Casting

[Steve Molcsan]

I revived an old thread on adding distance I could of used that one
but I want the old guys to see JC response its nice to read his words. RIP Jim!

I was out on the lawn today and got all jazzed up so
with nothing else to do this fine evening I thought I would add my thoughts for the
beginners to the sport.

✓ Distance is not what one should strive for
when your beginning to learn to cast..

✓ Developing good form through muscle memory is
what you want to strive for.

All the guidance I offer below is to start , once these
are mastered , modifications like changing grip , incorporating some wrist movement
rod drift ect, can and will be necessary to advance the fun and develop your own style
like riding a bike you can let go of the handlebars just not at first..


Let me try to explain :


1. Grip / hold the rod with your thumb on top your fingernail
should point toward the rod tip , or in practice
a pencil or just the top half of your rod.
The hold should be light not a tight grip. Like holding a kitten
Re;ax your arm muscles , using a pencil or 1/2 rod to mimic the stroke
as I describe below,
Keep your wrist and foreman firm and in line with the rod
your arm should be close to your body remember - do not bend the wrist at all.


2. The rod stroke is a deliberate push pull motion your hand must travel
along a horizontal path through the front and rear casting strokes.
Many reckon it to an igloo vs a flat ceiling. The rod should
follow the path of a flat ceiling.
Without a rod raise your arm close to your body , push / pull your arm in a
straight horizontal path.
Develop muscle memory doing this it won't take long..


2a. with the Abrupt Stop
at my desk I can develop the correct grip and path as well as the
abrupt stop that is needed at the rear and front stroke
of the cast. Its like flipping paint off a paint brush. Its
a feel that you want to learn well, get a brush and flick water
it will help to develop the feel..
Develop a feel for the sudden stop of the rod.


3. Practice away from the water , be sure to pre stretch the line as
you don't want any loops from being wound on the reel.
Tie on a short stout leader at 3 to 5 feet at most with a tuff or hi vis
yarn on the end.
Now play out about 15 maybe 18 feet of line. lay it out straight
in front of you,
The line must extend out far enough so the belly of the line
is out the rod tip,, I am using DT line for this discussion.
Any line will work as long as you get the weight of the line body
out past the tip.


Now with the line out straight in front of you and the correct rod
grip, drop the rod tip low in fact touch the lawn, slowly
start to pickup the line, as soon as the yarn starts to move
pull the rod tip back to about the 1 o'clock position and do an
abrupt stop, wait for the yarn tuff to extend out completely
behind, the abrupt stop is critical as it lets the rod release
energy developed during the rear stroke. Make it a point to
watch the line extend to your rear.
The fly / yarn tuff needs to start to move first, before
the pickup and cast is started.


Let the line fall to the the ground at the rear,, practice this a few times
Get the timing down for the pickup and abrupt rear stop
use a push pull motion, often it even better to not use a line
and pretend , I like to get the sun just in the right spot
and watch my shadow. A clean pickup timed right and
keeping the horizontal plane to an abrupt stop is key.
Remember do not form an arc with the rod, practice
drawing that horizontal between about 10 and 2 with the
rod before you put the line on.


Now with line do it again this time after the abrupt rear
stop and the leader/yarn fully extends behind and before it starts
to fall, begin the forward stroke to about the 11 o'clock
position with another abrupt stop, this time add a slight
pressure to the cork with your thumb and forefinger
and lower the tip of the rod to the water. The line should
form a nice loop then unroll to the ground,
I keep doing this until the entire line extends straight out
in front of me.
On the rear stroke the line should form a nice loop
that is the point to start the forward cast.
Do it with the smallest amount of line possible to start
you will be able to see that loop better behind so to time
the forward stroke. Timing is key, I use a rhythm count
3, 2,1 start the forward stroke It takes a few seconds for
the line to form to the rear , don't rush your stroke if is falls
to the rear so be it try again.


This practice is know as the pickup and lay down cast.
Doing this several times with a short amount of line out will help
you form the good habits that many wish they had started with.
Do a few pickup and lay down casts then start to let some line
off the reel and you can feel how the rod does the work.
The only way to get the timing right is to slow down
this is a patience game.


