Don’t use anyones opinions of fly rods on here…They are useless. No one casts like you do, and YOU are the one getting and paying the money for the rod,why trust someone elses opinion?
I don’t see the point.
Chris,
No offense, but, I value all FAOL member’s opinions on equipment. It does me good to read everyone else’s opinions on their experiences with equipment that I may want to purchase. I want to hear their pros and cons on the equipment after they have used it. Afterall, their opinions were made after they had spent their money and if they bring up a dislike on a piece of equipment it might be a dislike that I know I would not like either and I would be thankful to them for bringing it up. When you read everyone’s opinions they may bring up something that you never even thought about until they brought it up. Not all opinions would be worthless. That, I think, would be the point in asking for opinions from others who have purchased the equipment you are thinking about purchasing for yourself.
Without everyone’s opinions, there would not be a FAOL web site full of members who are willing to share their knowledge. FAOL is all about sharing and I appreciate that and value other’s opinions whether I use their opinions or not is not important. What is important is that they are willing to share their knowledge/opinions with others.
Just my opinion on your statement that everyone’s opinions are useless…
Tell ya what. Go with the Sage. Learn to cast it if necessary. If you cast it well you will have learned to cast pretty good. It is a fine rod and balanced. If for some reason it does not ‘suit your style’ , change your style. lol 8) Oh, the new Avid has the new technology, the older ones don’t.
Opinions on other things are useful, No doubt.
Opinions on fly rods ( to me ) are useless because everyone has a different style.
I stick by my statement…
Chris,
Everyone has a right to their opinion and I even value the one you have expressed.
However, my question was not intended to “pick a rod” for me, but to ask for other’s opinions (field tests if you will) about how various rods I’m considering actually perform in the real world of fishing. Field tests in magazines or on retailers websites are interesting, but I always wonder about the profit motive and the short term nature of most of them.
Even with a lot of shops or even good shops close by, one can only parking lot cast a rod while at the shop.
Just as you think other’s opinions are worthless, I consider casting in the parking lot or the grass field behind the shop just about useless. How a rod performs on the water is a far cry from how it performs on the lot. I have a rod that casts wonderfully out in my back yard. It can throw line a country mile. On the water, it is uncomfortable, the grip does not fit my hand over the long haul, it’s heavy and the ferrules have a tendancy to slip appart at very inconvenient moments. None of these things would come up during a 20 minute parking lot session. (it is an inexpensive rod, not my Scott. I won’t mention brand name as it’s not important in this thread)
Second, casting in the lot tells me nothing about how durable the rod is and how it holds up to the real world bumps and bruises a fisherman will expose his/her equipment to over the course of many fishing seasons.
In the unfortunate event one must return the rod to the Company for repairs, who am I going to trust? A fly shop owner who stands to profit from my purchase, or a fellow fisherman who has actually dealt with the company as a consumer? Even with a good fly shop, I never completely trust someone who is trying to sell me something. I will, however put more stock in the first hand experience of another person like me.
So, Chris, I have to respectfully disagree with your position that other’s opinions are worthless. I find the opinions of others to be valuable, trustworthy, and definately feed into my purchase decision. Chris, I don’t know you or how old you are. I’m 47 and during my lifetime, I’ve found that a recommendation from a friend is far more reliable than marketing hype or a slaesman’s pitch.
Jeff
(edited for clarity)
Jeff,
Not to keep harping on glass, but you brought up the subject of taking the abuse of fishing. Especially small streams. Once again you can’t beat glass for strength. 
I have to think that those who don’t recommend glass have never owned a modern glass rod, or even cast one. Go to the glass forum and see how many have given up graphite and bamboo after buying a glass rod. Don’t think for a minute that the sweet glass action won’t sling some line either. I can cast my glass 3wt farther than any graphite 3wt i’ve owned, and up close there’s no contest. Roll casts are a thing of beauty. Then the clinsher is when you have a fish on. Hard to describe until you feel it, and you will feel everything the fish is doing.
I have nothing to gain by selling you on a glass rod. I just want you to try one before you spend your money. I could have saved a ton of money and time if I had tried one earlier.
A classic glass rod is the Hardy Perfection and I own one. It is the sweetest rod ever made, period. But, it is not for all functions. And if you are having rods come apart, get that paraffin on it, jeeze! you know better! 8)
And if you are having rods come apart, get that paraffin on it, jeeze! you know better!
JC,
I’ve done that. The problem is it’s just a cheap rod. I think I paid about $50 for it and it’s not even worth trying to salvage. I don’t even use it as one to keep in my car any longer. I probably should cut the guides off of it and use it for rod building practice. I sure can’t hurt the thing.
I brought the point up to say that was something that could not be experienced in a parking lot. Nor could the long term comfort of the handle or even the fact the rod is quite heavy. It takes several hours of lugging the thing around on the stream and hundreds of casts to realize these things and I do not think I would spend 7 or 8 hours casting any given rod in the parking lot of a fly shop.
That is why I value opinions like yours, Pete, and a number of other here far to many to call out by name. You guys really use this stuff, you’re real fishermen (and women) like me. I value opinions from people who actually use the stuff far above someone who’s trying to sell something to me.
Again, I find FAOL a valuable resource.
Jeff
Jeff, in time you too will be able to tell many things from just one cast. I have had it happen more than once. Stopped me cold. I had to collect my thoughts and slow down and analyze all the information just received. To me it’s embarrassing. Had it happen once at a Fish In, the rod had been sent from Italy overnight. I had it out in from of a crowd of casters on the lawn. One cast and I stopped for at least a minute before going on. Very different rod.
