Properties of a good rod

[dudley]

This past winter,I recommended to a member here that they not purchase a popular/inexpensive rod. I was politely told by a number of other members that I didn't know what I was talking about. I vowed to give this rod an other chance. I even bought a new(used) line for it thinking that a DT might work better than a WF.
I have fly fished for a long time but I don't consider my self an expert on fly fishing, fly casting, fly rods, or anything else(except maybe cheap beer).But I'm pretty sure this rod is a P.O.S.
As I was sitting in my canoe yesterday trying to make this rod fuction I thought about what I like about my rods that I consider good.
For me it all boils down to false casting.
With my favorate trout rod I can pick up the line, make a single haul on the back cast, and shoot the cast where I want it to go.
With other rods that I enjoy fishing, if I make more than 2 or 3 false casts, I've done some thing wrong. This goes for cane,glass, and plastic. Slow, medium, and fast. 4 to 10 weight.
On my inferior rods(like the one in question) there is a lot of false casting just to get line taper out and then it still may collapse as if there was too much slack.

Just my layman's opinion

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"Nick's heart tightened as the trout moved. He felt all the old feeling" ...Ernest Hemingway




[This message has been edited by dudley (edited 12 August 2005).]

[GrsdLnr]

Every rod that I have kept (as opposed to bought) has had that "feel" that you describe. From the first cast, they were just right. I would be hard-pressed to describe that "feel" objectively, except to say that an certain effortless level of accuracy is a factor. Oddly enough, they're all from different mfr's, and some are high-modulus graphite, some are low-modulus, some are bamboo and one is fiberglass.

While a great caster can make a broomstick work, the rest of us just hope to find rods that suit our idiosyncrasies.

[nowindknots]

I'm certainly not an expert caster. But excepting one older and really long, overly heavy fiberglass, I've never met a rod I actually disliked. I've found that by tuning myself into the rod's capabilities and what it wants to do, I can extract enjoyment and success from just about any fly rod. Even the lowly POS's. Just my $0.02

Jim

[Gandalf]

Just out of curiosity, did you stick to the recommended line wt? Maybe try a different weight?

I seem to recall reading here where someone tried that with a rod they bought or built and it helped a lot.

Then again, just might not be the rod for you.

Paul

[Marco]

What nowindknots said!

Mark
PS: Very telling post below regardin suiting your needs. I assure you, if situation is as nowindknots states, they then meet ALL my needs.
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I'd rather be in Wyoming!




[This message has been edited by Marco (edited 12 August 2005).]

[Jackster]

I know what you mean, dudley!
I've cast rods that I couldn't wait to give back to the owner or shop keeper or couldn't wait to sell.
Sure you can make a dead twig cast a line but, c'mon, how much 'joy' is that? There is a lot to be said for action, weight and even cosmetics.
I have gotten some true dawgs of rods to work better by fiddling around with different line types but sometimes a dawg is just a dawg and no amount of kicking it will change that!
There is no shame in finding out a rod does not fit your needs or expectations exactly and absolutely no reason to live with it. Between ebay and sites like this that rod will likely easily find a new home and you can go out and get a rod that better suits your needs.

I can make shoes that don't fit work too, I'm just glad I don't HAVE to!

[This message has been edited by Jackster (edited 12 August 2005).]

[dudley]

Gandalf,
Yes I have tried other line weights on this rod as I have on most of my other rods.

I have 25-30 fly rods. Most of which are old, beat-up or cheap. Tomato stake stuff. I try to fish them all at least once a year(or else why keep them). Out of the bunch it's only two or three that I feel are realy poor casting tools.
This is one.

[ohiotuber]

I'm with nowindknots & Marco.
Mike

[fcch]

imho, ... the properties of a good rod is the sum of it's charateristics that come together so, ... as mentionned ... it'll do what I want effortlessly.

That is to say, ... the fly goes where I want/need it to, and I don't have to "think" about casting ... the line/leader/fly just do it!

I've cast many rods that didn't "appeal" to me. In hindsight, ... 90% of these rods were very stiff (or underlined, by accident).

The most "unpleasant" casting (again, imho) happens when I ask as rod to do something it wasn't suited for.

On a typical day on the river, the three of us will usually have 5-7 rods strung up for small dries, big dries, wets and streamers.

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Christopher Chin, Jonquiere Quebec
[url=http://pages.videotron.com/fcch/:e7f95]http://pages.videotron.com/fcch/[/url:e7f95]




[This message has been edited by fcch (edited 13 August 2005).]

[Ray]

I like a rod that's well balanced and feels light in the hand. I like to feel the line in the air, and be able to haul even with a little line out. I don't like to feel the rod flex in the grip, I also prefer a smooth transition of power. I hate a "Hingy" rod that the action is not true.