Best Fly Fishing Rod

When fly fishing, it helps out tremendously to have quality equipment.  Although you do not have to have the best of everything to be successful, it certainly helps if you have a rod, reel and line that go well together and made out of high grade materials.  In the last 20 years, fly rods have improved immensely as the fly rod manufactures compete to build the “Best Fly Fishing Rod” on the market as devoted fly fishermen are willing to part with large sums of money in order to have top notch gear.  So the big question is: What is “The Best Fly Fishing Rod”.

Any experienced fly fisherman will tell you that there really isn’t one specific rod that could be considered the best fly rod.  You see, there are so many different species and different sized fish in the world that there is no way for one rod to be the perfect rod for all fish.  That is exactly why choosing a fly rod is so difficult because there is a huge spectrum of applications and a large number of rod makers trying to build a better rod.  

In your quest to find the best fly fishing rod, there are certain aspects that should be considered.  Size, Action, and quality (price) are the three big ones and what we will cover in this article.

Size

The first thing we need to do is figure out what size of rod you will need.  If you are presenting small dry flies to trout, then you will want a light rod with a delicate presentation.  If you are planning on targeting Rooster Fish in the ocean, then obviously the same rod that you use for trout is probably not going to cut it.  There are different sized rods designed for different sized fish and different situations.  Here is a generic list of rod weights and the fish they are designed to fight.  

2wt    small trout, pan fish
4wt    trout, pan fish
6wt    bass, trout,
8wt    steelhead, bass, saltwater
10wt    salmon, steelhead, tuna, saltwater
12wt     saltwater, dorado, sail fish
14wt    saltwater, sail fish, marlin, shark

Obviously there are extremes in most cases, so your individual fly rod needs may differ a bit.

Action

A Fly rod works by throwing line instead of a lure.   It does so by bending and loading up energy to cast the line back and forth.   That is why fly fishing rods can get quite expensive and why quality is so important.  The “Action” of a rod is the term that signifies at what point the rod bends.  There are 3 main types of rod Action: Slow, Medium, Fast.  A rod can also fall somewhere in between actions and be called a combination of the two such as Medium Fast.  Here is a list of the main action types and how they bend:

•    Fast Action: rod bends mostly at the tip.  Built for high line speed good for long casts, accuracy, wind conditions, and casting large flies. These rods are best suited for experienced casters as they are difficult to learn with.

•    Medium Action: rod bends in the mid section of the rod.  This is the easiest rod to cast but will lack the distance and accuracy of faster action rods.

•    Slow Action: whole rod bends when casting.  Made for small streams and short casts.

While Medium Action rods are easiest to cast, if you are a beginner looking for the best fly rod, then you will probably want to go with a medium fast action as eventually you will want to be able to make those longer cast and through heavier flies.

Quality

Quality and price are synonymous with each other.  You will have a hard time finding one that is not the other.  I will tell you one thing though, while there is a huge difference between a $50 set up and $300 rod, the difference between a $300 and $500 is not near as significant but there still is a difference.  When it comes to all fly fishing gear, you will get what you pay for.  My number one rule of thumb is always go with the best fly fishing rod that you can afford.  Number two would be to make sure all fly rod purchases come with a lifetime warranty.  That way you will make an investment designed to last a lifetime and know that you are buying a quality fly fishing set up.

So, what is the Best Fly Fishing Rod?

To answer this, you will have to look at your situation including when, where, and what you are to be fishing for, as well as your experience level.  A good place to refine your search is at www.OnlineFlyFishingGuide.com.  Here you will be able to figure out the size, type, and price range you are after and apply that to figuring out the exact brand, make and model of what is to become your own”Best Fly Fishing Rod“.

About the Author

Chris lives in the northwest U.S. with his wife and young daughter.  Together with their friend of and family they spend as much time taking advantage of what the area has to offer whether it be hiking, fishing, skiing, or anything else that gets them out of the house.

Chris owns and operates websites such as www.OnlineFlyFishingGuide.com and www.SnakeProofGear.com

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