Rollcasting & Rod Length

[RoyChristie]

Five foot one piece glass.
NO problem at all.
20,000 trout so far...
happy St Patrick's Day
Roy

[deathb4disco]

RoyChristie,

Good to see an Englishman on this board. I have a good friend from London. He taught me English-style float fishing.

Surprised to hear you use a five-footer. Most English/European rods tend to be LONG.

Ever fish the Test or Itchen? Or are you mainly a stillwater angler?

[Bruce Richards]

Roll cast length is directly tied to rod length. It is the length of line that hangs between the rod tip and the water that power is applied to, the more there is, the more energy can be applied to the line. This length equates to the length of the backcast on an overhead cast. The more line a caster can carry, the longer the cast, all else being equal.
Softer rods are usually an advantage also. The more a rod bends during a cast the faster the tip will be going when the loop forms, again, all else being equal. In a roll cast there is relatively little line to make the rod bend, a slower rod will bend more making the cast easier, and usually longer. Spey casters certainly know this, they use the longest rods around, and most are slow compared to single hand rods.

Of course, technique is more important than either rod length or stiffness. A good caster with a stiff 7 footer will probably roll cast farther than a beginner with a soft 9 footer.
Bruce

[deathb4disco]

Thanks for your input, Bruce. I didn't realize you posted here.

I always learn a lot from your casting columns in Fly Fish America.

You also did an instructional segment on Fly Fish TV with Kelly Galloup that was very helpful.

[Robert McMahan]

Thanks Bruce, I hope you'll come back more often. I too enjoy hearing your wisdom and insight.
Robert

[Bruce Richards]

Thanks guys! I wish I had more time to check on the various sites, life is just too busy to allow it as much as I'd like. I do enjoy casting and line discussions though and will post when I think I can be helpful, and I learn a lot too.
If there is ever a thread you think I could add to send me an e-mail, I'll weigh in if I have something to say that might be pertinent or helpful.
Bruce

Farmer Bob,

Excuse my ignorance, but what's a "double sideways roll"?

My best rod for roll casting is my Sage SPL 7'3" for a 3wt. Then again I am a terrible roll caster to begin with.

[BigCliff]

the secret to roll casting with short rods is to raise your hand. If you move your hand from shoulder height to nearly straight up you have turned a 7' lever into a 9'lever. The motion looks somewhat like what you see in the stnads at a Florida State game, but it gets the job done.

Some wrist snap is needed as well, but you'll have to figure that out on your own. I can't explain what I do there.

[Alaska Dean]

If you can watch Mel Krieger's video on fly casting, he does a great job with teaching roll casting. It certainly helped my sorry arse tremendously. I hope it's ok to mention that here....I don't sell anything.