I recently purchased an Elkhorn, 7 foot, 1-weight rod, and would like to know if anyone has experience with this particular rod. Recent posts have discussed other 1-weights and their frequent need for a line heavier than the one listed on the rod. I would appreciate any advice on line brand and weight, as I don’t have any available to try out before purchase.
It is my first Elkhorn and my first 1-weight, and appears to be a very well made rod at a good price.
John
Elkhorn is a Sponsor here, and yes, they do have good products. We gave away one of the bamboo rods a few months back, also just a dandy rod. There have been many comments on Elkhorn here on the BB, why don’t you try a “Search” (see the word Search in the middle at the top of the page.)
You could consider the Elkhorn fly line. I don’t know its quality but I would guess it to be a good match.
Another alternative would be to contact brian@elkhornflyrods.com and ask him for suggestions. He is not only “The Man” at elkhorn but he fishes too!
jed
Hi John
I have the same rod and love it I also bought the elkhorn bamboo and like that rod as well.The one wt came with an orvis wonder line of the same wt and casted well.I will be replacing the wonder line this year with some other line as I didnt care for the wonder line. I think you will like the elkhorn rod best of luck.
monty
John - no worries about which 1wt line for this rod. At that light weight, the effect of the leader, especially the butt, has almost more impact than the taper of the 1wt line.
I’ve used the Orvis Spring Creek DT1F and Cortland WF1F Clear Creek, as well as a DT2F Lazer with my Elkhorn and they all work fine. Compared to several other 1wts that I have, the Elkhorn seems fairly tolerant of specific line models.
Next time I use it, I might try some running line and make leader adjustments to see how the rod handles it.
tl
les
Dear John,
I’m sorry but I have to ask these questions.
Why would you buy a one weight and ask if you should use a two weight line on it? Why not just buy a two weight in the first place?
The line is the delivery system in this equation. In my mind you buy a specific line weight rod to cast and fish a specific size range of flies over your typical fishing conditions.
Am I the only one left on Earth who thinks like this?
Best Wishes,
Avalon 
Changing my post as my comments detracts from his efforts to reach out for info on help with his new rod he got to buy for himself.
My sincere apologies to you Mr. Blackmon. Hope you get some good answers.
Gemrod
Dear gemrod,
He wanted a one weight rod but he didn’t know if he should use a one weight on it?
They why buy it? I’m serious when I ask that question. Does he want to feel the fish? Buy a noodley 5 weight then, they bend alot.
I believe strongly that people should learn to cast before they waste money on fishing rods that aren’t used for what they were intended to do. They are never happy with how their rod performs when in fact it’s how the caster performs that makes a rod.
I’m sorry if you don’t like that, but that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
Maybe we can restart the big debate about casting styles and the CCS system? It’s been a while since we hashed that one out.
Best Wishes,
Avalon
Ok you guys. Let me take the heat here. This forum is for opinions. You ask for them, and we got 'em. I can understand asking about the other ideas involving a new rod, of any weight or even length for that matter. Just plain curiosity counts for a lot. I suspect that a guy buys a one weight because he wants to fish small water using small flies for tiny fish. Neat! I would like that too. What would happen if a two weight was used? Slow it down I guess. So what. As far as casting goes, we all have a few things yet to learn and improve upon, at least I do.
I hope he has a great time with it. Elkhorn is pretty good about line sizes and I am sure it performs best with the one weight. Big deal. You have a chance to pitch a two on it, go for it.
Styles, experience, actual fishing conditions, and a lot of things can have a bearing on how the rod will present any given fly. Good luck and keep us informed please.
Thanks for the interesting and helpful replies. The reason for my confusion comes from an Elkhorn representitive. I purchased the rod from the Elkhorn booth at a fly fishing show. The gentleman that sold it to me said it was a true 1-weight, but that he preferred an Elkhorn 3-weight line on it. He said he didn’t have a 1-weight line to sell me. I cast the rod before I purchased it, but because of his comments, I wasn’t sure what line the demo rod had on it. A true 1-weight is what I was looking for. Elkhorn makes a nice product, and I got a good deal on it and an Elkhorn reel. I have a 3-weight Scott G, so I don’t want a 1-weight rod that can throw a 3-weight line. I hope this is a true 1-weight, and I am looking for someone with personal experience that can tell me the best line to go with it.
Thanks Again,
John
Aw shucks, that’s an easy one. Call Elkhorn and ask them! Really. They are just regular folks and trust me, they will be glad to hear from you. In fact, tell them I asked you to call. I want to know who and why they would say that and just EXACTLY what linr was on that rod at that show.
REPEAT: brian@elkhornflyrods.com
He is the one who can give you a good answer.
Last time I emailed them with a question he called me back in less than 10 minutes.
jed
To throw in my two cents here: John, you may be the only one who can answer you own question-- which line do YOU think it works best with? Put your 3wt line on it and try it out. If that over-loads it way too much, then a 1wt line may be best.
That brings up the question, what is a “true one-weight”? I would say the definition is a rod that is loads full with a 1-wt line to 30’. Lots people are casting their 1wts in the 15-25’ range, and for that application, a 2wt or 3wt line may be more suitable with a “true one-weight” rod.
I heard the CCS system mentioned here, so I’ll throw this out there: You’re particular rod is listed with a 2.02 IP according to the Common Cents System database; with a margin of error, call it 2.00. What that means in real terms is that it can cast a 1 or a 2wt line equally as effective, although the 1 may not be so good for short distances. In effect, you can call the rod either a “true 1wt” or a 2wt, its right on the edge.
But Avalon is right, the question should not be “What wt line should I use with my rod?”, But “I want to use a 1wt line casting to 25’, what is a suitible rod?”