Langa Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 Hi all, I am an addicted topwater fisher, but untill now have never tried fly fishing. Now however I have just been given a fly rod and am keen to give it a go. The rod is an Orvis Streamline 4 piece, 9ft, on the rod it says 8wt. line, on the case label it says 908-4 tip flex and 4-5/8 oz. Is this a decent rod and could any one please advise a good reel, the best line type and any flys etc to use with this rod. I usually fish flats for Whiting etc and estuarys for EPs and the odd Bream so I envisage this will be the same sort of fishing I will be using the fly rod for. Any advise would be greatly appreciated. Cheers and thanks in advance. Langa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmy72 Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 Hi all, I am an addicted topwater fisher, but untill now have never tried fly fishing. Now however I have just been given a fly rod and am keen to give it a go. The rod is an Orvis Streamline 4 piece, 9ft, on the rod it says 8wt. line, on the case label it says 908-4 tip flex and 4-5/8 oz. Is this a decent rod and could any one please advise a good reel, the best line type and any flys etc to use with this rod. I usually fish flats for Whiting etc and estuarys for EPs and the odd Bream so I envisage this will be the same sort of fishing I will be using the fly rod for. Any advise would be greatly appreciated. Cheers and thanks in advance. Langa. hi langa , how much do you wanna spend ?---- decent reels from around just below 200 to 1000 for the hollywood stuff. ( then you might also consider a spare spool in the cost to keep your otherf ly lines on for a quick change .. floating to sinking etc) we all like nice gear but for bream whiting etc you dont need a top class real, but would suggest it has a large arbor and some sort of drag....... but sometime buying cheap mean buying twice... as i'd bet it wont be long before you start chasing pelagics on the fly -- that where the real fun is at... and you need a decent drag for that. as for line a floating weight forward line is a good start for the sort of fish you mention ......for fishing water depths to say 6ft , using a long leader and weighted flys you can gtet down a little further say 8ft ..... for whiting a floater will let you fish poppers.. i know you said you love topwater but incase you do fish snags etc fishing 6- 12 depth you will want a sink tip line or intermediate. - any deeper and you will want a full sink line. ( they come in different sink rates.. -- you need to work out what you need for your situation -- depending on speed of water movement and how long you are prepared to wait for the fly top get to the desired depth / zone etc) but to start a floater will likley do -- you can also get sinking leader made by a few companies .. think poly leader is name of one.. getting a fast sink one of those ( you attached mono / fluro tippet to them too) will make your floating line a lot like a sink tip ( might hinge a bit when casting but will save you a lot of cash when setting your self up ) hope that helps ! cheers!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abecedarian Posted February 2, 2012 Share Posted February 2, 2012 (edited) An 8 wt rod is on the heavier side for bream and whiting. Not saying it can't be used but it's like using a 6 kg rod to catch bream, a bit of overkill. My point here is that while you can catch bream with it, the real fun will start when you get into the pelagics, for which an 8wt is right on the money. This changes your approach to getting a reel in that you need to be sure of having a good disc drag system as they're likely to take some line. Less important for the smaller fish as they won't take so much from you compared to the pelagics. Lamson is a good brand, I have the Guru 3 (I think) on my 7wt and it's a beautiful reel. Light, large arbor and excellent drag. With 2 spare spools it cost me about the $200 mark, but that was after buying a sage rod too! A large arbor reel is good as they don't tend to coil your fly line as tightly so it's easier to get rid of the memory, but that's at the cost of line capacity as the spool depth is significantly less. They offset this by making them slightly wider, but they still don't have the capacity in my experience. There are countless other brands and a store in tassie that sell their own brand that aren't bad and don't cost a lot. I won't name them though as it's against site rules and not fair to sponsors. One cheap brand I've had good experience with is JM Gillies. I have a 5/6 wt large arbor version, a reel that was about $70 new with a drag smooth enough to fish 4lb tippet on good sized trout at Llyel no worries. Snowbee have a cassette style reel that I'd avoid if I were you, they're not that expensive but very heavy and don't handle the salt well, a few good months use and they're buggered. Basically it's a lot better to spend a bit more money and get a decent machined alloy reel with good disc drag, and definitely 1 or 2 spare spools for a variety of lines. As for lines, scientific angler is a very good brand, as are rio and cortland. A good line will set you back about $80-125 and ideally it's worth having a floating, intermediate and sinking line to begin with, all in a forward taper. Other lines are more specialized and you'll soon discover what line suits you best, but start with a weight forward floating, followed by intermediate when the funds are there, then sinking then the specialized ones. Fly lines usually have a life of about a couple of years but you can extend this by cleaning them regularly, using line conditioners and storing them in the freezer when not in use (it slows the degradation of the plastics in the line...) It's an expensive game, but fun nonetheless. You can do it cheaper buying second hand, or by buying cheaper brands. I'd suggest getting a good new floating line first as this is the one you'll use the most, then a secondhand good brand intermediate and sinking to complete your collection. Last thing worth mentioning is the backing. You can buy specific fly line backing but it tends to be expensive and most of all very thick. Being thick makes it easier to lay the line and less likely to knot up if a fish takes line, but if you need extra line it's better to use about 40lb braid or heavier. Make sure you get a braid that has a round profile though or else you'll end up with a huge mess! A bit verbose, but hope it helps... Edited February 2, 2012 by abecedarian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Langa Posted February 2, 2012 Author Share Posted February 2, 2012 Thanks guys for the great advice - thats what I love about this site, members are a wealth of info and happy to share. Cheers, Langa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luderick -angler Posted February 3, 2012 Share Posted February 3, 2012 Langa I did a little bit of research on your rod an it is an entry level rod from Orvis blanks are made for them and they are labelled for Orvis - action is a medium action so would suit most estuary species and smaller pelagics might be undergunning on the kings it reviews okay and most folks seem to buy it for trout and light saltwater. So you have yourself an allround outfit if you like flyfishing you'll find yourself up grading, a good entry level line is the Wulff Ambush its a nymph line so can turnover bigger flies, the Rio lines are by far my favourite and thier outbound series is very good, do some research make some shooting heads with T14 etc it will save you a lot of money and you won't ruin a $120 line on a big hoodie! As for reels you can'tgo past Lamsons Guru I have one on my 5 weight outfit and love it. Iyt wil loutlast the rod and you'll have it for your upgrade! Keep an eye out on online shop you can pick up some good rods for a bargain recently saw some Sage RPLX for less than $180 great fast actioned rod and a classic, the TCX is great other good rods are the TFO TiCR and Axiom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmy72 Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 (edited) PS Langa, do yourself a favour and get a casting lesson -- obviously a qualified instructor is best , or at least someone that knows and understands the mechanic of casting. youtube cant replace good personal instruction - as it can't see what you are doing wrong Seriously it will - save you heartache and frustration get you catching more fish faster make your fly fishing much more enjoyable cut 6-12 mths off the learning curve make you look very cool laying out long smooth casts good luck ! cheers grant Edited February 6, 2012 by jimmy72 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Langa Posted February 7, 2012 Author Share Posted February 7, 2012 Again thanks alot for all the info, I've got some research to do. Cheers Langa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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