Mr. Castwell (and anyone else)
How would you rate Gatti fly rods. Attached is FAOL product review by Al Campbell. I too believe Sage rods are the class of the field mentioned, at least for my casting style. I have never cast a Gatti. What do you and others think about them?
For a fraction of the cost? It comes with a LIFETIME WARRANTY. They sure as hell better not charge you more than the warranty fee if they cant fix it and have to give you a new rod from the same line (ie send in a txl and they send you a zxl, or send in a xp and they send you back a z axis).
I sure hope someone from Sage comes back and responds that they wouldnt charge you over the warranty fee if they couldnt fix the rod and had to send you a new rod.
jeffnles1,
Read through the threads and like many of the others I would give the Sage SLT a serious look. I have the 590-4 and love it! It has such a great casting stroke. This rod shines in short to medium distances. When the winds kick up this rod does an excellent job in getting the line speed up quickly even with the more relaxed casting stroke. Give the SLT another try and I think you’ll be very pleased with it.
Keep us posted on what you end up with.
JC is exactly right! Go with the Sage! The SLT’s are excellent rods and for what most places are charging for them, it’s a great deal. Another one that seems really nice (and pricey, of course) is the new ZXL. It doesn’t seem as soft as the old LL but it’s very smooth and has a medium flex. I was checking it out, while I was picking up my new 10’ 7wt. Z-Axis. Thanks Jim!!!
[quote=“jeffnles1”]
Chris,
Everyone has a right to their opinion and I even value the one you have expressed.
However, my question was not intended to “pick a rod” for me, but to ask for other’s opinions (field tests if you will) about how various rods I’m considering actually perform in the real world of fishing. Field tests in magazines or on retailers websites are interesting, but I always wonder about the profit motive and the short term nature of most of them.
Even with a lot of shops or even good shops close by, one can only parking lot cast a rod while at the shop.
Just as you think other’s opinions are worthless, I consider casting in the parking lot or the grass field behind the shop just about useless. How a rod performs on the water is a far cry from how it performs on the lot. I have a rod that casts wonderfully out in my back yard. It can throw line a country mile. On the water, it is uncomfortable, the grip does not fit my hand over the long haul, it’s heavy and the ferrules have a tendancy to slip appart at very inconvenient moments. None of these things would come up during a 20 minute parking lot session. (it is an inexpensive rod, not my Scott. I won’t mention brand name as it’s not important in this thread)
Second, casting in the lot tells me nothing about how durable the rod is and how it holds up to the real world bumps and bruises a fisherman will expose his/her equipment to over the course of many fishing seasons.
In the unfortunate event one must return the rod to the Company for repairs, who am I going to trust? A fly shop owner who stands to profit from my purchase, or a fellow fisherman who has actually dealt with the company as a consumer? Even with a good fly shop, I never completely trust someone who is trying to sell me something. I will, however put more stock in the first hand experience of another person like me.
So, Chris, I have to respectfully disagree with your position that other’s opinions are worthless. I find the opinions of others to be valuable, trustworthy, and definately feed into my purchase decision. Chris, I don’t know you or how old you are. I’m 47 and during my lifetime, I’ve found that a recommendation from a friend is far more reliable than marketing hype or a slaesman’s pitch.
Jeff
(edited for clarity)[/quote]
For some reason I thought you wanted help “picking” a rod…
sorry about that.
In that case then peoples opinions are valued!
Btw, Im 14.
I lot cast the Orvis 2pc Superfine Full Flex 7’6" along with the newer trout bum model and found either rod capable of 20-30ft casts with a side wind of 10-15 knots and into the wind of about 20 ft with a WF 3 Line. Both are listed as full flex but the Trout Bum felt more medium to the superfines slow action. I then tested a
TFO Finesse in an 8’ 9" and found that rod also very capable. I’ll be headed down to NOLA for the Uptown Anglers picnic and see if I can find an SLT or something similar. So far, the TFO looks to be a winner in this limited usage 3 wt class. I tried a 3 wt St. Croix Avid in a 6’ model but it seemed a bit on the fast side? Dunno if there are any more SLTs to be had in a 7’6"?
Racine
Jeff let me cast his new rod at BV last Friday. Very sweet little set up he’s got there. It was my first cast with a Sage and I was favorably impressed. The action was a bit softer than I was use to but it was and is a nice, easy to manage and accurate rod. I’m favorably impressed and I know he is too. I watched him catch three fish with it while we were standing together. Jeff, good job! You know where to send it when your done with it. Thanks for the fun!
Joe,
Thanks.
All yes, I did end up with the Sage SLT 7’6" 3wt. I like the rod a lot. I like slower action rods and this one fits my style quite nicely. It’s slower but not too slow. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised as with all the talk about the SLT, I was kind of expecting something slower and was concerned it would be too slow. I was pleasaed to cast it and see it 's medium action but not a limp noodle.
I can cast accurately with it (accurately enough to drop one right on the nose of a nice brown that was rising to Joe’s perfect drift - sorry Joe). At least it’s accurate by my standards.
30’ casts are great. It’s “thing” is really the up close and personal fishing I so much enjoy. I like the feel. For grins, I decided to see how far I could launch one and was able to handle 60’ plus casts were not only possible but laid out nicely.
This rod is a perfect compliment to the Scott G2 9’ 5wt I have. I am pretty sure the SLT is going to be a keeper.
Joe, once again, it was a pleasure to fish with you the other day.
Jeff