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[tburns]

Hi Guys,

I'm new to the forum, and looking to get into fly fishing. 

I was at Berry's last week and was shown a dragonfly journey fly combo that had been reduced in price ( 8 weight ~9ft).

I also saw for slightly cheaper a reduced Fenwick HMXF 908 with reel.

Are these rods suitable for a relatively new fisherman?  Thanks in advance!

[bigblue]

It depends on what species you are going to target.
If you are looking for an all round salmon/steelhead fly rod, an 8 wt 9 feet would be good.
If you are going to target trout in lakes and streams, a 5 wt 9 feet rod would be a good starting point.
What brand you buys really depends on your budget.
If you are tight on budget, also consider buying a used outfit which is in good condition.

[DanJohn]

As stated, for salmon and steelhead, Id grab a 7-9 weight.

For trout, I would look at a 3 or 4 weight. For fish up to 3-4 pounds, a 4 weight will do. For stocked fish in lakes and smallish (12-16") a 3 weight would be great. For the small fish like that, I use a 2 weight and its still a bit much sometimes, depending on their level of fight.

I also would not cheap out on a rod, and *I* feel Dragonfly rods are just BLEGH! I do not like the way they cast at all. Cheap out on a reel if its for trout. A little Okuma 50 dollar thing will work no problem. If for salmon, dont! Get something decent.

But we really need to know your budget, casting style if you have one, and what you want to do with this setup.

[ajransom]

Spend a bit of money on a decent rod. For trout locally id go for a 4 weight, that way you can have a little more backbone for small rivers etc. 9 foot is a good all around length. For $150 to $200 you can get a really nice trout rod that will last you many years.

If your getting a trout rod you can save some money on a reel. Just get something very basic that will hold the line. $50 reels will be fine. Spend money on a decent line too. Probably a good rio (or similar) weight forward floating line.

You can get some really good deals on forums like this so it's definitely worth doing some searches to see what your after. You can probably get a decent used outfit for half the price of buying new (as much as I like to support local fly shops). 

For salmon an 8 or 9 weight would be great and probably 9.5 to 10 feet length. You will need a better reel for salmon though.

[bluenoser]

Buddy of mine who is becoming a convert bought that Fenwick set up from Berry's and I think its a great complete set especially for your first set up...good for pinks and coho no problem. Later when your ready to dole out more cash it will be your back up.....cuz a guy always needs a back up.

BN

[FlyFishin Magician]

As stated, for salmon and steelhead, Id grab a 7-9 weight.

For trout, I would look at a 3 or 4 weight. For fish up to 3-4 pounds, a 4 weight will do. For stocked fish in lakes and smallish (12-16") a 3 weight would be great. For the small fish like that, I use a 2 weight and its still a bit much sometimes, depending on their level of fight.

I also would not cheap out on a rod, and *I* feel Dragonfly rods are just BLEGH! I do not like the way they cast at all. Cheap out on a reel if its for trout. A little Okuma 50 dollar thing will work no problem. If for salmon, dont! Get something decent.

But we really need to know your budget, casting style if you have one, and what you want to do with this setup.

For trout in the Lower Mainland lakes (e.g. Lafarge, Rice, Rolley, etc.), then I'd agree that a 3 or 4 weight would be fine.  However, for trout in the interior, I'd go with at least a 5 wt rod.  However, from reading your original post, I'm assuming you want a salmon/steelhead rod since the shop was showing you 8 wt rods?

I have casted a Dragonfly 8 wt (not sure of the model) and I have to admit, I didn't care for it at all.  Way too "soft" and not able to handle a heavy tip, and very little response to my "double haul".  I had to incorporate a "softish haul" to not overload the rod while casting.  If you are looking at salmon/steelhead, then I'd recommend going with a fast action rod.  For reference (since I use Sage rods), an action similar to the XP, Z axis, or Fli/Flight would be my preference.  The guys at the shop should be able to understand what I mean here.  Good luck!

[bigblue]

If you are looking at salmon/steelhead, then I'd recommend going with a fast action rod. 

X2. Fishing for salmon involves casting heavier tips and flies and many medium action rods just don't handle them very well. When I first started fly fishing for salmon, I used my 6 wt medium action trout rod which worked fine for me in lake fishing.  It worked for salmon but my casting was off many times and I just thought my casting ability was deficient until I upgraded to a higher quality fast action rod. I was stunned how much easier it was to cast.  The thing went exactly where I intended.

What I would recommend is to buy a good quality fast action rod, and if you are on a tight budget look for a used one on-line. It would be a far better buy then getting a new medium action rod from a second tier company.

[slurpie]

If you are serious about getting into fly fishing and plan on following through, my recommendation would be to buy the best fast action rod you can afford.  As previously stated, casting sink tips, weighted flies, and hauling can be made much easier.

[RalphH]

The one Dragonfly rod I owned was quite a stiff rod. Moderate or medium fast rods are actually more suitable for the person learning to cast. As someone suggested if you catch the bug you'll upgrade and either sell the old rod or keep it as a back up.

[zugger]

X2. Fishing for salmon involves casting heavier tips and flies and many medium action rods just don't handle them very well. When I first started fly fishing for salmon, I used my 6 wt medium action trout rod which worked fine for me in lake fishing.  It worked for salmon but my casting was off many times and I just thought my casting ability was deficient until I upgraded to a higher quality fast action rod. I was stunned how much easier it was to cast.  The thing went exactly where I intended.

What I would recommend is to buy a good quality fast action rod, and if you are on a tight budget look for a used one on-line. It would be a far better buy then getting a new medium action rod from a second tier company.

This is good advice....start small and upgrade as you see fit

[RalphH]

the performance one gets out of a decent rod depends on how well you cast with it not on the rod.

[Funeral Of Hearts]

If you are learning to flyfish a medium or maybe medium-fast action rod is better. A fast action rod is less forgiving.

[tburns]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the opinions.  I actually ended up going to Pacific Angler and picking up the pursuit redington package with a couple versitips to get me started (1.5 IPS and ~6 ips).  Matt was very helpful, and in the future I'll look into upgrading.

Going to seymour today to fish it for the first time...  Fingers crossed!

[DanJohn]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the opinions.  I actually ended up going to Pacific Angler and picking up the pursuit redington package with a couple versitips to get me started (1.5 IPS and ~6 ips).  Matt was very helpful, and in the future I'll look into upgrading.

Going to seymour today to fish it for the first time...  Fingers crossed!

I have the pursuit in a 4 and 7 weight and I love it! best cheap rod I've tried. if you can't cast that, it's the line, or you! I've got a 7 weight sharkskin gpx and my 5 weight trout taper, they both cast like a dream. the 5 is a bit heavy, but it slows down the rod for a delicate cast, great for dry flies.

[tburns]

My casting is definitely improving!  I was down at the cap yesterday, second time ever on the fly, and caught a couple salmon by casting into a shallow pool but they were foul hooked through their hump or tail .  It was a fairly cramped area with branches overhead so I had to sidearm cast but it worked mostly well (snagged a couple branches and had to work to get my flys back after my tippet snapped).

I need to work on having a lighter drop into the water of my fly and mending techniques.  Regardless, they didn't seem to be biting.

Thinking of heading up to the seymour river right now...  What have you guys had luck with?