Now I'm curious. Are you at liberty to tell us who makes either rods or reels? Based on prices I've seen, I would bet Piscafun is one of the reel makers. Not that I need any more rods/reels; well maybe just 1 or 2.
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Now I'm curious. Are you at liberty to tell us who makes either rods or reels? Based on prices I've seen, I would bet Piscafun is one of the reel makers. Not that I need any more rods/reels; well maybe just 1 or 2.
Sage rods also have a much higher resale value.
I am also a big lover of the NRX by Loomis, however it seems the resale isn't quite as good, however the NRX is an awesome rod also.
I just received two Sage salt HD in 12 wt, and I also got a new 9 wt for the roosters down in Mexico I will be enjoying for at least a month in Mexico. Yeap I 'll be sending reports on the rods and the fishing.
Carl
This is always an interesting topic. I totally agree with the posters who said there are a lot of great rods out there, you just need to find the one that works best for your casting stroke. I admit to preferring Sage rods but that's because they fit my casting style (or maybe my casting style adapted to fit Sage rods). I also accumulated Sage rods starting when I couldn't afford a manufactured rod so I built my own. Patrick's Fly Shop had the exclusive deal to sell Sage second blanks. They were "seconds" because of aesthetic blemishes, etc. nothing dimensionally or physically wrong with the rods. I got them for $60 back when a new Sage was selling for around $300. They have no logo or line weight designation printed on them.
I have to say though that recently I built a couple 5 wt blanks from a little shop in Florida called Ye Olde English Flye Shoppe. They specialize in bamboo but carry some graphite blanks as well. Brian, really nice guy runs it. The blanks I bought cost $49. Brian also sells the right components to match the rod. I turn my own reel seat inserts. I never added it up but I'm pretty sure the finished rod cost me right around $100. This little 5 wt casts as sweet as a $600 Sage for me. I don't know who makes these blanks.
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I would have to agree with Cap'n Hatch. I've been on his boat and he has an impressive, well-balanced quiver of fantastic rods- all of which are SAGE. I'd have to admit that upon casting his set-ups, I've gone out and supported our local fly stores with new rods, reels and lines myself.
Whoa! Rod blanks from Patrick's goes way way back in time. That was a nice opportunity as I built quite a few fly rods using the LL blem blanks...... 389, 490, 486 and the 586. I found that the 86s were best in the blems for some reason. Maybe just what was sent to me as I never was able to visit the store personally and select the blanks.Quote:
Originally Posted by DLJeff
Yeah, the Pony Express riders only brought it to the main mail stations and we had to make a 2 day trip in the buckboard wagon to pick it up. Seriously though, I certainly appreciated that program and was sad to see it discontinued. Not a lot of people outside of the local area knew about it so it was kind of cool to be one of the "insiders". I think I still have an old Patrick's catalog somewhere.Quote:
Whoa! Rod blanks from Patrick's goes way way back in time.
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Interesting topic.
My comment applies to heavy sinking lines and weighted flies for striper fishing.
I'll probably catch some flak for this but....
Awhile back I was walking around the local Walmart and noticed a $30 8' 8/9wt fly rod on the shelf. I bought it on impulse because what the heck. So I did some casting at the park. Brought a 9' 8wt Sage One, 9' 8wt Sage Xi2 (yes, I'm a Sage junkie) and the $30 Walmart rod. Casted all three rods with the same reel loaded with 30-ft of T11 and .030" running line with a heavily dressed rattle clouser on the end.
The sage rods casted nice as expected. And to my surprise, the $30 Walmart rod chucked the same line and fly the same distance. The feel was a bit different because of the shorter length and softer action but a minor adjustment to the stroke and double-haul, it was golden. Talk about an eye opener. So I took the $30 rod to the delta and it cast fine, even caught some fish. And this rod costs less than half the price to send a Sage rod for repair. lol
I now have a few sub-$100 rods that earn a spot on the boat. Lots of casting practice and the double-haul are great equalizers.
I am right with you here Mar.....
I sold fly rods for over 50 years and today it is hard to find a really bad rod.
I have bought/found $100 fly rods that cast really well.
There are hundreds of good rods now under $300 today.
The exciting thing for me is that we can get people started without having them spend $500 to a $1,000 for an outfit.
Even today I get people started where ever I am....Davis, Florida, or even South Dakota.
Sometimes I take them to a Walmart and get them connected with a 3M/Scientific Angler kit for $100?
But if you can afford it, buy a top of the line rod, reel and line to go to Montana or Christmas Island next year?
Buy an imported rod for a back up for a big trip?
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Go to Kiene's and meet up with Andy if you want really professional help picking a balanced outfit.
Andy has fished all over the world for most everything that swims.
Christmas Island, the Amazon, Alaska, Belize, Baja, BC, Labrador.......
He is an expert with Stripers, Top water large mouth black bass, two handed/Spey for Steelhead.
He spent many year on the Lower Yuba river and know all the hatches/flies.
He is also a raft of knowledge about boats and helps many pick the right one.
Good topic. Yes, i wish i had a quiver of high end rods. Ive casted a few and did notice the performance. But all my rods are in the $250-350 range (Echo and Reddington) and i have zero complaints. They get the job done and I never really think about the performance of my rod while fishing. I definitely notice a big difference in cheaper rods. The first Echo Carbon's were definitely not fun to cast. But you pay a little more for an Echo3 and there's a huge difference. I love those rods. But in conclusion, using a musical metaphor, if you're a good guitar player, you can sound good on a Mickey Mouse guitar👍
I think having reliable reels is more important. Im a Galvan guy forever.