Sage rod or??
Hope I don't come across as "snobbish" but all my rods are Sage. I really like the way the SP's and SLT's feel and cast. I am in the market for a 6 wt. 3-5 pc. 9' or so rod. What other high quality rod manufacturers have a rod that may be similar to the Sage. There is not alot of choice near me. The closest fly shop is 1-1/2 hours and he is a Sage dealer. About 5 years ago I played with a Hexagraph for a couple of hours and really liked it. Any ideas?
Thanks, Sundance
Winston BIIx.
Check out Scott. I was hoping (and still am)to get an SLT. After realizing that it may be awhile before I could spend close to $600 on a rod, I looked at options. I found a nice Scott A2 for a good price used and I am thrilled with it! Of course, if money is no object, you can't do much better than Sage (I have fished a DS2 for some time and am very happy with it), but there are definately options out there for high quality rods. Scott is one of them!
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"Dad can we go fishing?"
"Yes. Of course we can."
Say yes, always say yes.
[This message has been edited by SteelieD (edited 26 April 2005).]
Sundance,
Jackster was right on the money. Take it from a die-hard Sage fan, and a hopeless SP fanatic, the Winston BIIx 6 weight casts better than both the 6 weight SP, and SLT. I find it smoother, and more progressive all the way down the blank. The Sages have some dead spots from the taper they use.
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Jude
Small flies work best. Elephants eat peanuts.
www.customflys.com
On the other hand, JC and I both cast the
Winston BIIx 6 weight at the request of Joan Wulff. Joan was looking for a rod she could fish for Atlantic salmon - an 8 wt was too heavy and she wanted something more like the Gatti 'feel.' The BIIx is considerably heavier than a Gatti of the same weight and without the smoothness. We were both very disappointed.
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LadyFisher, Publisher of
FAOL
The Gatti website lists their 6 weights as weighing between 3.1 ounces and 3.4 ounces. They only list 2 and 3 piece rods.
The Winston 4 piece 9' 6 weight weighs only 2.75 ounces.
I guess I don't understand.
I had a friend try one of my BIIx's and proceed to just wail it. The rod rejected his efforts. When he slowed the stroke down and let the rod talk to him he ended up buying one.
Then there are warranty considerations...
Went through the same process last year only in a 5 wt. Got to cast the B2X and SLT side by side, on the water, while actually fishing. The SLT had more feel or feed back than the B2X. I could feel nymphs (shot) ticking the bottom better with the SLT and also could feel the rod flex more while casting. Inside of 50' line speed was similar. Beyond 50' the B2X had the edge, but I don't usually fish over 50' so I ended up with the SLT. The B2X was a very good rod, the SLT just fit me better. They were close so at that price you really need to try them side by side, sure it's a long drive but you also don't wnat to end up with a $600 rod you don't like.
Also I looked for cheaper alternatives and couldn't find one for me. I ended up building the SLT (with Burl madrone reelseat and snake brand guides) for about $400.
Good luck.
Might give the new Scott E2 series a try, or the Loomis Metolius series. [url=http://www.thefullcreel.com:893c2]www.thefullcreel.com[/url:893c2] does a 14-day "test drive" program so you could give the loomis a try before you're fully committed.
Stick with Sage and grab the Xi2.
Like I said to mfielder. I won't tell your wife.
I have a Gatti 9' 5wt FRHP, the rod weighs less then 2 ounces, I can't believe the 6wt weighs much more. I couldn't find any weights on their website.
The man who coined the phrase "Money can't buy happiness", never bought himself a good fly rod!
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