Looking for advice on 2 or3 weight rod

Tomcatchesallthefish · #1 01-25-2015, 04:31 PM

looking for small streams rod, any suggestion under 250? How big of fish are you catching on these rods? I want light and compact, high quality. I don't catch to many big fish but want to know what the limits of the gear. I want to hike with it and use it on some small lake as well. I plan to buy a cheap reel because I don't see the reason to use a expensive one, if this is wrong please tell me. Thank you For your advice.

270WINCHESTER · #2 01-25-2015, 06:06 PM

Havent had a chance to use it but i bought one today at the fly fishing show. Its an echo glass rod, 6'9" 3wt. $225
I have heard that glass rods make great small stream rods so i decided to look into them. I was looking at either getting the echo glass, or the Redington Butter Stick. Lucky for me because both which were at the show. Great thing was that i got to cast them there and see how they felt.
I first tried the butter stick and really disliked it. Even though glass rods are heavier than graphite, it felt heavier than it should. Then i got ta cast it. I wasn't terribly impressed. The forward cast was okay, but i couldn't get it to roll for the life of me. After sever minutes of trying to make a decent roll cast i quit. It just wasn't working. And it wasn't just me. Another man was looking at the rod the same time i was and gave it a go after. I had similar troubles. Couldn't get it to roll properly. So putting that rod down i went to look at the echo glass. It was much better. It felt the right weight for a glass 3st and the casting was right on. It felt very good to cast and the roll casts were effortless. After casting it for a couple minutes i decided it was the right rod for me and i bought it. I just cant wait for the spring know, and get a chance to use it.

FlyTheory · #3 01-25-2015, 09:28 PM

http://www.echoflyfishing.com/html/r...product_type=1 Here ya go, I think this is the best bang for your buck. It's even under your budget! My friend has it in 4wt paired with a rio gold line, and its a solid setup. Hope this helps

kinwahkly · #4 01-25-2015, 09:43 PM

Ive been using a 2wt Finesse fromTFO,awesome little stream rod.

270WINCHESTER · #5 01-25-2015, 09:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FlyTheory

http://www.echoflyfishing.com/html/r...product_type=1 Here ya go, I think this is the best bang for your buck. It's even under your budget! My friend has it in 4wt paired with a rio gold line, and its a solid setup. Hope this helps

That is defiantly a nice looking rod. It was the one that i originally wanted before i got echos glass rod. It was one of the highest ranked 2 wt's in this shoot out. Best value for for what your getting. It held up with some of the $300 rods.
http://www.flyfishohio.com/2-Weight_...carbon_732.htm
Like said, its defiantly the best bang for your buck. Solid rod for a solid price.

sather19 · #6 01-25-2015, 09:50 PM

I have the three weight echo carbon and brought in a ten pound rainbow in a stream, inexpensive and tough with a good warranty program. Well under budget

midgetwaiter · #7 01-25-2015, 11:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 270WINCHESTER

Great thing was that i got to cast them there and see how they felt.
I first tried the butter stick and really disliked it. Even though glass rods are heavier than graphite, it felt heavier than it should. Then i got ta cast it. I wasn't terribly impressed. The forward cast was okay, but i couldn't get it to roll for the life of me. After sever minutes of trying to make a decent roll cast i quit. It just wasn't working. And it wasn't just me. Another man was looking at the rod the same time i was and gave it a go after. I had similar troubles. Couldn't get it to roll properly.

That's an interesting observation, I tried a Butterstick 5wt last year and I thought it roll cast well, my accuracy with it was very good. I wonder if it is a difference between the 3wt and the 5wt or different technique?

Quote:

Originally Posted by 270WINCHESTER

So putting that rod down i went to look at the echo glass. It was much better. It felt the right weight for a glass 3st and the casting was right on. It felt very good to cast and the roll casts were effortless.

I tried this one as well and I liked it for roll casting and casts out to 50ft or so. Past 50 ft I wasn't able to shoot much line, if I remember right it was a Rio Trout LT that was on it, that may have been part of the issue. What distance would you say you were able to get to?

I doubt I would ever fish it much past 50ft but it is nice to have that reserve power for windy days or the occasional streamer. That's what has me looking to upgrade form the Amundson Midge 3wt I use now.

I also tried the Sage Crica which was very fussy and the TFO Bvk which I liked as long as it is over lined.

