[McIntyre]

I tried the Derek Brown 8/9 this weekend. With a TT Spey (Cut at 70 feet with a shooting line attached) I had casts on 177 feets on overhead casting (a friend of me casted 196 feet with some help of the wind conditions). The rod was one of the most powerful I have ever tried. Unfortunately I didn't got the oppurtunity to test it hard enough on spey, but we had speycasts of about 130 feets. The rods action was far different from other rods (mostly european styles) I have tried, but I definitively liked it, and are considering buying a rod in this style.

My question to someone who have tried both are how the CND Salar rod performs compared to the DB? And how is these two rods compares to each other on practical fishing? There is a weight difference of 1.76 ounces between the rods, is this a decisive factor between these rods?
We do only have one distributor on CND rods in Norway, so trying one before you buy is a little difficult.

 

[highlander2]

Both great rods!!! You will notice the wieght of the winston in a full days fishing for sure and will need to balance it out with a heavy reel to balance out the swing weight. I still enjoy using mine with long lines, but to compare it to the salar is a bit tricky. The salar is a joy to fish with for a long day and is a long liners dream, it is progressive action at its best with fast recovery and it is a serious powerhouse rod that is not so tip heavy. My favorite rod in the whole series is the steelhead specialist and it probably compares more to the winston then the salar and works quite well with some of the shorter lines.


Brian

 

[inland]

JGS,

Take this for what it's worth! For my casting style the XLT 6/7 seems just perfect for the Steelhead Sp. That's for casting 70'+, usually over 90', the majority of the time. Step up the grains if planning to fish shorter than that.

For distance the XLT 7/8 slows the rod too much my tastes. Also the Grandspey 7/8 is WAY too much. On the other side, if you prefer a much deeper load you can get away with either of those heavier lines (and even step it up a bit too). But, IMO, to cast those heavier lines takes way more effort than it should.

McIntyre,

I am a HUGE fan of the Salar. Other than the beautiful Winston cosmetics, I can't think of one category the DBF even competes with Salar for Spey casting. Maybe MJC could help out for a demo so you can make the decision???

William

 

[speyfreak]

McIntyre,

I see your home waters are Norway. Do you actually live here in Norway? If you happen to be in the Trondheim area, you're welcome to try my Steelhead Specialist which I will receive this week. The Norwegian distributor did not have the Specialist series rods in stock so they had to get one from Japan for me. It arrived last week and it has been forwarded to me so it should be here any time.

BTW, I also have a Custom 13' 8/9 that you should try. Very nice rod.

 

[McIntyre]

McIntyre,

I see your home waters are Norway. Do you actually live here in Norway? If you happen to be in the Trondheim area, you're welcome to try my Steelhead Specialist which I will receive this week. The Norwegian distributor did not have the Specialist series rods in stock so they had to get one from Japan for me. It arrived last week and it has been forwarded to me so it should be here any time.

BTW, I also have a Custom 13' 8/9 that you should try. Very nice rod.

Hello Speyfreak

I live in Stavanger, but I'm fishing in Orkla 5 weeks this summer. Thanks for the invitation to try your rod, maybe if we are fishing in the same area sometime I might try it.

McIntyre