This question ran burning through my mind, slapping its pants and screeching for a bucket of water, after I returned from a session of angling on [Towne Lake McKinney[/url:d3082] (We angled under the + sign)
Keebranch and I tested out some various lines on his Cabelas Clear Creek one weight. Then we tried out his Temple Fork 2 weight. It was lovey dovey with a Cortland Ten Meter four weight line.
So after all that I put together my zero weight and we got down to fishin’. None of the fish we landed were as big as my hand and I don’t have large hands. But the fight in these fish was a thing of loveliness. I got to hang out with a friend, fight the fight piscine and come home with my hands smelling like I’d been fishing.
One can drive long distances and pay large sums of money to fish; and I firmly believe that this is a good thing to do. There are thrills galore, there are adventures aplenty far afield. But never forget that there are some sweetnesses right in your own area, right down the road, perhaps a short walk from your front door. The zero weight opens that door to local adventure, a door that might never open with a heavier rod.
Very nice, wordy post.
I would not choose a 00-0-1-2 wt rod as my only rod.
IMO their only plus is as you discribe…make a dink feel bigger.
Casting in wind, throwing weight, a longer cast…these rods fail miserably
They will handle wind better than most give them credit for.
I’ve ran the gamut from 1-3 wt.rods and I must say the 181-SLT Sage has been one of the sweetest rods i’ve ever fished at short to medium distances under light to moderate winds.
Light weight rods can be a dream to play with, in the right conditions and circumstances. Some days even my 3wt’s seem a little too heavy. Those are still enjoyable days.
Here I go again.
I get in trouble every time I answer one of these light line rod threads.
Please understand I own a Cabela’s one wt and a IMX 2 wt and fish um but unless conditions are ideal for nearly weightless line…I take a 5 wt. or at least a 3 wt.
To me there is nothing magical about these rods. I don’t feel I’m a superior angler or more evolved than folk that use heavier stuff when I’m fishin um. I suppose they have their place if you’re sure you ain’t gonna make a 40’ cast or throw a bead head but if I pack for a fishing trip I NEVER just take a 1 or 2 wt.
Please don’t take this the wrong way, because I’m sure you had a good time fishing but if you are fishing what is presumably a warm water lake in Texas and can’t find a fish to bother with that puts up a decent fight on a zero-weight maybe the rod is limiting your fishing?
Dinky rods and dinky flies lead to dinky fish, generally speaking. Occasionally you will accidentally stumble across a bigger fish but for the most part you can’t cast flies large enough to attract decent sized fish with a zero weight, or 2 or 3 weight for that matter.
Why not put two size 6 beadhead leeches in tandem on an 8 weight and go find a fish worth catching? The way I figure things two ten inch bluegills bow up my 8 weight almost as much as a 20 inch bass.
I’ve caught enough warm water fish to know that I want a rod capable of handling the out-sized fish I may come across instead of one that makes a credit card sized fish “enjoyable” to catch, but perhaps that is just me?
Well, I can see that there are varying opinions on this point, mileage IS varying
The whole thing is that there are many local bodies of water where there are no big fish. Many ponds and tiny creeks right outside the back door are a boon of angling fun with the right tackle.
Just to clarify one point, this is why you should own a zero weight, not why you should get rid of all other tackle than a zero weight. I also own other weight rods up to a ten weight cannon that throws several hundred grains of lead core; I wouldn’t take anything else out on the big Texoma for [big stripers[/url:6bc12] So I am not trying to turn anyone off of how they fish. But it sure is fun to hook up with the little guys on a zero!
Actually, what you were saying was pretty much exactly what I thought you were saying. I know we all don’t live right next door to destination waters and sometimes we have to make due with the fishing that we can easily access.
To that end, I would like to say that maybe if people kept a couple of panfish from your local lake for the frying pan on occasion the overall size of the fish would improve and you wouldn’t need to use a zero weight?
