I?m terrible at casting. When I try to shoot line out, instead it?s just falls to the ground. I?ve watched a ton of videos but still no good. Any ideas or advice?
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I?m terrible at casting. When I try to shoot line out, instead it?s just falls to the ground. I?ve watched a ton of videos but still no good. Any ideas or advice?
DWM.
Videos shmideos, you can watch a million of them . Fly casting is not the rocket science some of us would like to take credit for mastering. Your best bet is to take a lesson . As for myself, after wrapping the fly line around my neck a few times, it became clear as to the timing needed to avoid that scenario. Our founder, JC, aka "Himself" suggested to practice with a broomstick and 15 foot string. If you learn to lay THAT out in a straight flat line in front of you, you can cast anything.
It's THAT simple.
Mark
PS: Could also be your rod is too limp to whip your heavy line forward.
Not knowing anything about how you cast, I am going to guess you are releasing the line before you come to the stop at the end of the forward cast.
I was so bad, JC gave me a lesson (in front of the whole group) at the 1st Michigan Fish-In in 2006. I'm still not great, but FAR better than I was before that lesson.
I can still feel him standing by me & hear him saying, "stop", "go", & "stop" again, but the one, SINGLE thing he said was "Keepeth thy backcast uppeth!". If it feels too early in the backcast to stop, it's the RIGHT time.
That man was my mentor, fly fishing idol, & good friend......Thanks Jim!
Mike
ps: Welcome to FAOL & whereabouts in that beautiful State of West Virginia are you?
DWM,
The problem could be: On your forward cast you have to stop the rod which allows the loaded rod to release its build up power, which shoots the line forward. That is when you release your extra line, after the stop and the line has already mostly gone forward, then you release the extra line. Any sooner and you kill the power the line has built up. Give it a try.
Larry ---sagefisher---
Just an FYI, our founder is the Ladyfisher. JC was her husband.Quote:
Originally Posted by Marco
Have you learned to double haul? You may just not be developing enough line speed to shoot more line. You gain line speed in one of three ways:
1 you increase the forward acceleration of the rod tip
2 you make a more abrupt stop to more efficiently transfer that momentum
3 you haul on the line at the start of the back cast and the forward cast which is a way to load the rod further and increase line speed.
You may also be wasting power by not keeping the rod tip on a plane. If it is sweeping through an arc you waste a lot of energy with an open loop.
If none of the suggestions you have gotten here help you can try getting someone to make a video of you casting and post a link here. Have them stand on your rod hand side while you cast so we can see the full casting motion. Try to get your whole body and the entire rod in the video.
What rainbowchaser said. It's almost all about line speed, and the double haul is the best way to get it.
I had a great deal of difficulty learning how to double haul, particularly on the forward cast. Before you start the forward cast, keep your line hand quite close to your rod hand at the grip and as you start the forward cast pull down forcefully with the line hand.
I suggest that you learn the double haul without trying to shoot line, and when you get it down right you will be surprised at how easy it is to shoot line. In fact, with a good double haul you may be able to carry enough line that you don't even have to shoot more.
There are some good videos on YouTube on the double haul. Probably better, and definitely less expensive and more rewarding, than taking a lesson.
Good luck.
John
I haven’t been able to figure out the double haul yet either. Any advice on that? Also, my rod is 7 foot 6 inch 3 weight. Would a longer rod or a heavier weight be easier to cast?
Go to the main page and in the left column menu under "features" click on James Castwell. There you will find lots of instructional articles on casting that should help you.
http://www.flyanglersonline.com/
Start with a single haul. Grasp the line near the rod with your off hand. There should be little or no slack between the rod and your hand. Wrap four fingers around the line with the back of your hand facing away from you. As you start your forward cast twist your wrist rapidly so the back of your hand ends up on top or on the bottom depending on which seems more natural to you. This will increase line speed and pull slack out of the line if your timing is off. Practice this for a few days and then look at videos on the double haul only when you're sure you have mastered the basic cast. Look behind you and see if your backcast is opening up correctly; is fully opened up into a straight line, preferably parallel to the ground. Start the forward cast immediately when the backcast is fully opened. Remember your rod is designed to work with thirty feet of line plus the leader out of the tip. Less than that won't load the rod. More than that calls for more experience to cast. Practice casting that line and when you're comfortable with doing so just have some extra line in your hand you can release as the fly reaches the end of the cast. If you have accelerated the rod tip rapidly enough and made a sudden stop with the single haul it should shoot some line. Your rod is not one designed for distance fishing as it casts a light line (less momentum to drag out more line) and is shorter than many which reduces tip speed (shorter lever) but you should still be able to shoot line with it.
DWM.
A 3# wt rod is NOT one with which you should expect to " shoot out" 50' of line. ( with certain exceptions). Apparently "they" missed my "limp rod" comment. Double haul all you can muster, if the rod can't take it, the line will wrap around your neck.
Mark
DWM,
The answer to your last question, is an obvious YESSSSS.
DWM,
YES!
Mark
I had a couple additional thoughts which might be of help to you or anyone else interested in the subject of your thread.
First, on the question of shooting line versus just casting longer using a double haul, I know that I loose some accuracy when shooting line. I much prefer to make a longer cast holding more line in the air while double hauling. Others may have different experiences they would like to share.
Second, I was going to suggest underlining your rod which may help you increase the line speed - before you mentioned that you are using a 3 wt rod. For longer casting, either just double hauling or shooting line, my preferred rig is a TFO BVK 9' for 5wt underlined with a WF4F line. Some people on the BB in the past have suggested that the BVK is too fast and overline it, but I doubt that helps them make longer casts.
The 3 wt will shoot some line, with or without a double haul. But it won't be the easiest rod to learn with, especially if it is on the slow side.
I did run across a couple Orvis videos on YouTube this morning, one on long distance casting shooting line without a double haul and one on double hauling. I wish I had seen these way back when when I was struggling to develop a decent double haul - being a visual type, these videos certainly would have gotten me where I wanted to be more quickly. Both videos are fairly short and are well worth the nominal investment of time.
One last thought. For a year or so, I had a spey rod - 14' for 8/9 ( spey line ). Just learning stuff about spey casting, especially investing a good amount of time in Simone Gawesworth's book and videos really helped my understanding and the practice of casting even single hand rods. The spey rod didn't work for the fishing I was doing so I gave it up - but the work I put into it was a real benefit and worth the effort. Simone's videos on YouTube are usually fairly long, but he one of the best in world and quite the entertaining personality on top of it.
John
A suggestion: learn the roll cast and learn it well............I think its the most important cast to perfect. Best wishes
I would suggest you following the advice offered by Tigfly and Sagefisher before you attempt the double haul. The double haul is certainly worth while, but a little more difficult to master. The most important things for me, to shoot more line, is to properly load the rod from back cast to forward cast and let go of the line when the forward cast is stopped properly. Of course, as mentioned, lessons with a qualified instructor is the ideal solution. Welcome aboard!
DWM,
"Easier" and "distance" are relative terms in casting. No matter the # or size rod, without the application of casting basics (4 of'em-STOP the rod, NO slack, etc.), you will struggle for "ease and distance".
....lee s.
Yes to both.Quote:
Originally Posted by DWM
You won't be able to shoot line until you can make a cast in which the line bounces back towards you at the end of the cast. Hold on the line with your on rod hand at the end of the cast. That bounce back is caused by excess energy and momentum.
Then you can release the line by forming an "O ring" with your line hand as described below.
http://www.garyborger.com/2011/04/06/o-ring-line-control/
Right on point !Quote:
Originally Posted by rainbowchaser