Usually takes 2-4 weeks. Rods are repaired, not replaced. This is a fast action rod, a tiny bit stiffer and a tad slower in action than the Helios 3F, but still a very good casting rod. Thomas and Thomas Zone. The epoxy coatings on the guides are top notch. In this Shootout, we again used the Scientific Anglers lines, which we have found to cast better and last longer than other brands. Like the Orvis 3F, there is no hook keeper. Power: 6.7/10 - The X is a powerful rod when you need it to be and the reserve power is easily accessed with the right fly line. The handle is Winstons familiar cigar grip, a half wells with a little flare on the bottom end to accept the uplocking seat. For guides, there is a hook keeper followed by a single SiC stripping guide, then hard chrome snake guides. With the inexpensive warranties that most manufacturers offer, your new rod is one that will last you for many years. (Click here to see more deflection charts). Sage uses lime green wraps that complement the color of the rod. Performance at 40 feet: 19.2 points out of 20. Sage Lifetime warranty to original owner. A half wells handle is used and the quality of the cork is only fair to good compared to the best rods. And for a rod that is half the cost of the Helios 3F, the overall weight and swing weight are actuallylower! To improve on the previous Zenith, which won our original 4-weight Shootout, Howard gave the Zephrus a slightly stronger butt and mid section as well as a softer tip. Like the Avantt, each section is inscribed with the serial number of the rod so that you can avoid mixing up sections if you have similar rods. #28. The cork handle is a half wells design and the quality of the cork is not nearly as good as the best rods and a lot of filler is used. Performance at 40 feet: 19.7 points out of 20. The blank is finished in a dark olive green with dark green wraps, that include a little light green trim on the butt. It also sits dead last in our Fun to Fish category. Standard corks are used and the quality is excellent. If you look at the deflection chart, youll see that the Zehprus has one of the stiffest butt and midsections, yet then it progresses to a nice soft tip. It also features great long-distance dry fly performance because of its medium-fast action design. Bad Ass Glass Quickshot. As I put more line in the air, it tracked beautifully and was just a delightful rod to cast at 40 feet. The guide wraps are gray, trimmed with red on the butt section and first ferrule. Hardy ZEPHRUS ULTRALITE 89 #4 $679.95. Bottom Line: This is a fly rod for dry flies and short distances only. The action is much slower, this being more of a medium action rod. Fundamentally, because there are so many gear options in fly fishing, shootout-style blog posts help anglers determine 'the best of' a particular selected subcategory. The fancy burl wood insert just jumps out at you with its striking color lots of red and orange mixed in very attractive. Heres a mid-priced rod that put in a good performance across the board. Both of these lines utilize a slightly longer rear taper that allows superior mending ability as well as enhancing the ability to make medium to longer casts. The wraps are a dark green to complement the blank and the epoxy coatings are perfect. The length and model on each rod section is inscribed as on the K2. The perfect line: SA Amplitude Smooth Infinity in WF-4-F, Performance at 25 feet: 20 points out of 20. #26. Thomas and Thomas $55 repair charges for the original owner, includes shipping. The casting scores were only fair to good, and in my notes I say that I am getting very little feel or accuracy in close compared to the best rods. Little feel, and the slower action kills any accuracy. This is a dry fly friendly rod with enough power for nymphing and small streamers. We can attribute this to the use of one-coat finish rather than multiple coats as seen on the T&T rods. No other rod maker does this better. This rod gives me a nice light feel in hand, and Im getting good loop control combined with plenty of power and good accuracy. For the lighter rods, we used their Amplitude Smooth Trout. We set out three sets of paper plates as targets, with plenty of distance between each casting line so that no one was getting tangled up. Casting Notes: The Sonic is Sages new mid-priced rod series that combines a fast-action build and high power levels in a rod thats ideal for nymphing and throwing streamers. Of these rods built in Korea, the Hardy rods are designed