I have two TFO Pro’s, a 7wt and a 9wt – love 'em both. One reason I like them is because some of the snobby local fly shops DON’T like them. And Rick Pope, TFO’s prez, is a cool guy. I’ve emailed him a couple of times with questions, and he was very responsive.
Sorry as I didn’t mean to get off topic into fly tying as I know this is not the correct board. One other question for now. I love reading books but I’m the type that picks up more quickly from videos. Are there any really good casting / tying videos that stand out as being really head and shoulders above the rest. I should have said before that I’m not a total newbie as I went on a guided fly fishing trip a few years back and have actually been playing around in the back yard with a borrowed cheap rod from a buddy for the past week. Just need to get a DVD or two but there are so many that its hard knowing which videos are the best.
Thanks again for the warm welcome and advice!!!
Tom
The best DVD I’ve seen BY FAR is George Roberts “Saltwater Flycasting: 10 Steps to Distance and Power”. It’s not for beginners, though. Joan Wulff, Mel Krieger, Lefty Kreh and Tom White all have very good DVD’s that teach the basics.
I dont mean to be rude here, but how many times does a guy or gal choose sage over anything else because it says SAGE. This SAGE following is a little strange. I know quite a few guys that fish SAGE and they say yeah its great because when you break um, you just sent um back. Great! NOT! It seems to me that SAGE break to easy and too often. I dont think their as great as every one makes them out to be. I think your buying a name vs. just having a good rod. The two rods you chose have completely different actions, so i think its hard to compare. A also think the made in usa is overrated as well. Dont rule a company out just because its blanks are imported. There are many great rod building companies oversees as well, Like Sierra and Loop. I ts seems funny when guys say that their rod is made in the usa, and the reel on the rod is made in korea, and their flies are tied over seas because they bought them in a combo pack. If people truely want made in the usa they will build the rod, ty their flies, buy abel reels, beacause even the smallest component in abel reels are made in house and so on. Just buy good equipment and enjoy it! GOOD FISHING!!! Don’t get caught up in name brands!!!
I dont mean to be rude here, but how many times does a guy or gal choose sage over anything else because it says SAGE. This SAGE following is a little strange. I know quite a few guys that fish SAGE and they say yeah its great because when you break um, you just sent um back. Great! NOT! It seems to me that SAGE break to easy and too often. I dont think their as great as every one makes them out to be. I think your buying a name vs. just having a good rod. The two rods you chose have completely different actions, so i think its hard to compare. A also think the made in usa is overrated as well. Dont rule a company out just because its blanks are imported. There are many great rod building companies oversees as well, Like Sierra and Loop. I ts seems funny when guys say that their rod is made in the usa, and the reel on the rod is made in korea, and their flies are tied over seas because they bought them in a combo pack. If people truely want made in the usa they will build the rod, ty their flies, buy abel reels, beacause even the smallest component in abel reels are made in house and so on. Just buy good equipment and enjoy it! GOOD FISHING!!! Don’t get caught up in name brands!!!
Not to be rude here either, Steve, but I think you’re making an awful lot of assumptions. So, if I’m to understand it correctly, everyone who fishes a Sage rod does so because of the name, right? Oh yeah, and for the hipness that comes with fishing a big name rod. Couldn’t be that they actually liked any given Sage rod. I’ve had exactly two Sage rods, out of way more rods than I care to admit. There have been many a Sage rod that I didn’t like as well as others and some that (gasp) I didn’t like at all. I’ve never heard anything about excess breakage with Sages, whereas I have with other brands, though I haven’t put much stock in those stories either.
Some people take this anti-establishment stuff to extremes, painting with a ridiculously broad brush. Don’t blow up the whole room just because there might be one person in it whose motives don’t suit you.
Steve,
Sorry, but I don’t buy into your Sage bashing. May be you had an unfortunate dealing with them. May be not. But I have 5 Sage rods and not for the reasons you claim Sage owners buy Sage. *amned fine rods, by an excellent company.
The best advise for deciding on a rods are to test cast the ones you think you want and then compare it to similiar rods by different manufacturers. Not always possible I know.
Sage is an FAOL Sponsor. I support our sponsors. When prices and quality are close or the same. They get the nod over non sponsors.
I love my 5-wt. Sage and my 3-wt. TFO. If I had it to do over again, I’d buy the same rods. But I’d be equally happy with a 5-wt. TFO and a 3-wt. Sage. Fly rods are like peanuts; you can’t stop with just one. 
I use Sage rods because that is what I like,not because of the name.My fishing friend who was a flyshop owner let me fish with a lot of different make of rods and Sage was what I liked best.I have a hard time making up my mind on a rod lawn or parking lot casting,I would rather fish one to form my opinion.The BBS is a darn fine reel in my opinion for the money ,although I have not had my hands on one made in China.
Wow. Did you really say that things made in the USA are “overrated”?
Ouch!
[QUOTE=steve olson;208202]I dont mean to be rude here, but how many times does a guy or gal choose sage over anything else because it says SAGE. This SAGE following is a little strange. QUOTE]
I have to admit you have somewhat of a point here - the SAGE marketing people must be geniuses. A guy at work a while back that’s new to the sport was talking about the new rod he upgraded to for a combo ski/fishing trip with the family to MT. I asked what he’d bought and his reply was, ‘I don’t recall, but I know it wasn’t a SAGE, because I couldn’t afford that.’ So he didn’t know what he’d bought, other than it wasn’t a SAGE. Goofy. And one of the local shop owners, when Winston, or Scott, or Loomis, or any other ‘high end’ rod company comes up will automatically say, ‘In my opinion, they’re nowhere near Sage as a high performance rod company.’
