sacfly
11-06-2007, 08:03 PM
So now you can buy the best 2 rods from Kienes? When do you get in the helios bill?
The future of fly rods
November 4, 2007
It's pricey, but if you have a chunk of money burning a hole in your pocket, you can be among the first to own a limited First Edition model of the Orvis ZG Helios, probably the lightest and the most technologically advanced fly rod ever created.
Graphite rods are made by rolling a resin-impregnated mesh fabric (called a scrim) into a tube and baking it in an oven to melt the resins. When you touch a graphite rod, the stuff you feel is the hardened resin.
Tom Rosenbauer, Orvis' rod and tackle marketing director, said the company came up with a way to use a lighter, less-dense scrim and lighter resins to take 30% to 35% of the weight out of the rod blanks. It also pared 20% out of the weight of the carbon fiber reel seat.
I got to use the 9 foot for a 5-weight line last summer, when it was still a big secret, and was amazed. It was incredibly light, about 2.5 ounces, but that's not what got me. It was the almost effortless casting. You just lifted the line off the water, did a quick false cast and let it fly.
For the past 10 years Sage has set the standards for upmarket fly rods. But when I tried the Helios side-by-side with a 9-foot Sage TCR, using the same reel and line, I thought the Orvis was noticeably better.
The light weight of the Helios trout rods is nice but not all that important. I'm 6-foot-1 and 215 pounds, so a 5-weight rod that's an ounce lighter isn't a big consideration. But an 8- or 10-weight that's 4 ounces lighter is appealing for saltwater, salmon or bass fishing, where you hold it at head level as you make hundreds of casts a day.
The First Edition Helios rods will be sold until Jan. 1, and the company will make only 250 each of an 8-foot-5 for a 5 weight, a 9 foot for a 5 and a 9 foot for an 8. They cost $755 for the 5-weight trout rods and $775 for the 8. When mass production begins in January, the rods will cost the same but won't bear the limited edition name. They come with a lifetime replacement warranty.
The Helios rods are four-piece models, and Rosenbauer said Orvis two-piece rods eventually will go the way of the 8-track tape because few anglers want them.
The company eventually will produce a full line of Helios rods in many lengths and weights. Meanwhile, sales of the limited edition models will be split among Orvis stores, some trout pro shops and the company Web site at www.orvis.com.
Eric Sharp
The future of fly rods
November 4, 2007
It's pricey, but if you have a chunk of money burning a hole in your pocket, you can be among the first to own a limited First Edition model of the Orvis ZG Helios, probably the lightest and the most technologically advanced fly rod ever created.
Graphite rods are made by rolling a resin-impregnated mesh fabric (called a scrim) into a tube and baking it in an oven to melt the resins. When you touch a graphite rod, the stuff you feel is the hardened resin.
Tom Rosenbauer, Orvis' rod and tackle marketing director, said the company came up with a way to use a lighter, less-dense scrim and lighter resins to take 30% to 35% of the weight out of the rod blanks. It also pared 20% out of the weight of the carbon fiber reel seat.
I got to use the 9 foot for a 5-weight line last summer, when it was still a big secret, and was amazed. It was incredibly light, about 2.5 ounces, but that's not what got me. It was the almost effortless casting. You just lifted the line off the water, did a quick false cast and let it fly.
For the past 10 years Sage has set the standards for upmarket fly rods. But when I tried the Helios side-by-side with a 9-foot Sage TCR, using the same reel and line, I thought the Orvis was noticeably better.
The light weight of the Helios trout rods is nice but not all that important. I'm 6-foot-1 and 215 pounds, so a 5-weight rod that's an ounce lighter isn't a big consideration. But an 8- or 10-weight that's 4 ounces lighter is appealing for saltwater, salmon or bass fishing, where you hold it at head level as you make hundreds of casts a day.
The First Edition Helios rods will be sold until Jan. 1, and the company will make only 250 each of an 8-foot-5 for a 5 weight, a 9 foot for a 5 and a 9 foot for an 8. They cost $755 for the 5-weight trout rods and $775 for the 8. When mass production begins in January, the rods will cost the same but won't bear the limited edition name. They come with a lifetime replacement warranty.
The Helios rods are four-piece models, and Rosenbauer said Orvis two-piece rods eventually will go the way of the 8-track tape because few anglers want them.
The company eventually will produce a full line of Helios rods in many lengths and weights. Meanwhile, sales of the limited edition models will be split among Orvis stores, some trout pro shops and the company Web site at www.orvis.com.
Eric Sharp