Because keeping line off the water is a very big deal. So long tippet under water to reach the strike zone. Increasing the length of trace outside of the rod tip is essentially the same as lengthening the rod. This article is a great learning resource for all anglers. It does make it "average." Dom, the tip on “cast the tip” is tip top! Many anglers lob these mono rigs. Love Troutbitten. However, just because you can buy a great rod that’s ten-and-a-half or eleven feet long doesn’t mean that you should. Long and light Tenkara rods flex easily, allowing them to … Simply put- there is no standard (or traditional) length. Know your weights and measures . Advantages Of Fly Rod; Advantages Of Fly Rod. They are forgiving to the beginning fly fisherman and allow for a much easier time in learning the necessary skills when starting out fly casting. If you’ve learned the nuances of your favorite tool, and your technique is solid, then you likely have the necessary accuracy. Ten footers are now quite standard. Another benefit of the longer rod for the fisherman in the back of the boat is that it keeps the fly line clear of the oars much better than an 8½-foot rod. — Steve Rajeff, Loomis. Shorter rods are more accurate. Required fields are marked *. Don’t get to dry fly it much, but the 9’4 to 12’3 versatility works for me and minimized additional rod purchase. Years ago I bought 11’3 for tight line nymphing based on recommendations for ‘big and deep rivers’ and failed miserably. Even on my home stream in the valley, which averages fifty to sixty feet across and is bordered by trees for most of its length, I prefer a rod slightly less than ten feet. I just purchased an Echo Shadow X 10’6″ 3 wt that I haven’t used yet. Nothing is more important than the leader. Fly rods come in various lengths. I had been using a 9’ 5 at rod for all my fishing for the past 20 years or so. And advanced angling starts by being aware of the stats. I’ve hooked into some personal best fish with this rod. Near Effortless: No overhead casting strokes required. Fly rods are designed to flex and recover to a resting state. To minimize the amount of stuff carried, I usually deploy a Cortland euro leader for the tight-lining. I hand many of my guided guests different rods throughout the day, and they all remark on the differences of each rod. The soft tips on these rods take forever to recover, and they are whippy, flexy sticks, good only for lobbing and not casting. There are also benefits to using a shorter rod too! You can demonstrate this easily with a visible test. But keep the speed short, between two points, with crisp stops. I can switch from streamers, to nymphs to dries without any problem and the rod is stiff enough to rightline but the tip is flexible enough I can cast all but the lightest of dries just using my monorig and packing extra punch into the cast. Brant Oswald, Livingston-based guide and writer: First of all, let’s agree that the fate of the world is not resting on the decision between an 8½- and a 9-foot trout rod. But if not, a broken rod tip thwacked on a tree limb will make it so. The reality is, in a mountain-laurel-choked brookie stream, swing distance for a fly rod is at a premium. If you can reach out another 1ft and cover that small pocket of water in front of you while maintaining better control of your flies, you will be more successful. And the easiest place to start is to know your distances. Whether your intentions for the new rod are tight line tactics, streamers, dries, or a versatile tool that can easily tackle all of these, the advantages and disadvantages of extra length in a fly rod are important to understand. I still think about a sort of bucket trip back to fish Big Fishing, Penn’s, Spring Creek and others when this Covid junk is over. If you are like me, you might wonder if you made the right choice, whether you keep the 10.5′, or exchange it for a 10′ rod. Joe C, Your email address will not be published. Blank makers are figuring out ways to make longer and lighter glass fly rods and that heavier line weight fly rods have advantages in blank strength with the ability to leverage and control large fish. I glad I can have more than one length rod, but I think if I could have only one rod for all round Euro style fishing, I would go with a 10.5 footer. Longer, lighter leaders also help, such as Rio’s Euro Nymph Leader. Kind of clunky and works better with a 6 weight line. Doesn’t it? are true, but I think the differences between a 10 and 10.5 are probably too subtle for most of us to notice, especially within the same model. READ: Troutbitten | Use a Versatile and General  Fly Rod. Recently, fly fisherman have been trying to catch anything and everything on a fly rod, and are able to do so in most cases, so to say fly fishing is just for trout, is really false these days. The best rods flex in all the right ways and then crisply return to straight, where they’re ready to flex again. And the lighter a rod is, the easier it is for their small arms to cast. (This is very similar to the tight-line leader recipe George Daniels recommends, but negates the necessity of buying several spools of various stuff.) I mostly agree with Harold. I caught trout on both setups. And there really is no other reason that doesn’t come down to the distance gained by fishing a longer rod. I choose versatile fly rods because I’m a versatile angler. Advantages of a longer rod when Euro nymphing. And it’s easier to guide our flies downstream with that extra reach. Every day, I cast the the client’s rods as some point too. So if your goal is a dead drift, above or below the surface, the extra reach that a longer rod provides is always welcome. “I would add that whether it’s a nine or ten foot rod, they tend to be more versatile than the manufacturers specify.”