Why are the majority of 3wt rods that I see less than 8 feet long? I would love to have a decent 9+ft long 3wt that wouldn’t cost me a king’s ransom, but instead I find loads of shorter sticks. So can some one tell me the logic behind these shorter rods?
fish
I cannot tell you the logic of short 3wt rods. But I don’t really care anyway. I just do what I want to do, regardless what people tell me will not work…or it won’t work or it would have already been done…etc.
Sooooo…I have a 10’ 3wt full flex blank I will build for a rod. Kings ransom…don’t remember price but I purchased mine from a sponsor here…Global Dorber Group. You could purhcase a blank and build it…and find out if you like it or not.
Sorry I cannot answer the question you asked…but I can tell you where to get a longer 3wt.
Gemrod
I asked this question once of the late Press Powell (of the Powell rod building family) while visiting his shop in Chico, CA. This was about 10 years ago. I don’t recall the exact technical details, but he explained that there were some technical issues that made that made it more difficult and more expensive to build long, light fly rods that performed well and not too weak in the tip section. He sold me a Powell LG 3/4 wt 2pc 9ft rod built on a cosmetic second blank. The defect is a very minuscule uneven spot in the finish on the blank in the butt section that is covered by the Powell decal. I have seen more obvious defects in much more expensive rod on racks at the local fly shops. I think I paid $225 for that rod - with factory first rods going for abut $375. It casts a 3wt line beautifully. There were very few other 9ft 3wts, if any available at that time.
A couple of years ago I cast an Elkhorn Traveler 9ft 4pc 3wt that is decent, though not in the same class as that Powell. It retails for $189 now.
Honestly, the real use for a 9+’ 3wt is for highsticking. Dorber even makes a 10’ 1wt for this purpose, however, you can get plenty of casting range from an 8’6" 3wt, which TFO makes one, Sage has plenty, Redington has them, Loomis has 9’ers, and you can find 8’ rods from most companies. Most of these rods I have listed are sub-$300ish. The Sage is about $225, Redington has one for about $200, TFO has one for $150, so your options are open!
I have a TFO 8’6" 2 wt that casts and catches like a champ. I dont think that any extra length would make it cast better and if it were shorter it would make it easier to fish some of the spring creeks. Tight quarters usually mean smaller water and lighter rods. I think thats why most of the people I know use short lightweight rods. Just my .02
I think that 8’6" is a pretty workable lenght. My main concern over lenght comes from the fact that I fish warm water (I have to admit it was mighty cold yesterday) out of a float tube. Sitting with your butt in the water can seriously reduce casting distance with a short rod. Also, I don’t have to worry about the added lenght causing me problems because I am out in the water away from things that might hinder my casting.
I have a 5 foot 3 wt. that I use overlined to 5 wt. (or 6) for fishing very tight small creeks. At very short ranges, the heavier line mends well and roll casts like a dream. There is also a hatchet type cast that will send a tight loop like a bullet under overhanging tags. It is just the ticket to work very small streams.
But here is something I don’t understand. Maybe I don’t know what I am doing but in my experience, if you can manage a 7 foot 4 weight in the area you have to fish, why would you want a 0 or 1 or 2 or 3? There must be something I am missing because I can’t see an advantage to a light line that doesn’t cast or mend as well as a heavier one. Is it just the challenge of using light tackle or is there a more subtile advantage I am missing?
Bob
I am one who likes lighter lines because they make little fish seem bigger but do like a longer rod. I fish a lot of small streams with tight spots that a long rod is great to reach over the obstructions and around the willows, boulders, ect., nd still have a good rod for the larger beaver pounds and small lakes where a boat is not practical. I believe it is more of a personal choice and, for a lot of us, monetary concerns. OH, I forgot, for me a longer rod helps me cast better in the infamous Wyoming Wind!
