Looking for decent rod for dry flies. Recommendations?
( for my brief departures from the dark side)
I'm not a big user of dry flies but when I want to do just dry flies it is a 4wt. IMHO 3wt and smaller are for folks who like to brag about the light weight
rod they caught him on - if it is a decent size fish they fail to mention how they played the hell out of it and it likely sunk to the bottom once released.
Fred, are you stuck on 10ft? Honestly, the longer rods handle dries fine, but accuracy suffers in close. A 10ft 3wt acts more like a 4wt in most cases unless you are willing to spend 850-1k. Soft tip, but a stiff butt section. Most require lining up a size.
I'd personally go with a fast action 9ft 4wt or more moderate 5wt.
I had a 10' 4wt Scott years ago. I used it on the South Holston tailwater long before it became a zoo, and well before the labyrinth dam was built on Osceola Island. I purchased it for making long casts and long downstream drifts with PT nymphs, targeting the fish that were commonly cruising the deeper crevasses. I traded it for an athletic parking pass to VT sporting events. I now wish I still owned the rod.
Not sure if Scott still makes it, but it was also a decent rod for dries, mending, and long downstream drifts.
Al is not completely correct on his assessment of the light lines. The biggest brown I ever caught was behind the upper South Holston fish hatchery, a 32" with 19" girth beast, on an 8'9" 3wt light line Sage. The tippet was the key to landing that fish quickly which I did. The fly line size was a nonfactor. Never broadcasted much about that fish, because I drifted a f*cking egg fly into its gaping mouth. It never felt right, much like that dirty feel one gets when using a green weenie.
Now I will say it was always harder for me to land the bigger fish on a longer rod than a shorter one. Never deep sea fished but always thought those rods were short for a reason.
The best longer dry fly rods I have ever owned/fished where that old 8'9" LL Sage and an old 8 1/2' 4wt Scott Eclipse.
Happy hunting for the new weapon.
Ive considered the same and looked into it a bit.
If its dry or die: 4wt
No budget: 8'6" Scott Radian or Hardy zephrus
Nice but not diehard: Fenwick Aetos
Cheap ass: Maxcatch Blackstar IM10
I bought a Wetfly Element SE 10' 3 wt for cheaps a few years ago. I love it for nymphing, but it also works good for dries. You can keep some line off the water, for sure. Not Orvis-virtue-signalling range, but I've caught several thousand fish on it.
Fred just wants it to be 10ft so if he can't catch em on dries he can switch to euro.
Quote from: driver on June 03, 2021, 13:54:14 PMFred just wants it to be 10ft so if he can't catch em on dries he can switch to euro.
I can relate.
You still looking, Fred? I gotta 10' 5 weight Fenwick Aetos that's only been used 3 or 4 times. Nice rod....