Casting A 12 wt. ? ? ?

[Tony Buzolich]

Is there such a thing as a "good casting" 12 weight rod ? I've had several 12's and I'm now just down to my Abel and it casts like a club. I know most of the Florida tarpon guys like ( or use ) a single handle ( no fore-grip) rod. All of my 12's have been more inclined to be for lifting rather than casting.

Now, I'm starting to get ready for Christmas Island and would like to find a nice castable heavy rod that can handle those larger GT's on the flats.

Anybody have a big rod that they love to throw?
Tony

[mems]

Aloha Tony, I love the TFO light duty for big GT's. It casts well, and puts a hurt on big fish. It does a 7 curve not parabolic like most rods. You should give it a test cast and see how you like it. Don.

Here I am with Moana and a 25lb gt. I think this is the medium 14/16 rod and it broke this guys will in 10 minutes.
This is an 80lber I got with the light duty, it too 45 minutes and a boat ride to get him back on the flats, but the rod was never an issue. Baot aperation was a problem, the fish swam under the punt, boat, a couple of times. They get tired after about 45 minutes. You can't stop them on the first run. I like the forgrip for putting max pressure on the fish. There are lots of good rods out there. I know these work, Don

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Get a WF12F Rio Tropical Outbound Short line on it.......they are 2 sizes over.

I use my entire body with only one back cast on those big rods.

Try to have the wind in your favor too.

.

[Carl Blackledge]

Tony,


In Mexico I cast big air resistant Crease flies all day long with my Sage xi3 12 wt rods, I have 3 of them in my boat. If you install A Rio OBS tropical floater on these rods they cast like an 9 or 10 wt rod, and kick ass like a normal 12 wt. I couldn't imagine any other combination casting as effective, or anything I would want improved with this set up.

I love Abel products, however their rods left a lot to be desired.

If you lived around here, I would let you cast mine. A friend told me that the new Sage Salt was just as good, I haven't cast the Salt yet.

Carl Blackledge

[Tony Buzolich]

Great help guys. All good information.

I just picked up a RIO WF12F Tarpon Quick Shooter from Kiene's and it looks to be the same or similar to the OBS. I tried it on my Abel SP1290-3 and can't get it to load well. I can get an easy 60'-70' but it doesn't feel good and I have yet to put a big fly or popper on for practice.

My older SAGE RPLX cast like a dream with it but almost seems over-loaded. Humph! Guess it's time to go try out a few more demo rods.
Tony

[Baja Fly Fisher]

I'm taking my TFO LT and HD. I'm also going to the gym and getting some arm and shoulder strength to cast the big rods.
I'm ready to go, all new lines, new backing, lots and lots of flies and thinking about those BIG fish.

[Darian]

I have a Cam Sigler 12 weight rod used at La Ventana for about 5 years. It's a 3 piece rod and casts very well. The problem I've found with all of the heavier rods I've used is the combo of the rod/reel. Because of the weight, it's tiring to cast one all day.

[Tony]

The Sage Salt casts well for a 12 weight. Also good lifting power although I have used for only for Tarpon & not for GT's.

[Tony Buzolich]

I haven't tried the SALT yet. I was kind of hoping for a slightly softer tip rod that still has plenty of back-bone for lifting. Is there such a thing when you get into big rods?
Tony

[Ted S]

I haven't tried the SALT yet. I was kind of hoping for a slightly softer tip rod that still has plenty of back-bone for lifting. Is there such a thing when you get into big rods?
Tony

I have a Sage SALT 12 weight that I built and a factory TFO BVK 12 weight. The TFO rod feels much lighter in hand and has a softer tip. It is much easier for me to cast than the SALT. The butt of the TFO is pretty stout, so I would expect it to have reasonable backbone. The only thing I don't like about the BVK is the grip and fighting butt, which are the size I would expect to find on a 7 weight. Give the BVK a try, you might really like it.
Ted