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Nextcast Question

8K views 48 replies 18 participants last post by  fish0n4evr 
#1 ·
I recently purchased a nextcast Winter authority 575 grain line. It came with a floating tip. I Purchased it to fish 15 foot Rio Replacement tips on some of the shallower long runs of the lower eel river. I’m looking forward to a potential BC trip And was wondering if using the winter authority with the floating tip is essentially the same thing as purchasing a fall favorite line for a waking fly set up? Thoughts
 
#10 ·
I don’t know the Fall Favorite, but thought I want to add versatility and took the WA in different weights for different rods. Some heads I had to adapt, but that’s no problem with NC lines.

My serious issue was with the delivered floating tips. Around 10‘ in length they all had too less weight to balance the Belly, even the lightest Belly versions. The tips were only around 3,5 Gramm (in comparison to Rio tips that’s between a #4 and a #5 tip. And I am one who likes light tips, hating front heavy lines.
For surface/subsurface fishing I had to use Rio tips in #7 to #8, 10‘ and 15‘, depending on rod-line pairing, to balance things out. But the NC floating tips were absolutely useless for me.

One would have to measure and weight the 10‘ tip section of the FF to compare.
But nevertheless I would prefer the WA for it’s versatility, for both, adaption to a given rod with different tip weights for best casting results and also different sinking density for fishing.

No mistake at all. I would only try different floating tips for your intended approach.

Good luck!
 
#12 ·
Yes, and in fact you have identified my preferred lines, thought I also enjoy in the larger rods, the Guideline 3D+:

1. I use NextCast WA for my Meiser 5 and 7 wet travel. Trout, Coastal Trout and Steelhead. I will use NextCast WA and the Guideline 3D+
... * https://raspberryfisher.wordpress.com/2017/07/23/meiser-13668cx-6-and-tips/
... * https://raspberryfisher.wordpress.com/2017/07/03/travel-spey-rods-and-more/

2. I use the Rage or the Switch Integrated on my fiberglass switch. Close in fishing for trout.
... * https://raspberryfisher.wordpress.com/2019/06/16/james-green-10-7wt-update/
... * https://raspberryfisher.wordpress.com/2018/12/03/switch-lines-my-survey/

3. I use the Short Scandi for my ACR 1173 and small wet flies.

In summary, I change lines to the rod and intent on how I want to fish it.
 
#16 ·
Here is an issue with Nextcast lines, which I think are great lines: their weight designation. I bought a WA 45 line with a floating tip, and for a year I struggled casting it. I happened to buy a grain scale so I weighed the line's head, without the tip. The line was much lighter than the weight it was listed at. When I weighed the tip I saw that the weight of the head and the tip matched the online weight listing.

I always read that when matching a line weight to a rod the weight of the tip (A Mow tip, for example) doesn't count.

I pointed this out to Simon, but he didn't seem concern.

I still use the WA line, but on a lighter rod.

Randy
 
#17 · (Edited)
Here is an issue with Nextcast lines, which I think are great lines: their weight designation. I bought a WA 45 line with a floating tip, and for a year I struggled casting it. I happened to buy a grain scale so I weighed the line's head, without the tip. The line was much lighter than the weight it was listed at. When I weighed the tip I saw that the weight of the head and the tip matched the online weight listing.

I always read that when matching a line weight to a rod the weight of the tip (A Mow tip, for example) doesn't count.

I pointed this out to Simon, but he didn't seem concern.

I still use the WA line, but on a lighter rod.

Randy
Randy,
The weight of a tip does matter. Of course it does.

I know "skagit casters" will tell you the weight of the tip doesn't add to the "load" because it is in the water. But then they'll also contradict themselves and tell you it is a water-loading casting style.

But anyway, MOW tips come in light, medium, heavy and extra heavy for the very reason that one is able to match [the head and the tip] together to achieve a well balanced system.
 
#18 ·
The Winter Authority (WA) is not a Skagit line. Instead think of it as a Fall Favorite (FF) cut for tips.

Skagit lines generally don't count the tip for sizing purposes, this is standard across the industry, especially for line recommendations from line and rod manufacturers. But not all interchangeable tip lines are Skagits. Those that aren't, like the WA, include the tip in their grain number size.
 
#20 ·
This.

That is how NC looks at it, and wants its customers to look at it, even if there are some very small differences in the tapers and lengths between the FF and a WA with a floating tip. It true that they have confused the crap out of people, especially as they have a whole other line of heads designed to take a tip, that are honestly not super different in form to the WA heads , where they don’t come with tips and the listed weight is of the head without a tip, like a skagit head. *sigh*. Probably a simple declaration on the lable, front and center, would neatly resolve the confusion, but if wishes were fishes .... :razz:
 
#24 ·
Of course in one sense the weight of the tip matters, but we are talking about designations, and matching spey lines to spey rods.

The bottom line: The 500 or grain weight - of hand I don't remember the exact grain weight - WA would not load the rod. When I bought a Skagit line with a 500 grain weight, not counting the tip, the rod loaded perfectly.

Randy
 
#25 ·
Exactly, which is what V-Loop addresses here:

The Winter Authority (WA) is not a Skagit line. Instead think of it as a Fall Favorite (FF) cut for tips.

Skagit lines generally don't count the tip for sizing purposes, this is standard across the industry, especially for line recommendations from line and rod manufacturers. But not all interchangeable tip lines are Skagits. Those that aren't, like the WA, include the tip in their grain number size.
If you are using mostly Skagit casts then the sunken tip weight isn’t much of a factor, but if you are using mostly touch and go casts the tip of the fly line is not sunk in the water and will be part of the overall load on the rod.
JB
 
#26 ·
I see that rod "load" comes from the casting distance. Then there are factors which increase rod bend. Touch&Go anchor casting increase rod bend more than overhead and oval casting and Sustained Anchor casting increase rod bend more than T&G. Also bigger fly increase rod bend.

