Sage ESN: 3106-4 vs 4100-4??

[VinnySteel]

Been fishing the cortland comp 10ft 4wt for ESN, and was thinking about uprgrading to a sage. I like the idea of the extra length on the 10’6” 3wt but I’m curious if the 3wt has enough backbone for some of the bruisers on the Truckee. Anybody have any experience with this rod? Or is the 4wt the way to go?

[drdan]

Been fishing the cortland comp 10ft 4wt for ESN, and was thinking about uprgrading to a sage. I like the idea of the extra length on the 10’6” 3wt but I’m curious if the 3wt has enough backbone for some of the bruisers on the Truckee. Anybody have any experience with this rod? Or is the 4wt the way to go?

I recall a similar discussion with a comp angler... His rule of thumb is that for every 1' above 9', he felt the rod had the backbone of a rod 1 more wt higher. So a 10' for 4wt would handle fish as a 5wt could. Ultimately, with the longer lever arm and soft tip of the ESN's you really can put the cork to them. I have an 1103 ESN and love it for its extra length. On more open rivers like the Truckee, I would consider the 11'. I'm not sure how significant a a difference would be between a 1004 ESN and the 1004 Cortland...

Regards,

Dan

[VinnySteel]

Thanks for the input, for some reason sage stopped making 11 footers on the newer second generation ESN’s they’re pushing now. They only offer a 10’6” 3wt or a 10’ 4wt. I can’t see myself spending that much cash on another 10 footer as my Cortland gets the job done just fine. The extra length of the 3wt is enticing but I dunno if an extra 6” of reach is worth the price. Maybe I should look around for a first generation 11 footer.

[bigfly]

Vinny, I had a moment on the T other day on my 3wt 11ft ESN that felt as if I should have brought a little more stick.......at 3-400cfs.
The fish was near 20".......and they come much bigger....so.....
For the T, probably the 4wt would make more year-round sense.
I fish a dry with the ESN a lot....drifts so sweet........

Jim

[VinnySteel]

Jim, that’s what I was afraid of with going the 3wt route. Can’t say I have a ton of experience with 20+” trout on the T but I’ve had enough experience to know you really gotta be able to put the stick to those bruisers at times. If they get you in the current in those big T flows your screwed!!. I’m thinking I’ll just stick to my 10ft 4 wt for now and wait for sage to come out with an 11 footer in a 4wt. Thanks for the input.

[PV_Premier]

Jim, that’s what I was afraid of with going the 3wt route. Can’t say I have a ton of experience with 20+” trout on the T but I’ve had enough experience to know you really gotta be able to put the stick to those bruisers at times. If they get you in the current in those big T flows your screwed!!. I’m thinking I’ll just stick to my 10ft 4 wt for now and wait for sage to come out with an 11 footer in a 4wt. Thanks for the input.

I've got an Echo Shadow II 10'6" 4wt that is pretty great. Lots of backbone but a fairly soft tip. Have yet to meet a fish that I havent been able to handle on it...but it's fairly new to my quiver and has not been dramatically tested yet...

I also have the competition kit that allows you to extend the rod another foot...haven't done that yet, but the balance kit that also comes with it has been most useful...those 10'+ rods get a little tip heavy...

[PV_Premier]

there's a guy selling an ESN 3wt 11' on Washington Fly Fishing classifieds for $365, FYI. he says "used once".

title of the thread is "Closet Cleanout"