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streamcaster1
02-06-2010, 03:47 PM
Hello, all!

I fish more (old) (vintage) fiberglass than anything else, and I normally fish for smallmouth here in central IN. However, sometimes I do get to Southern California to visit the 91 year old parents, and try to get in some fishing in the San Gabriel Mountains for trout.

Old fiberglass was mostly 6 weight, with some 5's . . . and some that say "6" but are really very adept at 5 weight, like my favorite trout rod, the Fenwick FF79, an 8' rod that says "6 weight," but comes alive and sweet with a 5 at medium distances. Now, I don't have any problems fishing a 6 weight in broken water or water that's at least 3 feet deep. I prefer 5 weight in less than that, and I've encountered calm water about 6 inches deep behind boulders in those San Gabriels when i really would have preferred to have a 4 weight. But i hunker down, find the current line, and drift the offering in from above. It'll suit.

So for me, the maximum line weight is a 6 weight in small streams, while preferring 5 weight most of the time. But I'll bet most of you shudder even to go that high.

Back to my vintage equipment. When they were making and using these things in the 60's and 70's, people were fishing the same small streams you and I are with these heavier lines. Why do y'all want 3's, 2's 1's and oughts? 5's and even 6's do just fine for me and and for our parents. Are the fish different now?

The best to you each morning!
Peter

greendrake
02-06-2010, 04:03 PM
I don't shudder. Been fly fishing for over 40 years and do own 2 bamboo rods for 3 wt. and I've never got caught up in the graphite trap(have only ever owned 1 graphite rod in my life and it seldom sees the light of day) or the light line craze.In fact I fish a 5wt probably 70% of the time and am convinced that the 5wt is the best "all around" line wt that one can use under MOST circumstances.The 6wt ain't too shabby either.I do have 1/2 doz. good fiberglass rods that see maybe 4or5% of my fishing time the other 95% it is bamboo that gets used.4 different 4wts,7 different 5wts,2 6wts and 1 7wt.Then I've got somewhere between 30 and 40 bamboo production rods from the 30's thru the 50's that I have restored but very few of them get fished anymore since I started making bamboo rods.

So you're definately not alone but we might be the only two :lol:
Will

Ernest
02-06-2010, 05:16 PM
The line weight I choose depends on the flies I expect to use in a day. I'll fish 5 wts with a cane or wood rod most of the time, because I use a lot of nymphs and small streamers. If I plan to fish dries I'll use a 4 wt cane, and if I'm targeting a hatch of small flies, I'll use a 3 wt cane rod.

The lighter rods will cast the bigger flies after a fashion, but they are not ideal. I have one 3 wt rod that will cast almost anything if I tinker with the leader, but it is a very slow rod that takes some getting used to. My faster 3 wts will not let me cast a bigger fly with accuracy.

Some marketing hype tells us that a light rod "makes a small trout seem like a big one," but I've never been too concerned by that. I think the fly is delivered by the leader and line, the rod manages the line, and I pull the fish in as quickly as I can so he'll still have some spunk when I release him.

adam
02-07-2010, 02:41 PM
Ernest offers a great perspective.

For me, line weight is about fly size... and after that, fish size.

I've caught 20+" trout (dozens) in a 12,000 cfs river on a 0-weight. Hooked in the shallows of 6" with them racing to the heavy flow of the river going downstream. Landed them just a quickly on 6x as I would with the 7-weight (hundreds) as I would typically fish there.

I look at a 5-weight and below as small stream ready.

What Ernest writes is what I understand as well.

It is really about personal choices.

trout-nut
02-08-2010, 01:00 AM
I pretty much use a 3 or 4 wt. sometimes a 5. I had just built a 5 wt. bamboo that I'm looking forward to using alot. Just waiting for some open water to arrive. :D

terry
02-08-2010, 10:05 AM
I like 4's and 5's for their versatility. I have never felt over or under gunned with either. If I come up to a deep plunge pool and I want to fish it as close to the bottom as I can with a tung. head nymph, I want to be able to without feeling like I am just lobbing the fly in there.

However if I fished more clear, and slower moving streams than I would use a lighter weight for the stealth. It just happens to be I fish faster moving streams and the fish aren't line shy.

palewatery
02-08-2010, 06:53 PM
First rod I ever bought was 9 1/2ft for a 7wt, I had no clue and the advice I got was based on the wrong idea I'd be fishing much bigger rivers. It did it's job though... sort of... got the fly where it had to go. Nowadays I like short 3 or 4wt's they're good for the overgrown stretches I like best and can throw any flies I need them to. I'll use heavier on bigger water that's more open and more prone to weather issues and I like using lighter weights for fun fishing, for me though 3 and 4 are the weights I enjoy using most.

Pete-G
03-12-2010, 01:06 PM
I use a clone of a Garrison 201. It's marked 7' 4wt, but I like it better with a 5 wt DT line for creeks. It loads up close better and turns over bushy flies in the wind better than a 4wt line.

