Flip Pallot's casting

[afishinado]

I’ve always admired Flip Pallot’s fly casting, smooth and graceful and effortless, IMO. He uses a lot of wrist with a short double haul and shorter casts (as in the video).

It never ceases to amaze me how different casters have their own style and even own method of casting and yet they all get the job done. Some just look better doing it, IMO. Check it out:

http://www.moldychum.com/home-old/2009/11/19/unlock-casting-secrets-with-flip-pallot.html

 

[bikerfish]

he's a beautiful caster. I really miss his show. what a cool guy

 

[jayL]

Great video. He really does have an original style.

 

[gfen]

I noticed he holds the rod sideways in his hand for some of the longer casts in the beginning, I've read that by doing this, you fasten the action of your rod by not using it along the spine.

 

[jayL]

That's interesting, but it opens up the whole "spine or not" debate in rod building. The consensus seems about split over whether it matters or not.

I have only built one rod, but I did take the spine into consideration. I think it matters... so I agree!

 

[tomgamber]

I think the spline matters too. However a guy like Flip does a lot of casting. A LOT of casting. An under arm or side arm cast is far less tiring than an overhand cast. This could be something he considers and is in the habit of doing. If you notice even side arm the reel is in the front of the rod so he still appears to be casting along the spline. Don't know, never thought of it. Maybe someone should email him and ask.

 

[Maurice]

Casting, once you understand and feel the physics of it is just a melody of the muscles in your arm played through your hand which responds with symphonic reverberation to keep the line airborn.

Plus, Flip has a cool beard. Or I have a cold beer....I forget.

 

[afishinado]

Winston, Sage, Scott.......none of these rod mfgs build their rods along the spine/spline, they build the rod on the straightest axis. I guarantee Flip P. doesn't cast in any way based on the spline of the rod.

I love to watch the style of casting with accomplished caster. As I said earlier, Flip P gives it a lot of wrist, lefty K is a side-armer, Joan W. is a straight-up caster, etc. All get the job done. As Mo said, if the physics work, everything else is just style.

 

[Heritage-Angler]

Flip Pallot? Pffffft. Now here's a REALLY stylish caster! Notice the gunslinger stare - the smooth, yet powerful casting stroke - as the line sails off to the horizon. Every fish's worst nightmare.....

Ladies and Gentlemen - the "Chester County Cannon". :-D

 

[gfen]

afishinado wrote:
Winston, Sage, Scott.......none of these rod mfgs build their rods along the spine/spline, they build the rod on the straightest axis.

In other words, I can now never buy a rod from those three makers because in my opinion, it does matter. How can it not? There's a visible change in the way the rod bends wether its along the spline (spine?) or not. That's the way the rod wants to bend, you have the ability to innately affect the action of the rod by using the inherent build of the rod, its spine, to affect stroke.

As for Flip's casting, look as he uses the second rod with the orange line ~30 seconds into the film. The reel is quite clearly cocked to the outside of his stroke through the entire movement. Its very obvious during hte closeups at ~46s, and again even when they show the rear view at around ~1m56s, on the back cast the reel is clearly cocked out, and it might look like he rotates it forward, but I'm sure he does not. At least with that rod.

So, who's got the guy in his rolodex and can give him a call and straighten this out for us?

 

[Maurice]

Its not the tool its the carpenter.....

the most significant tip I can point out from this video is to watch his elbow the entire time he is casting it is stationery. By eliminating the variable of yet another moving part in the cast you can begin to understand it better.

Many casters use their arm to "throw" the line and to "pull" it back with an extended and reaching upper arm.

Thats why he uses a lot of wrist. He trades off the arm power for that in his wrist.

His loops tail too.....anybody notice?


Bottom line is he can "get it there" a long way away with seemingly little effort.

I saw someone once at Fishermans paradise lawn casting a long way. looked like he was going to do a cartwheel when the line landed.

 

[gfen]

Maurice wrote:
Its not the tool its the carpenter.....

We can agree on that.

His loops tail too.....anybody notice?

I assumed it was a sinking tip, and that everyone's loops tailed viciously when using it making my own sad attempts at casting an intermediate tip that much less embarrassing.

 

[jayL]

I noticed the tailing loop too. I am the king of the tailing loop, so I know one when I see one.

It's cool how he uses that quick little haul to turn a tailing loop into a compact bullet.

 

[greenghost]

Yeah, Flip's style is tight... compare to Lefty's who is loose and open.
Different strokes...

Lefty's Style

 

[afishinado]

gfen wrote:

afishinado wrote:
Winston, Sage, Scott.......none of these rod mfgs build their rods along the spine/spline, they build the rod on the straightest axis.

In other words, I can now never buy a rod from those three makers because in my opinion, it does matter. How can it not? There's a visible change in the way the rod bends wether its along the spline (spine?) or not. That's the way the rod wants to bend, you have the ability to innately affect the action of the rod by using the inherent build of the rod, its spine, to affect stroke.

