# Rod & Reel questions



## SConner (Mar 3, 2007)

I have never fly fished but would like to learn. Would eventually be used on Mad river for Browns and GMR for smallmouth. Could anyone give me some insights on what length & weight of rod I should be looking at? Please give me detail explaining your recommendation if possible. Also any input on reels, line, etc.

At this point in time I know zero about fly fishing.


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## rweis (Dec 20, 2005)

SC - Since you want to fish for SM, I would go with a 6wt rod. It is big enough to toss larger flies, but small enough to use on the Mad. DO NOT BUY A ROD WITHOUT CASTING IT FIRST. There is an Orvis store in Dayton and Mad River Outfitters if you are near Columbus. I don't know about Dayton, but the guys at MRO are great. Fly rods are a very individual tool. What I find to be perfect for me, another guy would think is trash. It just depends how it feels to you. Spending the most money on an outfit does not guarantee it will be the best for you. I have a $400 3 wt and a $200 6wt and love them both.

My suggestion would be to go to a fly shop and take the basic fly casting instruction. Then pick out 4-5 rods. Pick a selection of expensive and inexpensive rods. MRO would be good for this since they carry rods other than Orvis also. When I went to buy a 6wt., I tried the Orvis Clearwater II (which I ended up buying), the Orvis TLS Matrix, A Winston WT, a Sage FLi, and a Scott S3. If I had known about test casting back when, I would never have purchased the first 2 rods that I own. Then add a reel with a decent drag. Orvis BBS and Mid-Arbor are both good examples. Buy a good quality fly line as it will help your casting. 

Now comes the most important item. All apologies to Mr. Iverson, but PRACTICE-PRACTCE-PRACTICE. Always add a leader when you cast. Go for about 20 minutes at a time. The practice will pay off. "You can learn to fly cast in 30 minutes, but it takes a lifetime to master." Unknown.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.


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## steelheader007 (Apr 8, 2004)

Sconner if you like I have a 6wt to try out, and I can save you a trip to Columbus by visiting AN Outfitters in Milford! You can bug Steve and ask all the questions!


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## wader (Dec 9, 2004)

I am fairly new to fly fishing as well, and I have a 9' 5wt that I use for pretty much everything. I fish the Mad probably 60-90 times a year, and I think a 9' rod is way too much for that river. You can get by, but I roll cast about 99% of the time. It is narrow, and the trees hang out over the river. I would like to have a 7.5'-8', 4-5wt rod for the Mad.


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## Fishaholic69 (Apr 6, 2007)

a 5wt or 6wt would prolly do nicely. I have a 5wt tfo pro and I love it!


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## riverKing (Jan 26, 2007)

for an all around rod the typical idea would be somthing in the 5-6wt range. the 6wt that tom(steelheader007) is the same rod that I use on the gmr, and throwing streamers on the mad, it works well for nymphing and it does duty as a steelheading tool as well. the one drawback is that its a bit heavy for dry flies.
at this point I could go in depth about rod lengths(I would love a 10ft rod on the mad, wich shows you how much people can differ on the same water) but for a start somthing in the 9ft range, I love longer rods but I wouldnt recomend learning on a 10 footer, anything shorter than 8.5 and smallmouth sized flies become difficult. btw, pike love flies....
sorry a.d.d
as for rods rweis brought up a great point, always cast a rod before you buy it, call up steve at a-noutfitters and he could show you the range of rods for local waters, and you 1hour casting lesson if you buy a setup
wich brings me to the painfull side, if you havnt looked into price it is usually a good idea to have a price range going in. for a good, lasting starter setup I would expect to spend.
get a good line, $35-70
you can get a reel that will do the job for about $50, but if you ever expect to steelhead fish or you want somthing tougher there are lots of great reels in the $100-130 range
rods can very from 50-watever you feel, the cheapest rods that I personally feel are worth owning are the clearwater ($125?ish) these are off memory so I could be wrong, and the tfo signature, wich steve may still have a few on clearance for like $90, but I think they run 110.
If you are looking for somthing nicer there is a good run of nice rods in the $180-300 range.

this post was longer than I anticipated, if you have any detail questions about anything fly fishing feel free to send me a pm


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## Patricio (Feb 2, 2007)

buy whats cheap. if it wont bother you, get the $120 Ross specials from cabelas or something similar. if thats too much money to potentially throw away, get the setup from kmart. many of us who started flyfishing back in the day started with setups from kmart. length is for the most part a personal choice. I like shorter rods with slower actions these days. 

sounds like a 5wt is up your ally.


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## GRADY228 (Jun 25, 2005)

I started out with a Okuma 9wt outfit and learned the basics. Then I moved up to a Okuma life time warranty rod and a nice reel. My belief is that you should never go fishing with just 1 outfit. You will no dought break a rod or something will happen to shut you down. That is why I carry a back up, believe me I have used it!!!


