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I've got the bug to build a new rod, and I'm considering a 6'6" 2wt since I have nothing less than a 4wt now, but I'm wondering just how practical it would be. I'm interested in hearing the pros and cons of a light weight rod, beyond how useful it would be in small mountain streams. Any input for me to consider?
Lots of threads on light rods in the archives, with lots of arguments, heated discussion, etc. Personally, I enjoy using light rods in many situations. Including catching big fish. The shortness is not my preference, though. I had a 6'6" 2 for a couple years, and had a ball with it. But man you had to whip it to get line speed up.
DG
Some folks love um. I can leave um. While I own 1 and 2 wt rods they are a poor choice if wind is a problem or if you choose to throw a bit of weight or make a long (40+') cast.
Other wise catching fish with one begs the question "who has who?"
I guess it depends on what you use it for. I have a 2 wt. that I use for blue gill and I love it!
I love my Winston LT Two Weight. I use it for dry fly fishing small flys on small free stone and spring creek trout streams. It puts a dry fly on the water with more finesse than the heavier rods and is much more forgiving on very light tippets usually required by such waters.
Get one! Your going love it if you fish these smaller waters. :D
Max
Go for it!!
I have a 6' 3wt. that's just "WAYYY" too heavy. I love the little rod, but wish it was a little lighter. However, it is an absolute blast to cast and fish that little stick.
Ya' either love little sticks or ya' don't... & there's only one way to find out.
VERY! And twice the fun.
I had a LM grab a panfish fly 2 seasons ago and when I realeased her she was 6 1/2 lbs....on a 1wt Sage SPL!! Wasn't intentional but it turned into the best fight of my life...to include a few muskies on heavier gear.
You'll have a blast! 1-3wts are wonderful panfish tools.
Jeremy.
I like mine, and for some kinds of fishing, nothing could be more practical. I have a 6'6 2wt that is just great for some of the summer fishing I do around here - it gets a lot of use. It's really a matter of personal preference.
I have a 3wt 7'6" superfine by orvis. I beleive it weighs in at .5 OZ. I throw it all day and love the sucker. I have used it on many streams and and rivers from the Delaware, Beverkill, Battenkill, Farmington, and tons of no names, to ponds and lakes and never had a problem casting to get to fish. It is very soft but still has enough to punch out a roll cast when I need it. Sans wind I can reach a little more than 50' out with a long leader and a double taper. With wind I either wade closer or wait to cast inbetween gusts. I can honestly say I have never wished it was heavier, faster, or longer while fishing. I don't know if I would like something lighter, but I have never tried either. This is one of 2 rods I still have in my possetion and the other is a 9 wt for salmon, steelhead, and saltwater. I'd like a few others to fill in the gap, but again have never actually needed them. It is only a want. So an extra rod in a 2 wt. You may just build yourself a new love. Goodluck with it.
Dave;
I have a Forecast 4 pc 6.5' 2 wt that is a hoot to fish! Caught 8 trout, 2 Blue Gills and a Black Perch on the Duck River last Sunday. The wind was a little stiff and it was sort of like taking marshmellows to a rock throwing contest but the furled leader helped turn over the large nymphs we were using.
It is a kit from H&H which can be ready to fish in a couple of days
Just do it!! You'll have fun!!
I'll add this....It's well worth it to put forth the money for a sage quiet taper line for 3 wt's on down, Very well oriented line designs for the light weights...and max's your casting proformance...used to use heavier line from other companies, trying to get what these lines, actually deliver...just a humble opinion though.
I love my little 6'6 2wt. If I concerned myself with how "practical" a purchase is, I would still be fishing with a cheap spinning rod and live bait. THAT'S the only true practical fishing, the rest of what we do is just plain fun! :lol:
Joe
PA DAVE,
Very practical, especially if you want to fish all day and go home with energy reserves.
Here's a good site for excellent information on the subject: http://www.byrdultrafly.com/
If it's an IM6 you're building, you can overline it 2 sizes for wind with no problem. A buddy built a Cabela's Stowaway 8'6" 3wt. for me
two years ago. He dropped the butt section which made it 6' 10". Yesterday I was casting an Orvis Wonderline WF6F and it was alive!