As for Flip's casting, look as he uses the second rod with the orange line ~30 seconds into the film. The reel is quite clearly cocked to the outside of his stroke through the entire movement. Its very obvious during hte closeups at ~46s, and again even when they show the rear view at around ~1m56s, on the back cast the reel is clearly cocked out, and it might look like he rotates it forward, but I'm sure he does not. At least with that rod.

So, who's got the guy in his rolodex and can give him a call and straighten this out for us?

Sage, Winston, Scott and I’ll add Loomis build all their rods on the straightest axis. It takes just as much time (labor) to determine the straightest axis as to find the “spline” or “spine” of the rod (I’ve done both when building a rod) so that’s not the answer. Also, I look in on the rodbuilder.org forum. The site is frequented by many of the custom rod builders in the US and abroad. The following is a post on the subject from Tom Kirkman, one the moderators, an expert rod builder, and Founder/Editor of RodMaker magazine:


“Spine or not to spine?? Does it matter?

There has never been any evidence given that offers proof or good reason for mounting guides on the spine or opposite the spine. The whole idea that it was a good idea came from a book written in the early 1970's and which other authors then picked up on. None offered any reason for doing this other than that if you flexed a naked blank by hand (which never happens while fishing - our rods have guides on them which act as small lever arms and overcome "spine") the blank would roll to a certain location. The authors stated that utilizing the spine in the manner they recommended would prevent rod twist while fishing and create a more accurate fishing rod. Both statements have been very much disproven in actual mechanical tests over the years. For the most part, everything written about the importance of rod spine in the various texts out there has always been based on opinion, not tests or facts. But if you repeat something often enough and long enough, it tends to become "fact." It's a hard myth for many to let go of, but it will die in the next few years. At least one publication actually somewhat recanted on their 20+ year stance on the importance of spine after our test results were printed in a very early issue of RodMaker. They too, then decided that spine has nothing to do with preventing rod twist.

Guide location has everything to do with rod twist, spine has nothing to do with it. For best accuracy, you need the straightest axis in line with your casting plane, only problem being that most of us don't always cast on the exact same plane each time. But you don't want any natural curvature being so far off line from the normal casting plane that the rod tip will travel in an arc (twist around a central axis is fine).

If you do choose to build on the spine, however, you won't hurt a thing. If it makes you feel good - go ahead and do it. That's precisely because it just doesn't matter. The one thing you never want a new builder to worry over is rod spine. Far too many shy away from building a rod because they're afraid or have been told that if they don't get this spine thing correct, their rods will twist, explode, cast to the left, etc. But none of that is the actual case. Try not to worry over it too much - it really doesn't matter.”

 

[ryguyfi]

When I first started casting I used a 45 degree angle. Now I implement overhead, 45 and complete side arm for different situations. I also "sway" when I'm making larger casts. It's kind of like making a longer throw with a football or javelin, I feel the inertia helps with throwing more line.... but might just be me.

I have also felt pretty comfortable in the last year or so making backwards casts. When standing at a bank and casting to where the stream is flowing left to right, I feel a backwards cast for a right hander is better to get your line in a more ideal place and have to use less mends.

 

[afishinado]

ryguyfi wrote:
When I first started casting I used a 45 degree angle. Now I implement overhead, 45 and complete side arm for different situations. I also "sway" when I'm making larger casts. It's kind of like making a longer throw with a football or javelin, I feel the inertia helps with throwing more line.... but might just be me.

I have also felt pretty comfortable in the last year or so making backwards casts. When standing at a bank and casting to where the stream is flowing left to right, I feel a backwards cast for a right hander is better to get your line in a more ideal place and have to use less mends.

Lefty Kreh is a "swayer". I find using his sidearm style with a little "swaying" of the hips helps me with longer casts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDewXIM_sAc

 

[SonofZ3]

I never noticed it until I started attempting spey casting with my switch rods, but I use the drag of the water on the tip of my fly line quite a bit when fishing my single handed rods. Line directly below you? lift up as much as you can so that only the tip of the line is dragging on the water, do a quick haul and launch the line back out in front of you at 90 degrees to where it was, dangling the current to your side. If you have too much line out to pull most of it off the water by lifting the tip, just strip some in. I'm still lousy at spey casting, but at least now I understand why the line on the water as an anchor is so important.

My father and I learned how to fly fish together. He has a very beautiful, relaxed casting stroke with nice loops. I almost always double haul, cast side arm and under hand, and try to keep my line out of the air as much as possible. We cast very differently.

 

[Maurice]

SonofZ3 wrote:
I never noticed it until I started attempting spey casting with my switch rods, but I use the drag of the water on the tip of my fly line quite a bit when fishing my single handed rods. Line directly below you? lift up as much as you can so that only the tip of the line is dragging on the water, do a quick haul and launch the line back out in front of you at 90 degrees to where it was, dangling the current to your side. If you have too much line out to pull most of it off the water by lifting the tip, just strip some in. I'm still lousy at spey casting, but at least now I understand why the line on the water as an anchor is so important.

Sonof,

You are using the water to load the rod....very resourceful. This is an effortless way to fish small streams rather than doing full roll casts.