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[robbo1970]

I have picked up a single handed fly rod again this weekend after kinda getting frustrated with it before.
I am skagit style with my switch rod, and really happy with that, but with the single handed it all goes wrong, tailing loops, wind knots, maximum of about thirty feet distance and just overall not feeling/sensation of line speed.
Does anyone have any tips or recommend a good, reasonably priced instructor. I live almost right on the Harrison and really want to get to not the pinks on the single hand.

Much appreciated,

Rob

[Flytech]

Watch this video, you need to practice in a field at least once. You need to focus on the casting and not even think about fishing. It will just click at one point. Remember they don't have to be perfect to catch fish as well. I've caught fish on absolutely terrible casts.


http://youtu.be/SxVvVoqFbIU

[robbo1970]

Thanks flytec, our back yard is around 100', rain plus I also back onto lake Errock, so practice room is not an issue. I am certainly going to take a look at that video. I think that once you can get started in the right then practice is the way forward

[Flytech]

I do also recommend once you've tried it a few more times, go take a lesson. It helped me immensely.

[Fishawn]

If you're ever out in Vancouver, try to book a private casting lesson with Matt Sharp from Pacific Angler. He's a great teacher, and explains things very well.

[Sandman]

While you are practicing and waiting for that lesson, here are a couple of things on which to work.  One of the more common faults in a bad cast is failing to allow the rod to load fully on the back cast causing the loss of distance, so focus on that first.  Since you have been Skagit style casting, this will need to be relearned as single handed casting loads the rod with the line looped behind you (like with the traditional Spey D loop).  Make sure you can feel the load of the line on the rod before beginning the foreword cast. The other common fault, and the one that creates  those tailing loops and wind knots is coming forward too fast and short on the forward cast.  Again you want to feel the line and guide it forward, don't muscle it. Let the rod do the work. Your arm should remain tight to your side and hinge at the elbow, not just the wrist, and do not drop the rod tip on the final cast.

[skaha]

--vid your own casting as well... you will easily be able to see what you are doing as opposed to what you think you are doing.

[clarkii]

http://howtoflyfish.orvis.com/video-lessons/13-fly-casting

Thats a link to the orvis guide to fly fishing.  Videos are short,  but lay out fly casting really well.

[Knnn]

There are 3 fundamental steps, 1) back-cast, 2) pause and 3) forward cast

Start with the rod tip close to the water/ground (so there is no slack in the line), load the road with a steadily increasing acceleration to a well defined stop at approximately the 1 o'clock position. Pause to let the line fully unfurl behind you, then accelerate the rod forward releasing the line at approximately at the 10 o'clock position.

The reason for not having any slack in the line and allowing time for the line to unfurl behind you is that you load the rod with your line as efficiently as possible.  It is the weight of the line acting on the rod that stores and releases the energy to cast the line behind and in front of you.  If you are doing it right, as you retrieve the line for the back cast your rod should have a good bend in it half way through the back cast, i.e. at the 10-11 o'clock position.

Some of the most common mistakes I see are 1) too much slack line before the back-cast, 2) allowing the rod to travel past the 1 o'clock position (some angles almost touch the ground behind them with the rod tip - so look behind you on the back cast to make sure your rod tip is kept high and 3) not leaving enough of a pause for the line to unfurl. Again look behind you to make sure you are providing a long enough pause to let the line fully unfurl.  The length of the pause will vary with the amount of line you are casting.  The longer the line the longer the pause.  Also, slow down.  Many people try to use the rod like a whip. 

These excellent instructional videos are the best I have found:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRxehBEnCX8&list=PLAFFE1BA2E6932540&index=16

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g-9nudZCDY&index=15&list=PLAFFE1BA2E6932540

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=km_8TUyt4fI&list=PLAFFE1BA2E6932540&index=13

HTH

[colin6101]

I have always found that either using a slow rod, or overlining a faster rod helps with learning to cast. It allows the caster to really feel the rod load and understand when to begin their forward cast. This may not be the proper way to teach someone but it has always worked for me.

[robbo1970]

Thanks for all the great advise guys, looks like I have a lot of YouTube to watch. Good thing is my four year old loves to watch too. I'm sure he takes in a lot more than he lets on, he's pretty good with his 2/3 at. I can see us both in garden all weekend practising.

[VAGAbond]

I can't claim any expertise in fly casting but to the extent I solved my single handed casting problems, I found that after you have worked through all the good advice above, the 11 o'clock stop on the forward cast is very important.  I kept dumping the line in a pile in front of me until I concentrated on that stop as opposed to continuing to about 9 o'clock which seems natural and kills the cast.

There is a suggestion above to over line the rod so the beginner can feel the loading. Good advice but even more basic is having a well matched line and rod.  I started by picking up some old junk I had around and it didn't work.  It was a revelation to get my hands on a good outfit and understand how important it is to work with an outfit that really casts.  I suspect many beginners, not wanting to invest too much, start with badly matched cheap stuff that works against them.

That said, I went to a casting class with my modest outfit and after working all the way up to a 45 ft. cast, the instructor who had been a professional distance casting competitor picked up my rod and without any trial casts, cast the line clear over the greenhouse in the next property.  So technique can overcome gear deficiencies to a fair degree.

[clarkii]

What I find interesting is an avoidance of 10-2 and instead a preference to 11-1

[Knnn]

What I find interesting is an avoidance of 10-2 and instead a preference to 11-1

Depends on circumstances and experience, when I am double hauling for max distance I am pushing 9-3

[RalphH]

the 'power stroke' is between 1 and 11. The stroke itself should be a constant acceleration until either point is reach then abruptly stop. It's been likened to hitting a nail with a hammer. You can allow the rod to drift a bit from 11 to 10 or 1 to 2 but there should be no power. Don't overpower at the start or stop. Don't apply too much power period. Concentrate on casting a relatively short distance like 30 feet off the tip top. Focus on forming a perfect U shape with the line in the air. Allow the loop to unfold for or back then let the line go.  When you do that well try more line.