one that i have fished a bunch and really like is the Scott A31106. good price point and great performance. nice and light (5.9oz), medium action with a light tip. hardware is workmanlike but sturdy, definitely no frills kind of finish but a solid performer.

a bit of a bend profile shot for you

handles fish up to about 10 lbs and for average GL steelhead it's fun but a touch light once in a while.

 

6wt Switch Rods

I have cast Orvis Helios 6wt 11' switch, Sage Z Axis 6wt 11' switch and TFO Deer Creek 6wt 11' switch. They all deliver a hell of a lot of line using a two handed casting stroke overhead. A hell of a lot of line. The Orvis and Sage seem to be rated much closer to single handed line rate weighting and the TFO closer to a two handed rating. To load the Orvis and Sage I could use an Airflo 40+ in 6wt but perferred a 7wt and the TFO could use an 8wt but I preferred the 9wt. My limited two handed casting skills can be used with all three and ample line can be cast when overhead casting/limited backcast room is available. I finally settled on all three...just in different weights to cover lots of fishing situations.

 

I finally settled on all three...just in different weights to cover lots of fishing situations.

:chuckle: it's good to be prepared :chuckle:

 

I am partitial to the Winston BII MX 6 11'6" switch/spey rod. I use it as a Spey with a 420g Scandi head.

 

Meiser 11' System 6 is an amazing rod.

 

Acr

ACR 11' #6 with Garry's line on it.
My Single Hand Dry Fly rod on small/medium water
Made in Heaven

 

I know its not quite 11', but I use the Echo SR#6 loaded with either a 21g or 23g compact scandi head. I use it on my local stream for sea trout (sea run browns) and I have used it for Salmon as well.

Oops may have dropped a clanger here guys ....
.... did you mean 2hand #6 or 1hand #6?

 

i have thought about another echo as i have the 4wt sr, just thought i would see what else is out there for decent money, at 10'10" its still an acceptable length, i just wish rio would make a skagit flight short head, i could prob still get away with a 375gr or so flight head though.

 

Have SPG build you a custom skagit for your switch rod- Extremely cost effective and taylor made to order.

 

Hi OZ - yes I'd gathered by your previous threads that you'd got an SR#4. The #6'er is slightly stiffer, not to much just a tad. A mate of mine uses the RIO 325gr Skagit Short on the SR#6 - not to do real skagit stuff, he u-hand/switches most of the time - he just likes the profile for coastal fishing.

As mentioned earlier I use the 21g or 23g compact scandi's with a 10' poly leader plus tippet up front. When I'm on the coast after sea trout I normally walk/wade along the shoreline "switching" as I go, however its a challenge setting the anchor if theres much of a wave - I try to place it along a trough that seems to work ok; but its quite hard doing it consistently.

 

Hi Jack, The ACR 1106-4 is a great stick, do you know what line Gary set you up with?

 

Batson / Rainshadow

Hey Oz - I built one of the Rainshadow 6wt (10' 8") switches a couple of years ago. Love the rod, feels like a feather in hand after months of swinging a regular spey rod. The line I like the best on this rod is a 335 grain Elixir, but also had good luck using an 8wt Rio Outbound (despite the taper being "backwards" for spey casting).

I've yet to take a steelhead on this rod, but it's going to be a hell of a ride when it happens. I have gotten some nice trout and SRC on it and it was pretty sweet.

I sometimes wish I'd built the 7 wt instead, because my next rod "up" in my quiver is a Decho 6126 - way more rod than the Rainshadow, leaving me a bit of a gap between the switch rod and my smallest spey. I guess that means I need to build another rod soon ;>)

PS - when I built this rod I posted some pics of the handle I built for it: http://www.speypages.com/speyclave/showthread.php?t=27928

 

Even though we're talking 6wt's here one other I strongly

recommend is the ACR 11'9" FIVE weight. This has been my 'go to' low water summer run rod here on the Rogue for a couple of years. A total sweetheart that will be getting a run for its money when my new Meiser 3/4/5 gets here in a few weeks.
Fred

 

another sweet little rod is the Winston BIIX 11' 7wt....actually more of a 5/6wt in the two handed world. Handles around a 295-325 gr shortish head very well....and super light in hand.

 

think ill stick to a 6wt, i have a 4wt switch which handles the smaller side of things perfectly, and iv still landed big fish on it upto 18lb so im not to phased by potentially hooking a bigger trout on it, would like the 6 just for those days when you wish you had a bit more punch but dont want to use an 8wt 2hander at 13'3", is the rainshadow sh rated or dh rated? Sounds very light by all accounts.

 

Another vote for the Meiser 11' system 6.

 

OZ - Pretty sure the Batson Rainshadow rods are SH line rating.

Andy