Bill Kiene semi-retired
05-01-2011, 03:27 PM
This is a highly volatile situation now with changes coming almost monthly.
First, for single hand casting with a floating line we use several different lines now.
Most weight forward Steelhead floaters in 2 to 3 lines sizes heavier than the Switch rod is rated for work well.
Orvis and Rio have a dedicated "Switch Rod line" which is basically a special weight forward full floater. These work best for single hand casting too.
Airflo has a line called the "Speydicator" which is popular in several geographical areas for good reasons. We ship more of these to the anglers who are fishing the Great Lakes tributaries for Steelhead.
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For two-handed Spey casting methods most are using short Scandi and short Skagit heads:
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Beulah "Elixir Switch", Rio "Steelhead Scandi" and Airflo "Scandi Compacts" are popular for throwing small to medium size flies for trout and summer/fall Steelhead.
Most use Rio "Versi-leaders" or Airflo "Poly-leaders" on the Scandi lines.
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Rio "Skagit Short", Airflo "Skagit Switch" and the Beulah "Tonic Switch" are all very popular short Skagit heads used on Switch rods for throwing heavy tungsten or lead-core sink-tips and big flies associated with winter Steelheading.
**We recommend the Rio MOW tips for use on all Skagit lines.
__________________________________________________ ______________________________________________
If you go to "Kiene's Spey Shop" online store you can look up almost any Switch rod to see the line recommendations from our Spey experts.
http://speyshop.kiene.com/switchrods.aspx
.
First, for single hand casting with a floating line we use several different lines now.
Most weight forward Steelhead floaters in 2 to 3 lines sizes heavier than the Switch rod is rated for work well.
Orvis and Rio have a dedicated "Switch Rod line" which is basically a special weight forward full floater. These work best for single hand casting too.
Airflo has a line called the "Speydicator" which is popular in several geographical areas for good reasons. We ship more of these to the anglers who are fishing the Great Lakes tributaries for Steelhead.
__________________________________________________ ___________________________________________
For two-handed Spey casting methods most are using short Scandi and short Skagit heads:
__________________________________________________ ___________________________________________
Beulah "Elixir Switch", Rio "Steelhead Scandi" and Airflo "Scandi Compacts" are popular for throwing small to medium size flies for trout and summer/fall Steelhead.
Most use Rio "Versi-leaders" or Airflo "Poly-leaders" on the Scandi lines.
__________________________________________________ _____________________________________________
Rio "Skagit Short", Airflo "Skagit Switch" and the Beulah "Tonic Switch" are all very popular short Skagit heads used on Switch rods for throwing heavy tungsten or lead-core sink-tips and big flies associated with winter Steelheading.
**We recommend the Rio MOW tips for use on all Skagit lines.
__________________________________________________ ______________________________________________
If you go to "Kiene's Spey Shop" online store you can look up almost any Switch rod to see the line recommendations from our Spey experts.
http://speyshop.kiene.com/switchrods.aspx
.