I was going to build a 3 weight, but found a 3 forks rod and reel combo at Cabelas. It included the 3 forks rod and reel, backing, flyline, and tapered leader. The rod is a 7’6" 3 piece, with a nice seat on it, but the reel is a plastic one, although OK. The best thing about the deal was that the whole rig was on sale for only $60. I’ve had pretty good luck with cabelas rods in the past, so I thought I’d give it a try.
I got it in tonight, put it all together, and took it out to lawn cast. Not bad, and for the price, it is a very good deal, IMO. I put my blank up for sale. Just wanted to pass on a deal for anyone on a budget. It’s going with me to the Kansas Fish-In!
I see that they also have the TFO crosswater outfits on sale for a similar price.
Yeah, and the Scientific Angler, which I’ve heard good reviews on in the past. I was after a 3 weight specifically, though, and the 3 Forks was the only one that offered it in that weight. If I was after a 5 or 8, I would have given the crosswaters consideration. Great deals on all of them for a full set up.
BTW, anyone tried the $40 Cahill setup? Looks too good to be true–or maybe too cheap to be good. 
(j/k) Hard to say though. Cabelas fly rods have usually pleasantly surprised me in the past.
The 7 1/2 foot Three Forks rod is a fine rod. In close, I use a 4 wt. line on it. In either case, I fish mine a lot in smallish waters, and it’s caught a lot of fish for me. Years ago I tried to just buy the blank. No deal. So I just fish mine as it is, and I have no complaints.
Chuck
Greg, you’ll like it! I’ve got a Three Forks 5-wt and 8-wt. Fantastic rod for the money in my opinion.
I have the Three Forks in 6wt and is a nice looking and high performance rod. Great rod for the money.
Three Forks 3 weight rod combo, have had it for at least 5 years. It stays in my truck with a small canvas fish bag with some flies and leaders . You know, needed stuff. The rod has served me very well as my go to rod when I forget to pack a rod, like during hunting season.
I picked up a 7 foot 6 inch Three Forks rod a couple of years ago and use it when I’m looking for crappie and panfish and an occassional trout and it works okay. However the maker never located the spine on the rod and when it is bent by a fish it isn’t true or straight. The small fish don’t seem to mind but it bothers me that the workmanship was lacking. I may redo this next winter. I’ll test my next purchase more carefully next time.:oops:
I bought the 8’6 5wt about 10 years ago after watching the prettiest caster I’ve ever seen cast one on my local pond.
The reel and line (I’m not sure it came with backing) were garbage, but the rod was definitely worth the money. It’s one of the two rods that are always in the back of my truck during fishing season - just in case I have time to sneak off some place local. It’s a solid back-up.
Around the time I bought the rod, one of the mags did some kind of comparison test of all the 5-weights then for sale. The Cahill came in second…
I’ve caught many trout and bluegill on it.
Greg, the gills were biting at the park where we caught those crappie last summer. Caught a 14-15" rainbow, probably 20 gills, 2 bass, and 3 white perch. All on those little chartreuse minnows, drifted/swung in the current.
Cool! Wish I had some free time, but this week is crazy!
I’ve had a few Three Forks 3 wts over the years. The first one I gave to a friend who wanted to try fly fishing. While showing him how to cast with the rod I said to myself “this is a mistake giving this rod away”. I bought another.
The original ones were made in Korea with huge oddly shaped guides. The reel seat fell off of those early ones and had to be reglued. The last one I bought was still made in Korea but the components are vastly improved. I think current models are made in China.
To my mind the rod is the best deal in FFing. It casts like a rod costing many times more than the $50 price tag.