Fly Rods

What may seem like any easy task to complete can turn into a nightmare. How hard can choosing the right Fly Rod be, right? Actually very easy if you understand a few principals.

Slow Action

Slow action rods are often referred as being soft or noodley. You may not be able to cast as far as the medium or the fast action rods but your presentation will be allot better. What do I mean? Well, since a slow action rod is soft and slow your line will land on top of the water like a feather falling from the sky. Another plus is the fact that you will be able to learn when to make your forward and back casts allot easier. Why? Simply because the rod is soft you will feel the rod tug backwards on your backcast as your line begins to straighten out. So you will learn timing very quickly with a slow action rod. Perfect choice for close, delicate situations. A slow action rod is a tippets best friend since it is able to absorb shock.

Medium Action

Medium action rods cover a wide range of fishing conditions. There is enough flex for casting easability yet plenty of strength in the butt section for fighting fish. In my opinion it is a great choice that covers a variety of conditions.

Fast Action

Fast action rods are ideal for an experienced caster since casting strokes will be much faster than the slow action rod. The fast action rod will provide you with tighter casting loops for distance. It will take less time to load your rod with line on your backcast, much easier casting into the wind, and also improve accuracy. On the other hand you may not feel that tugging on your backcast as you would with a slow action rod, and that is why I would suggest a fast action for an experienced caster.

Fly Rods also come in different lengths. Why again? It is simple, the longer the rod the more line you will be able to load on your backcast. So if you plan on fishing small streams you may only need a 7-8' length, you will not need to cast far and you will need a shorter rod for getting into tight spots. For lakes you will need to cast for distance, and if you use a belly boat or plan on doing any chest high wading you will need the extra length. A 8½'-9½' rod will allow you to add more line into your backcast and will prevent your fly from hitting the water behind you.

Next you will need to match your Fly rod to the proper weight of Fly Line. Relax don't sweat it, it is very easy. Fly lines come in different weights 2-13 and Fly rods are calibrated with the proper weight line making them a balanced system. A 9' fly rod made to accept a 6 weight fly line would read on the side of the rod 9' 6 weight. Now the weight of the fly line sort of depends on the type of fishing you plan on doing. Confused? Hang on!