james buice
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Hey, the pants should be out any week now. They’re pretty bomber. I’m a fan of the straps, really keeps them from sliding down on you and lets the waist not be so tight it cuts off the blood flow to your feet.
Burned down is a bit much, it did sustain some damage from a fire, mostly to the main office building. They’re putting ‘er back up and should be up and running 100% when the construction is complete. Not a nicer place to hang out in the Keys, just keep the drinks comin’.
Speypages.com is a good resource as well.
Those Dec Hogan Echo rods are pretty nice, I was fishing a 4wt the other day swinging soft hackles for kicks. Pretty cool.
That was a good deal on the A2, those are nice sticks if you can still find one hanging around. I’ve only played a bit with the A3, but they seem ligher in hand and more responsive.
I’ve been using the Cloudveil wading pants since last Sept. Love them for most of my fishing unless I’m in high water or fishing a deeper tailwater. The suspenders really come in handy on the Cloudveils, as the wades don’t slide down when
Both Simms and Cloudveil have the new Vibram sole. Basically, it’s a harder, stickier rubber than the Aquastealth. I’ve been wearing a pair of Cloudveil 8x boots in the new Vibram for several months. I’ve fished a good bit in both tailwaters and mountain freestones with the boots. My take is they are very nice for hike ins on mountain streams and hold very well on all types of rocks and slime in the freestones. For the tailraces, that slick algae is still a problem (the same stuff that you slip around wearing felt, too). It holds, but you’re still going to need to use caution when wading around. For the most part, I think they hold about as well as felt. Another cool thing is I’ve been using them for duck hunting this winter and they’re awesome dual purpose boots, whether I’m setting decoys in mud or slick rocky bottom.
J
Well, Scott came out with the 7’7″ 9wt called the Backcountry Special. Then expanded on the short rod deal with the WW series. The plus side of not having a rod that needs a special line is that you can use a tropical or cold water taper on the rod depending on where/what time of year you are fishing. Also, the Sage line is a basically a floating shooting head taper that will help load the shorter, stiffer rods. Not taking anything away from the Sage. Several folks have them and like what they do.
For big big bass poppers, the Scott WW 10wt is closest to the Sage Largemouth (10/11 wt by grain weight standards). The biggest thing most folks tell me between the two is the Scott will load in closer. The Scott feels a lot softer than the Sage in hand, but trust me, there is a ton of backbone in that rod. I’m fishing the 8wt and like it. Great river smallmouth and largemouth pond rod. Tosses the big hair bugs easily and I can really throw some super trick casts in the way back for those “catch the fish or lose the fly” gambles.
The A3 8 1/2′ 8wt is a cool rod. I’ve been fishing my sample a lot. It is great for picking up big bugs and putting them back on the water with no false casting. Here’s the deal, ideal casting distance for this rod is 40-50′. It’s not meant for booming out super long casts or for throwing shooting heads. It’s meant for feathering casts under overhangs, banging banks, and loading super close for pockets and stumps.
That Clouser Rod from St Croix is a cool stick, too.
James
Your friendly Scott Rep in the South
Hi Guys and Gals,
Just wanted to chime in here to give Scott a voice. I’m the southeastern sales rep for Scott and may be able to shed a bit of insight as to what has been going on. Let’s start out with the question at hand: What’s going on at Scott Rods?Much of the poor press on Scott stems from the above stated issues in production which bottlenecked rod repair and new rod production, slowing the company down. Our current repair time has improved and we have greatly increased the workforce at the facotry with more hirings coming in very soon. Basically, we grew too fast and got too big for our britches without funds to buy new pants. Problem has been solved as Mr Ford is passionate about this company and has been nothing but supportative. We have a new Chariman (the ex head of Ford Motor Europe) and Jimmy is still our rod designer. New faces are in customer service such as Michelle and Ian so I’m shocked anyone has issues in getting through (what number are you calling?) For the website, it’s under construction and may from time to time have down links and what-not. I’m not a computer guy, I dunno.
