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Her own fly rod

Started by troutfanatic, March 01, 2015, 16:15:19 PM

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troutfanatic

It's child number one's birthday today.

She got boots and waders. I did not go high-end, she is only 10 and has room to grow. She got Redington.

I have posted on this before, but she wants her own rod. She actually has a cheap 8' 4wt. It was a clearance item at Walmart and yes it sucks. It is also too long for her. She couldn't cast worth a shit with it.

On the other hand, I had a boyscout as a student yesterday who was small, only 11 y/o and was throwing bombs with a TFO 9' 5wt. He caught five fish in 30 minutes and earned his merit badge.

She isn't getting any of the higher end rods anytime soon. She likes my H2 and the St Croix Avid but I ain't dropping the cash until I see if she sticks with it.
I am thinking Orvis Clearwater in 4wt 7'.

Any thoughts from the dads out there?

ruttness

my kid has an echo solo 8' 4wt , good rod but a bit heavy, the echo carries a lifetime warranty as does tfo, whorvis only offers a 25 year at near double the rod price, i havent any experience with the new green clearwater rods but i had a blue clearwater 2  5 wt and hated it.   




that said he loves using a glass rod, his favorite is a 20$ eagle claw featherlight most likely because of the color. but that rod is a blast to fish with and at the price its disposable.


Dougfish

x2 Featherlight

6'6" 4/5 weight or 7" 5/6.

ruttness

He is 9.

Yes Doug is talking about the same rod. I prefer the 6'6" for most everything but own all 3. They are bullet proof. I've had it doubled over and then some on bass and carp.

Stone-Man

Brian,

I have a spool of Cortland   555  DT  4 wgt.  Says "convertible " Dyna Tip..... It is new and has a price tag on it of $62.  I found it when I was purging my fly fishing shit a few days ago because I was snowed ass in. I must have won it or it was given to me

Anyway,  if this would help the cause. I would be happy to mail it to you(free) for your daughter.

Stone-Man Getting Unthawed

benben reincarnated


benben reincarnated

I have the redington classic trout in a 4 wt and for the price it ain't bad at all.  I mainly like it because it goes down to 4 pieces so it's good for stowing in your pack hiking in.  They make a 3 wt in 7'6" too, but not a 4 in that length. 


Aka

I have a 7' 6" Redington RS4 4wt. that I let my daughter use, she can lay out a 20' cast time and again without trouble. The fast action, light weight of the rod and shorter length help out.
I think the RS4 has been discontinued and the classic trout is their replacement. I saw the RS4's on the ebay last fall for $60...
I'd suggest you go with a light weight reel when you put the outfit together to help reduce fatigue and maybe go one line weight up, it's amazing how much better an over-lined rod can cast. She may end up slapping the fly down some but presentation at the trout pond isn't very important and a heavier weight line will help her with the mechanics of casting IMO.

Transylwader

Bwian,
FWIW, don't be spending long donkey on gear for the little lady. If she's drawing pictures of fish, landcapes with a pond and her in it with a flyrod in hand - doodles if I may, in her school books, then sure.
I have several rods you can let her try out that she can have. I would think a 6'6" 4wt would suffice. When she starts outfishing you (which she will) you can give her that Helios 2 and she can sign up here and take some of these fad fucks out of the equation and restore order.
You can spend that money on beer instead, and I'll take a couple off you.
Cheers Muppet 8)

bmadd

I've been more impressed by Cabelas gear than I have Bass Pro branded gear for the most part. And Cabelas almost always has at least one of their series of rods on sale.

Aka

Quote from: troutfanatic on March 04, 2015, 15:27:25 PM
Quote from: AKAaron on March 04, 2015, 10:29:40 AM
I have a 7' 6" Redington RS4 4wt. that I let my daughter use, she can lay out a 20' cast time and again without trouble. The fast action, light weight of the rod and shorter length help out.
I think the RS4 has been discontinued and the classic trout is their replacement. I saw the RS4's on the ebay last fall for $60...
I'd suggest you go with a light weight reel when you put the outfit together to help reduce fatigue and maybe go one line weight up, it's amazing how much better an over-lined rod can cast. She may end up slapping the fly down some but presentation at the trout pond isn't very important and a heavier weight line will help her with the mechanics of casting IMO.

I like what your saying here. I think we are getting close to a resolution. 7'6" is the max length I am willing to go because like I said to Ben, when she used th 8' rod, she often puts the tip in the water when she completes a forward cast.

bmadd,

I'll check it out. I had contemplated a BPS rod for her because they make a 6' 5 wt. Just not sure of the quality.

Mike,

Like I said, she's earning this. I am done picking up dog shit for the year :P

I should have said that one day last year I put a 6wt. line on my 4wt. Scott and had her cast that.  It was an old, cheap, Cortland line that I thought felt underweight for a 6wt. but def. heavier than a 4wt. She was doing great with it until the mosquitos got to be too much for her.

Thanks for the inspiration, I'm pretty sure I'm going to make a similar deal with my daughter to earn money picking up after the dog.

ruttness

Quote from: AKAaron on March 04, 2015, 10:29:40 AM
I have a 7' 6" Redington RS4 4wt. that I let my daughter use, she can lay out a 20' cast time and again without trouble. The fast action, light weight of the rod and shorter length help out.
I think the RS4 has been discontinued and the classic trout is their replacement. I saw the RS4's on the ebay last fall for $60...
I'd suggest you go with a light weight reel when you put the outfit together to help reduce fatigue and maybe go one line weight up, it's amazing how much better an over-lined rod can cast. She may end up slapping the fly down some but presentation at the trout pond isn't very important and a heavier weight line will help her with the mechanics of casting IMO.

the classic trout is an awesome rod, built on a sage black for a mere fraction of the price, cabelas sells them on sale for 75-100$ offten. have a 5 wt you can chuck next time you get this way.

most glass like being overlined if you decide to go the featherweight route. the 2wt glass i used the last time we went out had a dt3 on it. dont spend big money on what could be a passing fad for her till she shows you its a lifetime thing, she cant tell the difference between a 20 dollar rod and a 500+ dollar rod 

tw5270

I had a nice old St. Croix7' 4wt that I taught my oldest two with. Now my 11 year old uses an Echo 8' 4wt and it works well. I also have an old 7' 6wt glass rod that he loves to fish.
I would stick with the Echo, TFO, Cabela's rods until she really starts fishing a lot.