At walmart there is a flyrod outfit (rod, reel, line, 6 flies, backing, etc…) for twenty dollars…My little cousin (whos 10)loves to fish and wants to try fly fishing…He has used my pole before for a few casts and caught a smallmouth…I dont want to waste too much money and have him in the long run not like it…is this a good buy?
I have not seen this combo. Sounds too cheap to be any good, but who knows. I have a WW near me, will try to check it out.
I bought one when I started two and a half years ago. It was junk and I sold it. SPent some more money and never regreted it. That WW outfit was awkward, heavy and stiff, but this is my view. The line is level line and I found weight forward to be easier to cast.
Hey Deadrift,
Two friends got together, bought two of the afore mentioned fly rods
from Wallyworld and came over and asked me to show them how to
flyfish.G I helped them rig the rods and spent a half hour showing
basics. They couldn’t cast worth a darned. I took one of the rods to
show them. I couldn’t cast worth a darned either.G I walked in the
shop and grabbed a pair of stowaways by Cabelas. They were both
cranking out 50 feet of line with reasonable accuracy in a matter of
minutes.G Then I tried one. I suddenly remembered how to cast.G
Amazing how those cheap rods affected my memory.G Warm
regards, Jim
Not what you want to hear, but… at WW there is a $59.95 combo that is real good. It is by Scientific Anglers. May be more than you want to spend right now though. You don’t want to hear this either. We gave away two of them this last week in Michigan.
From personal experience, a child or young person will loose interest very quickly if their gear doesn’t work properly. This doesn’t mean you have to go out and buy them the best on the market, but you may have to pay a little more than you wanted to.
Just my opinion and best of luck.
Thats okay guys…I went out and bought him a 100 dollar martin outfit…It got good ratings…He should be happy…
Not that it matters to anyone now, but my own personal experience with the WW rod…
Bought it about 2 1/2 years ago and couldn’t cast it well at all. Got a real rod from my aunt and realized what flyfishing was meant to be. :shock:
I tried to use the WW rod last weekend, I nearly killed myself with it. :x I was ready to throw it into the lake, but that would be littering, wouldn’t it? One should never throw trash in the water… :twisted: heh, heh, hehhhh…
Redington Crosswater is a good starter fly rod, bought one for my daughter, when she became interested in fly angling. When I purchased one, they were available in two-piece, or four-piece. Also available rod only, or complete with fly rod, case, reel, and line.
Since then Redington was sold to Sage, so I do not know if they are still available.
The Crosswater series was available through this year but a being discontinued. I believe it is being replaced by a new series. Crosswater rods and combos have started to show up at a discount. I have seen the rods for $39, combos for $79 and $99 (4 pc)
Just to be clear…since there have been two combos mentioned from Wal-Mart…
Those of you saying they are bad are only referring to the $20 Shakespeare ones aren’t you???
Yep. I had the same experience with 2 of my friends. They had $20 6 weight rods that were bigger at the butt section than most 9 weights. I ended building Forecast blanks into rods for both of them to use. The first one called me at least 4 times from the stream his first day out. A huge improvement to say the least! I also had them replace the crappy level line, and both have replaced the reels as well in the meantime. Not anything in that kit that was worth salvaging, IMO. Having seen the performance, I built Forecast blanks for my son and wife to learn on. You will get what you pay for with the WalMart $20 setup.
Hi guys,
I don’t know which ‘combo’ you are refering to. Among my rods, I have a SA. I think it’s the same as the one in one of the ‘combos’ at WW. It’s a 9’, 5-6wt. About 6-7 years ago I had it at my camper and a friend who used nothing but Sages had a problem with the rod he had and asked if I had a spare. I let him lawn cast the SA to see if he liked it. He loved it.He even had a couple of mutual friends that he was going on a float trip with cast it. These guys were used to Sages and Winstons. They liked it too. Now, I’m not saying the rod is for everyone or that everyone will like it. I am saying that it was/is a reasonably priced and easily functional rod. By the way, the rod is not made here so what’s the difference if you buy it at WW, Dicks, KMart, or somewhere else?
Allan
Hope it works well for him. As no one here mentioned a ‘Martin’, where did you get the ‘good rateings’?
Hi all,
Just to clarify, the Crosswater will indeed be available for 2007 and beyond. We updated it this season, though. The actions and cosmetics are all updated, as is the reel. Much sweeter, and still a great value!
~Team Red
Thanks for the Redington clarification. Two shops indicated they were being discontinued, but replaced with something new. I guess the updated version is the ‘something new’ . Looking forward to seeing those.
All you have to do with the cheap rods is change the line they come with. To a wf or dt this is last post I’m heading to Hospital in few minutes to have my surgery Later to All Matt Aka…STONEFLY71
Just to add a bit of practical experience to this topic. About 15 years ago I was on a business trip not anticipating any fishing time. Well wouldn’tchaknowit, there was a trout stream nearby. I hastily bought an outfit ( Wright McGill- Eagle Claw- the yellowest yellow ever) for about $18.00, complete with reel,line and three flies. Caught a whole bunch of fish , and brought the rod home. Two years ago, I broke the top section and called Eagle Claw to see if they could sell me a new tip cause I liked the rod. THEY SENT ME A WHOLE NEW ROD FOR NUTHINNNN. While I hate the action of the new rod( it states 6/7 wt but NO WAY) I wouldn’t push my luck for an exchange.
I don’t really know if I’m posting here to praise Eagle Claw for their service or to illustrate that “cheap” rods are not always a bad deal.
Mark
PS. Stonefly, I hope everything “comes out” well
Marco, you saw the ‘SA Combo’ in action at my casting program in Mich. $59.95 whole rig! SA donated it and I gave it away to prove the point. You all thought I was casting with an expensive rod.
At this time… it is the best combo for the price I know of.
Hey JC, do you know the trade name or other product identification for that kit? I’m not finding any SA kits in that price range. No SA kits on-line at WalMart.com
Someone is hot to buy the bottom of the line Pflueger kit, and I want to help him avoid it if possible.
Thanks!
Jim