That was just an experiment, I cast a Wulff TT WF5F as a rule.
Try it, you'll like it!!!!
Jim
I originally thought a 2 wt was a joke to try to fish. Too light to do any good, don't breathe too hard you won't be able to cast etc. But then I thought with the small Bluegill in our local park lakes it might be fun - if the wind isn't blowing.
So I built a 6' 6" 2 wt kit from Hook & Hackle. I was quite surprised. It really cast well and is a real pleasure to fish. It's now one of my favorite rods! I built more to give to my friends - they love it too.
Good reading on light rods and what can be done with them. I've talked with Bill on the phone quite a bit, and he'll have you thinking a 3wt is heavy and you should go lighter.
http://www.byrdultrafly.com/ultramain.htm
If you'll be fishing it on small mountain streams, you won't have much need for distance casts. Even windy conditions aren't the killer they are on bigger waters. I built a 6'6"2# from Hook and Hackle for myself then turned around and built 4 more after friends tried it out, loved it, and wanted one!! Always in my quiver when fishing!
Practical? You betcha!!
practical |?praktik?l| adjective 1 of or concerned with the actual doing or use of something rather than with theory and ideas : there are two obvious practical applications of the research. ? (of an idea, plan, or method) likely to succeed or be effective in real circumstances; feasible : neither of these strategies is practical for smaller businesses. ? suitable for a particular purpose : a practical, stylish kitchen.
A stylish kitchen to cook the brookies that don't come from ugly places? :D
Well ... yaaahhhaa! <said with the dialectical materialism of a So Cal girl, flipping hair back over her shoulder!>
Two Pros for "flea rods:"
1. Excellent for delicate presentations.
2. Great fun with small fish.
One Con for "flea rods:"
1. It prolongs the ordeal of landing large fish and requires "playing the fish to exhaustion." As I found it in another source:
"Fighting Your Catch
"Today's fishing gear is a marvel of technological achievement; graphite rods and ultra-thin monofilament line have the strength and resilience of old-fashioned equipment twice their size. These days, battling a five pound bass on lightweight tackle isn't only possible - it's a breeze! But consider the ramifications; biologists have found that "playing out" a game fish to the point of exhaustion often proves fatal to the fish. Even though the fish may swim away upon release, it's weakened to the point that it may become prey to other fish or prone to disease. On the other hand, studies show that survival rates of fish released with some spark of life left in them are excellent. Knowledgeable, release-minded anglers, therefore, match their tackle to the task: that is, they use heavy enough equipment to play the fish quickly and efficiently, and, in turn, are able to release their catch in better shape.
"When fighting your catch, keep constant pressure on the fish. Pump up with the rod, reel down and pump again. Don't just reel and reel. Let the drag do its job as the fish makes a run. Set your drag to slip just a bit on a good run, but stay light enough to turn the fish when you need to. Play him, but control him! Get the fish up and unhooked and back into the water as quickly as possible."
There is a great deal of romance in light tackle angling going back at least 50-60 years. (It would have been a fly rod for IFI (IFG wf) line back then.) Therefore, given the tradition, it is no surprise that folks still brag about whipping large fish on 0-4 wt. rods and fine (2#) 7x tippets. The equivalent mystique exists in other UL fishing also. However, I ask an even older question,"Cui bono?" I think the time is past when we can allow ourselves to play a fish the way a cat plays with a mouse. With the existing levels of fishing pressure on our waters, there are no more spare fish to fill the gap when an overplayed fish perishes.
So IMHO use the little rods for the little fish for which they were designed. Otherwise,"use heavy enough equipment to play the fish quickly and efficiently.'
What he said!
I love the lightweight for small fish in small streams, and for pond bluegills. It's also a good rod to teach little ones with on the bluegill pond. I also keep an eye on the season as early season and late season on my favorite spring creek has some BIG surprises, so I leave the two weight home when there is a chance that a migratory lunker might be in the creeks. I did get one last year as they moved in earlier than I had expected, and I had already made the decision to break off the fight within in a couple of minutes if I couldn't get it in. Lucky for me, there was no room for the fish to run because of low water so it was in the net in less than three minutes. (steelhead). One other time I landed a big large mouth bass on it but I had to put the rod down and hand line it to land it. It had taken a swipe at a bluegill that just hooked up and it got hooked on the fly.
