line, I have to put in a plug for Cortland. I had one of their lines fail on a 35# chinook a couple of years ago, the core burst out through the coating. I sent the line to Cortland and they immediately sent me a letter of profuse apology and followed with a new line the next day.

DISCLAIMER: You might consider developing a heroin habit instead of flyfishing. It is less addictive and cheaper in the long run!

I have no financial interest in any of the referenced companies. ENJOY!

willametteriveroutlaw · 06-11-2003, 12:10 PM

Thanks for the advice guys, I think I am going to go with a loomis combo for right around 200$ with line. Any one have any yeas or neas about this set up. I am going to go with a 6 weight. I really like buying quality gear because it makes the expirience soo much better. Any other reccomendations for flys besides bead flys? I am going to get both a sinking line and floatiog. I am getting excited about this. most of the flyfishers I have talked with say theat when the anchor opens in July that 80 fish days are standard. I am getting jazzed.
Tight Lines
WRO

Tanner · 06-11-2003, 01:03 PM

WRO,
The main thing I would watch out for with one of those combos is the reel that they put on them. They are usually pretty cheap quality reels. If it were me I would look at a medium priced rod such as the Cortland or entry level Sage and a good reel like Ross or SA.

Ross Reels are a little spendy but will last you a lifetime. I have a Gunnison on my 9 weight and a Cimmeron on my 3 weight and I love them both. Absolutely incredible drags for the money. My 9 weight has been used on everything from Chum and Chinook in freshwater to Pargo Snapper, Rooster Fish, Jack Crevalle, Sierra and Skipjack Tuna down in the Mexican salt. I used it for a whole week in the salt down there fishing out of Panga boats and off the beach and the drag still works flawlessly.

On all my other rods I use Scientific Angler System II reels and they work very well also. Not as good as the Ross though.

greenbuttskunk · 06-11-2003, 02:24 PM

For flies, purple egg sucking leech, flesh flies,
glo bugs in orange, peach, pink. Some popsicles, muddlers, Some big nymphs can't hurt. Pink pollywogs in case there are silvers cruising, Nailing one on the surface is a thrill not to be missed. The rainbows and the dollies just chow on eggs, during the peak of the spawns so the beads and glo bugs are great, bows also take flesh flies if there are decaying salmon around. Sockeye and pinks will hammer just about anything, bright pink or bright green. Be prepared to have to sort though them. Pick up some strike indicators, plenty to cover you. Lots of leader material in 6 thru 17lb. Most of the fishing up there may end up being more simple than you think. Cast, drift, drag, lift, cast. Pretty simple stuff.
Take some pictures and we will forward to a report.
GBS

[ 06-11-2003, 03:26 PM: Message edited by: greenbuttskunk ]

Grantspastor · 06-11-2003, 02:56 PM

Flies that worked well for me:

-For big rainbows...scuplin patterns tied matuka style with rabbit strip tail, egg flies, leeches, egg-sucking leech, generaly big and ugly works well. Try a "flesh" fly when salmon start to decay
-For sockeye and most other salmon...large streamer and steelhead flies. Simpler the better
-For grayling...many small dark dry and wet flies

When salmon are spawning, rainbows and dollies will be present eating eggs. Later, they will eat bits of decaying salmon flesh. (A not to be missed opportunity to "match the hatch")

There is a great book on Alaskan fly patterns availbale through Amato Publications

Grantspastor · 06-11-2003, 11:19 PM

Hard to pick one rod to do it all (Rainbows to Sockeye) If I HAD to it would be a 6 wt. When I lived there I used a 5 wt for rainbows/dollies/grayling...and a 7/8 weight for Sockeye. I'm going to go against the flow on the reel and say that I would spend a little more on the rod and get a Pflueger Medallist for the reel. It has a great drag for bigger fish, and is inexpensive

drbfish · 06-11-2003, 11:35 PM

#1 buy good line $40-50

#2 Spend $100+ on a reel, I have heard nothing but top reviews from friends with Loomis Adventure Reels at 100 bucks. I love Orvis battenkills for about the same.

#3 Rods, I like St. Croix and Redington at the low end. There are lots of used rods for sale out there. Orvis has some nice entry level stuff. I would go 7 wt in AK.

FallRiverGuy · 06-11-2003, 11:48 PM

Check out the Cortland rods too. For $100 you will get a life time warranty. I have a 4 Wt that for the $ I like a lot.

drbfish · 06-11-2003, 11:58 PM

check out the IM6 rods. I hear good things about these rods http://www.templeforkflyrods.com/

SCUTZ ZA · 06-12-2003, 09:03 AM

Don't be afraid to check out E'Bay. It is a great place to get top-o-the-line gear for a good price. Just check their feedback before you bid. Have fun In AK.

Fisherfield · 06-12-2003, 09:55 PM

Check out the post "excellent deal on a fly rod/reel combo......for a backup of course...you could NEVER catch a fish on a $13 rod but...

rob allen · 06-12-2003, 11:03 PM

There are lots of people who will fish with anything and thats ok however you do get what you pay for and you almost never get what you don't pay for..

For your application i'd recommend a 7weight.. It'll be to light sometimes and too heavy sometimes but if you just want one rod thats whatcha gotta do..

I'd be looking at loomis Gl-3's
Orvis battenkill disc, or Rross cimmeron
cortland 444 lines

This will give you a good solid outfit in the lower end of high quality stuff..

Also a lot of this stuff for sale used on various sites and on ebay.. good luck

draggin bottom · 06-13-2003, 03:33 PM

W,
As I stated before, put the money into the reel not the rod. I just heard yesterday while at the Greased Line, Ross is now obsoleting the Gunnison reel after 18 years. You will soon see some blow out prices. Watch Ebay or talk to your local shops to see if they will pick you one up. The problem, they usually already have inventory bought at their normal buy. They need to sell these while maintaining their profit, so ask around. GREAT REEL!!

DB

06-13-2003, 11:21 PM

I'd have to agree with Rob on this one. If you can make that "bargain" outfit work for you then great! But the likelyhood of failure at a critical time goes up as the price goes down.
The Loomis GL3 fly rods are good quality rods with a nice feel to them.
Just my opinion

willametteriveroutlaw · 06-13-2003, 11:45 PM

I bought a 6 weight gl2 and a Loomis adventure series reel, there combo was not hi quality. I am jacked. Big bows watch out. time for some pic and release fishing.

Slow and Low · 06-21-2003, 08:43 AM

You are going to need to spend a little dough if you are serious. I started out on a Cortland 8/9 for $80 and a Cortland CrownII reel for cheep. The rod was descent and lasted a couple years before I broke it on a small Chinook. The cheap reel was a waste of money.

I have Sage, GLoomis, Scott, Fenwick rods from 3 to 10 weight. Fish a Scott SAS 8wt 9.6 footer. Have landed Chum, Silvers, Chinook, Sockeye, Rainbows and Steelies. Have been spooled by some pretty small steelhead. Have fished this rod many years and never had to use the unconditional guarantee. The price was about $250.

Get a Ross reel $250 and beyond. Pound for pound the best and can stop a frieght-train.

Do not get less than 7 weight rod. You are going to hook and land a lot of fish. Best to get the fish in quickly for a safe release. You are also going to hook some bruisers up there and if you break your rod you'll be upset.

Have fun and keep us posted.