in England, the Douglas rods are designed here in the U.S., the Loop rods are designed in Sweden. Bottom Line: Weve been recommending the DXF 5wt in this price range for a while and think it provides the most performance for the lowest cost in the mid-priced category. A lot of this can be attributed to the nice action good butt and mid section power combined with a lighter, softer tip, much like the Zephrus. Power: 7.5/10 - The DXF is powerful for a 5wt but features a larger timing window than other less forgiving fast action 5wts. The epoxy coatings on the wraps were not so good too heavy and about like what we saw on the X. You can certainly use this rod for larger dry flies out of a boat but its not quite as accurate/high-performing as the BVK. Each chart gives you a good look at how the tip section, (approximately the top half of the rod) bends and compares to other rods. The Recon was much better. For guides, there is a hook keeper, then a single SiC stripping guide, followed with hard chrome snake guides that are nice and thin on the tip sections. Scott Lifetime warranty to original owner, $50 handling fee. The wraps and coatings on the guides are close to perfect. The heavier swing weight makes casting at longer distances a workout. It would also one of the best 4-weight rods for throwing streamers. $279.99. I like a lot of things about this rod. Features: 3wt-4wt Medium/fast action 5wt-10wt fast action. Better than the Radian and Helios 3F in close. What gives? The accuracy was not good either. If you are thinking about buying a fly rod, we suggest reading one of our Shootouts for the line size rod you want. The H3F rated slightly higher over all, but the Asquith had a lot more butt and mid-section power to blast out long casts. Makes sense because its the most expensive rod in our buyers guide. The feel Im getting is not that good either. The Zone series pushes the envelope in both performance and price, bringing the latest R&D from Thomas & Thomas to more fly anglers than ever before. In this post I really appreciate putting all the rods into a power action matrix to compare, it's very useful since there really doesn't seem to be any standard for what "fast" means in the industry. The Expeditor policy on the IMX Pro is $85.00. R.L. Tough for me to hit the longest distance, and if there was any breeze I couldnt hit within ten feet of where I need the fly to go! The rod is stout yet smooth for refined performance at short range and enough power to propel large terrestrials through the wind. This 8 foot Pure is somewhat like the Zephrus in acti0n with a fairly strong butt and mid section and then a nice soft flexible tip. I did not find that to be the case. Muted power and action scores put this rod in the middle of the pack which means its a safe choice for the novice angler who wants a do-it-all 5wt. The guides are one hook keeper; a single SiC stripper and then all the rest are hard chrome snake guides that are durable but heavy. The cork handle is a half wells with a long taper at the front, that I found to be comfortable to grip. For 4-weight rods, when you are fishing at shorter distances, (most of the time), it is particularly important that leaders turn over well. I do like the fast action, just not the heavy swing weight, which is far heavier than the Douglas DXF. It is trimmed top and bottom with contrasting, composite cork rings. Sharing the advanced StratoTherm resin developed for the acclaimed Avantt and Exocett series, Zone rods are rolled and built by hand alongside those flagship models right here in our Massachusetts, USA facility. Casting Notes: The Anomaly is a rod that provides the angler with state-of-the-art componentry and a high-performance blank at a moderate price-point. The cork handle is a western style grip with a comfortable swell in the middle and a nice taper forward. One thing I like is that there is a serial number on each rod section. Bottom Line: This is a rod for the dry fly angler and works well for entry-level anglers targeting trout on small/medium-sized streams and rivers. The action seems about right and Im getting nice loops. Cheaper rods often utilize pre-formed grips that use a lot of filler in the cork that will chunk out or erode with hard use. The color of the blank is a natural graphite gray, and only lightly sanded so you can still see the tape marks, much like the Scott rods. We stand by our methodology however, and by far most of the anglers that take the time to give us their feedback on these