Can anyone suggest a book or video to help me with my casting after years of Baseball (high school and college) my shoulder is in pretty bad shape. I have recently tried using the “Lefty Kreh method” but just does not feel right. The other problem I have is that I do not have a fly shop near me to help with this problem. When I have been casting for about an hour or hour and a half using the larger bass flies I use (I normally use a 3 or 4 wt and even have tried a 8 wt) I start feeling it pretty good and have to stop. I also have noticed that the distance I use to have is just not there when I need to reach out a good long ways. I have been trying to get in closer so that the distance is not the problem but … still like to have it. Any advice would be much welcomed
I am brand new at this, so I am pretty sure I am the worst one here to try to give advice. I have been watching scientific anglers videos, Basic Fly Casting and Advanced Fly Casting with Doug Swisher. Everything I had read had made me believe that you were not suppose to use your wrist. But in these videos Doug uses what he calls the “micro-second wrist” I am not sure if that will help your shoulder or not. You still have to use your shoulder, but the quick snap of your wrist may take some of the edge off your shoulder. If you would like to try one, just PM me your address, I’ll loan it to you. Just send it back when you are done. If I was good at this I’d let you have it, but I still watch them a couple of times a week. 
If you can give us a little more info on your gear it might help. I assume since you are tossing large bass flies we are talking some heavier lines and long rods.
Sounds to me like you may be trying too hard and not just letting the gear do the work. For what it is worth after an hour of throwing bass bugs I take a break. Do not be too tough on yourself as I think most of us would be feeling it after an hour of casting. I go for a short hike, take a few photos and then go back to fishing or take the time to drive to a new fishing location.
Oops, I see you mentioned 3, 4 and 8 weights. If I am going after bass the lightest I usually use is a 5wt. I find the best for me to be from 5-8 wt with a rod of 7’6"-9’ in length. I believe the heavier line, heavier than 3-4wt will actually help you cast further, with more accuracy and less effort. The heavier lines will more easily turn over the larger, heavier bass bugs. These bugs also have a higher aerodynamic drag.
There are also plenty of light, powerful, 8-9 foot rods out there that if rigged with a nice, lightweight reel should work well for you. One of my favorites is a Gander Mountain Pro Guide Series 9 foot rod, Redington Red.Dot 5/6 reel and a Cortland Fairplay WF6F Floating Rocket Taper line.
I have arm problems also and like to toss larger flies. #1 - An hour to an hour and a half is a LONG time to cast. Take some breaks. #2 - Make sure you are sizing your flies/hooks to your rod size. If you are trying to toss too big a fly it will wear you out sooner. #3 - Are you using a Bass Taper line. It really does help in throwing larger flies. #4 - Try double hauling and letting the hauls do the work, not the rod and your arm. I am getting to the point (unless I am really trying for long distance) where I am using only my arm from the elbow down. My shoulder plays very little to no part in the cast. #5 - Exercise your arms. Get a piece of dowel rod and tie a pound weight (can of soup) with rope long enough to hit the floor when you hold the rod out from your body. Wind the weight up and down a few times.
I have gone to a 6wt for all my Bass fishing. I only use an 8 for Steelheading where I’m doing a lot of nymphing. I may not be able to throw huge Bass flies, but my arm stays attached and that’s a good thing.
Since I really have no experiance using bass flies, I won’t make any suggestions on equipment. The few occasions I do go warm water fishing I usually just use streamers (most of the warm water species in RI are quite small & I haven’t gotten the urge to start tying bass flies yet).
As far as picking up a new way to casting, it may take awhile to get comfortable using a style that is different from what you are used too. You may never get used to it but I wouldn’t give up trying, you never know you may come to prefer it.
As others have said, if you arm gets tired after an hour take a break. If you push to hard the first hour your fishing your arm will be junk the rest of the day. I also suggest pacing yourself better as well, take a little more time between cast.
A final suggestion is if your shoulder bothers you from injuries and wear from younger days you might want to talk to your doctor. He/she might not be able to do anything medicly for you but he/she may be able to help you find some exercises to strengthen you shoulder and to loosen your shoulder before you start fishing.
You might go to the Federation of Fly Fishers site and find a casting instructor in your area. I would try to work with a master instructor; however, a certified instructor may be able to help our quite a bit. Then pay for a lesson or two. The instructor should be able to see what you are doing wrong - if anything – and make suggestion to improve your technique or help your casting so that it isn’t hurting your arm/shoulder.
