Airflo Delta long spey vs SA XLT

[Jasonh]

For a longer belly floater which line do you guys think might be better? Just curious, i have heard good things about both.

Jason Hartwick

[Moose]

Jason, the Delta long will have a belly length somewhere in the mid 60 foot mark (63 to 67 feet, roughly) whereas the XLT will have a belly length from 85 to 115 feet, depending on rod/line weight. What this means in a nutshell is that you will have to make your cast with a much longer stroke (carrying a lot more line outside the rod tip) and with much greater precision to succesfully throw the XLT line. If you are proficient at spey casting this transition is do-able with some practice, but if you are fairly new to the game and your desire is to learn and master the spey casts with a longer line than the short heads traditionally recommended for the beginner, the mid belly like the Delta long or Midspey will likely prove to be more succesful for you.

[Jasonh]

Thanks Moose. I was just curious because it sounds like a lot of the "good" spey casters prefer the XLT. I am not really thinking about either lines but was just curious for the future if i ever get a chance to practice and perfect my spey stroke! By the way, any luck on the half pounders?

Jason Hartwick

[Rick J]

I personally am not a big fan of the mid belly lines. I have them but rarely use them anymore.

While what Moose says is true if you are casting the entire head of the xlt, there is nothing that says you can't just cast 50 feet or 60 feet with the xlt.

I don't think the mid bellies can do anything that I can't do as well with the xlt - they cast quite well both short and long - do not shoot quite as well at say 68 feet as a mid belly will that is at the end of its head length at that length but they still shoot quite well at most lengths.

I think the short belly lines - WC's and skagit lines have a place - great for tight places with little back cast room and are easier to throw heavy heads and heavy flies though the xlt cut at the proper location can throw tips quite easily. So I stick to an arsenal of short and long belly lines and don't have much use for the mid bellies