Why don't you ask James Chalmers himself . NO-ONE has gone wrong with his advise

 

Good Afternoon Swingers,

Just curious, been wanting to dabble with a fly rod utilizing "graphene" for a while now, never have, figured Gaelforce would be a cool way to try it...

I am interested in the 11'3" 5/6 and 7/8 models...

Has anyone fished either of these? What kind of grains do they like? I am assuming for us American's, these would be a 4/5 and 6/7, respectively?

Any input would be very much appreciated!

Thank you!

KB

They both take their respective numbers in Gaelforce lines 🤷🏻‍♂️

 

Gaelforce lines differ a fair bit from what I would likely fish on these rods, was hoping someone stateside may have some experience with them...

Thought this was the place to ask questions about spey related things?

 

I have cast the G+ 11356 and own the G+ 11378. Graphene (G+) reduces the overall weight and the swing weight of the rod and increases the rate of recovery. The G+ Series feels light and crisp in the hand.

James Chalmers designed the Gaelforce ESSS Switch and Short Spey Line specifically for his 11'3" switch rods. Get the ESSS #5/6 for the G+ 11356 and the ESSS #7/8 for the G+ 11378.

If you decide to go with a line from a different manufacturer, match the grain weight and the length of the head for the Gaelforce ESSS. You should be good to go.

James is quick to respond to emails, if you wish to contact him directly.

Best wishes, TB

 

I have cast the G+ 11356 and own the G+ 11378. Graphene (G+) reduces the overall weight and the swing weight of the rod and increases the rate of recovery. The G+ Series feels light and crisp in the hand.

James Chalmers designed the Gaelforce ESSS Switch and Short Spey Line specifically for his 11'3" switch rods. Get the ESSS #5/6 for the G+ 11356 and the ESSS #7/8 for the G+ 11378.

If you decide to go with a line from a different manufacturer, match the grain weight and the length of the head for the Gaelforce ESSS. You should be good to go.

James is quick to respond to emails, if you wish to contact him directly.

Best wishes, TB

I will send him an email, heading out of town on Monday so thought maybe I could get some info beforehand...

I was thinking something like Nextcast Core 16 on the 5/6 as it's for small rivers with no backcast room, obviously a fair bit shorter and different than the switch line you mentioned... Hence my questions... I assume James does not lower himself to fish such short huckster type lines so thought I would start here. lol

Never held nor even seen a Gaelforce rod, no idea what to expect, but I like rods with stiffer tips and a deeper flex so seems like worth trying...

Thank you!

P.S. If you look at the Gaelforce site, it states 450 grain on the skagit suggestion, but only a 325 grain on the switch line, 450 seems like a LOT for a Euro 5/6, so was somewhat confusing...

 

I will send him an email, heading out of town on Monday so thought maybe I could get some info beforehand...

I was thinking something like Nextcast Core 16 on the 5/6 as it's for small rivers with no backcast room, obviously a fair bit shorter and different than the switch line you mentioned... Hence my questions... I assume James does not lower himself to fish such short huckster type lines so thought I would start here. lol

Never held nor even seen a Gaelforce rod, no idea what to expect, but I like rods with stiffer tips and a deeper flex so seems like worth trying...

Thank you!

P.S. If you look at the Gaelforce site, it states 450 grain on the skagit suggestion, but only a 325 grain on the switch line, 450 seems like a LOT for a Euro 5/6, so was somewhat confusing...

Gaelforce lines differ a fair bit from what I would likely fish on these rods, was hoping someone stateside may have some experience with them...

Thought this was the place to ask questions about spey related things?

sorry if my answer didn’t work for you but it’s still the truth lol
Don’t get caught up in grains so much especially with full floater lines most rods will easily cast one line size up or down

 

There is a 100 grain variance on the suggested lines for the 5/6 model on the Galeforce site, so looking at the specs as you suggested just added more confusion due to what I am assuming is a typo...

When you are about to drop over 2 grand on a couple rods just to try them out, hearing from folks of all walks of life that have possibly used the rods with similar lines that I would be likely to fish, just seems logical and if the 5/6 model really does excel with a 450 grain skagit head, it would likely be far more powerful than I want for the size of fish this rod will be used for...

It wasn't that I didn't appreciate your response, just didn't answer the question I was asking. Maybe I didn't ask the question effectively enough, no hard feelings at all.

To be honest I had spent a fair bit of time researching it before I asked, including watching some of your videos casting Gaelforce rods on YouTube.

 

I have the 7/8 g+ and I fished a 475 and 500 core 16 on it. I agree with Topher and Bruce. If you throw a lot of touch and go casts…. I would go with the ESSS that’s all I use on mine anymore.

 

Just messaged you

I have the 12’ Graphene rod. But by the line specs I think the 11’3” 7/8 is more of an American 6/7. So, the Skagit rating of 450-500 is spot on, probably would prefer a 450 with a short head.
So, probably the next size rod down would work for you if that’s too powerful for your quarry

 

I purchased the 11’3‘’ 7/8wt Graphene switch from James a while back. I used the 7/8 spey line for a start, I now fish the 8wt floating head with integrated running line. It flies out and does everything I require fishing for Atlantic salmon on the Margaree river.
I normally fish a 10’ intermediate polyleader or in high water a slow sink, it’s a delightful set up.

 

I know this is an older thread, but I have the same question as the OP and I don't really see it answered here. The recommended grain weights on the Gaelforce website for shooting heads on the G+ 5/6 and G+ 6/7 rods are exactly the same, and the shooting head recommendations for the G+ 7/8 rod are very similar to the two lighter weight models. The recommendations for the ESSS line follow the rod ratings (5/6 line on a 5/6 rod, 6/7 line on a 6/7 rod, etc.). I asked James about this and his answer was that the recommendations for Scandi and Skagit heads are higher than the Spey lines due to the different tapers. This makes sense to me for Skagit heads, not so much for Scandis. I didn't get an answer as to why the shooting head recommendations are the same for rods with different ratings. My guess is that because Gaelforce doesn't make an ESH shooting head lighter than #7 (415 grains), and they don't make a Skagit head lighter than #7 (450 grains), their website simply recommends the lightest available shooting heads for rods lighter than #7. I'm thinking of pulling the trigger on a G+ 5/6 rod. I would probably just go with the ESSS 5/6 to start, and maybe experiment with shooting heads later.

 

What you are saying makes sense. Maybe the line recs are similar because the rods handle a wide grain range x and James can only recommend the lightest line he has to offer.
I think you will love the rods though man! They are the easiest casting yet most powerful rods I've ever handled in my life!