I have a 7'6 3 wt. and wish I owned a lighter one. The only time I ever grab the five weight for trout anymore is when I chuck the big stuff. Not to mention I take it to the river for smallies. It makes all the little dinkers a good fight, and even landed an 18 incher last year, now that was a fight. Just build it, once you use it, you wont look back...
Well now I'm itchin' to get started. I'm going to build on a Matrix blank and use an all cork grip with slip rings instead of a reel seat. My 4wt is built that way, and I don't regret it at all. Thanks for all the feedback! I have a favorite local stream that is always a bluegill bonanza, and this will suit perfectly.
Why dont you tell us what rivers you fish, how big they are, and how big the fish are. I know some streams where 15 feet across is considered wide, and a 10 inch brookie is a monster. Such a stream would be perfect for a 2 weight. I have fished streams where a 10 pound fish is considered a baby and a 10 inch fish is a monster....it all depends
Well, I mostly fish for smallies in the Susquehanna river, which I use a 6wt or 8wt for. It's a big river with lots of wind and one or two nice fish. I also fish an smaller river that shall go unnamed, same rods. There are a number of small small streams that I love to fish, some as narrow as 5ft in spots, where my 7' 4wt seems like a phone pole.
I'm still contemplating a 10wt for the salt, although I only spend about a week on the shore per year. That will be the next project after this one.
I fish it, It being the Sussy, For smallies with 3's, 4's and a 6..I always have more than one rod in my car...I'm always worried of a rod failure..Though it's only taken place , Once in my flyfishing life. My point being..Never miss the oppertunity to atleast try a new or different setup...for any fishing..It's all fun!!!..Ok, I, as a few others do, Find the lighter rods a bit more so..!
When doing any fishing anywhere...I like to keep something Mr.A.K.Best. once said casually in a tying video.In my thought's..That if you find yourself having to cast more than thirty feet, That you should move up a bit...That just has always stuck in my thick head....and I'm glad it has..it's improved my fishing!.
My first two weight, a Scott G Series (882-3), was a rod I loved so much that I turned it into a personalized license plate (9FT2WT). It was great for small and medium stream fishing, and would even throw a double nymph rig, though not in high wind. My second, a 6'6" Orvis Superfine, just did not fit my casting stroke, I guess. I could never make it work for me and it now sits in the corner, unfished. Last fall, I bought a Sage XP 862, which I've only lawn casted. It has a much different action than the other two, but should be interesting to fish.
That said, I'm a fan of shorter, lighter rods, especially for the tight little streams I often fish here in the Texas Hill Country. They're a great counterpoint to the fast action cannons I use down on the Texas Gulf Coast.
That makes no sense. The Scott was an 8'8" rod.Quote:
Originally Posted by mickmcco
Got a Sage 2wt, and it's a blast. It's become my primary rod. Only wind makes me trade up to my 4wt. And the 6wt comes out when it starts to get dark.
I picked up a Batson RX8 2 weight blank on clearance by kind of a fluke at one point. I wasn't really looking to get one, but the price was outrageously low ($15) and I decided to try it out for fun as a bluegill rod. I built it up with a lace sheoak seat/butt and kept everything fairly light. I added a cheap but exceedingly light (2.5 oz) crystal river cahill reel. I have less than $100 in the rod, reel and line, but it has become one of my favorite rigs that I have. The cahill has a disc drag that is surprisingly effective and it really is a great setup. Truly a joy to cast.
BTW, some of you have heard the story of the temporary tussle I had with that rod with a carp on the opening day of trout season. I can't recommend the 2 weights enough. I'm even considering going to one of the Dan Craft 1 weights or one of Schneiders 10' 1 or 2 weights at some point. The only down side to my 6'6" is trying to make it work in windy conditions or stretching a cast out. The longer rods might fix some of that. In any case, do it.