I don’t know if it is the case that they don’t keep fish, but I do have two lakes close by to me that are almost indentical in size. They are both around 85 acres and they both get fished heavily as they are in State Parks. One lake sees more catch and release anglers and the other sees more catch and keep anglers.
Care to guess which lake offers the better fishing for gills and crappies and such, both in numbers and in size?
This Dan Craft 7’-0" 1wt and 9-1/2" bluegill are not what I call “dinky.” And, yes, I can throw 40’ casts with it all day long (witnessed by Ohiotuber last weekend). I would hope one day you are able to try an outfit like this so your horizons may be expanded. I’ve also landed a 15" largemouth bass and 15" crappie on this same outfit without stressing either fish. Dynamite comes in small packages as well as large.
I’m getting ready to build a 7’9" 4-piece 3wt, so I’ll let you know how that “dinky” rod performs at the Michigan Fish-in.
Joe
Here’s my GLoomis IMX 7’9" 2 wt I built from a blank. Has Struble U20 n/s reel seat with walnut spacer and single foot guides, gray wraps and 6 1/2" rev 1/2 well grip.
This Dan Craft 7’-0" 1wt and 9-1/2" bluegill are not what I call “dinky.” And, yes, I can throw 40’ casts with it all day long (witnessed by Ohiotuber last weekend). I would hope one day you are able to try an outfit like this so your horizons may be expanded. I’ve also landed a 15" largemouth bass and 15" crappie on this same outfit without stressing either fish. Dynamite comes in small packages as well as large.
I’m getting ready to build a 7’9" 4-piece 3wt, so I’ll let you know how that “dinky” rod performs at the Michigan Fish-in.
Joe
[/quote]
Dear Joe,
Nice bluegill, I’ve caught plenty of similar fish on an Orvis One Weight when they were in 2 feet of water. It’s not difficult to do when the opportunity presents itself.
How about trying to duplicate your Springtime and early Summer catches when the fish are 12 to 15 feet down and get back to me? That was the point I was trying to make. RRhyne is fishing in Texas and catching credit card sized bluegills because the larger fish have moved deep for the summer. All that are left in the shallow water are dinks and the occasional lucky fluke of a fish that happens to pass by from time to time.
If you want to consistently catch nice fish you have to fish where the fish are and a light line fly rod is a horrible tool for reaching quality Summer time fish in most lakes.
Here’s my tool of choice for skinny water. Orvis Far and Fine 7’9" 5 wt. This particular example is a unfished unsanded blank model (I like the rod so much I have 2 of um).
The rod amazes me every time I fish with it…I can put the fly where I’m lookin.
can you tell I refinished the table between the FnF pic and the Loomis pic?
i currently have a 3 weight and i love it !!!
i love toying around with smaller rods and i love casting them to
i have casted big bass flies with my 3 weight! and it handled them alright !!
and as for little tiny flies dont catch big fish…HOGWASH!!!
i have caught tons of big fish on flies way down in the 20’s so…
i also plan on aquiring a 0-00 weight rod inthe very near future! 8)
Why Should You own A Zero Weight Rod? BECAUSE I CAN :lol:
Here’s my tool of choice for skinny water. Orvis Far and Fine 7’9" 5 wt. This particular example is a unfished unsanded blank model (I like the rod so much I have 2 of um).
The rod amazes me every time I fish with it…I can put the fly where I’m lookin.
can you tell I refinished the table between the FnF pic and the Loomis pic?
Here’s my old skunt up one with a CFO attached.
[/quote]
Beautiful rod. Before switching to bamboo. I had one just like it. Perfect rod for smaller streams.
This Dan Craft 7’-0" 1wt and 9-1/2" bluegill are not what I call “dinky.” And, yes, I can throw 40’ casts with it all day long (witnessed by Ohiotuber last weekend). I would hope one day you are able to try an outfit like this so your horizons may be expanded. I’ve also landed a 15" largemouth bass and 15" crappie on this same outfit without stressing either fish. Dynamite comes in small packages as well as large.
