Tips For Selecting a Fly Rod

by Johnny Butler 

Well you've got your money in hand or at least your credit card and you are ready to buy that fly rod you have been dreaming about. Now what do you do? Hopefully, this will help you in buying that rod whether it is your first or your fifteenth. The choices of rods are staggering with prices ranging from $50 to an amount equal to your home equity line.

First, you need to decide what to you are going to use the rod for and where you are going to use it. For example, a rod for small trout on small streams will not be the best choice for stripers in the Saluda; a rod for large western rivers will not be the best choice for the Davidson. That having been said, you do not need a separate rod for every situation, even though it would be fun to try. Often a rod can fulfill multiple purposes and when you first start buying rods, it is beneficial to try and achieve that goal. Enough generalized platitudes, let’s talk specifics.

Trout rods generally run from one weight to six weight. The term weight is an obscure term which basically means the larger the number the heavier the fly line and the heavier the rod needed to throw the line. A one weight is mostly a novelty item, so let’s leave it out of the mix for time’s sake. A two weight rod can be a serious fishing tool as long as you do not ask it to do things it was not designed to do such as casting heavy nymphs with split shot or streamers or casting in wind on large rivers; it is also great if you are going to be catching primarily small fish (not something we often shoot for but often happens.) A three weight rod is nice for dry flies, small nymphs and even small streamers but it might be a little light for out west unless you are a really good caster; it is also a good rod for smaller fish, but can handle larger fish as well. A four weight rod is a good choice and can handle large fish, large flies and some weight. A five weight rod is perhaps the best all around choice; it can handle large fish, large rivers, weighted flies and large streamers and depending on the length of the rod can be used out west. A six weight rod is really a little large for smaller streams or smaller fish, but does fill the need for a trout rod with enough power to cast large streamers and large flies on windy western rivers.

With respect to rod length, once again the rod’s purpose will dictate the length you choose. Small stream fishing is more fun if you are not using a nine foot rod. I like trees as much as the next person, but I don’t like to see my leader or fly in them which is more likely if you are using a long rod on a small stream with overhanging trees. Small stream rods run from six feet to eight and one half feet and range from two to five weight. Eight foot rods are a common length and may be more readily available than some other small stream lengths. Realize that a shorter rod, while easier to handle in tight quarters, is probably going to be too short for large rivers and will also make it harder to mend line and keep your leader off the water for high stick nymphing. A nine foot rod is good for larger rivers or float tube use but the length limits its use on smaller water. Choosing one favorite rod length is about as dangerous as answering your wife’s question, “Does this make me look fat?” Any one rod will always have certain limitations. Nonetheless, if I had to pick one rod length for most fishing conditions (at least on the east coast) it would be an eight and one half foot rod. An eight and one half foot rod is short enough to use on all but the smallest water but long enough to get by on the Saluda and other large rivers.

With respect to rod action, well once again that is a matter of personal preference. How much of the rod shaft flexes during casting determines the type of action which is assigned to the rod. If only the tip flexes, then it is a fast action rod; the more of the shaft that flexes, the slower the rod action. Some casters do better with a medium action rod, while some more advanced casters like the capability a faster action rod gives them to cast farther and in windier conditions. A slower action rod loads better (i.e., is easier to cast without getting so much line out) on smaller streams and is a little more forgiving before it allows the fish to break your tippet and your heart. A faster rod can throw heavier and more wind resistant flies. What it really comes down to is that you need to find out what type action suits your intended purpose for the rod and your individual casting style. This brings me to my most important point - I believe you should always cast a rod before buying it!!! You would not buy a new style of shoes without trying them on, why in the world would you plunk down your hard earned money on a fly rod without seeing if you really like it and if it really suits you. I cannot tell you how many times I have someone tell me they want a certain model of Scott rod and my response is to come and cast several models and see which one they like best; after following my advice, more times than not, they choose a different model, because they cast it better. You don’t necessarily have to cast every type of rod on the market by every maker, but you should at least cast rods with different actions. If you don’t cast different actions of rods, you will never know which one suits you best.

