Rio Fly Line? Other Suggestions/Comments

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gibsygoldtop

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Jun 8, 2011
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I am in the market for a new fly line. I am currently looking at the Rio Gold.

Anyone have any experience with this line? Thoughts?

Any other suggestions?

Looking for a quality line to fish dry and nymphs, trout only.
 
I have Rio Gold on my main 5 wt outfit. It's a nice line. Casts well, floats well. Can't speak to longevity, just haven't used it for that many hours yet.

The color change thing is a gimmick, though. Even on large streams like Penns, I rarely get into the 2nd color at all. If I do, it's only a few feet. What's the point if the transition sits on your reel all the time?
 
Yeah, the color change thing has me stumped too. You would have be out something like 47' to get the change. I don't know if I have ever had 47' of line out...
 
FWIW, the color change marks the transition from the head to the running line. It's more informational than anything else. It can be helpful when casting at distance or teaching someone to cast at distance.

I'll vote for Rio Gold all the way. I'm sure you'll have SA guys and Triangle taper guys backing their fav. I can't speak much on SA lines as I haven't used them often. I used 444SL for 20+ years. It was a stiff, slick line that was good for casting longer distances. The problem was the finish cracked. I hardly fish and would use a line during the season. My line was so cracked and messed up, I was forced to buy a line while on a fishing trip. The guy sold me Rio Gold. Love it so much, I stripped all other reels and got it for all my rods except the 3 weight which has Rio LT on it. Wulff TT does interest me but I can only find it in a limited number of stores and forget to pick one up due to ADD. I've had the same 5 & 6 weight Rio Gold lines on my rods for 3 years. Not a crack, no failure of loop and they still float great. I may be one of the few that also like Sharkskin. It floats like a cork, has zero memory and is a dream to mend. The sound is annoying, it chews up your fingers and some guys have had issues with the loop connection failing. Just my .02
 
Airflo is worth a look.
 
I like the supple tactical trout. Designed by Rene Harrop.

They are PVC free (longer lasting) with a 5 year no cracking warranty. They don't stretch as much as other brands.

They aren't owned by Sage.
 
I'm now a sharkskin snob. Check it out.

http://www.flyfishingoutfitters.com/Sharkskin-Fly-Line-Review
 
I've had Airflo Ridgeline and Rio Gold. I really liked the Airflo, it was easy to work with and cast. I use Rio Gold now, and it's very good also.

I'm nymphing 90% of the time, so I don't really need precision or long distance casting. If you pick a trusted brand, you'll most likely not regret it or find much of a difference between brands.
 
I've been a Cortland 444sl customer since they started makin them.......i was thinking of trying a Rio on my TU "Gift" though.....let us know how it goes.
 
Sorry for my confusion on this...

Is the body of the fly line on Rio Gold (orange or yellow) the end that you are casting or the end that stays on the spool.

I have a bright orange line right now that I am trying to get away from.

I am thinking the Grey Dun part may be what is on the reel now.
 
Gochs, you're alive!

Osprey, after using 444sl...for ever...I can yell you that 'gold' is better. At least it is on med to faster rods
 
Confirmed from Rio: Melon is the business end and the grey dun in the running line. Meh. Was hoping it was the other way around.

Thanks for the replies!
 
krayfish wrote:
Gochs, you're alive! ...

I am!

And I might add that with the $50+ fly lines, you usually get what you pay for. $80 for a quality fly line, whatever brand you get, will be worth the money. I don't have any experience with Sharkskin, so I cannot personally justify the higher price point. It sounds cool when you cast, though.

My indifference for fly line is shining through...
 
I just changed my rio gold line out on my 5wt for rio gold again this year. i like the line. lasted me about four years. it still worked fine but was starting to get surface cracks. i've also used triangle taper and rio dt on my shorter 4 and 5 wt rods. like them all but think rio is better. you can get the rio gold in a few different colors, you may have to order it if you want something other than the yellow/gold combo. have had an bright orange fly lines as well. the yellow is not near as bright as you might think. go look at the color you might be pleasantly surprised.
 
if you don't mind the price I will say Orvis Hydros 3d and Orvis Superfine are my favorite lines out on the market. I have cast SA textured and SA trout mastery and Orvis line blows them away. By far my favorite line to date!
 
I have heard good things about the Orvis line in the non 3d. I think the Superfine isn't what I am looking for. Current rod is med fast action and the new rod I am looking at is med. Is the Superfine for slower actions right? Maybe it would work for the med.

Never thought choosing a new line would prove to be this difficult. I need to stop doing research and reading reviews...
 
I've got reels loaded with gold and sharkskin in 4, 5 & 6 weight. Bring you rods up this way and you are welcome to demo.
 
I use rio gold 3 wt lines on several 2 wt rods... I like the lines very much and I actually do like the color change. I think the color changes at about 40 feet of fly line. Using a slightly longer 2 wt fly rod, like the 7 foot 3 inch echo carbon with dry flies, I will sometime see the color change and realize that I am casting probably further than I need to, and about as far as I can and should.

Allow for the leader, and you're putting a fly 45 feet away and I will often miss a fish that range anyhow... whether I can make the cast or not.

Distance is really important in wild trout fishing, but there's no point in staying so far back that you miss the fish if they do hit the fly. When I see that color change come off the reel, it maybe time to move up

I think it's a lot easier to make a 45 foot cast with a 7' 3" 2wt fly rod usingmy usual #14 Adams than people realize, I am certainly no trained fly rod caster

 
Gibsy - first let me say, excellent choice in guitars. although I'm a Tele guy myself, I still love those LP's!

Second - I would encourage you to check out the Orvis lines. In the interest of full disclosure I do work for Orvis but I don't BS people. This is one of our products I really get behind because, like many of us, I often wondered if I could tell the difference in lines from different companies and at various price points.

Truth is you can.

But here is what I got from all the lines I have bought and tried. You can find a line that will get the job done almost anywhere. You don't have to go big dollar to get a good line.

Here is what our line does better than others:

Hydros 3d Trout is great because it mends and shoots better than any other line I have tried. It has zero memory. The 3d texturing lets you roll cast a mile. And the IS (integrated slickness) really lets this line fly. For long range casts this is my choice.

The Hydros Superfine is what I use on my short rod (7'9" 5wt far and fine). Reason I like the superfine for this is because it's durable. this is my everyday local rig and it sees a lot of use. It gets drug on rocks and stepped on and still casts like new. I like the Superfine line because I think not having the 3D and IS allows it to have just the right amount of friction to load my rod perfectly for those small stream, tight roll casts we so often find ourselves having to make.

so there you have it. I had SA trout mastery and GPX textured and I sold them after I tried our lines. My good friend has Air Flo PVC? and it was alright. I've had 444 and 555 and 333, all great lines and for the most part they are just fine for most the fishing any of us do. I'm just really nerdy about this and since my job allows me the opportunity to try expensive line on the cheap I figure I should't miss the chance.

Hope that helped!
 
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