Rod/line Matches

[ogilvie]

Headscan mentioned something that is very important about individual set-ups that match the caster,also that some rods definitely have a wider range of possibility. And that is very very true. For example,the Beulah 11'6" and the 12'7" are more pure design,ment for a much more specific line and casting style . Once found ,this match is effortless and pleasureable. AS is true with the Hardy Angel, Goran Anderssen Loop Grey, Z Axis and a few others.

The same is also true for the Line Manufacturers, in fact the first company to really understand that a line can bridge many windows was Rio's Skagit line. Loops efforts in this direction was bang on but not understood well enough so has had difficulty in getting a sustained following. SA,AirFlo, CND,Snowbee and now some others coming on line are making great strides in reaching this market. SA's Short Head Spey became the 2nd line to really make a mark.

A good example of a rod that crosses over very effectively and effortlessly is the Tamar....I can work with a 350 Grain Elixir set-up or bridge to a 600 grain CND Skagit set-up (16' type 6) with amazing results and requireing little effort shift. The more I let the rod work the better is performs... the same is true with the YELLOW Loop 14' rod...a great cross over rod.

However,for you casters in Alberta ,on the Bow and such rivers ,your crossover isn't quite as drastic as on the West Coast!

[headscan]

Interesting. So is there anything that defines a rod that crosses over effectively (an all-around rod) vs one that only handles one, maybe two certain lines well? Without turning this into a "what one rod would you take if you were stranded on a desert island", how would you decide which rod you would take with you on a trip where the conditions were uncertain. Sort of a situation where you can pack one rod and a reel with multiple spools holding a few different lines.

[ogilvie]

Interesting. So is there anything that defines a rod that crosses over effectively (an all-around rod) vs one that only handles one, maybe two certain lines well? Without turning this into a "what one rod would you take if you were stranded on a desert island", how would you decide which rod you would take with you on a trip where the conditions were uncertain. Sort of a situation where you can pack one rod and a reel with multiple spools holding a few different lines.

Thats a very good question ..and One that is very widely discussed...knowing that confidence plays a great part in any fishing outing reflects deeply into this particular ,shall we call it a void??!! The criteria I would use is that of a rod that is light in hand,fast but not too crisp,a good full lower grip ,the rod must have a reserve in depth and power but not overpower the simplest of casts. A good example of this reasoning is the G Loomis Company...about 3-4 years ago they brought out 24 new Spey rod models... Another company "Loop" did have Black(adventurer),Blue,Yellow,Green, Grey and the Goran Anderssen series of rods...they now have gone to a simpler formula to un-confuse the caster...the same can be said for Hardy,TnT,Winston, Lamiglas,and a few others. There are a few of the "all round rods" within that group for sure..Ie: the Hardy Gem(13'),Loop Grey (13') ,TnT's (1208), now we have the Beulah 12'7" , CND Black Spey, Snowbee Tamar, Scott Arc,and a few more. What I think makes a good rod is it's ability to deliver as we speak and not Break;either the bank or during a cast. The lengths are somewhat determined by area but for this thread a 12-13'6" rod is more than enough for Bulkley Steelhead or Bow River Browns.

Fortunately,the reels are becoming less of an issue ,considering that we now have some great cartridge reels coming onto the market at reasonable prices. In the past we have had to rely on buying an extra reel spool at about 1/2 the cost of the reel...I have 2 Hardy 10/11 Ultralites, 2 Hardy gems Mk 1,and a new Mark2 with spool, Hardy Swift 1000 with Spool,and of course other big reels. This is a lot of Money to spend on reels but it had to be done...and not all at once... We had to but the Leeda magnum years ago to keep our costs down and that was all that was available...but Snowbee has again, come up with an excellent quality Cartridge reel system for we Spey Casters at less thatn $200 for reel and 3 or 4 extra spools...and if you want more spools they are less than 20 bucks..

Have to go to bed...out the door at 5:30...there are fresh fish coming in.

C