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## Fishaholic69 (Apr 6, 2007)

my 1st rod combo was a cabelas brand. get a 3 forks combo in a 5 or 6 wt for 80 bucks plus shipping. they come with rod, backing,and fly line! they are quality made and will handle all those fish you mention. plus they are pretty sharp looking too

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/t...&parentType=index&indexId=cat20457&hasJS=true


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## big_fish (Dec 21, 2004)

I think I got my first set up from farm and fleet I was getting feed and saw them on the rack I still dont know why a feed store had fishing tackle but anyways It had 5/7wt on it but no line on the reel I went to walmart and bought cortland w/f 333 not even sure if it was the right weight I didn't know the first thing flyfishing farm and fleet also had a fly tying kit I bought it to all I can remember is that Brad Pitt mad it look easy on a river runs through I still have that first set up and actually use it with a sinking line for streamers now that Ihave been in it for a few yrs I like a 9 ft 6 wt but would like to get a 9 to 10 ft 8 wt since I use a fair amount of deer hair flies for largemouth but havent got to it yet I think your cheaper rods I dont know how accurate their weight are


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## JoesEyedUp (Apr 18, 2006)

I picked up a Plueger starter kit at Dick's for $50.
It was a 5-6 wt. and 8' long.
It was just to see if I was gonna like fly fishing. 
Then I picked up a 3 forks combo at Cabelas on sale 5wt and 9' long.
I really like this rod its fun to fart around with in the upper stretches of the rocky and pond fishing. I like that it was a foot longer then first rod and a mid arbor reel.
Then I decided I needed a steelhead rod so I got a Tioga reel and a 7wt Sage 10' which I love. 
This sport can get crazy and fast. 
This is just talking about rod and reels and nothing about fly tying...LOL


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## ckfowler (Jul 14, 2008)

Fishaholic69 said:


> my 1st rod combo was a cabelas brand. get a 3 forks combo in a 5 or 6 wt for 80 bucks plus shipping. they come with rod, backing,and fly line! they are quality made and will handle all those fish you mention. plus they are pretty sharp looking too
> 
> http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/t...&parentType=index&indexId=cat20457&hasJS=true


I have 3 Three Fork rods in different lengths and weights. Nice Moderate action for forgiving open loops. My favorite is the 7'6" 3 wt but would agree that for just one rod for the Mad and some ponds, the 8' 5 wt would probably be a better bet. FWIW, I find I can make a shorter rod work in the open easier than I can squeeze a long one into a tight spot. Most of your fishing on the Mad can be done at 30 feet or less.


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## SConner (Mar 3, 2007)

Thanks to all the great input, I think I have a starting point on rod lengths and weights needed based on type of fishing I will be doing. Still a little fuzzy on what I should be looking for in a reel and now I guess I need to figure out lines and flies also. I have a feeling it's gonna take a while to get decent at this


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## tybo (Mar 1, 2009)

I have drift fished the Vermilion, Chagrin, & Grand for steelhead and fished the Manistee for salmon and would like to know if anyone knows if I can set up a fly outfit to do both. Would appreciate any advice.


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## Fishaholic69 (Apr 6, 2007)

never fished salmon but maybe you could get away with a 8wt? I got a 7wt and a 8wt for steelhead but my has buddy even fought a steelie on a 6wt with no problem so a 8wt for sure hold up to steelhead! now salmon I am not sure. my buddy has a 9wt for them. thats why I think a 8wt will get the job done if needed as long as you don't horse um and be rough.


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## THEsportsMAN (Oct 18, 2005)

Take a look at LL bean rods. I have a 7wt that I've used for everything from trout to panfish to monster bass and walleye. I've had this rod for over 10 years and it's never failed and the cork is still in great shape. I've beat it up quite a bit over the years too. When coupled with an Orvis clearwater it makes for a very reasonable combo. Bean reels are not a bad choice for a beginner as well. Good luck

O-fishally yours,

B


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## Flyfish Dog (Nov 6, 2007)

A 4wt in 8 -9 ft length would be perfect for trout and SM bass fishing. Anything bigger is really overkill especially for trouts unless you planning on throwing large streamers exclusivly.Buy a rod that a lifetime warranty cause they are usually a much better rod.
Fly fishing is not something you will pick up fast like with spinning rod but in time you will have a hard time putting it down once you get it down pat in your system!
I really believe anything over 4 wt for fishing trouts is overkill when you be casting dries cause I sure wouldn't with 6 wt. I use two rod for strictly trout fishing both being a 0 wt and a 4 wt. Stick with a moderate fast action a dont burden yourself with a fast action rods that are out otherwise you will surely be frustrated as heck and give up altogether.


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## Flyfish Dog (Nov 6, 2007)

Also another note is Ross Essence outfits, I have heard nothing but great reviews on them and cant go wrong with a cabelas 3 forks outfit either.


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## Huron River Dan (Oct 19, 2007)

I would look at a 5/6 wt in 8 1/2 or 9ft. it will work for trout and will be fine for Smallies, and you can have fun with the gills as well.

Dan


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## tybo (Mar 1, 2009)

Thanks for the info Fishaholic69. I was leaning towards an 8 wt. setup with a slightly larger reel for the extra capacity if needed.


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## fisher (Feb 7, 2008)

go to www.flyshopcloseouts.com they have some good deals on new outfits that are last year's models. 

a 5wt will work perfect for what you want to do.

I have fished my 5wt St Croix Ledgend Elite on the V for steelhead many times, no issues. It would not work for Salmon or Michigan Steelhead, you really need an 8wt for that.


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