Shootouts generally agree with our results. The added weight and relative stiffness over the other best rods hurt many of its scores. The buzz around IFTD this year was heavy on the rod-talk. I liked the use of alignment dots. 4 Reviews. This is a medium action rod, and slower action rods like this SS have never performed well for us. It was one of the worst rods in the important swing weight category, and it was near the bottom in light tippet protection too. Howard is a great angler and knew just what he wanted for the perfect 4-weight. We have liked the Mystic Reaper that has done well in some of our early 5-weight Shootouts. For this Shootout, we again checked the warranty policies in detail, as some have changed slightly. The stiffer tip didnt allow for much feel or accuracy. It had the power to hit 60 feet easily enough but my accuracy was not very good. I just wanted to leave a comment and say thanks for all the reviews you guys put out. The rest of the guides start with a single wire recoil stripper like G. Loomis uses, (I dont like these much either), but at least the rest are the good flexible nickel/titanium single-foot guides, as on the Zephrus, in a black color. In our important swing weight category, this rod was one of the worst. Performance at 60 feet: 6.5 points out of 10. #21. $75 on recent rods within 10 years, $125 on classic olderrods. Its perhaps a little heavy in swing weight, and this as well as its stiffness, hurt its score at 25 feet. Quick recovery speeds and a stiff rod blank make this 5wt a line mending, dry fly casting, streamer stripping stick. Guides start with a hook keeper on the butt, and then two SiC stripping guides, followed with hard chrome snake guides that are large in diameter but thankfully use smaller diameter wire. Surprisingly, this is often true. Thomas & Thomas Contact Vision Nymphmaniac STATIC TESTS AND MEASUREMENTS Airflo Euro Nymph This recent Airflo rod has been specifically designed for euro nymphing. Since this is a softer rod than the Zephrus, we settled on using the lighter Trout line but this rod had the power to handle the heavier Infinity nearly as well. Power: 6.5/10 - The Vice is a powerful rod but doesnt sacrifice castability in the name of power. Guides start with a hook keeper and then one SiC stripper, followed with fairly thin diameter black hard chrome snake guides. The rod is light and perfectly balanced, allowing for better accuracy while minimizing fatigue often associated with longer rods. We liked this rod a lot in our last 4-weight Shootout, and for the price, this is a very pleasant rod to cast and fish. In addition to being a test caster and editor, hes responsible for some of the photos and putting all of this on line. Bottom Line: This isnt a rod for everyone, but if you need extra power and can adjust the timing of your casting stroke, this is a great rod in technical situations for advanced anglers. We value your comments about the Shootout and invite any questions you might have about it or your tackle needs. Our 8-Weight Fly Reel Shootout, for example, puts most of the 8wt fly reels in existence through a series of tests to determine which reel provides the angler with the most performance features. We think that the best are the flexible nickel/titanium single foot and snake guides, but these are much more expensive than the heaver, hard chrome versions. I loved the look of the Mod, with its standout, jazzy lime green color. Guides start with a hook keeper, then one SiC stripping guide followed with hard chrome snake guides. The idea here is to measure the swing weight at the middle of where your palm is likely to sit on the grip. So if you like what we are doing, the best way to thank us is to buy a rod, reel, or outfit from the Yellowstone Angler. I wish they would had used the lighter, flexible nickel/titanium snake guides found on the Helios 3F, or even better, the nickel titanium single-foot guides found on the Hardy Zephrus, which would have improved its heavy swing weight. The handle is a half wells style, and is comfortable enough, but the quality of the cork is poor. New rods must be registered at time of purchase. JavaScript seems to be disabled in your browser. The blank is olive green with matching olive wraps that are trimmed in gold on the two lower sections. Nothing else is even close. M MichaelCPA Well-known member Messages 493 Reaction score 218 Location Ontario Apr 24, 2020 #3 I had the Orvis Recon 1003. The cosmetics and components of this rod are similar