For Michael, for the A3 being a revamped A2 with a new paint job. Nothing could be further from the truth and I would suggest doing more research before posting. The A3 is a TOTALLy different rod. Different action, the swing weight has been pulled back to make it feel lighter in hand, the physical weight is less…and so on. Trust me, I’ve put thousands of miles on my truck showing these rods to shops and they have won out as far as favorites in that price range among some shops, not others. That’s just the way it is. Nobody builds a rod for everyone, so opinions are totally subjective. Sage did come out with some new rods, but that was their schedule. Our new rod lines will not launch till next year and after checking out the prototypes, they are sweet! You see, rod companies do not introduce new models each year, usually a four to five year rotation (sometimes less, sometimes more). We’re not all on the same schedule, but trust me, Scott Rods always has something cool cooking. But I digress…
Point is, guys, I’m the sales rep and my job is to promote Scott rods, but the fact of the matter is I’ve been in the industry for nearly fifteen years, either as a guide, a fly shop employee, buyer, writer, sales rep; I’ve worn many hats. I’ve seen companies come and go, the industry ebb and flow. Scott may have hit a rough patch but they’re still making some of the best fly rods in the world, standing behind the product, and are by far the coolest rods to own 😉 We’re not going anywhere, surely not out of biz, and there is nothing to worry about. I can’t speak for the rest of the country, but my territory has grown very recently and reception of Scott has been warm and fuzzy for the most part.
If you guys have any questions, feel free to shoot me a line at strangetrout at gmail.com I’m not on the BB very much, usually fishing, repping, or stalking Zach.
Take care and tight lines,
JamesI’ll second Dustin on the S5 9′ or 8 1/2′ 5wt. Very smooth, truly progressive action and the lay up uses several different graphite blends to give you high line speed, but a tip that still has ‘feel’ in close and protects lighter tippets.
Dustin, been to the Toccoa lately?
J
I like to run a bimini from backing to shooting head then a large surgeons knot on the front of the running line (with a smooth knot covered in knot sense to help it slip into the tip top) if the line does not already have a loop on it. Now, this is with stuff like RIO Slickshooter. For the Airflo Miracle Braid, you can strip out the core and make your own loop on both ends (head to running and running to backing). That makes a seamless transition.
What kind of shooting line are you using?
James
OK, here’s the deal on the WJ thing. You can pour water over the magnetic closure and it won’t go in if it is sealed all the way around. If you put it under water, it leaks. In a rainstorm, the clasp won’t leak but the standard packs will.
For a camera, the Hydro backback or chest pack will work great. For the flip down stripping basket, the pack will only leak where the double zippers come together…so yes, it will get some water in there if you stick it under water. I would not put a camera in that pack, but totally would the chest or backpack. They should be out by Jan 1 (the hydro waterproof series). Most of my dealers were very excited about them.
Cloudveil has a new wading pant coming out for $250 in the Hellroaring Creek series. Pretty cool and 4 layers below the knee, so they’re gonna be tough. I’ve been wearing a “sample” pair for awhile now and they’re pretty dang bombproof.
You’ll like the new mag series from William Joseph….very cool stuff. No zippers and nothing to really snag flyline. They may also have some waterproof gear coming down the pipe 😉
Scott has some really, really cool stuff coming out for the fall as well. We’ll just have to wait and see what those boys have cooked up…news should be out in a day or two.
James
I like the Scott Warm Water series of rods, in particular the 10wt. Basically the heavier weights help toss those big bugs with ease. I fished an 8wt for a long time; still do to some extent. However, I’m learning that the hevier weight, shorter rods are actually easier to cast so long as they are not an ultra fast rod. The Sage Largemouth is a 10/11 wt and if you cast the Sage line it comes with, does well at delivering the big bugs, too. I’m not a fan of the Smallmouth model, mostly because I feel it is too light for what I’m doing.
For the Scott, I like the RIO Clouser line, but the Tropical version. On the deck of a boat the line will heat up (esp here in the south) to near tropical temps during the summer; the mono-core lines just don’t kink up.
David,
The 1wt Fibertouch is sweet. I have one in my sample bag and have been fishing it (even though I’m not so sure my samples are made for that). But hey, if they’re gonna send me rods, then I can’t just sit here and look at ’em.I typically fish the 7’3wt F on small streams; as you know, it takes some getting used to on the hookset.
Cheers,
James
Your friendly Scott Fly Rod rep