What about number of pieces? Well with rod manufacturing having advanced as it has in the past twenty years, rods of more than two pieces do not compromise quality as had been the case in the past. There is now little difference in a two piece rod and a five or seven piece rod except for the price. Usually the greater then number of pieces the greater the price. Most people who prefer three, four, five, six and seven piece rods do so for convenience sake - it is easier to carry a four piece rod in your car or pack it in the luggage you check with the airline.

What about the warranty or no warranty issue. Let’s be honest, a rod with a warranty costs you more than one without a warranty and it should; after all you are paying for the rod and an insurance policy on the rod. It’s like buying an appliance and then buying the extended warranty. Most major rod companies now offer lifetime warranties to the original purchaser and fix the rod no matter how it got broken. A warranty only covering defects in workmanship is really not much help as most rods get broken as a result of stepping on them, leaving them on car roofs, or putting them together or taking them apart improperly. I even had a friend lose an entire section of his Scott rod and Scott had him send the remaining pieces, made him a new section, and mailed it back, all for $20 handling and shipping. Interestingly enough, he later found the missing tip and so now he has a four pieces for his three piece rod. You decide for yourself, but as for me and my rods, give me a warranty - the extra price spread over twenty to thirty years of use is not a bad deal. So consult your actuarial tables and make your own decision.

Another recommendation is to buy the best quality rod you can afford. My fly tying and fishing room is filled with a number of items which I bought on the cheap only to wish that I had spent a little extra money and gotten a quality product. That does not mean that you have to spend $700 for a fly rod, but you should buy a quality rod even if it is the entry level rod of a quality rod company. After all you are planning on fishing with it for at least the next twenty years aren’t you, and what single item of fly fishing equipment is consistently more important than your fly rod.? Besides there is a certain pride of ownership in having a nice rod and who wants to leave their son a discount store special as a legacy.

Even though, this is a Trout Unlimited article, I would be remiss in my duty if I did not address rod weights for two other species which we pursue around here, largemouth bass and striped bass. As largemouth bass vary in size greatly in this area, it is hard to pick a single rod weight for the pursuit of these fish. The typical person uses anywhere from a five weight to an eight weight rod. An eight to nine foot five weight trout rod is fine for bass up to about five pounds and for all sizes of panfish and is a good selection, however, a five weight is a little light for casting heavy streamers or large poppers. A nine foot six weight fast action rod is my personal choice as it will cast larger flies and yet is not so heavy so as to take all the fun out of landing the smaller panfish which seem to grab your fly before that lunker can get to it. A medium fast or fast action seven or eight weight rod is great for larger bass and the flies we use for them but is a little too much to keep the sport in landing smaller bass and panfish. Stripers are an entirely different story as the size range is from 10 inches to 15 pounds with some fish topping that size. How can one rod do all that? Simply put, it can’t. You have to give up something. You can use your five weight trout rod and have a blast with the schoolies (10-17 inch fish), but woe is me if you hook one much larger than 22 inches as you will quickly find yourself undergunned, or as we put it, underrodded. Furthermore, if you use a five weight rod, you will be limited to the weight of the fly you can use. On the other hand if you want to pursue the big boys, use sinking or sinktip line, or throw large poppers and heavy clousers, then you might need a ten or eleven weight rod which will certainly make your orthopaedist happy. So what do you do? Buy one of each - don’t we wish! No, you have to compromise. I personally have an eight weight and an eleven weight rods for stripers and salt water fishing. I have landed stripers up to 15 pounds on my eight weight rod and found it up to the task, yet I still can have fun with the schoolies on the eight weight, and in spite of what your fishing buddies tell you schoolies are what you mostly catch.

A final word of advice, never tell your wife how many fly rods you have. I have found out that wives think a fair ratio of shoes for them to fly rods for you is about 10:1, and if you let that happen, then you will not have the money to buy that next fly rod and reading this article would have been a complete waste of time.





*Johnny Butler is a bankruptcy attorney in Columbia, South Carolina but more importantly is Saluda TU member and co-owner of Fly South, a mail order fly fishing business in Columbia which has been selling fly fishing and fly tying equipment including Scott rods since 1996.