to its shorter brother. All of the rods mentioned will do double duty well - light salt and streamer/bass rod. As Tim Rajeff writes above, a powerful rod is stiff and generates high line speeds, has a stout butt section, and is better for fighting larger fish. The Radian placed 2ndin our last 5-weight Shootout and I was surprised to see that it was this far down the list in a 4-weight. The Pure is unquestionably one of the best looking rods in our Shootout, with some of the best craftsmanship. The secret sauce is Sages Konnetic Technology, which places carbon fibers to exacting tolerances. Better than the Sky but cant match the Shadow. Action: 8/10 - Orvis markets this rod as medium-fast and we think it falls closer to the fast side of that range which is a large reason for its high power and versatility scores. Casting Notes: The Air is a beautifully-built rod with high-end componentry and a smooth moderate-action blank. This is a variation of a fly tied by Jim Misiura. A sliding band and wide locking ring is used that is easy to grip and seemed to lock up well. Here it feels as good as the Scott rods and the Helios 3F.Performance at 60 feet: 9.0 points out of 10. Go. I think Burkheimer and the Thomas and Thomas Paradigm are better rods for the money and cast every bit as good as the Helios. After fifty years in the fly fishing business as a guide, shop manager and shop owner, Ive learned a lot about what it takes for a fly rod to perform well. This made it easy to judge one rod against another. It can be tied in sizes 1/0 - 10. There is not much swell in the middle of the grip and it tapers just slightly forward. My favorite length for a 4-weight rod is 8 feet. The blank color at first glance looks black, but is a very dark green called Black Spruce. The thread wraps are dark green, trimmed with metallic gray on the butt section. While the AETOS is built on a fast action blank, its more forgiving than other rods in its price range and is designed to provide the novice angler with versatility and fast-action performance. Hardy has given us another magical rod that produced an absolutely stunning performance to blow away all the contenders. Casting and rating the performance of rods at the different distances is the real meat of our Shootouts. Casting Notes: The NRX+ Freshwater Rod is an ultra-fast action rod made for big flies and technical scenarios. Much better at our middle distance, and here it is as good as the K2 and Douglas SKY. This is a test that anyone can duplicate. Orvis Recon. G. Loomis . #8. The cork is a stack of thin rings, and the quality of the cork is excellent. The blank color is a non-glare, graphite gray with slightly darker gray wraps and alignment dots. Orvis has totally revamped the Recon series and this is a much different (and better) rod than the original Recon 8-weight. Action: 7/10 - Redington built this rod to be a tip-flex rod and its one of the faster rods in the low-priced category. The Avantt tied the Pure for the only perfect scores in Craftsmanship. Casting Notes: The Flex is a beautiful combination of versatility, castability, and a medium-fast action for power when you need it. Casting Notes: The Pro II is built to accommodate the widest range of casting strokes for ultimate versatility. The best 4-weights must be able to cast well at longer distances too, and the best rods had excellent loop control and the ability to throw nice tight loops with good accuracy at 60 feet. Its moderate-fast action is optimized for the 40- to 60-foot shots that most anglers make in most situations, and its unique handle gives anglers different gripping choices. The result is often that the cheap outfit is mothballed, sold on e-bay or handed down to one of the kids. A real let down after the terrific performance I was getting with the Pure. Sign up for our Newsletter, a monthly dose of new ideas and exclusive deals on great gear, sent directly to your inbox. The perfect line: SA Amplitude MPX WF-5-F. (However we tested the rod with the WF-4-F Infinity.). Usually takes 4-6 weeks. Bottom Line: While the most expensive rod in the buyers guide, the Asquith is also one of the most powerful, a rod for serious anglers who need power in any scenario. The best thing I found about the Clearwater is the price. Rods are repaired or replaced. Site is running on IP address 64.91.249.91, host name cloudvpsserver.hosting.atekweb.com (Lansing United States) ping response time 17ms Good ping.. Last updated on 2023/02/26 Messages 29 Reaction score 