Line weight has interesting effect when there can be line weight and casting distance combination which bends rod less than when same distance is cast using heavier line but also when lighter line is cast.

Esa
 
#33 ·
I recently purchased a nextcast Winter authority 575 grain line. It came with a floating tip. I Purchased it to fish 15 foot Rio Replacement tips on some of the shallower long runs of the lower eel river. I’m looking forward to a potential BC trip And was wondering if using the winter authority with the floating tip is essentially the same thing as purchasing a fall favorite line for a waking fly set up? Thoughts
Yup - the float tip with a leader-length of choice is essentially the same set-up as a FF straight to leader -length of choice.

As far as fishing the line or any other really: The easiest way to control the belly is the simple down and across swing, aka quartering the casts down.

But that doesn't mean you can't cast straight across and still maintain control - it just means you have to bring the line under tension before it goes to belly. Once the line goes to belly it can be tough to mend it straight without impacting on the fly.
 
#35 ·
This really isn’t true about the lenght, and unfortunately is part of the confusion.


Botsari,

If it is not true and you say so, then it must not be true. Personally, I would go out of my way to not sound so condescending but feel free.

Are you familiar with the term "average"?

I actually use the Nextcast Fall Favourite lines and have been on the website numerous times. The FF45 varies in length from 37.5 feet to 50 feet. All those lengths are longer than standard Scandi heads and much longer than Skagit heads.

Now, instead of the term "average", maybe I should have used the term 'median'? Maybe I should have characterized the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th moments. What do you suggest?

May I give you some unsolicited advice Botsari: 1) lighten up, and 2) get informed before you start dismissing what others write.
 
#36 · (Edited)
The point I was attempting to make, possibly badly, was there is a pretty big difference between the lengths. The shortest WA45 is listed as 36’ with a tip - about the same as a Skagit Compact head with a 12’ tip. The longest of those is listed a 51’ with a tip - very different story. The lenghts for the different weights are spaced out more than many other commercial line series because of the constraints imposed by how they are made. So for example the lightest scandi compact and the heaviest differ by 6’ over about the same range of wt ratings as the WA45, so less than half as much as the WA45 series. But there are other lines series that are spaced out even more than the NC ones, so it is not totally unique.

It is a fact that many people have complained on here over the years that they found the length specs confusing, or even that they were mislead. There was a long period (several years) where they were not methodically published or explained that well by NC on the site, and the weight of two different lines labeled exactly the same could sometimes be very different - often so different it was not possible to tell if one was just “mislabeled”, or it was a production mistake. It got to the point I would make the seller measure the actual length and weight of the head before I would buy one. And I ended up doctoring a handful of them too. Then I just stopped.

Basically I intended the comments to be along the lines of the OP and related early posts, about the sometime confusion with how NC things are labeled, and the different conventions used for different products, and not about “dismissing” anything or anyone. I was merely trying to clear up where that difference comes from, and hoped understanding that might make it easier for other people to figure out what they are getting before they spend their money.

The detailed information on the website is a welcome addition. Maybe not that recent, I’ll admit. I guess I gave up checking there a good while back - as eventually they lost me as well. Hopefully current and future customers will be far less confused.
 
#37 ·
The Nextcast site information can be indeed confusing or sometimes frustratingly incomplete. In the past, the detailed specifications of SOLD OUT heads would simply disappear.

I have had good luck with buying heads that conform closely to advertised specifications but I can readily imagine how discrepancies get introduced.

In general, the marketing is subpar. (Nice way to put it.) Have found myself wishing that a large well established fly line company would takeover Nextcast. Apparently one major US line company did express some interest a while back but was turned down.

Along similar lines, I know of a shop that would be more than happy to sell a lot more Nextcast lines ... if the shop could consistently get them. This is where small production runs could be problematic.

The Nextcast taper is not the answer to all 2-hand fly rod applications but for some, it works really well. The lines strike me as an interesting, well thought out variation on the Wulff triangle taper. I will probably do my best to keep buying them as long as Nextcast makes and sells them.

The Nextcast FallFavourite heads are easy to modify too. I bought a FF55 in an 8/9 weight, 625 grains and cut back the forward section to use with 7/8 12 1/2 and 13 foot rods. The objective is to be able to cast heavier flies in close and yet still deliver the fly way out there if required. Seems to work well so far. Works well with both sustained anchor and touch 'n go casting styles.
 
#39 ·
There was a time a few years back where there were a bunch of new ones in the heaviest weight being sold on eBay at half price - I guess the really heavy ones were not in much demand. I got several nice deals this way, but I assume the news has been out about cutting them for long enough now that those deals might now be hard to find.

I did save all the sections I cut out, and thought a few time to use them to build rear-end “cheaters” and get multiple weights. Kind of a dopey idea, but the segments are still in my “line surgery” box somewhere. :)
 
#43 ·
Hand soap/ dish detergent, warm soak and hand towels. PU doesn't require any further maintenance in my experience

Likewise though - in years of fishing rivers throughout the PNW I rarely had NC lines, or any fly line really, that needed a good cleaning. The streams just seemed too cold, too clean - even when dropping-in after being blown-out for a while. I noticed more grime building up on the coatings in warm-water angling. Saltwater will dry and leave salt deposits while in the spool. This will feel like a damaged coating passing through the fingers. It dissolves the instant it becomes wet.

From what I can see - Airflo PU fly lines are nearly impervious. Just for example - I don't a stripping-basket and so when Im not wading some section the running line may lay on the ground and pick up a bit of dirt noticeable only by the discoloring of the coating. Daily rinse and the occasional wipe-down is all that his needed.

Vic.
 
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