posted by Alex on Jan 15
continued from “Picking a Reel”
You’ve got your new line spooled up on your new reel. Time to find a stick to cast it. Like you did when picking a reel, the first thing you need to figure out when buying a fly rod is what your price range is. Whether you only want to spend $100, or $700, you should be able to find a rod you’re happy with. I recommend taking you reel and line to a shop so you can test prospective rods with the actual reel/line setup you’ll be using. The reason being that not only will rods vary from manufacturer to manufacturer, and model to model- they’ll even vary from rod to rod. If you’re a rookie, you probably won’t be able to detect subtle differences, and that’s okay. What you’re looking for is a rod within your budget that feels good with your line/reel. Just because you’ve got a 6wt line, doesn’t mean it will cast best with a 6wt rod. It might feel better with a 5wt rod, it might feel better with a 7wt rod. The only way to find out is by casting it with as many rods as possible.
Action
There are 3 main rod actions: slow, medium/moderate, and fast. Then there are “in-between” actions such as mod-fast, etc. Some companies will use a flex designation to describe their rod’s action. Examples are tip-flex, mid-flex, and full flex. What does this mean for you?
Slow Action or Full Flex
- Slow action rods bend the full length of the rod while casting. This makes them very forgiving, thus, a rod for beginners. Even with a short amount of line out, the rod will easily load, making them ideal for small to medium sized streams. Their flexibility also helps by serving as a shock absorber for light leaders/tippets. A disadvantage is it is harder to control big fish. It’s also more difficult to make long casts, or cast into the wind(unless experienced).
Medium Action or Mid-Flex
- You could say that these are Goldilocks rods- they’re not too stiff, or too soft. They’re a great all around rod, especially if you fish in a wide range of conditions. Since they load from around the middle of the rod to the tip, they are a good rod for beginners want a little oomph, but still need more forgiveness than a fast action rod.
Fast Action or Tip Flex
- These are stiff, thus giving you more power and faster line speeds. They’re nice for making long casts, casting into the wind, as well as for casting bigger flies. Their power also helps when fighting large fish. Their downfall is that their stiffness gives you less shock absorption, resulting in more strain on your leader/tippet. Most people won’t advise a beginner to start with a fast action rod since they aren’t as forgiving as a medium or slow action rod.
The Ingredients
- The Blank- The blank is the actual rod. The most common materials they’re made from are bamboo, fiberglass, and graphite. Bamboo being the heaviest, Graphite being the lightest.
- Grips- There are several grip styles. The main types are: full wells, half wells, reverse half wells, and cigar. Most are made from cork. Make sure your grip feels natural in your hands when holding and casting.
- Reel Seats- The reel seat is what holds your reel on the blank. Things to keep an eye out for are gnarly threads, and that your reel is secure when attached to the rod. Some reel seats will have a fighting butt. This is a nice luxury to have if you will be fishing for lagre fish such as Salmon, or Saltwater species. If you are fishing for saltwater species, make sure your reel seat is made of a corrosion resistant material such as aluminum or titanium.
- Guides- The two most common types of guides are single foot and double foot. Single foot guides are lighter, and will interfere less with your rods action. Double foot guides are stronger, and more secure. If fishing in saltwater, make sure your rods guides are corrosion resistant.
LengthFishing poles serve two purposes. To guide/cast the line, and to help land fish. They’re a fancy lever. As you lengthen your lever, casting requires less effort, and vise versa. Figuring out what length depends mostly on the distances you’ll need to cast. If you fish small streams, a rod shorter than 9′ might be a good choice. If you fish lakes or the surf, or need a high back cast to get over vegetation, sandbars, waves, etc. a longer rod might be the way to go. Rods that are 8′ to 9′ are most common, since they are a nice medium.
Custom Rods
Custom rods are a great way to get exactly what you want in a rod. Depending on the builder, they can also be a great way to get more rod for your dollar. When choosing a builder be sure to get references and see their past work. Find out if there is any type of warranty that covers your rod’s components, as well as workmanship.
Build Your Own
Building a basic fly rod isn’t very hard with a little guidance. This is a great way to save money for the do-it-yourselfer. I’ve built a couple rods, and it was a great experience. A couple sites to check out if you want to look more into building your own are
Time to get leaders and flies!
January 15th, 2008 at 5:17 pm
Alex,
Very nice overview of rods. Keep in mind that it’s harder to correct casting stroke errors with a slower rod. The medium and fast action rods allow a caster with ‘developing’ chops to power through most bad casts. The slow rod simply amplifies the mistake. I had to learn this the hard way. We routinely review/fish slower, fiberglass rods and I really had to adjust my stroke to accommodate the slower speed required. That said, I’ve cast 40 year old glass rods that would give a medium action graphite rod a run for it’s money.
You mentioned how a slower rod will protect a tippet. The material it’s made from can also help. Even a faster action, Glass rod will simply bend till it can’t bend anymore and then stop. It’s actually kind of cool to see, in action. Graphite will bend to it’s breaking point and then you get to hear a very sad, loud crack. Definitely, not cool.
Looking forward to more ‘Intro to…’ articles.
-Jim
January 16th, 2008 at 8:17 am
Jim,
I’d always thought it was the opposite- with a fast rod, the mistake happens so quickly that you can’t make adjustments in your stroke in time. Do you think it was due to the fact that you were used to graphite that made it a little tricky?
I definitely don’t consider myself to be an expert on rods, reels, or fly lines. I’ve still got a lot to learn, and as I do, I’ll continually update these articles to try and keep them as accurate, and as helpful, as possible. I figured if I’m going to have a how to section, this was the place to start.
January 16th, 2008 at 10:02 am
I guess it really depends on what you start with. Most of the guys I fish with have been doing it since the 60’s (i.e. old dudes). They were around for the heyday of glass and the transition to graphite. Most of my info is anecdotal but I have cast a few glass rods that will really make you adjust your stroke before they start performing. Forget about bamboo. I’d need muscle relaxants to cast one of those things.
All that said, I have only tried casting serious fast action rods in the last couple years. Initially, it was the fact that the damn things cost so much that I didn’t bother to even test them. When we started doing reviews on the site, I had to re-assess my casting stroke. The old guys postulated that you could power through a bad cast with a fast action rod and I have only seen that it’s true for me and my particular situation. These cats all have the most beautiful casting strokes too.
-Jim