Look into it. I pretty much started out with one when I was a wee laddie. Moved ‘up to the big leagues’ with casting stuff. Now I prefer to just relax and wave the fly pole. Haven’t given up the other methods by any stretch. I’ll pitch a jig or soak worms and shad. The fly rod just simplifies stuff and you don’t feel like you’re at work. (Unless I’m on a bonefish flat. I get a bit serious there.)
Looking at this one for a starter package.
https://www.dickssportinggoods.com/p...fnpflnhfly9com
That might be an ok starter rod. I have an older Pflueger setup I received as a kid. I didn’t see on there what weight the rod is? I could only find the length and action.Originally Posted by VicLynn
I read the model # and it might be a 9’6” 8wt 4 piece? (NM968-4CBO) An 8 would be good for bass. I use an 8 for bonefish. Overkill for bream and crappie, a 5wt would be a good starter setup. Not familiar with that combo so I can’t comment.
We have a Cabela's here, I'll check the ones you recommended.
The only thing that sends up a flag on that combo is the number of tip breaks. Breaks at the ferrule are usually from poor fitting on the blanks or incorrect seating. In all my days I’ve had only 1 split a ferrule and that was on a $30 Academy closeout. Got a couple years out of it, so maybe I didn’t seat it correctly. I was able to salvage it and it’s still a decent 6wt.
Most of my rods are 4 piece, some 3, a couple 2s. It’s rare to have issues these days.
As much as I dislike Bass Pro, you can get a pretty nice outfit from them if they have a fly shop in the store. Get a 5 weight outfit , have someone show you the basics and you will be on your way.
For the folks that are new to this (on all threads) how’s it going? Anybody figured out how to use it? Caught some fish?
Not yet. Rods arrived Wednesday. Had flash flood alert until 3 a.m. the next morning. River looked like rolling mud. Has rained some since then. Was by the river yesterday and it still looks the same. Way high. I have everything I need, but haven't put it all together yet. Sure wish I had a fishing partner nearby to motivate me. Heck, a decent place to fish nearby would be enough motivation. Too bad there aren't any.
Don't rule out small creeks and places you wouldn't normally think to fish. A fly rod opens up a ton of possibilities for skinny/small water.Not yet. Rods arrived Wednesday. Had flash flood alert until 3 a.m. the next morning. River looked like rolling mud. Has rained some since then. Was by the river yesterday and it still looks the same. Way high. I have everything I need, but haven't put it all together yet. Sure wish I had a fishing partner nearby to motivate me. Heck, a decent place to fish nearby would be enough motivation. Too bad there aren't any.
Ouch! Probably every creek up there is a mess right now.
Never been a trout fisherman, but there are 3 creeks not far away and 3-4 others a half hour or so drive away. Stocked of course. Probably all trout have been taken out by now, but it looks like trout fishing is going to be in my future. I'm betting where the trout are stocked isn't going to be in the wide open spaces. No way am I heading to the fishing pier on Lake Nockamixon with a fly rod. There are 3 lakes about a 50-60 minute drive away with enough open space to use a fly rod. I imagine it will take me a while to get could enough with my casting where I won't need plenty of room behind me. Maybe the roll cast is easier than I think.
Do you have access to any small farm ponds? That’s where I cut my teeth up in WNY as a kid. Chucking poppers for bluegills and bass in 1 to 5 acre ponds. Different time back then though. Most farmers would let a guy fish his pond. We didn’t make a mess and offered up some fillets when we were done. I had a few in bike range. Would clean a few for them and get home quick enough to finish the rest. Good days they were.
I don't know of any small ponds around here. I am originally from the northern most part of Bradford County, PA next to the NY/PA border. We fished small ponds (and one small lake) in PA and mostly small lakes in NY although we did fish some of the larger ones occasionally. Some rivers and creeks in both states. Unfortunately in those days we didn't have foam coffee cups to discard in the water ways.Any trash left with us. Like you said, fishing was so much better. There were times on Lake Lamoka and Lake Waneta that the four of us caught 300-400 fish or more in one day. Mostly all panfish. And yes, some were kept for eating.
Love it, specially when a big ole Bass hits it while casting for Bluegills! Haven't done it in a while, need to get back into it. Need to service my old Garcia-Matic and see if it still works.
Last edited by Crappie Bob; 09-06-2021 at 05:40 PM.
A couple from yesterday morning. Quit early, got hotter than the hinges of hades and no breeze.
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