Friends: Over the weekend, I was fortunate enough to acquire an ACR 1368-4EX rod as the next step in my evolution as a two-handed winter steelhead fisherman.
What line weights you would suggest I use with this rod? The ACR website doesn’t list this rod, which presumably means it’s a discontinued model. Nevertheless, I surmise that I should probably start with a 22-ft Skagit head of about 525 grains (I’m an intermediate caster) and work my way down to perhaps a 485 gain head as I get more familiar with the rod? For a Scandi line, I might start with a somewhat lighter 33-ft line, around 485 grains? That, at least, was what my steelhead guide and Spey instructor suggested.
Finally, my instructor is a big fan of Guideline Compline running line and he suggests about 25 lb test would do the trick. He further suggests that a heavier reel such as the Hardy Cascapedia would complement this rod well. Would you Hardy fans use an 8/9 or a 10/11 with this rod?
I’d be very grateful for your advice on all the above. I have dates this winter with steelhead on the Rogue and the North Umpqua, to say nothing of the northern coastal rivers in Oregon, and I want to be fully prepared!
Thanks, Mike
What line weights you would suggest I use with this rod? The ACR website doesn’t list this rod, which presumably means it’s a discontinued model. Nevertheless, I surmise that I should probably start with a 22-ft Skagit head of about 525 grains (I’m an intermediate caster) and work my way down to perhaps a 485 gain head as I get more familiar with the rod? For a Scandi line, I might start with a somewhat lighter 33-ft line, around 485 grains? That, at least, was what my steelhead guide and Spey instructor suggested.
Finally, my instructor is a big fan of Guideline Compline running line and he suggests about 25 lb test would do the trick. He further suggests that a heavier reel such as the Hardy Cascapedia would complement this rod well. Would you Hardy fans use an 8/9 or a 10/11 with this rod?
I’d be very grateful for your advice on all the above. I have dates this winter with steelhead on the Rogue and the North Umpqua, to say nothing of the northern coastal rivers in Oregon, and I want to be fully prepared!
Thanks, Mike