I’m getting ready to build a 7’9" 4-piece 3wt, so I’ll let you know how that “dinky” rod performs at the Michigan Fish-in.
Joe
[/quote]
Dear Joe,
Nice bluegill, I’ve caught plenty of similar fish on an Orvis One Weight when they were in 2 feet of water. It’s not difficult to do when the opportunity presents itself.
How about trying to duplicate your Springtime and early Summer catches when the fish are 12 to 15 feet down and get back to me? That was the point I was trying to make. RRhyne is fishing in Texas and catching credit card sized bluegills because the larger fish have moved deep for the summer. All that are left in the shallow water are dinks and the occasional lucky fluke of a fish that happens to pass by from time to time.
If you want to consistently catch nice fish you have to fish where the fish are and a light line fly rod is a horrible tool for reaching quality Summer time fish in most lakes.
Best Wishes,
Avalon :D[/quote]
Most of the waters that I fish have little water 5 feet deep and none (that I know of) that approaches 12-15 feet deep. Sometimes the “dinks” are what are available. Sometimes you can find “decent” fish in skinny water in the heat of summer. If you want to fish nymphs or dries on a water like the Caney Fork near Nashville, then a size 16 is considered fairly large with 18s and 20 de rigeur for many long rodders.
A 00-,0-,1-, or 2-weight rod is no more of a toy than a Spey rod. Let’s face it, they are all toys. I have several fly rods from a 1-weight up through a 9-weight and I’m fond of all of them. I’m sure that I’ll buy more. And I don’t get worked up over what people want to fish for, as long as it is ethical. If people equip themselves to maximize the fun with 4 and 5 inch bream, then I think that it super. If they get as much fighting fun from their light-weights pulling in little fish as others get from pulling in bigger fish on heavier tackle, then that’s great. What flexibility they lose in being able to cast heavier flies, cast farther, or cast in wind, they can make up for by having more places to have their fun.
The mantras “It’s all good” and “Diversity” are badly over-used and abused, but both apply here. If you get your fun fishing for big fish with a 12’ long Spey rod or a 00-weight dink catching creek minnows, I am all for you and I’m willing to read your stories and look at your fly patterns. I do this fly fishing thing for fun.
I love a good discussion! I will attempt to answer each response, in no particular order.
Avalon, I believe that you are right about the catch and release not necessarily being the best practice for all fisheries. At least I think that’s what you were saying. If so, I have to agree.
Jerry, Joe, there are indeed places it ought not go, I would never dream of limiting myself to only a zero weight.
Big fish, gone deep; YES! In Texas the shallower water just will not support those big fish in summertime. Actually this works out to at least eight months out of the year where sink line is needed to get to decent fish. The image below is one of the places where I fish the zero weight most often. Its five minutes form work, I can hit it before heading home, no skin off my or my wife’s nose. This is my friend Don at one of the more expansive sections of this creek. I feel its zero weight water.
This is me with some striper action
This ain’t zero weight water I fish with [Scott Bridgess[/url:f2a2e] whenever I can work that out.
I believe that the proper analogy has popped into my addled mind! I have a go kart now. I love to get that go kart out and blast it around. I won’t try to race it on the dirt track with stockers, I won’t drive it to work and I can’t take the kids to school in it. But dang it, when I use it in the right place its so much fun that I can’t stop smiling!
There’s another way to go too. Bamboo! You can use a 5wt and have all the liveliness of a lightweight graphite, but still handle wind, bushy flies, weight, and a lunker if you’re lucky enough to hook one.
since I don’t have a bamboo rod YET, I’d have to say, go with the poor-man’s bamboo…glass…or at least try it out…one of my 5 wt. glass rods feels very similar to my graphite 3 wt…only it’s slower and more lively and has a better feel to it…come to think of it, I don’t even know why I still own that 3 wt…