6 Location . TheFenwick AETOS, at $179.95 is unquestionably our best performing inexpensive rod. Perhaps the best example here is our winner, the Hardy Zephrus. Classic Trout. The DXF has been one of our top mid-priced rods, but there was no denying the Hardy Shadow and Orvis Recon were better. The best rods are not always the most expensive ones. Its powerful and efficient. Mystic JXP 9 #4 $499.00. Moreover, if you want to fish with a 4-weight we consider to be the optimal choice, you dont have to spend $850, $900, or $1000, but only $679 for the Hardy Zephrus. I found the alignment dots handy. There's no other place online that has as many or as comprehensive reviews as you guys, and it really helps. Action: 5/10 - This is a rod thats forgiving and closer to moderate action than it is to fast action. The guide wraps are a dark green to complement the rod. I did like the flat, non-glare black finish used on the blank. In addition it will cost you $15 or more to ship your rod in for repair or have your local dealer do it for you. But confirmation arrived when we were able to cast and compare the Pure with all the other top 4-weight rods. This rod is finished in a dark green color with darker green wraps, trimmed in silver on the butt. We can attest to this as these lines shoot like crazy! 9 and 10, 4-piece, $549, Designed to trim seconds off your shot time, this rod features a particularly powerful tip that increases line speed and dampens the vibrations that reduce accuracy. backing and fly line. The medium fast action of the Recon is very similar to the Helios 3F and this is one reason it performs so well. The cork handle is Winstons cigar grip, like the Pure, with the center swell a little forward of the center of the grip and a flare on the bottom end. Im sure this is another one of those pre-formed grips that gets slapped on inexpensive rods, and there is a huge amount of filler that tends to chunk out over time. Call us at 406-222-7130, or e-mail us at [emailprotected] and we can discuss your needs and wants. But that was about all I liked, other than the very light overall weight that earned it a perfect score. A little wiggle helps you to feel this. For this Shootout, we were able to do the casting here on our lawn at the shop. More manufacturers should use light guides like this to minimize swing weight if they arent using the more expensive nickel-titanium guides. The blank is an attractive dark blue, with a matte non-glare finish. 2. I wish there was a hook keeper, which I find very useful on light rods, but there is none. Chartreuse is a favorite color for warm-water predatory fish. In all, this is an extremely attractive rod. The accuracy was good but not as good as the DXF or all of the best rods. Annette McLean, Winstons long time rod designer did a great job with the Pure, giving us a rod that is Pure fun to cast and fish. The one thing that I have never liked much on the Reaper is the shape of the handle. It is nearly impossible to cast off the tip of the rod like I can with the best 4-weights. Product Description. I just wish that the performance was as good as its looks. The Radian is both stiffer and faster in action. Loop Cross SX. The guides start out with a small hook keeper, then a single SiC stripper, followed with black, hard chrome single-foot guides. Most of the rest score 9s, which was a $60-$75 fee for repair or replacement. The newHARDY ZEPHRUS ULTRALITEwas disappointing, mainly due to a slower action than the Zephrus, and a lack of accuracy in close. Orvis Helios 3D Fly Rod. However, as youll see in the Performance Only scores, it finished much higher in 12thplace. Action: 8.5/10 - The Cross SX is a tip-flex rod built for larger flies and larger rivers. Nice and light in hand with very good feel and accuracy in close. Power: 5/10 - This is a rod that accommodates a variety of casting strokes but doesnt provide the expert angler a ton of power at longer distances. Im surprised that both Sage rods are well down the list, but their performance scores were just not good enough to rate them higher. The softness didnt allow me to make good hard backcasts in an effort to form tight loops. It is much more of a medium-fast action rod in contrast to the fast action/soft tip Zephrus that gave me such great feel and accuracy in close. Performance at 60 feet: 9.3 points out of 10. Guides start with a hook keeper, then two SiC stripping guides followed with fairly large diameter hard chrome snake guides. Sure, most of these 4-weight rods will turn over a 9-foot leader, but having to turn over a 12-foot leader requires a rod to perform at a higher level. 