I have a 6/ 6" 1 wt that I built. It is not practicle to use in very windy conditions. but I do love to catch panfish on it when the wind is not as high. I built at 10 ' 6 " 3 wt that is harder to use than the 1 wt.
The longer rod takes so much more line out to get it to load to make a decent cast.
When pond fishing her I don't make many cast over about 35 feet. I find the 3 wt needs to have about 30 feet of line out to work. That may be due to my casting inability.
Rick
Great photo, Gramps! Oh yes, I have a few streams like that or smaller in mind.
Gramps, I 'll cast another vote for "Great Picture". Thanks.
Ed
Catching any fish over 14" is a hell of a fight.
I used to be a huge advocate of 2wt rods and how much fun they are........and this is true. When I started building and playing with glass rods it changed my outlook on things completely. What I wanted from the 2wt rods was to give the fish a chance to show his stuff and make it a more even fight (read more fun). However, I can get that from fishing a glass 4wt since they will bend into a full C with even a 6" gill, but the 4wt line enables me to cast a wider range of flies.
I just sold my Forecast 2pc 2wt since I used to fish it with a 4wt line anyway. I just built a Lamiglass 7.5' 4wt that is going to replace the old "2wt" in my quiver.
Either way, you would not be dissapointed going for a 2wt rod as your fishing pleasure for the average fish that most of us catch will sky rocket. Give it a go!
Lou
Pete...another thumbs-up for your shot!! Looks like my kind of trout water. What a cool shot and ...a really nice fish!Quote:
Originally Posted by Gramps
When I'm not using my 2wt, it's either cane or my 1wt! Three wts are for heavy fishing...(but my canes are 4's)
Great picture Gramps.
Jeremy.
I own one 2wt and if I had another chance to buy one for the fishing I do I would pass.
Mine is a 7'9" Winston LT-5 2wt and while it can be fun; it also has it's limitations. I use it on medium sized creeks when I know the biggest fly I'll be fishing is a size 16. While I know folks fish bigger stuff on 2wts and even 1wts; I just find that my 3wt & 4wt rods do a better job. I also think all of the arguments in favor of light weight outfits for more delicate and effective presentation are more about angler skill and casting ability than tackle. I effectively fish even the tinniest of flies on everything from a 2 weight to a 6 weight.
But hey; if you like them and they work for you; that's great! :D
One thing I can tell you from my experience is that for short rods from 5'0" to a 6'6"; when your intention is to fish on REALLY small brushy creeks; you may find that the very light tip of a 2wt line combined with a short leader and short cast; can make getting even a small fly out there a real pain in the butt. Yea I know you can over-line for these situations but why buy a 2wt when you plan on fishing it with a 3wt?
For my frequent VERY small stream adventures; I prefer a 3 weight or 4 weight for that reason. Streams like the photo Gramps posted are NOT what I mean by a VERY small stream. Gramps "2wt Water" IS a perfect place for a 2wt because you can make a backcast; but that isn't a 6'0" rod either. That creek is HUGE compared to places like this that I fish all the time:
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b1...herGlideII.jpg
As far as the little fish feeling huge factor; all I can say is try fiberglass if your budget won't allow bamboo. My main REALLY small stream arsenal is 90% fiberglass in 3-4 weights and the flex on a dink is awesome!
I've built three of these Forecast 6'-6" 2wt's from H&H. Two were the 2-piece rods and one was a 4-piece. After casting each of them with the same line, I can say that the 4-piece is defenitely a stiffer rod, and has no problem throwing line into a moderate wind of 10-15 mph. The 2-piece is just a bit softer, and cannot punch into the wind very well. The 2-piece works great with a 3wt line (I don't own a 2wt line), and the 4-piece can handle 4wt line w/o any problems, getting beyond 55' if needed.Quote:
Originally Posted by Betty Hiner
For these blanks I guess I have debunked the theory some hold that ALL rods of the same weight & length (by the same manufacturer) will perform equally under the same conditions. For me and my money, I'll take a 4-piece over a 2-piece every day, just to have the added versatility if conditions change.
Just my 2 cents.
Joe
I wish I had made this post....thanks BamQuote:
Originally Posted by Bamboozle