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[Spawn Sack]

So I'm planning to buy a switch rod for this summer/fall. I already have the reel, a Redington Behemoth 7/8 (7.5oz). I have not yet bought the rod, but I am more or less sold on the Redington Chromer, 11"6, 6wt, 5.1oz, 400+/- 25g skagit head rating.

What I am struggling with mainly is what should I buy for the running line + head, and also tips.

I should say that I am not new to the 2-handed rods. I have two 13"6 rods, an 8wt and a 9wt. On both of these I chuck a 600gr skagit head and 10ft MOW tips ranging from the full floating to a T-17! I primarily use thee rods to target steelhead, and have used them a bit for Chinook and chum.

My purpose in buying a switch rod is to use it more for pinks and coho. I know a s/h rod is better choice for this, but a shoulder injury to my casting side negates this as an option.

I would like to stick with a skagit head for my new set up. It's what I know and have confidence in. Maybe one day I'll look at scandi, but not now.

I'm thinking a head that is integrated into the shooting line would be a pragmatic choice here. I would like to be able to strip up to or even past the head, and I'm sure a loop-to-loop connection will get hung up here and just cheese me off. I like Rio products, but would be open to Airflow or any other brands.

And as for tips, unfortunately I'm guessing my medium weight MOW tips will be too heavy for the new set up. I like the MOW tips and would like to stick with them if at all possible. Maybe go with the MOW light tips?

Curious what others are fishing on a similar switch set up. Thank you.   

[iCemAn]

I have a similar setup for one my switch rods you are considering. Here is what I use and am very happy with it.

Redington Chromer 7116-4
Redington Behemoth 7/8
Rio Gripshooter 35lbs
Rio Skagit Max Short 450gr
Rio T8 and T12 in 10'

The reel balances well with the rod as it is a heavy 7/8 single hand reel. I've been impressed with the Gripshooter and Skagit Max Short on the switch rod so far which I have used on the Harrison for salmon and on the Vedder for steelhead this year.

[Spawn Sack]

Thank you iCemAn,

Looks like you set up is more or less what I'm shooting for.

I'm going to go one power down to a 6wt as I feel it'll be more suited for pinks and coho.

If I was going to do more swinging and seldom stripping line I'd be more inclined to get a line set up like yours. However I want to be able to strip past the shooting head if needed (coho following the fly in close), so I separate shooting head is out. I know the integrated running line renders me stuck with the head that comes with it, but I'm not too worried about this.

I'm leaning more towards the Rio Switch Chucker or similar line.

Here's an interesting read I found:

http://redsflyshop.com/blog/2016-switch-line-buyers-guide

[halcyonguitars]

FWIW, I was set up with a Rio Switchucker when I got my first switch at SeaRun.

I was later gifted a different one that had some sort of Scandi line.

I found the SC to be really user friendly and was getting really decent casts with only a small amount of practice. I struggled hard with the Scandi without nearly as good results. So I switched it out for another SC and got the same easy casting results.

[pwn50m3 f15h3r]

If you're doing a lot of stripping, I would recommend an OPST Skagit commando head with an airflo ridge shooting line. That said, I do not have very much experience with two-hand casting or fishing.

[Spawn Sack]

If you're doing a lot of stripping, I would recommend an OPST Skagit commando head with an airflo ridge shooting line. That said, I do not have very much experience with two-hand casting or fishing.

I had the OPST commando head on an 8wt single hand. I was pretty impressed with it doing single hand spey casts, but that much "work" with my bad shoulder forced me to sell the line. Casting two handed is no problem, I can do it all day.

I was thinking of getting another commando head for the switch set up, but in a higher grain weight...but...I'm pretty sure I want to go with an integrated shooting line for the purpose of stripping in past the head for pinks and coho (especially).

Still leaning towards Rio switch chucker or a similar integrated line.

[RalphH]

I think you are going in the right direction to get a Skagit style head.

I have an Echo SR#6 rated for up to 390. I have 3 lines for it - a Rio Integrated Skagit 375, an SA Scandi Extreme 360 and a Cortland Switch, an integrated line with a  24 foot head (I think) at 375. I haven't used the Cortland as yet.

While the Scandi is beautiful to cast at 360 and over 30 feet long it doesn't load the rod as much as I'd like for long casts. I use it with mono running line. I can do 60+ feet easy in running water. They work best with long leaders and I used 14 feet of tapered mono for summer runs. Scandi Lines are somewhat akin to the old DT lines in terms of grace in casting. The surface disturbance that some people don't like about skagit head - simply isn't there. They'd be a great choice for coho in flat or frog water.

The Rio Skagit loads the rod well and integrated lines are the best if you can afford them. The front end of the running line is starting to get ragged. It is one of the old Rio lines known to wear relatively quickly. This is the line I have used to fish pinks in the lower Vedder for many years. I have also used it successfully in Dewdney Slough.

As for tips. I've mostly used 15 foot versa tips in the same weight rating as the rod. Worked fine for me. I did use medium MOW tips with my #8 switch - works great. You'd also be surprised just how well T-8 sinks. For chum etc it may be more sink than you need. I mostly manage with  clear intermediate tips or T-3 for fall salmon. Maybe for pinks in the fast water of the Fraser you'd need more but they stay inshore and shallow.

[Spawn Sack]

Awesome, thanks RalphH.

I'll likely get something similar to your Rio integrated Skagit. Has Rio phased this line out? I cant find it on their website. I see they have the Skagit MAX, which you can get in a 23 foot head. However this is the head only, not an integrated line.

https://www.rioproducts.com/products/heads/skagit-max

The only integrated line I can find with a skagit head is the Switch Chucker, which has a 25 foot head.

https://www.rioproducts.com/products/lines/intouch-switch-chucker

Also a quick ques about MOW tips. I see Rio sells the standard MOW tips, and the iMOW tips. For my 8wt spey I have the full spectrum of medium MOW tips. Is there a reason why one would want to go with the iMOWs instead? I'm thinking maybe the clear intermediate section gives your presentation less of a "hinge" in the line. Would they sink or cast any different? I get why you'd want a clear intermediate tip before your leader (more stealthy), but I don't really get why it would be advantageous to have a length of clear intermediate followed by very visible section of T material, and then your leader.

[Spawn Sack]

So bought the rod and line the other day and fished it for a 1/2 day yesterday. WOW, what an awesome set up to cast! I'd give it a 10/10. The overall weight is so much lighter than the two 13"6 rods I have (an 8wt and 9wt) and casting the Switch chucker line is a breeze. I could strip in to only half-ish of the shooting head past the rod tip and still roll cast and shoot the head plus 10+ feet of running line. If I stripped right up to the sink tip I had no problems shooting back out with an over head cast (single hand). Didn't catch anything but was a very satisfying experience to cast the set up for a few hours. Stoked to get into pinks and coho with this set up!

[kevzabob]

Hi all,
I am new to the world of switch rods and boy does it seem large and expensive! LOL..
I to have purchased the  switch chucker line and it seems to sail across the river much easier than my single hand 5 weight. Currently I'm looking for sink tip recommendations and I'm leaning towards the Rio Mow Sink tip package. what sort of length of tippet would one commonly fish on these types of lines. Ive been told for clear low water fishing you only need like 3 feet tippet to make your presentation. seems a little short to me. Doesn't that kind of spook the fish?
Anyways any help would be greatly appreciated..