Rick J
02-22-2009, 12:43 PM
Probably the original reason the short skagits started being manufactured was to allow spey casting with single handers and switch rods. But with recent playing around by the three skagiteers, Ed, Scott and Mike as well as others, the original skagit formula of 3 to 3.5 times rod length has changed significantly. The 3.5 is still a good upper limit but the lower limit has dropped alot and in a recent post by Ed on the Spey Pages, he now considers a lower limit down around 2 times rod length. This then allows one to use the short skagits on longer two handed rods.
What does this gain you besides ease of casting a shorter line (though even more stripping)? It allows using even lighter rods to target you species. The thing that more easily allows one to turn over heavy sink tips such as T-14 and now T-17 as well as heavy flies is not overall grain weight of the line but grain weight per foot.
Looking at the original skagit lines, two typical good winter lines would be the 550 for typical casting (probably requiring a standard two handed 7 wt rod) and maybe the 650 for even heavier stuff (maybe an 8 wt or even a 9 wt two hander).
Compare these lines with the short skagits. The 550 is around 20 grains/ft and the 650 is around 24 grains/ft.
The short skagit 425 is around 21 grains/ft and the 475 short is around 24 grains/ft. You can pretty easily cast the 425 on a 5 wt and the 475 on a 6 wt allowing you to pretty much cast the same tips and flies on a rod that is 2 weights less than what you could accomplish with a standard skgit setup.
PS - this weekend I was fishing with Bruce and he set up his 6126 with the 475 short and it rocked!!
As an aside, I spent alot of time playing with the on-shoulder cack handed double spey that Mike showed a couple of weeks ago (for river left) as well as an on shoulder standard double spey for river right and this hands down is the easiest spey cast I have ever found requiring almost no effort. For those who have not seen the video clip I took of Mike, I am posting here again You owe it to yourself to try this cast - it is really amazing how little effort is needed!!
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/RickJ/th_DSCN2738.jpg (http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/RickJ/?action=view¤t=DSCN2738.flv)
What does this gain you besides ease of casting a shorter line (though even more stripping)? It allows using even lighter rods to target you species. The thing that more easily allows one to turn over heavy sink tips such as T-14 and now T-17 as well as heavy flies is not overall grain weight of the line but grain weight per foot.
Looking at the original skagit lines, two typical good winter lines would be the 550 for typical casting (probably requiring a standard two handed 7 wt rod) and maybe the 650 for even heavier stuff (maybe an 8 wt or even a 9 wt two hander).
Compare these lines with the short skagits. The 550 is around 20 grains/ft and the 650 is around 24 grains/ft.
The short skagit 425 is around 21 grains/ft and the 475 short is around 24 grains/ft. You can pretty easily cast the 425 on a 5 wt and the 475 on a 6 wt allowing you to pretty much cast the same tips and flies on a rod that is 2 weights less than what you could accomplish with a standard skgit setup.
PS - this weekend I was fishing with Bruce and he set up his 6126 with the 475 short and it rocked!!
As an aside, I spent alot of time playing with the on-shoulder cack handed double spey that Mike showed a couple of weeks ago (for river left) as well as an on shoulder standard double spey for river right and this hands down is the easiest spey cast I have ever found requiring almost no effort. For those who have not seen the video clip I took of Mike, I am posting here again You owe it to yourself to try this cast - it is really amazing how little effort is needed!!
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/RickJ/th_DSCN2738.jpg (http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/RickJ/?action=view¤t=DSCN2738.flv)