Short Warmwater Rods
- This topic has 9 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated Dec 26, 2008 at 4:02 am by
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Is anyone throwing the new short rods that Sage, Redington, Loomis, TFO or Ross have put out?
I think it is definitely a niche, but a cool one at that and I’m interested to hear if anyone has played with them in the intended arenas (heavy cover, accurate casting, big flies).
Are you referring to the new Sage Bass fly rods? http://www.sageflyfish.com/dyn_prodlist.php?k=83540
I’ve only ever seen one – did some custom work for a guy who is using it in estuaries and bushed-in saltwater applications.
The Sage (cannot comment on the others) is a powerhouse, and I reckon Sage have covered the market well with this addition.
It’s a awesome casting tool, and can turn over a huge/heavy fly with minimal effort. Depending on application, this is a great rod!
Edit: I’ll contact the guy I built it for, and get some fishing-feedback to you asap.
Mike I’ve used them a bit over the last year, mostly on barramundi. I like using them very much specifically with the lines they come with, they do everything they were designed to do. I note a lot of guys getting excited at throwing long lines with them but these are not what they were really designed for – the line that comes with them is only 85 feet long, they’re made for shorter casts with big flies where accuracy is at a premium. I don’t think the tight scrub situation is all that warranted, tight scrub is tight scrub after all and in my opinion loop control with any rod is more critical than the actual rod – I also know the kayak guys love them for the close in fish handling.
I have the LMB and it works very well for tossing big stuff. I think combo works because of the line. I am going to try the line on #8 Xi2 and see how that works out. Mike Anderson told me that he has used the sage preformance “Bass” taper on a #7 Xi2 and it works like a champ. I like the rod/line combo enough to put the SMB and the Bluegill on my wish list. I can make good on the money cast (70′ plus) with some pretty big hair bugs and the more usable 30′-50′ cast are easy. Maybe it’s the line or maybe it’s the combo but, for $350.00 you get a good rod, line and case. Hey, because it’s a “BASS” rod we can now fish fly rod spinner baits with out feeling guilty…..right? 😮
But you know the river I fish, and there is seldom “tight quarters” there.
That’s why I mentioned “application” in my first post. One really does have to keep in mind that these rods were designed for the following … “we strongly recommend them for probing the mangroves or throwing huge flies for pike and muskies” (From Sage Site).
As with the #0 – #000 rods from Sage, they have specific areas in which they excel (short casts, smaller fish), but they still manage quite fine outside of those parameters as well.
Anyway, it’s Christmas, so here’s hoping everyone got something they like (read, something fishy) in their stockings
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