Help choosing correct rod weight and length?

[steveo27]

I am in the market for a new fly rod & reel.

Back story -

I've only been fly fishing for about a year now and currently use a 7'6" 3 weight Cabelas rod and reel combo. It was a nice start setup but I am looking to upgrade to something a little heavier and nicer.

Ive had pretty good success with the 3 weight in smaller trout streams where there isnt a lot of room to cast and some local lakes fishing for panfish w/ small terrestrials.

I live in Western PA and most of the fishing I do is in streams the size of upper end of Laurel Hill Creek and Neshanock creek, which the 3 weight has worked pretty well in so far.

However, I am having some trouble casting heavier wooly buggers and larger terrestrials with the 3 weight. Plus I am looking for a rod/reel set up that I can use on the Yough for trout and some local waterways for smallmouth.

I have an Orvis gift card I've been itching to use. Ive been eyeballing the Orvis Clearwater rod/reel outfit - http://www.orvis.com/clearwater-freshwater-rods. It fits my budget and carries the Orvis 25 year warranty.

Im not really sure if I wanna bump up to a 4 or 5 weight rod/reel. And Im even less sure what length rod I need.

The 4 weight rods come in lengths between 7' all the way up to 10' and the 5 weight rods come in lengths between 7'6" all the way up to 10'

Im worried if I buy a 4 weight, it'll still be too light for some of the fishing I want to do and be too similar to my current 3 weight. But at the same time, Im worried if a buy a 5 weight rod, its going to be too big and heavy for what I need.

Id love if someone could guide me with some info.

Thanks

:beer:

 

[Tiogadog]

For those waters and most general trout fishing a 9 foot 5 wt would be a good choice.

 

[Millsertime]

+1

 

[LeTortAngler2]

Tiogadog Posted on: Today 21:41
"For those waters and most general trout fishing a 9 foot 5 wt would be a good choice."
Agree, I also would suggest a 9' 5wt. I'm also from Western PA and fish some of the streams you listed and IMO I think a 4wt you'd be a little under-gunned, especially on the Yough if your trying to throw large streamers.

 

[Fishidiot]

steveo27 wrote:
I am in the market for a new fly rod & reel.

However, I am having some trouble casting heavier wooly buggers and larger terrestrials with the 3 weight. Plus I am looking for a rod/reel set up that I can use on the Yough for trout and some local waterways for smallmouth.

Get a 6WT.
For what you're describing, a 9' for a 6WT will serve you much better than a 4 or 5 (I prefer a 7WT for bass and for throwing streamers on the Yough and similar big trout rivers).

Keep using your current fly rod for the small trout streams and the 6 for the big waters. A 6WT will also handle large terrestrials and is fine for early season nymph fishing when you're chucking weighted flies and split shot.

 

[moon1284]

6wt for sure. I have a lot of rods but the three I use most are my 9ft 6wt, my 8'4 6wt, and my 6,'10 6 wt. I have multiple 3,4,5,7, and 8wts too but I use the 6wts the most.

 

[PennKev]

Out of curiosity, how did you end up with a 3wt as your first rod?

 

[Swattie87]

You will get a million opinions here probably, but I agree with FI and moon. When I read your OP I was thinking a 6wt would be the ticket too. Or if that’s too big of a leap for you, definitely go with the 5wt. The 4wt will still be noticeably underpowered when trying to throw even fairly small streamers (Buggers) any distance. The 5wt will do a respectable enough job up to a moderate distance, but you’ll still find yourself hustling it pretty good once you get some line out. The 6wt is tailor cut for it.

My warmwater and big stream Trout rod is a 6wt…purchased after getting a 5wt for this purpose and finding myself running out of power with streamers on longer casts. You’ll find a 6wt is a very versatile rig. I even fished a size 16 sulphur hatch with it last year when I didn’t want to walk back to the car to get one of my lighter rods…it did just fine.