In theory, water and air are both fluids. Water is 7x more dense than air. Air exerts force on something based upon mass, correct? If something has less mass (a lighter line) less force is exerted upon it. However, there are folks who know how to use a lighter rod as efficiently, even more so, than someone with a heavier rod. I am confident that if I hook a 20" trout on my 2wt, and my friend on his 5wt, with the same terminal tackle, fly, everything, I will land the fish considerably faster using PROPER fish fighting techniques. If you use the butt of the rod, and fight the fish from the reel, you can land fish quicker. Also, light lines, in small water situations, spook fewer fish, and mend well out to 30 feet or so, wherein you are around the bend anyway.
Building my second 9’ 3 wt as we “speak”
Got the blank off Dan Craft…sorry, not a sponsor but a heck of a nice guy.
The 9’ 3 wt is ideal for me when fishing a lighter rod in wind of any type on open water or larger streams…small rivers.
I find the added length as compared to my 7’ 3 wt allows me to carry more line …which equals weight and allows me to punch the wind much better, not that I cast that well anyhow!
hugefish,
I have a 9 foot Sage XP 3 wt and love it, for fishing out in the open waters of a lake or smaller river.
However, when fishing pocket waters on small mountain streams the 7 foot to 8 foot rod is king. You are only going to make short casts and line control is an absolute necessity. But, if you keep hanging up in all the overhanging limbs of the trees and the bushes then that can make fishing a chore. That is where the short rod comes in, it allows you far more casting ability in small limb crowded areas.
Larry 
—sagefisher—
Andy,
From a distance casting point of view, balistics would favor a larger flyline since sectional density is a linear function of the diameter and the densities would be relatively constant. And even though air is only 1/1000 as dense as water, it still has an effect on distance. So it should be easier to cast a larger line further. Now there is a bunch of other stuff that gets into it but none of it favors distance for a lighter line except the proficiency of the caster. Same should be true for mending and roll casting. All would require a greater skill with a lighter line.
With regards to fighting fish, the core strength of the line far exceeds the strength of the leader. However, a light rod would require considerably more skill with a sizable fish on to prevent ending up with two smaller rods at a very bad time.
An any fly line will spook fish if you line them.
So I guess I see these light long rods (as opposed to light short rods) as being a choice more to test the skill of the fisherman rather than having any real fishing advantage in function. And that’s okay, even admirable. I was just wondering if there was something else there that I might be missing.
Bob
Bob,
I am pleased to read your reply. I once asked what line for windy conditions…thinking short rod with power and a heavy line…and was surprised to be advised on here that a light line is easier to cast in the wind. It did perplex me as wind can sure blow a feather a long way. There is a difference between power and speed as you know. I was thinking power transferred into a heavier line to plow through the wind. So I like your comment.
I don’t know why anyone would purchase a 10’ 1wt blank. But…I can catch and land nice trout on a 3wt. Soooooo…I want to build a 10’ 3wt but not for distance at all. Well…not for distance CASTING. Distance in nymphing and mending. And sneaking up on a cutbank and dropping a little fly in the stream without bodily getting close to the stream. And or reaching out past a seam or two in order to reach a seam further out, when a short rod won’t reach out to said seam.
Besides…I don’t have a 10’ 3wt. So I guess I better get one. <grin>
I even have a 13’ blank that I don’t know what it was designed for. No wt designation. But I am going to make a fly rod out of it just for fun.
Gemrod
I would think that a 10 foot rod would be work very well for someone in a float tube. The extra lenght would help to make up for sitting lower to the water in the tube. just my opinion.
Fish
Okay, now it’s making sense. A nice light rod to reach out and drop a fly in somewhere. Light so you can reach way out without getting overly tired. Long so you can reach out aways. Doesn’t have to throw something heavy a long way so why not make it light. Cool. Thank you all for opening my eyes. Now I’ll have to have one too. And Christmas is sooooo close. You better not shout! You better not cry! Maybe Santa will take a hint.
God I love this site!
Bob