[speyman]

As a professional guide I get a lot of clients in the boat who for one reason or another do not learn the Single. I know it is harder to learn but it pays dividends. Folks who show up who can only Double are not only limited by wind but by close quarters as well. If I have to find water for you where you have enough back cast room to do doubles you may miss out on a lot of really good water which must be fished up close and personal. Since folks spend a lot of hard earned $$ on these trips I suggest that it is worth your practice time to learn both singles and doubles, both sides of the river, and even either hand on top. This gives you an awful lot of options on the water and will lead to a much more enjoyable day on the river.

Folks may argue that Snap T or other upstream casts are a good alternative. They are helpful but nothing I have seen can be done with less back cast room than a well executed single.

 

[speyrd]

While you are learning the Single Spey with your right hand up, learn how to do it with your left a well. You would be surprised how short of time it takes to learn how to do it with your other hand.


Leroy...............................

 

[Pbrown]

Good advice guys, I have so much trouble getting down the casts with my left hand up. Back to the drawing board I guess.

 

[Klem]

Hit a Nail on the Head

Jack,
You hit the nail on a head. Many of my fly-casting students come to me wanting to learn just a few "simple" casts to go fishing. After explaining that spey casting was developed to eliminate backcast obstructions, we work on all available casts including the seemly hard to learn single spey. After a little coaching and refining of rod-tip movement, the single spey becomes their most powerful and useful cast. Many people become discouraged when trying to learn the single spey on their own or on a guided trip, so they revert to the "easier" casts. The bottom line is to learn as many set-up moves to the anchor as possible. Instructors can help develop indivdual's casting skills to be effective and enjoy the those precious fishing trips.

Klem,..................:::::::::::::::>

 

[wrx_canoe]

wow

Was fishing a couple of days ago and couldn't reach the holding areas with my snap-T and double spey given the casting conditions.

Started toying with the single spey and by the end of the day it had solved my inability to reach the holding area.

It's definitely a very powerful cast and very efficient!

I'm not sure if this is taboo but I was actually using a Rio Skagit line to do this. Is this a faux-pas to use a 'touch and go' technique with a down and dirty skagit line? Not sure...but it worked for me.

Can't wait to try the single spey casting with a more appropriate line (CND GPS).

Landed 2 steelhead on the speyrod...best outing ever for me.

Preston

 

[speyman]

My experience exactly

I do find that once a fisher decides to put in some dedicated time they learn the Single easily enough and once learned it beomes the cast they use the most. What amazes me is how many people have been casting and fishing for years who had a problem experience with it and will just not go back to it.

I confess, it was a bear for me to learn. I would do anything rather than the single. Now a hurricane has to be blowing downstream to make me stop.

 

[Norwegian]

Try a scandinavian setup to learn!

I am pretty sure that if you guys tried a Scandinavian shooting head, maybe in the somewhat heavier weights, you would find that the single spey is easier to learn than on a long belly spey line.

Single speys is about everything people use on this side... I am often arguing that many Scandinavians would benefit from a bigger casting repertior, but must admit that if you can do a good single spey over both shoulders you are pretty good covered unless a hard downstream wind...

(And then, after you learned the SS with a shooting head - you can take the movements and prolong them somewhat and get your old lines going again...)

 

[cnaka]

I'm not sure if this is taboo but I was actually using a Rio Skagit line to do this. Is this a faux-pas to use a 'touch and go' technique with a down and dirty skagit line? Not sure...but it worked for me.
Preston

I use the single spey alot with the Skagit line with tips in winter for short casts or when I'm fishing up close against a high bank or brush. In those cases, I'm usually fishing on the side the pluggers or side drifters work and the fish are close against the bank. In summer with a dry line... Is there another cast?

 

[Willie Gunn]

I am pretty sure that if you guys tried a Scandinavian shooting head, maybe in the somewhat heavier weights, you would find that the single spey is easier to learn than on a long belly spey line.

Yes they would learn a rudimentry single spey type cast BUT they would fail to advance from this position. Casting a short heavy head is very like casting a Toby or Koster. Any old lift will do, a splashy untidy anchor makes no difference, then just load up and fast stiff rod and blast it out. Effective yes, single spey? Eh I'm not so sure.

 

[Norwegian]

True scholars of "spey" casts are interested in all three main styles of wateranchored casts.... :tsk_tsk:

Speyman started this thread by asking on tips for how to ease learning the SS. A major reason why people struggle with the SS is timing. If Willie Gunn means timing is not critical to Scandinavian shooting head Single Speys, I would say he hasnt tried...

My suggestion was to try to learn this critical timing with a scandi SH system. Then, when you master this you can move on to the longbelly speylines. I think it is not very difficult to change the body- and arm movements when you figured out the timing issue, that in my opinion is not very different between the two styles... There are sure also other ways to improve basic technique in SS, but I just wanted to suggest this as one way to ease the startup learning of a SS.

I have to go out and do some casting in this fine mild November day - partly with my "Toby" and partly with my 95' Carron....