Some other thoughts if possible start with a light line setup ;


-Try not to tighten up let the energy of the rod do the work.


- Grip the rod with thumb on top the cork fingernail
points to the rod tip,
Hold the rod gently , relax your arm and mind.



- Pickup the line only after the yarn ( fly ) starts
to move,, don't rip it , the cast is always started off
slow. This is very important especially once
your on the water.. so make it a habit during
practice..



This is only the beginning of the casting experience
once you get the feel of the cast and develop muscle
memory , you will be on your way to forming and controlling your
loops as well as mastering various casts..


This is not rocket science , it is exactly like riding a bike
once you get it , let go of the handle bars , your on your way!

[Whitewolf]

Steve....thank you greatly for this post. I have been having trouble with my right wrist.....fly rod casting wrist. I am very seriously going to learn to fly cast with my left arm and wrist. The above information is very very beneficial to me. Since both wrists are involved in casting with two handed rods.....I wonder which side casting with a two hander would be better for my.......

Thanks again

jim

[Steve Molcsan]

Jim,

You may want to get a wrist brace the velcro type CVS has them.
with respect , there is no such thing as a casting wrist.

One thing I did not mention, to start use no wrist action at all,
your wrist and forearm should become one.
Keep all in line stiff ,but not tentioned , with your arm close to the body as you hold and preform the rod strokes.
Some advise beginners to place a book under the casting arm , I forgot to mention
to keep your arm close to your body as well..

Holding the rod with a firm wrist and forearm will do two very important things;

1. Less fatigue huge as you will enjoy longer time on the water

2. Keeps your cast from the whip action. AKA buggy whip.
this is the cause of most casting problems.

Note:

eventually you will find that incorporating some wrist as well as
different grips will work into your developed casting style.

but to begin you should start with a firm wrist. Use a brace
whatever it takes to keep the wrist from messing up the cast
because it will..
I can not state this strongly enough --> use no wrist action !

Let me end with this - fatigue during casting 99% of the time Is due to
the caster not allowing the rod to do the work it is designed for..
Practice practice practice until you can feel the rod loading and unloading
then you will know the essence of the cast..

[tedshuck]

Twenty years ago, after a week in Alaska fishing for silver salmon, I developed a nasty case of tendonitis in my right wrist. Casting an 8wt rod with sink tip line and heavily weighted flies for many hours a day was more than my wrist could take. Even moving back to my 4wt trout rig at home was a stress on it once it flared up. I learned to cast left handed, not nearly as well as I did with my right, but it kept me fishing through the fall. The inflammation settled down over the winter and I haven't had to resort to left handed fishing since.
So, switching to your left hand can keep you fishing, even if it will feel awkward. The only cure for the sore wrist is rest, so don't stress it again until it can really take it. I don't think you will have any problem with it with two-handed casting, since it does not stress the wrist in the same way.
Ted

[oldster]

Excellent new caster instructions, Steve. I can only add one thing. If at all possible, Get someone to watch you to make sure that your are doing what you think you are doing.

[Steve Molcsan]

Get someone to watch you to make sure that your are doing what you think you are doing.

I am so glad your brought that up...


Our local park is oriented east west
in full Sun and on the grass my shadow can nicely be seen
Shadow Casting is what I call it, I read it some where.


It is amazing the difference it makes to see your shadow
To plainly see line, rod and your arm in motion
is a huge advantage , especially with your timing rhythm
I pay attention to the arm and wrist , rod loading ,
abrupt stops/drift and the horizontal plane..
Your able to see exactly what the line is doing.



Make a note of what you want to look at,
Put it in your fishing vest to have it on the water..
You will forget everything on the water , that is the reason
to practice and develop casting muscle memory.


A good practice session can be 20 minutes or so and a good time.
Casting is an intuitive game that once learned is hard to undo and
so easy to love

Picking leafs out of trees is good good fun practice, I know some one here has done
it , it leads to worry free casting in the woods but I digress as normal...


Oldster thanks good catch !