Photo courtesy: Guide | Jeff Hickman
We all know that even great rods have their strengths and weaknesses. Certain fly lines perform incredibly on slow action rods, but are terrible on fast rods. Wading boots that feel fine casting for little trout out of a drift boat may kill your feet after standing ten hours in a boulder filled steelhead river. Bottom line: Not all gear is created equally. More to the point, a lot of gear works great for some applications, but not all applications. Let’s face it, fly fishing is an expensive sport. If you’re going to spend a good chunk of change on a new outfit, wouldn’t it be nice to know what the products strengths and weaknesses are.
Current Reviews:
| Redington Prospector 4 Weight Switch Rod Review
????The Prospector series is Redington’s contribution to the value-priced switch rod arena. At $399.00 these rods come in far below many other fly rods, both single hand and switch. For many anglers, taking the plunge into switch rods is not that easy a thing. I for one, have limited switch experience when it comes to trout fishing. Many of the waters I enjoy fishing – creeks and small streams – don’t really call for such a tool. Furthermore, single hand rods have that level of intimacy that I really enjoy. So, it’s no wonder that I rarely use one for trout fishing. However, I recently got a Redington Prospector 4109-4 Switch Rod to test out on the local waters and I want to tell you how it went.
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| Airflo Streamer Max Fly Line Review The new Airflo Streamer Max is a very powerful sink tip line. What I mean by this is that this line is an extreme weight forward line meant for turning over big heavy flies. It packs a lot of mass over a very short distance (the WF6 is only 24 feet long) which helps to shoot a lot of weight with very limited back casting (minimal line outside the rod tip).
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| Sage 4200 Series Fly Reels
As far as fly reels go, the Sage 4200 Series is pretty darn nice. It functions nicely and it looks rather nice. And this seems a nice way to put it, but another way to put it would be to say that they are these reelsare bad a**. No matter which description you prefer, you are ultimately pondering a mid-priced fly reel which meets the level of excellence that Sage customers have come to trust.
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| K-Pumps
They give me one of those, "Why didn’t I think of that?” moments every time I hold one… K-Pumps. We love them. - Why? Well, they are very, very slick hand pumps for inflating vessels of all sizes.
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| G.Loomis Pro4x Fly Rod Boasts Extreme Value
"Oh yea. It’s awesome!" | "The Pro4x rods are all built around the same exact mandrels that are used for NRX construction right in our Woodland, Washington factory. That means that they have the same performance taper, albeit a little more forgiving than the NRX.”
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| Simms Headwaters Packs – They Got Your Back: SIMMS new Headwaters packs for your back, are perfect for day hikes, both long and short, into that special little place where the fish are. Light, comfortable and durable
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| Just when you thought that you had nailed down your final decision at the fly shop, you encounter yet another overwhelming set of options to consider. Like which running line to choose… |
| Sage 6119 TCX Switch Rod Review
Love at First Cast... "Love... is a multidimensional thing. This crazy emotion comes in all forms and scenarios. One type of love may arise when something is new. I remember my first spey love, the Sage 6126, or "Brownie”..." - thanks Charlie |
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| With the introduction of the CFX, Oregon based Bauer Reels has reinforced their growing position in the quality reel market.
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| Flies for fly fishermen are often sharp, delicate, sentimental, expensive, and difficult to locate while fishing. If we just plopped them all in a vest pocket, they would all get lost in a giant, ruffed up ball of feathers and hooks. Not good for the flies, not good for us – heck, we’d likely get stabbed in the process.
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| Best Value For Beginner Fly Anglers: Buying fly fishing equipment doesn't have to shatter the piggy bank. While indicative of a certain price, the word, cheap, does not necessarily represent quality these days. Present day performance in the value fly fishing market is truly amazing!
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| Simms Flyte Jacket
The Perfect Inner or Outer Layer: One of those inevitable and slightly dubious tasks that I face each time I head out to a piece of water is how I am going to dress myself. It sounds trivial but there actually is a bit of thought that goes into building a layering system that works. Just the term, "weather” is indicative of fluctuation.
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| Budget Picks
Hand selected by Greg Darling and the Team these products are perfect if your new to the sport or on a budget. |
