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MuskyFlyGuy

Bass fly line question

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Last year I found in the basement an 8 weight sink tip line that I had never used. I have successfully used it for two seasons, but am wondering if a better quality line would produce even better results. Any suggestions? How about an 8 weight outbound short with a sink tip? This would be for LMB and SMB, mostly on lakes. Thanks for any suggestions.

MFG

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You said the S/T line that you have has been working for you, so, if it was me, I wouldn't spend the money on another sink tip unless it was going to do something that the current one doesn't, e.g. sink faster and/or deeper. Or, I suppose, if the one you have works but is hard to use for some reason (kinks up, doesn't shoot well, etc.), that could be a reason to replace it. You didn't say what kind of line you have, or how it's working, just that you'd had some success with it.

 

As far as lines for bass go, I hear a lot of good things about the Scientific Anglers Sonar Sink-Tips and Intermediate lines from a smallmouth guide here in Michigan who knows his stuff. You can check out what he has to say at schultzoutfitters.com.

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I have the Rio outbound short full sinking like it quite a lot. I also used a sa titan taper which I also like. I have an sa sonar intermediate for my 4wt it's a fantastic line if I had to pick one line for bass that would be it, sinks so slow you can still fish the surface with it, add a sinking leader and it acts like a sink tip without the annoying "hinge" between floating and sinking sections.

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I have an sa sonar intermediate for my 4wt it's a fantastic line if I had to pick one line for bass that would be it, sinks so slow you can still fish the surface with it, add a sinking leader and it acts like a sink tip without the annoying "hinge" between floating and sinking sections.

I have heard a lot of good things about that SA Sonar Intermediate. I am planning on picking up one of those (hopefully on sale) this winter for my 7 wt.

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I shore fish for bass with an 8wt floater. I try to do topwater most of the time. Usually, if I go subsurface the fly's weight will get it down deep enough. I have a sink tip on a spare spool but have not seen the need to use it.

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Last year I found in the basement an 8 weight sink tip line that I had never used. I have successfully used it for two seasons, but am wondering if a better quality line would produce even better results. Any suggestions? How about an 8 weight outbound short with a sink tip? This would be for LMB and SMB, mostly on lakes. Thanks for any suggestions.

MFG

Outbound short is a great line, I use it and it loads short and easily. It can cast rather large streamers with my 6wt and shoots pretty darn well also. For bass fishing I'd recommend anything with a really shower and heavy taper. Rio also makes a bass specific line you might want to check out.

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Last year I found in the basement an 8 weight sink tip line that I had never used. I have successfully used it for two seasons, but am wondering if a better quality line would produce even better results.[snip]

As others have pointed out, the Rio OBS is a great line, but what do you consider "better results"? Are you not getting down fast enough? Looking for a sinking running line? Need something to turn over big flies? Need something to cut through the wind better? Trying for a longer cast? A single line might not address all these issues, so the question/answer is a bit more nuanced than one might think.

 

Personally, I would not bother getting another line unless the existing one has some sort of serious shortcoming you are trying to overcome. Even then I would tend to get a line that does something else, rather than just try to 'upgrade' an existing line.

 

By the way, you do realize the Outbound Short is an integrated shooting head, not a sink tip? Yes the two terms are often used interchangeably, but traditionally a sink tip has a 15' or less head, whereas a shooting head is a full 30' head. Can make quite a bit of difference in presentation in my experience.

 

Best of luck.

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Thanks for the good thoughts and suggestions. Our season is rapidly coming to an end, so I have a lot of time over the winter to think about it.

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