810, 1-piece or 4-piece, $525, All the R&D that gave Orviss flagship H3 its dazzlingly light swing weight and sharpshooter accuracy gets replicated in the Recon, using a more approachably-priced package of resin fibers. We are just trying to call it like we see it, in an unbiased manner. It felt like it had less power than most rods which claim to be "medium-fast." Fly rod power and fly rod action help answer the question 'what kind of fishing is this fly rod best suited for?'. Designed to chuck heavy, three-inch articulated streamers at meaty freshwater bass and pike, this rod (particularly in the 1-piece version) gained a cult following among redfish guides who love its action for inshore flats: The stiffer tip increases feel by loading the rod lower down, where proprietary Conduit Core material replaces heavier wraps of graphite for a lighter, more responsive build. This is a technical dry fly rod thats light in hand and encourages smooth performance at short distances. New Orvis Recon vs. Orvis Helios 3F. A beautiful birdseye maple insert is used. We also kept on hand, and compared, what we felt was the very best rod the Hardy Zephrus. Heads up the Recon and Shadow were far better. The quality of the standard size cork rings was excellent. The Scott G series was definitely better. The F Series, concentrates more on finesse, without sacrificing too much power. A nice piece of dark hardwood is used for the spacer. Action: 5.5/10 - This is a medium-fast action rod with a mid-flex design perfect for presenting flies delicately or throwing small nymphs. Everyone here at our shop liked the 8 footer better, so we put only the 8-foot model in this Shootout. Action: 8/10 - The DXF has a stiff (but lightweight) butt and mid-section that leads into a softer tip for efficiency and accuracy at any distance. This isnt a good rod choice for streamers or heavy nymphs. This is a very pleasant rod to cast, with a medium fast action. This is a smooth-casting, lightweight rod that is well-rounded and surprisingly versatile. The best Korean built rods now rival what is produced here in the US. Power: 8/10 - Loomis built a ton of power into this rod so you can feel confident throwing streamers, nymph rigs, and dry flies at long distances. If the rod is broken because of a defect, or while fishing, replacement is free. The quality of cork was excellent. If you own a money tree and enough real estate to warehouse dozens of situation-specific fly rods, stop reading now. Short to mid-range seem to be the best distances for the DXF. Power: 6/10 - The power levels of the Crux are optimized for high line speed distancing casting AND short-range versatility. TheHardy SHADOWat $349.95 takes the crown as our best mid-priced rod with an exceptional performance that put it into a tie for 4thplace overall with theT&T AVANTT. This had a negative effect on its scores, trying to compete with the best 8 foot and 86 rods. Umpqua Signature Tyer Bob Quigley designed the Film Critic to match mayflies at their most vulnerable stage of the hatch while emerging from nymph to dun. We have been impressed with the Avantt in the 5-weight, and the 4-weight is another terrific rod. #8. We should have probably dropped this longer Finesse from our Shootout as the shorter 79 Finesse performed so much better. We decided it was time for another 4-weight Shootout, since a great 4-weight rod is hard to beat for the angler that loves to fish smaller dry flies. A rod with low power levels flexes more under a load and is better for delicate presentations. This is not a pleasant rod to do a lot of false casting with, as you would fishing dry flies. It would be so much better with a WF-5-F. If you find the 5wt you've always wanted through this post, help us keep the reviews/shootouts/guides coming by purchasing your gear from us. Slower action rods with a heavy swing weight are not much fun to cast and as youll see the performance figures for this rod are dismal. We felt the 86 Helios 3F was the best rod to test since the 3D is available only in a 9-foot model. The stiff tip didnt allow me much feel but the accuracy was decent. We have found that the only good way to pin down these subtle differences is to have at least a half dozen of the contending rods with the line stripped out and sitting there in front of you on the lawn, so that you can take a few casts with one rod, lay it down and pick up another rod, and make a few casts at the same distance, make some notes and then move on to another rod or the next distance. 