Building your rod collection (one rod at a time) is about compromise and filling gaps in the lineup. There’s always an ideal rod for each situation, but remember you can only fish with one at a time, and most of the time you can get away just fine with a rod that’s a little too short or long, or a little too light or heavy from the ideal rod for the circumstance. With a 7’6 3wt you have pretty much all small stream situations covered within reason. I’d make your next move in the 9’0 6wt direction…you then have warmwater and big Trout stream situations covered. If after some time you find yourself in situations where you’d need (or want more likely) something in between, make your third rod something in the 8’0-8’6 4-5wt range to fill the gap.

 

[MKern]

When I was starting out I was always told to skip a rod weight.
So if you currently have a 3 wt. you should go to a 5 wt. and then eventually a 7 wt.

However you are interested in some bigger streams and bigger flies so jumping to the 9' 6 wt. might not be a bad idea.

 

[steveo27]

"Out of curiosity, how did you end up with a 3wt as your first rod?"

I've typically always fished smaller streams with my spinning setup and between the research that I did and lack of knowledge (aka not asking enough questions) lead me to that set up. It fit my budget and I do like the set up for small brookie streams I fish.


I should have been a bit more clear on the uses. The majority of my fishing will still be done on stocked smaller to medium size streams (think Slippery Rock, Neshanock, and Laurel Hill).

However, this spring, I want to get into fishing for wild/native trout. Ive been reading/researching a lot into it and it looks/sounds like a blast. The adventure aspect really interests me. I see pictures of others trips and dream of fishing trips like those. I figure the 3 weight rod I have will be good for most these streams, but I could still use a 5 weight if I wanted.

But at the same time, I want to be able to fish waters like the Yough if need be.

The more I read, the more it sounds like the 9ft 5weight is the best option for what I need.

:beer:

 

[MKern]

If I had to pick one trout rod for most streams it would be a 9' 5 wt.

 

[BrookieChaser]

590

 

[poopdeck]

Sounds to me like you need a 4, 5 and 6wt. No need to have two rods to catch tiny fish so I would nix the 4wt. I agree with a 5 wt or 6 wt for streamers and larger then tiny fish. I throw buggers and clousers for sm on the delawre and my biggest rod, a 5 wt, is marginal for the task. my next purchase will be a 6wt. It really depends on the size of streamers your gonna throw. Good luck and remember, which ever rod you get you will be buying the other later on down the road. That's how it seems to be going with me.

 

[PennKev]

OK, gotcha.

FWIW, Slippery Rock is a pretty big creek, as PA trout streams go.

 

[steveo27]

Thanks again guys :beer:

Now that we have this figured out.....

Does anyone have any experience with the Orvis Clearwater outfits? The reviews seems really good, the price point is where I need it to be, and the 25 year warranty is a nice piece of mind.

 

[PennKev]

steveo27 wrote:
Does anyone have any experience with the Orvis Clearwater outfits? The reviews seems really good, the price point is where I need it to be, and the 25 year warranty is a nice piece of mind.

They are a solid choice.

 

[krayfish2]

If you get a chance to hit an Orvis shop, cast them first. I believe they still make them with different flex designations. You may find one suits your technique better than the others. Good luck and enjoy.

 

[PAgeologist]

I know a couple people with Clearwater outfits. They love them. I would buy the whole outfit. They discount the reel and line to match the rod.

I agree with Krayfish. I would go to your local Orvis dealer and tell them what you want to do. They should be able to recommend a specific rod flex for you.

 

[steveo27]

I plan on buying the whole outfit as it makes more sense for my situation.

krayfish2 wrote:
If you get a chance to hit an Orvis shop, cast them first. I believe they still make them with different flex designations. You may find one suits your technique better than the others. Good luck and enjoy.

I actually did get the chance to check them out at the local Orvis store last week. I talked to the one of the sale persons for a bit as well but I did not get the chance to cast it though.

:beer: