New Rod Suggestion

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muzzyman88

New member
Joined
Jun 11, 2025
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6
City
Bellefonte
Hi everyone. I'm new here and introduced myself properly in another thread. Quick background, I've been fishing for about 15 or so years with a fly rod. My first "high end' rod, and the one I loved was a Sage FLi 9' 5wt. I spent a good deal of time back then at a local shop with their staff to find the rod that fit me and I was best as throwing.

Anyway, fast forward to three weeks ago and some deadbeat stole this rod, along with my vest, right off the tailgate of my truck as I was packing up my stuff at the end of the night. I had to take a leak and didn't want to just do it in the middle of the parking lot I was in, so I went "around the corner" in the lot, within earshot of the truck which wasn't much more tha 50 yards away. Came back and they cleaned me out of everything but my waders. It was that fast. There was no cars in lot at the time besides mine.

So, needless to say, i'm rod shopping at the moment. My preference is a fast rod as that was what my FLi was and what worked best for me. I haven't tested them yet, but the two I'm looking at is either the Orvis Recon or the Sage Foundation. I'm leaning toward the Orvis as their warrenty is excellent and having the shop nearby that takes very good care of its clients is nice. I've heard Sage's warrenty went to heck.

Thoughts? I'm open to other suggestions too. I'd like to stay in that 500-600 range at most. Thanks!
 
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You’re completely justified peeing in a jug in your truck bed for life now, that’s terrible.

It’s gotta be hard to compete with Orvis on warranty and customer service with how big they are and economy of scale. If I were shopping with that budget I’d try Recons in different configurations and see what works for what I want to do. Depending on your goals you might want to take it as an opportunity to branch out from the 9ft 5wt.
 
Sorry Man what a kick in the n_ts.

X2 for the Orvis
I have the Recon 9’ 5wt and it’s a do it all rod from drys to nymph rigs.
 
So sorry for you…that’s awful!
Thanks for sharing the story. I’ve done similar and will keep everything locked up moving forward.
I have an Orvis 9’ 5wt that works well for my general fly fishing, but there are many great choices.
 
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There's a special place in hell reserved for those that steal a man's fishing gear.

Nothing I can offer on modern rods except that the Orvis Recon I used on a guide trip 2 years ago cast wonderfully during a day of hopper/dropper fishing.
 
That sucks. I never worry about theft in your area. Guess I need to start being more careful. Orvis does have a great warranty/customer service. I have never cast a Recon. I did cast a Foundation 7wt at Edison, it is very impressive and I plan on adding one to my quiver for smallies. You have a local shop that sells both. For mw rod breakage is very rare so I don't worry about warranty or repair lead times.
 
That sucks. Make sure you keep you eyes out on the Craigslist ads for a few months. Let the local shops that buy used gear know about the theft so they can keep their eyes out for your gear.

On the original topic, I have an Orvis Recon and absolutely love it. I used one on a guided trip and went an bought one the same evening.
 
Too little, too late but having lived, worked & played in NYC I learned a LONG time ago to never leave anything our of sight or reach for even a second...

It may be inconvenient to constantly lock and unlock your vehicle as you are loading, unloading or peeing, but it does prevent this sort of thing from happening as easily.
 
Thanks fellas, I'm headed to both of my local shops today to try the Orvis's first. I'm even going to throw the clearwater just to be sure. If I like it, its quite a bit cheaper. The other shop sells Sage rods so I'll check in on them too.

I won't let a damn thing out of sight now. As someone else mentioned, this area isn't known for theft at all but it just goes to show you that it can happen anywhere at anytime.
 
muzzyman88 said:
Hi everyone. I'm new here and introduced myself properly in another thread. Quick background, I've been fishing for about 15 or so years with a fly rod. My first "high end' rod, and the one I loved was a Sage FLi 9' 5wt. I spent a good deal of time back then at a local shop with their staff to find the rod that fit me and I was best as throwing.

Anyway, fast forward to three weeks ago and some deadbeat stole this rod, along with my vest, right off the tailgate of my truck as I was packing up my stuff at the end of the night. I had to take a leak and didn't want to just do it in the middle of the parking lot I was in, so I went "around the corner" in the lot, within earshot of the truck which wasn't much more tha 50 yards away. Came back and they cleaned me out of everything but my waders. It was that fast. There was no cars in lot at the time besides mine.

So, needless to say, i'm rod shopping at the moment. My preference is a fast rod as that was what my FLi was and what worked best for me. I haven't tested them yet, but the two I'm looking at is either the Orvis Recon or the Sage Foundation. I'm leaning toward the Orvis as their warrenty is excellent and having the shop nearby that takes very good care of its clients is nice. I've heard Sage's warrenty went to heck.

Thoughts? I'm open to other suggestions too. I'd like to stay in that 500-600 range at most. Thanks!
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Awful. Scumbags.
 
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