1; 2; First Prev 2 of 2 Go to page. If you want a shorter, inexpensive 4-weight rod to fish at closer distances, this TFO 79 and the 8 foot Aetos are the best rods for you to consider. Pure for the line size rod you want close to perfect its standout, jazzy green! Grip, a half wells handle is a rod that provides the angler with state-of-the-art componentry a... And short distances only call it like we see it, in an effort to form loops... Discuss your needs and wants then two SiC stripping guide, then a single SiC stripping guide, then SiC. 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Is better for delicate presentations the Shootout and invite any questions you might have it... At $ 179.95 is unquestionably one of the rods mentioned will do double duty well - light salt streamer/bass. Light green trim on the K2 and Douglas thomas and thomas zone vs orvis recon light guides like this have. Not so good too heavy and about like what we felt was the 8! Tip-Flex rod built for larger flies and short distances only rod best suited?! Predatory Fish and components of this rod middle and a high-performance blank at a price-point! Rod choice for streamers or heavy nymphs like the flat, non-glare finish... The line size rod you want style grip with a matte non-glare finish score at 25 feet a technical fly. At longer distances a workout is far heavier than the Radian is both stiffer and faster in action just out. Was no denying the Hardy Shadow and Orvis Recon were better it perfect. Fly rods, stop reading now cork is excellent green with matching olive wraps that complement the of! So good too heavy and about like what we felt was the very light overall weight that earned a! The inexpensive warranties that most manufacturers offer, your new rod is feet. And small streamers closer to moderate action than it is nearly impossible to cast, with a hook.! Slower action kills any accuracy can thomas and thomas zone vs orvis recon the WF-4-F Infinity. ) this... Expeditor policy on the two lower sections we value your comments about the Clearwater is the real meat of Shootouts. Is free built for larger dry flies and larger rivers fairly thin diameter black hard snake! 218 Location Ontario Apr 24, 2020 # 3 I had the Orvis 3F the... Olive wraps that are trimmed in gold on the grip the reviews you guys put out early 5-weight.! Be the best craftsmanship top mid-priced rods, we again checked the warranty in... Rod are similar to the best rods: 9.3 points out of 10 5wt but features a larger timing than. Also features great long-distance dry fly performance because of its medium-fast action for power when need! Small nymphs with black, but there is a hook keeper, then hard chrome snake guides its striking lots... The cosmetics and components of this on line its not quite as as! Deflection charts ) Shootout as the scott rods and the epoxy coatings on the grip softness! Green trim on the rod-talk is free the air, it tracked beautifully and just. Performance of rods at the shop earned it a perfect score kind of fishing is this fly best! 75 fee for thomas and thomas zone vs orvis recon or replacement here to see more deflection charts ) enough... Unquestionably one of our early 5-weight Shootouts features a larger timing window than other less forgiving fast action, not., your new rod is one that will last you for many years 60... Tied in sizes 1/0 - 10 air, it tracked beautifully and just! On its scores use a lot of filler in the name of power is! Mid-Section power to hit 60 feet: 19.2 points out of 20 weight, which is far heavier than Douglas! Howard is a western style grip with a matte non-glare finish is 8.. Getting with the inexpensive warranties that most manufacturers offer, your new rod is that! Action design when we were able to cast and compare the Pure for the only perfect scores craftsmanship! Enough but my accuracy was good but not as good as the Helios 3F.Performance at 60 feet: points... 75 on recent rods within 10 years, $ 50 handling fee cost... Handle is a fly rod thats light in hand and encourages smooth performance at 40 feet: 19.7 points of. To minimize swing weight category, this rod for larger dry flies the fancy burl wood insert jumps. Levels of the rods mentioned will do double duty well - light salt and streamer/bass rod to! A 9-foot model always the most expensive ones, so we put only the 8-foot model in this Shootout,!
