Joe , Remeber you are a survivor, and the fishing is a good tonic for the soul.
Jim I recently purchased a 3wt Tfo Pro and its a great feeling rod. I can’t wait to get a real hog on it. Better feel than the 7’6 3wt all around.
Today and tomorrow enjoy them all.
Grrrr 1wt.
Philip
Philip
Jim,
I’ve really been debating about getting that Cabela’s seven-foot, #1 weight in the Clear Creek Series. My purchasing strategy has been to space my rods at least two sizes apart. I already have the Clear Creek #2 weight so I would be violating my own rules. Do you think the action would be different enough to make such a purchase worthwhile?
Joe Hyde, are you still following this thread? Was there a big difference between the Clear Creek #1 and #2 weights?
Jim, back to you. I will admit right up front that your redears may be the most outstanding warmwater fishing in South Carolina. I don’t think that there are many Hartwell brim that can match them for fight let alone size BUT I’ve caught some fine fish on that two weight. I’m keeping that offer of a seat in your boat very much in mind. I was going to pay you a visit last spring but my wife had some pretty serious surgery right around that time. This spring and May in particular are looking good. I would very much like to meet you in person and tangle with a couple of those famous fish of yours. 8T 
You had better learn to be a happy camper. You only get one try at this campground and it’s a real short camping season.
Eight Thumbs:
Yes, the 1-wt. definitely felt softer than the 2-wt. To me it did; maybe somebody else would think otherwise. But the 2-wt. Clear Creek felt REALLY good nonetheless. It was very hard picking between them.
And the same thought crossed my mind that crosses yours; namely, that it’s generally a good idea to jump two numbers in rod weight whether you’re going up or down. I was considering that factor, too, when jumped two numbers down to the 1-wt.
Making the choice even trickier was the Clear Creek’s shorter length. Whether 2-wt., 1-wt. or whatever, a 7-ft. rod casts differently, and I didn’t know how much different it would be; I DID know that you have to speed up certain phases of your cast with a shorter rod, as the timing of everything gets changed so much.
Old Geezer: I hear you, man, about fishing being a good tonic for the soul. A lot of things in the outdoors (fishing, hunting, camping, canoeing) have served that purpose for me pretty much my whole life.
I’m curious about how long the 1-wt. rod will be that Rick Z. is planning to build. Being canoe-based fly fishers, Rick and I have a tremendous advantage in terms of being able to position ourselves on the water to where we can cast toward the bank into good fish cover without undue concern for snagging our backcasts? So my guess is that if 1-wt. blanks are available in lengths longer than 7-ft., that’s the way Rick’ll go. That’s what I would do.
The longer the 1-wt. rod is, the more pronounced will be its flexibility. Among other advantages, that would add even more visual drama to the battles with Mr. & Mrs. 'Gill. Last Tuesday on the lake I had a nice 'gill on the line just when a guy on the road above drove by. He must have spotted my high-visibility line pulled laser straight, and seen the throbbing deep bend in my 1-wt. rod because he almost wrecked his SUV screeching to halt to watch the action.
Speaking of fishing: I gotta go now. Supposed to meet a guy at 2PM – another canoe fly fisher. We’ll try to rip into 'em. I don’t know how it’ll go for us today. The wind forecast this afternoon is for 20-30mph WNW. In Kansas such a forecast means they actually think it’s gonna blow 30-40mph; they try to be polite and not break your heart before you load your gear in the truck.
Joe
“Better small than not at all.”
Hey 8 Thumbs,
I can't tell ya how much difference
there might be between the 1 and 2 wt’s as
2 wt is as small as I own. But I think
you have already indicated a legitimate
“NEED” for the rod and should definitly
pick one up.G
I do not think it would be a practical
rod for me in my fishery. I believe the
cover is much too dense for it. My feisty
red ears are usually right against the lily
pads or in the shade against a cypress
trunk. If you can’t turn them almost
immediately, the odds of losing them to the
structure is great. With the 3 weight, I
can do it. With the 2 weight, I lose fish.
So I’m sure I’d be outgunned with a 1 wt
here.
I plan to attack the red ears with a
vengence early May. I hope to fish every
day for the first 10 days of the month. It
is during this pre spawn period just prior
to the full moon when you have them heavily
concentrated and feeding. You can often
catch more and larger red ears in a couple
of hours during this period than you will
catch in a month of summer fishing. You can
also miss them entirely if you don’t happen
to find the right spot.G But if you’ve
been bitten by the red ear bug as I have,
this is when you want to be on the water.
If you can make it down during this time
frame, I’ll do my best to get you on some
12 to 16 inch red ears. It doesn’t take
many to make a trip worth while, but if you
find a concentration of them, it’s darned
hard to quit fishing.G Drop me an email
if you have some dates that will work for
you. Warm regards, Jim
re: dropping 1 or 2 rod sizes.
I had the same concern last year when I had a chance to pick up a 2 wt at a very good price [I had been fishing an 8’ 3 wt for several years]. In addition, both rods are Redington RS2’s which might lead you to expect even less difference. However, what I found when I did buy it [and use it a large % of the time] was that there was a big diffenence between the two rods. The 2 wt is, in essence, a completely different action. AND I LIKE IT!! Had Redington made a 1 wt I would expect it would resemble the 2 wt in action because if there was as much difference from 2 to 1 as from 3 to 2 the 1 wt would be close to being useless for bluegill and redear purely from the point of view of fly size you could fish. Having said that I’m still poking around for information on 1 wts from diffenent mfgrs.
Donald
Jim, Joe, and Bead,
Thanks for your input on the one weight dilemma. I have to agree with Jim that there is a legitimate need—I really want it. Thanks again for your help, I’m off to the Cabela’s web site. 8T
You had better learn to be a happy camper. You only get one try at this campground and it’s a real short camping season.
[This message has been edited by Eight Thumbs (edited 08 January 2006).]