I've used a 6 wt rod on creeks before, and it works fine.

rayfound
03-12-2010, 01:31 PM
I'm a light line fan. For small streams, a lighter line (I'm now routinely fishing a Sage TXL 00wt, but fished 3wts for the previous couple years) offers a few advantages IMO.

- Better Line control: with lighter lines, one can more easily hold more line off of the water to get a drag free drift.

- Better presentation: Lighter lines land softer on the water.

- Better stealth - finer line casts a smaller shadow, less spooky.

- Better casting at short distances... most light rods will cast decently with just a leader and a couple inches of flyline.

- Better tippet protection - the soft tips of lighter rods offer good protection against snapping fine tippet on snags or the occasional large fish.

- No more hooksets that leave small trout in the bushes behind me.

- Lighter overall weight - more pleasurable to hold all day.

- Better fish fighting - because the rod tip is always bent on a fish, there is less fish pop off the hook. On a 6wt, a 5" trout doesn't bend it much.


Ultimately, unless you are using heavier than about 4x tippet, or throwing heavily weighted flies, I see no need to fish a heavier rod than a 000-3wt.


For what its worth, a double ought is perfectly adept at landing large fish also.

http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs464.snc3/25504_1318233108858_1021672992_969722_1369678_n.jp g

http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs464.snc3/25504_1318232988855_1021672992_969719_3051063_n.jp g

Zac Sexton
03-12-2010, 08:34 PM
We have this phenomenon out West called "WIND." And when it presents itself on the water I happen to be fishing, I would rather keep on fishing, than pack up and leave, b/c my rod won't toss the line in to the wind. That being said, I fish rods from 1 wt. to 12 wt., depending on the fly/water size, as well as the possibility of wind. I use a variety of rods to match the type of water--from ephemeral streams I can step across, to the Ocean--in an assortment of conditions. Most the time I fish 4, 5 and 6 wts., and can handle most conditions in that size range. Most the conditions. I often bring two rods, a lighter one and a heavier one, just in case the conditions change weather-wise, or if I'm fishing new water and I just don't know what I'm getting in to. And I like 3-4 pc. rods, so I can pack and travel more easily with them. But I fish 2 pc. rods, too. And I like bamboo best. But, I fish carbon-fiber, too. And I like rods that catch bigger fish, as opposed to cursed rods that only catch small fish. But, I like small fish too... :crazy:

rayfound
03-12-2010, 09:28 PM
We have this phenomenon out West called "WIND." And when it presents itself on the water I happen to be fishing, I would rather keep on fishing, than pack up and leave, b/c my rod won't toss the line in to the wind. That being said, I fish rods from 1 wt. to 12 wt., depending on the fly/water size, as well as the possibility of wind. I use a variety of rods to match the type of water--from ephemeral streams I can step across, to the Ocean--in an assortment of conditions. Most the time I fish 4, 5 and 6 wts., and can handle most conditions in that size range. Most the conditions. I often bring two rods, a lighter one and a heavier one, just in case the conditions change weather-wise, or if I'm fishing new water and I just don't know what I'm getting in to. And I like 3-4 pc. rods, so I can pack and travel more easily with them. But I fish 2 pc. rods, too. And I like bamboo best. But, I fish carbon-fiber, too. And I like rods that catch bigger fish, as opposed to cursed rods that only catch small fish. But, I like small fish too... :crazy:

Zac, good call on the wind. I would be much more inclined to fish the 3wts vs the 00wt if I was in an open area where wind can be an issue. As it is, most of the streams I fish are in wooded canyons, so even if its a "Red Flag Warning" day in Southern California, it can be nice on stream.

Zac Sexton
03-13-2010, 01:08 AM
Damn you and your non-windy fishing areas! :cry: ;)

streamcaster1
03-16-2010, 09:49 PM
Heck, in the wind that comes down a San Gabriel canyon,(and that is definitely not a gale; matter of fact, it feels like a nice breeze) but it even blows a 5weight off course. Curse!

Peter

Robert Bolton
06-26-2011, 05:06 PM
I'm with Ernest and Adam. It's all about kinetic energy. The fly line must have enough kinetic energy (just like in bullets) to deliver the size fly you are using to the distance you are casting. Bigger flys and longer distances require heavier lines. That being said, the rod must be up to the job of delivering the required energy to the line. Heavier lines and longer distances require stiffer rods. There are some articles on my website (www.HATofMichigan.org )about it you could read - or not. Many people prefer to just do it and not worry about the physics. And they usually cast just fine.

adam
06-28-2011, 08:20 AM
I often fish in the wind, it helps with cover and concealment. My tenkara rods use "level lines" of around 17lb for fluorocarbon or mono the tippet to terminate. I work with the wind, curse it but it does not stop me. Wind is a part of the experience. I also enjoy any matrix of rod, again personal choices.

Spin fishing?

Lots of people would say that is the best choice, I would not argue that.

Fishing is what is important.