On the other hand, Winston also has a pretty fanatical, if not as large following. I think there may be the beginnings of a TFO cult out there, too.
Well just got back from my shopping trip and to sum it up I now have the following
-TFO Pro 9’ 5wt (backing, SA GPX WF Line, Orvis Super Strong Leader, Rio Flouro tippet)
There were no Sage Launches left at the show but got the TFO with a TFO Hard Case for $140 which ain’t a bad deal
-Orvis BBS reel
-Renzetti Traveler
-All the tools and tying goodies I need to tie a wooly bugger, elk hair caddis, and hairs ear and a Petitjean Magic Tool
I guess I am now officially committed to this new hobby. Think I’ll now watch the Petitjean Magic Tool DVD and call it a day. Thanks again for all the advice
Tom
Or, instead of limiting yourself to those two…you could just get yourself several glass rods for the price of one of the Sage’s or TFO’s…Orrrr you could just save a little money up and get yourself a good bamboo rod…can’t beat the feel of either of those…in fact, after fishing with plastic for the first ten years or so of my flyfishing, I now fish exclusively with glass and bamboo (only have one bamboo rod but it gets used 90% of the time)…but then again, I also prefer SSSSLLLLLOOOOOWWWWW rods…but, you really can’t beat the ‘feel’ of bamboo. Or even glass for that matter.
anyway, that’s just my opinion…most likely in the minority but ya gotta do what suits you the most…
~Randy
damn, I just saw you had already made your purchase…that is just the beginning!!!
I might be a little late on this thread, but look at “Troutgrass”…it’s not an instructional video but you’ll definitely like it…
oh, and to the Sage basher, I would venture to guess that sure, many people do buy sage rods because of the name…but, you know what? there’s a reason that they get that reputation.
Personally, I don’t own any sage rods nor have I cast any but that’s more of a reflection of my preference for glass & bamboo rods…
I fish American-made rods exclusively. But, I don’t think that a good enough reason, by itself, to make a decision. The reason I choose domestically-made rods is because I think there is better quality control.
I like the idea that my rod is designed and built by fishermen. With a Sage (or Winston or Loomis) the guy that wrapped my blank can probably cast circles around me. He’s used the product and knows where to look for defects.
Sure, TFOs are designed by fishermen, but they’re built by factory workers who have probably never seen a fly rod being used. They get the specs from Lefty, or whomever, and fire up the machine. Most of the time, that’s plenty good enough, but the machine operator really has no way to tell a good rod from a less-good rod or where to look for weak points. They just come off the machine and go on the pile.
At the Sage factory they make fly rods every day. At the TFO factory, this week it’s fly rods. Next week, arrow shafts. Week after, bicycle frames. Week after that … .
Welcome Tom to one of the best forums on the web. I’m also a new fly fisherman and have picked up a lot of good info on this site. I have a TFO Pro 8’6" 5 wt 4pc. and I think it cast very well. I too would like to buy all American but that’s almost impossible to do. Companies like Harley-Davidson have foreign parts, L L Bean have foreign labels and etc. I don’t like it but going without clothes is not happening.
Good luck
Wow, I knew my post would garner some attention but this is interesting. I like hearing everyone’s take on defending Sage. It’s very interesting. Yes, I agree that buying a sage rod or any other rod is a personal decision and that is a good thing. That’s exactly what I do when I purchase a rod. Your also right when Sage is not the company for me and thats also my own decision. I have friends that own fly shops in idaho and montana that will not carry Sage because of the reasons I stated and thats their decision to make.
I have witnessed many, many people buying rods, granted new people into the sport, that run to the name. Have no idea about what action it has and doesnt care, they just want the name sage, to fit in. Also, on the fact of made in the usa. No, I dont think made in the usa is overrated, its the use as a selling point that bothers me. Look, their are great companies in the canada, usa, denmark, england, and others that make quality equip.
I personally saw a guy who was insistant that he have a sage rod that was made in the usa. Then he wanted a fishcat pontoon because it was made in the usa. The salesperson looked at him funny because fishcat is an american company and used the build their boats in the usa. But now their made overseas. The saleperson didnt say anything but went along to make the sale anyway. Also the people that insist on an american made rod and ask for an okuma reel. Why insist on an american made rod and tell the salesperson a 45 min story on why you wont buy a tfo for example because its made overseas ,then put a okuma or some other imported reel on it and drive away in their old beat up saab. Mind blowing!!!
I own american made rods and i own rods made overseas. I own st. croix, winston, sierra, and loop rods with ross reels and okuma reels, etc. The one I most use is the sierra rod only because I like its fast action. Most people have never heard of sierra and think I’m fishing with a kmart rod.
Flyfishing and maybe nascar are the only sports that people get weird about the made in the usa label. I say support all companies because that is what makes our sport better. Just look at chech nyphing and how thats the new rage. Our team usa is doing better with a 8 place finish last year but its the overseas teams that dominate. With out competition from overseas it would hurt our sport quite a bit…Look at HARDY!! As a golf pro or a flyfisherman i look a what eqipment is best for me no matter where its made! I’m a backcountry fly guy who cares about my two sports. If you look into it you see the same things i’m seeing…
Good fishing!!!
I own one of each of these rods.
the TFO Pro rods are easier to learn to cast with - these are GREAT beginner rods.
but
the Sage Launch rod is of higher quality and shares more in common (in terms of casting feel and style) with high end sage, g.loomis, etc., rods.
interestingly, these two rods also seem to represent two seperate philosophies on casting and rod design. though they supposedly have pretty much identical action, they feel very different in your hand. an entirely different conversation, though.
yrs-
Evan!