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I use metal tubes a lot for trout and salmon.  Metal tubes will help you out if you want to avoid the probleme of have a bag form in your line when your tips are sinking but your plastic tube is floating higher in the water column.  When this happens you have to pull all the slack out of the “bag” before your hook set hits the fish.

For the most part, aluminum tubes should serve the purpose most of the time, and they are not that difficult to cast.  If you really need to get deep, you can go to the copper tubes but they are much harder to cast.  Tube flies are a lot of fun, enjoy the journey

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I hear that the SLT replacement will be called the ZXL and that the tapers will have the best of both the SLT and the old LL combined with the Generation 5 technology

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There is no such thing as the ideal line, it’s kind of subjective.

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Hey Paul,

I fish Atlantics all the time, so hopefully I can help a bit.  When will you be going to the Gaspe, and which rivers?

The water in the Gaspe is crystal clear, you can see a dime 15 feet down and tell if it’s head or tails.  So to start with you’ll want flies in blacks, and for colours purples and greens are good choices, with orange and reds as change ups.  The guides will most likely be very picky about the flies you bring, but be persistant if you want to fish you own.  But don’t forget to try their suggestions because it sometimes means the difference between landing some and going fishless.

Dry flies are quite popular, and it’s pretty exciting to see salmon (especially 30-40 pounders) coming to take a dry fly of the top.

For Drys you’ll be looking at:
-Deer hair bombers: natural brown, green, white and orange deer hair #2, 4, and
-large Royal and White Wulfs #4, 6, and 8

Regular wets: #4, 6, 8, and 10
-Black Bear green butt
-Undertaker
-Blue charm
-Cosseboom
-Rusty Rat
-Silver Rat
-Butterfly
-Thunder and Lightning
-Silver Gray

Spey Flies: Sizes 1/0 to 1’s and 2’s
-The Gold Reeach
-The Silver Reeach
-Black Heron
-Lady Caroline
-Purple King
-Black Riach
-Orange Heron
-Black Heron
-Deep Purple Spey

There is a lot of overlap now in spey and Dee flies between Steelhead and Atlantic salmon flies.  Flies designed for one will catch the other.  The only thing to keep in mind about Atlantic salmon flies is that unlike steelhead flies they can not be weighted.  So no lead eyes, chain eyes, beads, cones, lead wire, lead tape, etc… on the shank.  Some of the Gaspe rivers do allow aluminum and copper tube, but most don’t, so you’ll want to check with the river you’ll fish if you plan to use tube flies

If you want a pattern for any particular pattern I listed or others you’re thinkin of just let me know and I’ll post it.  

I don’t know if you’ve ever fished for Atlantics before but they are a blast and addictive in the biggest way.  Kinda like steelhead, bone fish, or stripers.  Some of the Gaspe rivers produce absolute monsters (20, 30, and 40 pounders) quite regularily with the average size multi-sea winter fish being 10-18 pounds.  Grilse (one sea winter fish) range from about 3 to 7 pounds.  My biggest to date is a 41″ female (30-33lbs).  The salmon in my Avatar was probably around 16 pounds.

Good luck, and let me know if I can be more specific on flies, patterns etc…

Danny

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Welcome flybug, hope you enjoy the site.

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Can you ever have too many.  I agree with Carter as well about the spacing of sizes.   Here’s my list:

Main Rods:

Sage TXL 7′ 4wt – small stream/light trout
Sage SLT 9′ 6 wt – all round trout rod also used for light salmon
Sage TCR 9′ 8 wt – main single hand Atlantic salmon rod/ light striper rod
Beulah 10′ 6″ 8/9 Switch – my new favourite two handed Atlantic salmon rod
Beulah 12′ 7″  Custom 7/8 two hander – currently on the way, it will replace my St. Croix
St. Croix 9′ 10wt. Legend ultra – Striper and heavy salmon rod

Rods from my past that I still have but don’t use:

St. Croix 8’6″ Legend Ultra 4wt.
St. Croix 9’6″ Legend 8wt.
St. Croix 9’6″ Legend Ultra 8wt.
Fenwick HMG 8′ 6wt. – The first fly rod that was really mine
Fenwick HMG 8’6″ 6wt
St.Croix Imperial 13′ 7/8 two hander

I also have a Beulah 9′ 7wt. and a Beulah 7’6″ 3wt that I just finished field testing.  These are great rods but I normally wouldn’t buy these weights as I usually go 4, 6, 8, etc…  I agree that there is something odd about owning 3, 5, 7, and 9wt rods.

I just realized that I may have an addiction, I better not think about my reels!!

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Mine are on their way.

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Yeah boys, I’m down.

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Hey Carter,

I can’t comment on the

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Oh yeah…the 40 year old virgin…hilarious.

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Hey Steve,

Sorry to hear about your shoulder man…hope the doctor gave you something a little better for the pain.

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Thanks for resizing the pic Zach

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bd,

For a 5wt set up for trout and the occasional carp and smallie like you want, the SVII will do just fine.

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Carter,

I don’t know why its not on the site 😮 :-[.

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The SVII is a good reel for the price range, it’ll get the job done if that’s what you want to spend.

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Hey bd

The GL3 is slower than the GLX.

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When we’re talking 6wt’s and the fish that you’d fish on them be it fresh or salt there isn’t a disc drag reel on the market from the major manufactures that will ever fail you and not get the job done (that’s cheap reels aside) its really all a matter of preference of the buyer…price, looks etc…

I’ve been on the same thought lines as Zach as far as my most recent reel accusitions, 4″ Hardy Boule, Hardy St. John, Farlows of London…these are the kind of reels that I started out on but as I got a little older (not that I’m old at 32) I wanted the newer flashier ones  but now I find my self drawn back to these kinds of reels for a lot of my own fishing.

I do like the Ross reels a lot though.  My biggest complaints about them are the looks of their most recent designs…which has nothing at all to do with their performance.  Like Zach said they’ll take a beating and then some.   I will say that I do think that as far as disc drags go that the Canyon BG is arguably the best I’ve seen in my 27 years of flyfishing and 15 years running a shop.  The only one I’ve seen recently that comes close is the new power matrix by Loop.

I almost think that there are too many reels, rods, etc… on the market right now.

Zach there are some SM2’s on ebay now if I recall. 😉

Rip

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For trout…hands down the gold ribbed hairs ear

For Atlantic salmon…the foxford shrimp

For Stripers…a blue and white lefty’s deceiver

If I were restricted to one fly for each species it would be these

Rip

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Awesome rod Zac,

That’ll be my next purchase…although I think I’ll have to wait a bit.

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Hey Jack,

You may want to contact the following for info:

Brian Niska and the gang at Whistler flyfishing
http://www.whistlerflyfishing.com/

They’re really a great source for all info on BC flyfishing.

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