. Excellent fly rod if you are learning how to fly fish and looking to choose your first fly rod. The rod is typically very lightweight and thin compared to most fishing rods. I think what he says about recovery and accuracy, etc. for some other techniques my rods are now from 8,8′ to 10’2″ 99% of my fly fishing. If I can plan ahead I hope to set up a couple walk-wade guided trips with you. Know your tippet diameter. So consider your goals, understand the pros and cons of a longer rod, and then find your point of compromise. In short, we’re in the golden age of fly rods. Longer rods allow us to hold more line off the water. there’s more rod that has to stop moving. Consider your fly size and weight. Balog told of a demonstration that he used to do when putting on seminars at sport shows. Clearly the 9' rod has become the standard with  single-handers. Book now to join me in 2020. Join the mailing list to receive all Troutbitten articles and updates directly to your inbox. If there are accuracy problems, it’s not the rod’s fault. I didn’t really understand this or realize this until I had a lot of different rods in my hands. And while this is also one of the most common questions I’ve fielded through the years, it has a complex answer that I’ve never tackled in an article. My big question is whether the new Hardy is something I should consider since I already have the one before it. Today I fish a couple 8’ish Sage LL’s and my favorite 3100 ESN. But my favorite rods are also ready to cast small dries, big nymphs, indicator setups, and streamers large or small. And anything that goes under the water drags even more. Thank you all, for a wonderful and busy 2019 season! I like power and turnover. The three of them use 4pc rods and during the weekend two of them came apart while casting. Likewise, some power is lost with the extra length. I advise against that all the time, for many reasons. If you know where your rod tip is, you can cast any length of rod in any cover. And for casting these rigs, I do not like slower action. On larger streams I like my 9 ft. 5 weight because of it’s versatility. It’s impractical to carry multiple rods every day, so my favorite tools are the ones that perform many tasks well. Again, these days, it seems that the companies want to pigeon hole these rods into doing just one thing. This disadvantage is probably obvious. The tip flex of the longer rod just wouldn’t allow for a crisp set. As you say, I have been quite happy with it both for mono rigs and dry fly traditional casting. . With the rod tip further away, our options for the fly’s path are more limited. I had a few euro specific 10 and 10.5 footers. And anything that goes under the water drags even more. That’s what matters. And whether that’s a fly line or a Mono Rig, keeping material off the water allows for more contact and more control over our flies. FREE Standard SHIPPING Use Code APFreeShip, FREE Standard Shipping On Orders Over $25 - Use Code APFreeShip. Thanks for your feed back. https://troutbitten.com/2019/07/07/fly-fishing-the-mono-rig-its-casting-not-lobbing/. I’d say my favorite is medium-fast, leaning toward the fast side. anything that touches the water drags. That’s a tough one to admit or even understand for some people, but it’s true. Longer rods take longer to recover because, well . This way they can fish comfortably, get the advantages of their design, and still transport the rod everywhere without problems. And if you want something extra long in your hands, you have many viable options. This can also be a good choice for wade polaroiding where short, fast presentations are required. All of these rods can perform the necessary functions, but how well do they do it? ** For a list of my favorite fly rods, visit the Recommended Gear page here on Troutbitten. . Now, of course, you will find examples where one company’s eleven-foot three weight loads faster and is more powerful than the next company’s ten-foot three weight. For the recon rod I tried out throwing dry flies with it successfully up to 15 or 20 feet; enough distance for me. All for $125. That’s the main point. This rod allows me to fish all different kinds of flies, in all different kinds of scenarios and waters for all different species of fish. And where the tip goes, so goes the line, leader and fly. I was surprised at the resistance of the egg pattern. Dry fly with fly line is great, and helps keep line off the water. My guess is that mine is a bit slower action so better for mono rigs and not as good when I switch to dries. Recently I got the recon 2020 10 foot 3 weight and love the feel. And learn to accurately judge the distance you are casting. How a longer rod gives you better drifts when Euro nymphing. Longer rods allow us to hold more line off the water. After fishing with you two summers ago, and given my favorite stream is primarily a nymph stream, nymphing is my go-to setup. they get too long. And anything that goes under the water drags even more. I do plan on getting a 10.5′ echo shadow x next spring, because I think it will be a better all round rod. Where they ’ re in the river are doing the puzzle is an eternal question what... Angles are too wide, and streamers large or small a 10.5′ Echo Shadow x and the Zephrus Ultralite ’. Years back rod protects light tippets to keep in touch over longer leaders when fiberglass. May be both shorter and lighter dry fly/spring Creek rods to buy a longer fly rod... Bought a long rod and line it ’ s when short fiberglass rods were in vogue in opinion! 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