5wt rod with 3 wt line?

[hungNtree]

I been thinking and yes I know thats dangerous. What would happen if you put a 3 wt line on a 5 wt rod? I'm to lazy to try it, I am just wondering.

thanks,
hNt

[sagefisher]

Depends on the action of the rod and/or the amount of line you have out. I suspect a very soft action 5wt rod may load up a little with a 3 wt line, as I suspect that a fast action rod would not load up unless you can get a lot of lineout. That then depends on where the running line starts on your line as compared to the heavier front portions of the line. Once you enter the running line portion of the line it won't cast well at all, the power of the rod will not transfer to the line with enough force o carry the front portion of the line. I don't know why you would want or need to put that light of a line on a heavier rod, but to each his own. It will be interesting to see what some casting experts have to say, and I am not a casting expert.

Larry ---sagefisher---

[Jack Hise]

What Larry said!


North Idaho Fly Casters

[Preston Singletary]

Many years ago I had two rods of the same make and model, and both 9-footers; one a 4-weight and the other a 7-weight. They were also kept in the same type of aluminum tubes so, of course, early one morning, I grabbed the wrong one. I was planning to fish for sea-run cutthroat and the only reels I brought were loaded with 4-weght lines and, naturally, the rod I brought along was the 7-weight. For me, the great surprise was that I was able to cast at all, albeit with considerable difficulty. It was necessary to get a lot more line into the air to even begin to load the heavier rod and required a lot more room for the back cast and much more effort and attention to keep from slapping the water behind and killing the cast. It was not an experience I would seek to duplicate.

[lee s]

What Preston said....only it was a 3wt line and a 9wt rod. "Casting" was MUCH more reliant on timing than on feel.....but the job got done.
Going the other way is FAR MORE easy. We quite often toss 7wt, 8wt, & 9wt, even 10wt, shooting heads on our 3wt & 5wt rods. Yeah, I know it "can,t" be done, but, the fish don't care and the only rods we have broken so far have been either "clousered" or miss-used some other way.....as in door stops, fan switches, or pry tools....never casting.
.....lee s.

[James Smith]

Bottom line, (pun intended) it would be a pain in the butt to cast all day. You would be doing much more of the work since the rod would probably not load very well with the 3wt line.

Jim Smith

[redietz]

Many years ago I had two rods of the same make and model, and both 9-footers; one a 4-weight and the other a 7-weight. They were also kept in the same type of aluminum tubes so, of course, early one morning, I grabbed the wrong one. I was planning to fish for sea-run cutthroat and the only reels I brought were loaded with 4-weght lines and, naturally, the rod I brought along was the 7-weight. For me, the great surprise was that I was able to cast at all, albeit with considerable difficulty. It was necessary to get a lot more line into the air to even begin to load the heavier rod and required a lot more room for the back cast and much more effort and attention to keep from slapping the water behind and killing the cast. It was not an experience I would seek to duplicate.

I've done exactly the same thing. Brought a reel with a 4 weight line when I was planning on casting weighted streamers for smallmouth on a 7 weight. It was not pleasant, but it worked and I caught a bunch of fish. It helped that I was making long casts and using the surface tension of the water to load the rod. I don't want to it again.

[tailingloop]

I been thinking and yes I know thats dangerous. What would happen if you put a 3 wt line on a 5 wt rod? I'm to lazy to try it, I am just wondering.

thanks,
hNt

Depending on the specific lines about 40 to 45 ft of a 3wt line will weigh about as much as 30ft of a 5 wt line. The 3 wt line will cast fine on a 5 wt rod as long as you have sufficient line out. Not much fun if casting in close all day unless you are just fishing using short line nymph/Euro/Czech techniques. Like others have mention I too have got to the water with the wrong reel/line for the rod I brought.

I cast 3 wt lines on 12 wt rods a couple times in demonstrations. It works but it's a chore.