[Skilly]

Old age and all the aches and pains that go with it are forcing me to do away with my one hand rods. I have never fished a Spey rod and could use some suggestions on a good rod for the Deschutes that is not to heavy.

Just got back from the Deschutes and the pain has convinced me.

Thanks in advance

Skilly

 

[t_richerzhagen]

Welcome

Skilly,

First, welcome to the Board.

There are a lot of two handed rods that work great on the Deschutes. Some that I have used are the Sage 7136-4 and the CND 1308 Custom. The CND 1308 Expert would be very similar.

Will you be using it as your only rod, or will you use something heavier for winter? Will you fish other rivers?

Winter use or bigger rivers might direct you to something a little heavier.

 

[SSPey]

for a single meat and potatoes Oregon spey rod, its hard to beat a 14' 9wt. This will help you cut through Deschutes wind that a 7 wt might not handle so well. (I fish a 7 wt in most places until the wind kicks up)

 

[fredaevans]

Agreement with Steve on 'first rod choice.'

My thoughts would be 'a first rod' should be a 9wt 'traditional,' or a 8=9 Euro. Then work up/down form there for the fishing conditions/gear/tips/etc., you expect to use.

But if you have a chance to attend a 'Clave (there will be a mini clave in Medford on the Rogue 10=25) you'll get to try a lot of different rods/lines/etc. And free is a good thing.

Point being is what works for one, doesn't work for someone else. And as you progress as a caster your style, rod choices, etc., will change over time. Sorry, but "Spey-Gal" can be a very expensive 'significant other.'
:devil:

 

[Hammer]

better be careful these critter's are mean;a LOT of leverage can work your neck etc. be sure to use your lower hand as much ,i was used to hauling line now the rod does the work,plus the lines CAN be heavy,first thing i did was overline my first two hander,hmmm. seem i did that with my first flyrod toooo,just get one,,,then another,then a,,well they ARE addictive:devil:

 

[MJC]

First Spey Rod

Howdy Skilly, I'm real partial to CND rods as I sell them, but if you get a 1409 Expert Series and line it with an 8/9 Long Delta line you will have a great all around spey rod that will serve you well as a beginner and also after you become more proficient. I have lots of aches and pains myself and I fish with this rod and line everyday and I love it. There are several CND dealers in your area. If you ever get over to Clearwater country you can test cast my rod all you want or if you ever get up around the Seattle area I believe Speybum http://www.speyshop.com/ has these rods in his test rack.
Take care, MJC http://www.redshedflyshop.com/

 

[juro]

Whatever brand you choose, a spey rod will be an exciting new angle to the dangle for you. From what you've said, I'd stay with a lighter, full flexing yet high-modulus rod that lets you stay very relaxed, make the motions, and let the rod do the work.

While learning, I made the mistake of overcoming inconsistencies with muscle, where I could have done much better using far less energy if I had settled down and worked the proper sequence of lifting, sweeping and forming the d-loop gently with accuracy instead of steam. The rod I bought first was too fast and didn't show me how a spey rod can do all the work for me.

As you learn I would recommend to take the efficient casting path, worry only about getting the motions right and not about macho casts, then once things are working right it's just a little harder push and pull to reach the desired distance. Start with a light touch and add power and distance gradually. I wish I had

Now that I've been at it for a while, my favorite aspect (other than the fact that it lets me cover more water) is the economy of energy it provides once learned.

 

[Grampa Spey]

Skilly re beginning Spey rod help

I went through what you are discussing two years ago when I reinjured my right shoulder.

That got me into the wonderful word of Spey rods and Bob Meiser's two handed switch rods.

If there is no wind in your face and you intend to use only a floating line, the Sage 7136 with a Rio Mid Spey floating 6/7 is a great combination.

However, if the wind is roaring upstream and cross stream into your face, leave the 7136 at home. The rod that works well in that situation is the Sage 7141.

I just got back from a trip to SW Oregon. I fished the lower Rogue several times last week. The wind was roaring into my face in the morning or swirling. In the afternoon it would really roar upstream into your face. So, my 7136 stayed in the back of my Bronco.

The 7141 with Rio's new Grand Spey 7/8 and a 15' furled leader enabled me to handle most of the wind. That combo handled the wind better for me than my Sage 10151 with the Rio Accelerator with tips 2 and 1 removed. It was less tiring on old shoulders and backs than with the 10151.

Give Bob Meiser a call and drive down and meet him and try his rods out. If you prefer a Sage rod, Bob can make you a better rod with the Sage blanks than Sage can.

 

[Skilly]

geginning sprey rod help

Thanks, I endeded up with the CND 13 7/8 ,Rio Windcutter and a Teton Tioga 12 reel. I got it from The fly shop at Welches. they also took me out an the Sandy and gave me some basic lessons in Spey casting. I went to the Deschutes this morning with it for my first day of Spey fishing. Casts are UGLY, but one demented Stellhead felt sorry for me and grabbed on. Do the lawn tomorrow and see if I can do the Descutes again Wednesday.
Cant be all bad 6 hrs of fishing and nothing hurts !

Skilly

 

[Jacob]

how mutch money do you want to spend on your speyrod? i can recomend the Loop Blueline sereis. it comes in 11,6´12,4´13,2´14´15´!

 

[juro]

Excellent choice Skilly!

The 13' 7/8 CND is light, surprisingly powerful and you get the classic spey hardware on that gorgeous emerald finish for a great price... but the real goods are in the action.

The 1307 has a deep well of reserve power yet has a fine tip action and in between a middle that is pure spey. Nobuo hit it on-the-head with that taper; it screams summer run in the hands.

I'll bet as you get more comfortable with spey casting, it will get even lighter to use.

Tips on keeping casting light FWIW:

Make sure you lift slowly and fully when starting each cast to let the water bring the leader up before you pick it up for the cast.

When coming backward to form the d-loop swing the rod around to the side and then up into the firing position to keep things light and easy. In other words don't cut a vertical path too close to the body to make a d-loop, that takes more energy to keep the loop from falling into the water. Centriugal force help keep things under tension and the loop being tilted to the outside reall y helps prevent line stick.

On the final stroke try to stay in the firing position until the instant the anchor kisses down, then make your high stopping abrupt over the top stroke and let the easy motion cast itself. If the rod creeps forward there won't be a good load in the rod and the arms will have to make the cast instead of the rod.

Enjoy!

 

[Skilly]

casting

Juro

Thanks for the casting tips. I deffinatly have been overpowering the cast.

I realized last night that I also had my anchor wrong. so tomorrow I will try your tips and see if I can get it better. I will try to slow down and relax.

I also realized that yesterday I had a death grip with my upper hand.

I am very happy with the rod and set up that I have. I wanted to go into this with one of the less expensive rods. several people reccomended the CND.

Thanks again

Skilly

 

[juro]

Just one correction... I said over the top but I didn't mean literally over the top... I meant over midnight on the proverbial clock, or more succinctly stroke the rod across from the firing position at around 1 or 2 o'clock across the vertical and stop abruptly at 11 or 10 o'clock. Don't creep forward before you stroke in other words.

*** That being said the rod should be angled outward away from you at about 60 degrees ***

I just didn't want my loose wording to be interpreted as over the top of your head, or even over the top of the rod tip.

Good casting!