What size is your two-handed fly rod?

[Ben J]

Beulah 4/5 10.6 Switch Classic - 270 Scandi Compact
Beulah 7 10.8 Platinum Switch - 425 Skagit Short/ 390 Scandi Compact
Echo 3 8 11.0 Switch - 510 Skagit Switch

Sage VXP 5 12.0 - 360 Scandi Compact / 425 Skagit Short
Redington CPX 6 12.6 - Nexcast Fall Favorite 5/6 , 420 Scandi Compact
Sage One 6 12.6 - Scandi Compact 390 / Skagit Short 425
Sage Z Axis 7 13.6 on the way... thinking Skagit Compact 540

Love the spey game and can't get enough rods... for better or worse!

[winxp_man]

I just got a Sage One 7126-4 and a Lamson Guru 4 reel. For line I'm starting with a Skagit Flight 500gr Vera kit. This is my first spey rod and cant wait to get everything together and on the river.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Well that's it in a nutshell, isn't it? Find a line that suits your water, and then pick a rod to lift it. And you're right. It's all good.

The real trick for me is finding that balance between a long enough line to adequately cover the water, but not so long that it's a hassle in close quarters. And despite the "myth" of the Clearwater, the majority of the runs actually have willows/big rocks/cut-banks & trees just waiting to reach out and foul your D-loop I guess I'd rather "choke up" on the line a bit when necessary than bugger around with a bunch of running line.

Since I personally dislike monkeying around with more than fifteen or twenty feet of running line, (thirty at the outside,) but also dislike rods over fifteen feet long... I've kind of settled on lines between 55 and 65 feet as an average, with (generally) fourteen to fifteen foot rods to throw them on.

I've been collectiong rods and tackle for thirty years, so I won't bore anyone with a full account. But I gotta mention three perennial favorites:

Meiser highlander classic 15' 7/8/9 with a Nextcast FF-70 8/9

(the war horse) St. Croix Imperial 9140 with a 74' Bill Drury "impact" spey 10/11

Echo Classic 8136 with an Airflo Delta 7/8

These three will do it all, and do it well. It's funny, but the humble Echo remains my all time favorite two-hander, despite the Meisers, Sages, CND's, T&T's...If Timmy had spruced up the hardware, and put some nice cork on 'em, I think folks would have taken them a lot more seriously. Sounds crazy, but I've learned that fly rods are like cars, and most people are startlingly superficial on both accounts.

Thanks for the interesting info.....we are starting with shorter lines and then hope to move to longer lines like you use on your bigger water. We think the Airflo Rage is a good starter line for new people around here but then they can get a longer rod with longer lines for the bigger wider rivers like your Clearwater.

One of our staff, Doug Duncan, just got back from a month on the Clearwater where he uses 15-16 foot rods with long heads so it is good to talk with him for some balance.

.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

I just got a Sage One 7126-4 and a Lamson Guru 4 reel. For line I'm starting with a Skagit Flight 500gr Vera kit. This is my first spey rod and cant wait to get everything together and on the river.

Very cool...that is a great combo...might have to get one myself.

[winxp_man]

Very cool...that is a great combo...might have to get one myself.

Bill,

Yes this combo is very very nice. I finally got to go out and cast it. All I have to say is WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Compared to regular single handed rods. even at this though I will not stop using my single handed rods. They have there place in the fly fishing trips

I actually got the hang of casting this Sage One 7wt within about 2 hours I did watch a few videos but even at that I still had to figure anchor points because its hard to see that very clear in the videos.

I was able to get 80ft casts pretty decent not 100% pretty but I will get better hopefully as time goes on and as I practice

[hwchubb]

Meiser 13' 7/8 Clearwater with SGS Skagit and SGS ISkandi heads for bigger water / fish (in theory, anyway) and throwing heavy tips / flies with a minimum of body piercings
Meiser 11' 4/5 Switch with SGS Skandi and mini Skagit heads for summer steel, skating caddis for shad and Lower Sac rainbow, and Rogue and D salmonflies (and bobbering) - or, for that matter, anywhere else that I can make an excuse for fishing this toy.

[Adam Grace]

I only have one spey rod. I feel so out of touch when compared to the majority of you guys and your impressive arsenals. I need to find a good job so that I can buy some more spey gear, lol. I have only owned 2 spey rods. My first was a Scott 13' 8wt SAS; a fast and powerful rod that I quickly left by the wayside once I bought my 12'8" 7wt Scott ARC. I love my 1287 ARC but I wouldn't mind a smaller rod for "finesse" spey fishing for light steelhead and bigger trout water like the Yuba. A 12' 5wt or something smaller sounds nice.

Rick, I would like to try your 2/3wt spey whenever we find time to fish together again. That size spey rod sounds very intriguing.

[Siskiyoublues]

Beulah 11'6 6/7 has been the bee's knees for me on the big K. I prefer this size to my 12'6" 7wt that just seems like a bit too much rod for most of our fishing.
Also have a Beulah 10'6 4/5 for some trout spey.