Flieguy · #8 01-25-2015, 11:43 PM

not to bash TFO but I had a 6 foot 2wt finesse, i used it for a season and then upgraded to a greys for the same price (on sale) and never looked back.

echo is also fantastic, and I'd take a look at a pieroway

270WINCHESTER · #9 01-26-2015, 07:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by midgetwaiter

That's an interesting observation, I tried a Butterstick 5wt last year and I thought it roll cast well, my accuracy with it was very good. I wonder if it is a difference between the 3wt and the 5wt or different technique?

I tried this one as well and I liked it for roll casting and casts out to 50ft or so. Past 50 ft I wasn't able to shoot much line, if I remember right it was a Rio Trout LT that was on it, that may have been part of the issue. What distance would you say you were able to get to?

I doubt I would ever fish it much past 50ft but it is nice to have that reserve power for windy days or the occasional streamer. That's what has me looking to upgrade form the Amundson Midge 3wt I use now.

I also tried the Sage Crica which was very fussy and the TFO Bvk which I liked as long as it is over lined.

Ya i dont know. Like i said me and another guy tried roll casting it and just couldn't produce. Like you said, its possible its because it was a different rod or maybe it was the quality line it had on it.

With the 6'9" 3wt echo glass i could easily get an accurate 40ft cast. Didn't try getting much father than that but i would guess i could have gotten it out to 50ft without to much trouble. Again, the guy said that it didn't have a very good line, and that if it did it would have produced better. Like you said, most casting situations with this kind of rod are relatively short.

kissarmygeneral · #10 01-26-2015, 09:13 AM

My advice is to try a few rods at different lengths. I bought a 3 wt Hardy at 7'0 and I found the thing to be very clunky when throwing bugs 30' +. The short rod struggled with chunkier foam bugs too, it doesn't fit my style at all.

upstream · #11 01-26-2015, 11:44 AM

I can not get used to cast shorter rods too. I have 2 wt 8' TFO Pro Series, and a 3 wt 8' TFO BVK. They work well for me and will cast far enough when I am on a smaller lake or pond. The 2 wt caught me a 16" cut from a stream last year to be the biggest on this rod with some good fight. With the fast running water, it could be tough if I hook into anything bigger. But I would not take my 2 wt to places if I can expecting anything big tho.

Groundhogger · #12 01-26-2015, 02:58 PM

Well, the biggest brown trout I ever landed was on the lightest fly rod I ever owned. A 7' 2wt. That experience didn't pull me towards light fly rods...it pushed me away from them. The only 2wt. I ever owned that was worth a damn (in hindsight) was a T&T Horizon, 8'2", 2 pc. if memory serves. Still, at best, it felt like good, fast-action 3wt. and balanced best with a WF3 line. A close second would be the Sage SLT 8'3" 3wt., but it's gone too. Lightest I fish with now is a 4wt., and at times...I wish it was an SLT too! lol (it's a St. Croix Avid)

2wt. and 3wt. lines (rods aside) don't battle the wind well, so open-areas like lakes are going to prove to be a problem if there is even a light wind. If you pin a big fish, you better hope there isn't a strong current to go along with it. Current or no, you're going for a run with a big fish and the older I get...the less willingness I have to do a face plant on river rocks for the sake of landing a trout.

I have a photo of that fish, along with the little no-drag Islander reel I had on it at the time... I'll try to ad it later from home. Internet speed where I am is incredibly slow.

midgetwaiter · #13 01-26-2015, 04:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Groundhogger

2wt. and 3wt. lines (rods aside) don't battle the wind well, so open-areas like lakes are going to prove to be a problem if there is even a light wind.

I don't know how to quantify this but basically I'm assuming if I can't get past 50ft accurately indoors I'm gonna struggle closer in the wind. I'm trying to find a rod that will cast well at 35-40ft in all reasonable conditions.

I think that might be the case with a 5wt fiberglass but I'm not so sure about a 3wt. Could be it's something you just have to practice.

FlyingTies · #14 01-26-2015, 04:09 PM

I have the Redington Classic Trout 7'6" 3wt. I got it as a bundle off the internet. Im super happy with it (I haven't tried any other 3wt's). It seemed like a good deal, comes with everything to get your started and the reel is pretty slick, it screams when they take line. It has great feel too, I find it to be pretty darn accurate as well.

http://www.amazon.com/Redington-Clas...+classic+trout

Ozzzzz · #15 01-26-2015, 06:18 PM

Grey's GRXi+ in a 7 foot 3 weight. Durable. Casts really well. No bling. Love it. Always have it with me. I think I paid $170 a couple years ago, if memory serves me correctly...

