Brain dump on trout spey please

[John Sv]

I live a couple hours from steelhead/1/2 lbers/shad but am grooving on spey casting. I live in walking distance or a quick drive from some trout spey opportunities... Big, windy reservior inlets. Need some trout spey guidance please:
do I need one of those 2/3 speys or can I use a 5 and still feel a 12" trout? Do the ultra light speys do wind? If I do want to swing a size 12 soft hackle is a 4 or 5 wt so big that I would lose contact and feel of the fly?

I e never cast a switch rod. Do they work for underhand casts?

Please gimme the brain dump on your trout spey experience. Would be using it for swinging size 6 and smaller flies.

Thanks!!!

[Nate Bailey]

Yes!:) Have you ever thought about using your singlehanders? They spey cast well with the right line. You can underhand cast switch rods! I do it all the time. I must admit though, I do like a longer rod for spey cast. Here is one of my blog post explaining some of the way I spey fish for trout. http://www.southernoregonflyfishing.blogspot.com/2015/08/time-to-swing-southern-oregon-riversno.html there are several post on my blog explaining some of the trout spey stuff I have discovered. I hope it helps.

[Mark Kranhold]

ACR 1173 should flip the bill for your waters John! Check out Gary Andersons rods , give him a call and pick his brain. He has the trout speys dialed! You may want to also look at his 1255, 1205 , 1174. I fish his 1172 for trout and half pounders with a SGS skandit line and it will toss sculpin patterns no problem, what a gas!!!

[John Sv]

Thanks Nate,
Are you using a 6 126 or sumpn smaller? I mean if I use a 6 to cast size 8 steelie wets, would I use a 6 to cast a size 8 wooly bugger for trout?

[Nate Bailey]

John, on the Williamson I use the 6126 in some cases. In that particular instance I was swinging a size 8. I also have a 4wt spey that I fish over there as well, and with some of the big Williamson fish I feel under gunned!

[golfish]

Go micro! 4/5/6 9' custom, OPST skagit head, 13.5ft@225gr. Poly's or short pieces of T8, 2 hand casts, single hand speys, overhead, what a hoot on the fatties.

11750

[Rick J]

check out this video with Mike McCune - the short heads - either RIO or OPST are great as they allow stripping all the way back

http://www.headhuntersflyshop.com/mccune-on-retrieving-the-fly/

[PatrickM]

A 12 inch fish doesn't put much of a bend in a five weight. I'd recommend a four weight. Put a short skagit line on there and you could throw streamers on a sink tip or swing soft hackles on a poly leader or long mono leader.
Wish I had a switch rod back when I fished the Truckee.
Best of luck.