I don’t see anything from you about the double-haul. Is there ny chance you don’t know how to do it? It sure takes the work off of just one arm casting.
You could try Joan Wulff’s or Mel Krieger’s DVD’s. Both are excellent and use a more vertical style of casting.
I also have the Doug Swisher videos. His style is similar to Lefty’s, but he does emphasize the wrist more.
Good morning 3DW
If you cannot lift something with one hand, then most people use two hands.
Therefore I would suggest to you, look into the exciting World of Two Handed fly rods, the Doubles.
Be it a Spey or a Switch rod type and say goodbye to your shoulder problem and start to enjoy the easy and thrill of casting/fishing from locations that have no space for a backcast.
If I can be of any help, please feel free to ask anything as its the quickest way to save money and learn.
Kind regards,
UB
I also recomend Mel Krieger. Orvis carries his vids on line.
I do double haul the problem is not getting tired it is getting sore. I will have to admitt that I throw to big a fly a lot of times for the weight rod I have. The next problem is that I am in a float tube. I have also not found any instructors within an hour drive from me.
How about Joe Humphry’s [spelling] style?..I’ve not really seen his stuff but I believe he advocates more of a forearm and hand squeeze style
Maybe others can confirm or deny that…
Then there is the… practicing with a book in your armpit and don’t let it fall…in golf we use a head cover or towel…
All this takes a lot of shoulder out.
I think I have found out for sure that a shorter rod is easier on my shoulder - have a 7.5 ft 6 wt old Fenwick that lets me enjoy my casting a lot more.
Hello Threeday…I wrecked my shoulder once using a 9ft 6wt day in and day out…nymphing
working my butt off. Had to stop too and began casting lefty. Got a bright idea and went to 3&4
wt rods…Sage too…and lo and behold…much easier to cast. Yes, lost distance, had to decrease
size and weight of the nymphs. Still caught fish though. The only problem I found was casting
larger patterns that were either too heavy for the rods or grabbed too much air.
I did learn to slow my cast down with the heavy bugs and that helped since the heavy bugs seemed
to actually help load the rod on the backcast, either that or it helped me know when the backcast
had rolled all the way out behind me.
Years went by and I moved away from that kind of flyfishing and now I’m casting heavier rods again,
clear up to a 9wt. The only time I feel my shoulder is when I catch myself casting too much. At
that point, I cast further and since the fishing is usually stripping or count down and then slow stripping,
I get long rests between casts. I have to be careful with the 9wt. and the big dries and leech patterns
when close casting though or I’ll feel it within half an hour of starting that.
From what you are saying and from what I have decided works for me to keep my shoulder from going
out again is basically to slow down. I mean if I’m casting even every 15 or 20 seconds I feel it…if I
stretch that interval out to 40 to 60 seconds, I’m good for the duration and return home with no
shoulder pain nor recovery the next day.
I’ll say this about a shoulder that goes out because of fly casting though and that is I don’t want
that to happen again. Hope a few words of this help !
Cheers,
MontanaMoose
I can confirm. Joe’s video is very interesting. He demonstrates a very short stroke with the elbow held in close. It’s really not much more than a squeeze of the hand.
Nice DVD. Thanks for the reminder. 
Where can I find this video
Threedayweekend,
You get a sore shoulder after about an hour and half of casting.
You are often casting larger flies on light weight outfits.
You are often fishing from a float tube.
Without having seen you cast I am going to guess what might be happening. I could be completely wrong of course. But here are my thoughts:
When casting large flies with a light rod/line, you are moving the rod through a larger arc to try to help on the cast.
When you are in the float tube, you are trying to keep your backcast higher to keep the large flies from hitting the water.
While trying to move the rod through a longer arc and keep the backcast off the water, you are raising your upper arm to a position where the elbow is at the same level as your shoulder or even higher. This is causing stress on the rotator cuff and other parts of the shoulder and upper arm thus quick fatigue and maybe some aches and pains.
Am I at all close in this scenario? I have observed this scenario in other anglers.
I used to get a sore shoulder when tubing. I realized I was bringing the elbow up. When I stopped doing this my problems went away. I keep my elbow down when casting, whether it be wading, standing in a boat, or sitting in my float tube. I have some left over should issues from playing baseball and softball for many years, but I have no problems fly casting. If I want to cast large flies with light rods, I go up one, two, or even three line weights. I am not casting far when tubing so even going up three line weights does not over load the rod. The extra weight from the line helps carry the fly and I do not need to work as hard with the rod.
TDW…I think I saw some you-tube stuff with him…maybe a search…