Ozz

Bhflyfisher · #16 01-26-2015, 06:31 PM

handled many 18-20" cutts on my sage one 3wt, along with a 22" rainbow on a orvis zero gravity 3wt. You'd really be shocked at how much it takes to break 2-3 wt rods. Seen first hand a sage txl-f 2wt do some pretty amazing stuff. Although this wasn't really helpful im sure in your choice of rods, as those 3 rods are way out of your budget.

If you're going to go under 250$, i would pick whichever company is going to give you the best warranty (echo or tfo). Under 250$ the performance is going to be similar in every brand because they all come from the same place anyways....

rycoma · #17 01-26-2015, 06:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 270WINCHESTER

Havent had a chance to use it but i bought one today at the fly fishing show. Its an echo glass rod, 6'9" 3wt. $225
I have heard that glass rods make great small stream rods so i decided to look into them. I was looking at either getting the echo glass, or the Redington Butter Stick. Lucky for me because both which were at the show. Great thing was that i got to cast them there and see how they felt.
I first tried the butter stick and really disliked it. Even though glass rods are heavier than graphite, it felt heavier than it should. Then i got ta cast it. I wasn't terribly impressed. The forward cast was okay, but i couldn't get it to roll for the life of me. After sever minutes of trying to make a decent roll cast i quit. It just wasn't working. And it wasn't just me. Another man was looking at the rod the same time i was and gave it a go after. I had similar troubles. Couldn't get it to roll properly. So putting that rod down i went to look at the echo glass. It was much better. It felt the right weight for a glass 3st and the casting was right on. It felt very good to cast and the roll casts were effortless. After casting it for a couple minutes i decided it was the right rod for me and i bought it. I just cant wait for the spring know, and get a chance to use it.

Pretty sure that was me you are talking about. Man am I glad I tried out that stick of butter. Yuck, I tried the echo as well not as bad but have my heart set on a custom blue halo fiberglass from fish tales. I have a echo carbon 3 wt and had it slightly overlined with orvis super fine 4wt for a while and holy crap could it punch some long casts. Never an issue with the wind. It really is one of the better rods i have bought. Its kind of on the lower side of medium for speed. Its a great price and with the matt blank oh man talk about stealth.

Tomcatchesallthefish · #18 01-28-2015, 09:20 PM

Wow great stuff. Thank you.
Thinking I might be want to spend more, I look into sage approach rods, are there any comments on these? Thank you so much my friends, you are a great.
This will be my most used and prized fishing rod, so I can maybe spend a little extra.

Dak1138 · #19 01-29-2015, 05:59 AM

I have a 5 weight Approach and it is awesome. I have been considering replacing my current 3 weight with an Approach as well.

Groundhogger · #20 01-29-2015, 10:15 AM

I was on a "the lighter the better" kick for YEARS...culminating at a point where I had 2 x 2wts., 3 x 3 wts., and 3 x 4wts. Using a 7' 2wt., I landed the biggest brown I've ever caught. The experience pushed me AWAY from using lighter gear, not the other way around.

The only photo I have on the office computer, have others at home.

I never liked how little authority 2wt. and 3wt. lines have in the wind no matter what rod/operator is on the other end. However, like everything else, not every light rod is created equal.

By FAR...and I truly mean that...the NICEST light rod I ever owned was a T&T Horizon 2wt. I believe it was an 8' 6", 2pc. Nothing came close to matching that rod in 2 or 3wt and trust me...I tried allot of them. Beyond a doubt, if I was looking to get back into the 2wt. scene, I'd consider nothing else even if the search took months...or longer.

My second favorite was a Sage SLT 8'3" 3pc. in 3wt. Fantastic rod. In fact, if/when I stop dumping every spare dime I have into shooting/hunting/reloading I plan on tracking down an SLT in 4wt. In my opinion, probably the sweetest action of any light trout rod. Not as fast as the T&T (which was very versatile) the SLT made a SWEET dry fly rod. A 4wt. would open-up it's nymphing abilities nicely.

These days, it's 4wts. mostly..or...a medium action 8' 5wt. Compact enough for small streams, but little "oomph" for beating light wind in more open areas. However, if you're keen on the lighter gear...I'd be trying to track-down one of the 2 I suggested.