7'6" 4Wt. Rod/Reel

[ctfisher 0]

I was just hoping for some feedback on this question, but would a 7'6" 4wt. be a good choice to have as a back-up or lighter weight rod to my 9' 5wt.? Or should I go down to a 7'-7'6" 3wt. i am looking for a rod that will give me a little more casting room in tight areas, but would also be a good back-up to my 5wt. Thanks everyone.

[tidewaterfly 0]

Ctfisher, IMO, this is a question that only you can answer based on the places you fish. It's personal choice too. For myself, if I was "backing up" a 5 wt, it would be with another 5 wt. However, if you're looking to add another rod that better fits specific situations that the 5 wt is not correct for, then either of those could be something to consider. But, again that should be based on your situation.

 

As far as casting room in tight places, yes a shorter rod can be beneficial. However, a long rod can have it's use too, particularly where actual casting is limited. I've fished some streams that have a lot of overhanging trees, where casting is not practical. To fish there, it's often matter of sticking the rod thru any open area & getting the fly to the water however you can. Not easy, regardless of the rod length. Which length that is most useful to you, again is something only you can determine.

 

I have both a 3 wt & 4 wt that I like using on smaller streams, but use them interchangeably. The 4 wt should allow the use of slightly bigger flies, while the 3 wt is likely better for a range of smaller flies. For me, the flies I use most with either are easily cast with either, so makes little difference.

 

Generally, most folks agree that there should be at least a whole rod weight difference between two rods to best benefit the angler. Meaning since you have a 5 wt, go with the 3 wt, as there is not a lot of difference going to the 4. If you were going up in size, then go with a 7 wt, not a 6. But, again you must make that determination based on your personal requirements.

[ctfisher 0]

tidewaterfly, thank you for the input, and I know it will be personal preference. You pretty much answered my question though and that I think I should just go down to the 3wt. since there is not much difference between the 4&5wt.rods.

[fly~by~night 0]

there is lots of differnce between a 4 and 5 i think. i use a 6'6'' 4 wt. most the time ( fishing spring creeks) i wouldnt be without it....7'6'' is a great little rod for the tight to reach spots. If you are fishing bigger water ( wider ) i would be hauling the 9' 5wt

[ctfisher 0]

So last night I broke down and bought the basic Cabelas Three Forks/Prestige Plus fly rod/reel combo. It is a 3wt 7'6" med action rod that was prespooled and ready to go. Its not top of the line, but I think it will work well for what I ned it to do. I appreciate the input guys.

[ditz2 0]

I fish small to med. warmwater creeks and I use a 6' rod and just love it. I have used an 8 1/2' rod and it was a day of frustration. I was continually in the tree canopy. The 6' rod allows me to still cast normally and if I pay just a little attention to the trees I seldom hook a tree. Best move I ever made. I have a 5wt and a 2wt. The 2wt has become the weapon of choice and I size 12 to 4 flies and some are weighted with beadchain. I also use some small poppers and hairbugs. i have become a short rod advocate.

[ctfisher 0]

ditz2, you brought up another concern of mine. I was wondering what exactly my new 3wt. would be able to handle as far as the size of the fish and the kind of leaders and tippets. Should I only be using a 71/2 foot leader? Am I restricted to a smaller sized fish than I would be with my 5wt.? Fly restrictions?

[flytire 0]

on multiple occassions my 3wt handled 18-20 inch browns, rainbows and cutthroat when i lived and fished in colorado, montana, wyoming, utah. they were challanging but they survived and so did the rod.

[ctfisher 0]

flytire, thats good to know and must have been a pretty good fight, but when it comes to leaders and tippet is there a rule of thumb for length and size compared to a 5wt.?

[flytire 0]

when i fished out west my preference was a 9 foot 6x tapered leader with an additional 2-3 feet of tippet added on. i used that rig/length for my 3-4-5-6wt rods.

 

word of caution: the above is MY preference and other fly fishers preferences will/may be different.

 

i'm sure if you GOOGLE "fly line to leader sizes" and "tippet to fly size" you will find tons of info.

 

Many fly fishers now use a one piece leader of about nine feet. The diameter of the leader end or tippet is determined by the size of the fly being used.

 

As a general rule, tippet size is determined by dividing the fly size by four to get the tippet sit which is expressed in decreasing sizes as 0X, 1X, 2X, 3X, 4X, 5X, 6X, 7X and 8X. This is called the rule of 4.

 

In other words, for a size 12 fly you would use a 3X tippet. For clear and smooth water conditions, it's best to go one size smaller in tippet diameter, therefore the most appropriate tippet for a size #12 fly would actually be 4X. You should carry tippet material in sizes 3X, 4X, SX and 6X.

[ctfisher 0]

Awesome, thanks flytire I appreciate it.

[mridenour 0]

when i fished out west my preference was a 9 foot 6x tapered leader with an additional 2-3 feet of tippet added on. i used that rig/length for my 3-4-5-6wt rods.

 

word of caution: the above is MY preference and other fly fishers preferences will/may be different.

 

i'm sure if you GOOGLE "fly line to leader sizes" and "tippet to fly size" you will find tons of info.

 

Many fly fishers now use a one piece leader of about nine feet. The diameter of the leader end or tippet is determined by the size of the fly being used.

As a general rule, tippet size is determined by dividing the fly size by four to get the tippet sit which is expressed in decreasing sizes as 0X, 1X, 2X, 3X, 4X, 5X, 6X, 7X and 8X. This is called the rule of 4.

In other words, for a size 12 fly you would use a 3X tippet. For clear and smooth water conditions, it's best to go one size smaller in tippet diameter, therefore the most appropriate tippet for a size #12 fly would actually be 4X. You should carry tippet material in sizes 3X, 4X, SX and 6X.

 

 

When i was out west last year I used a 9' 4X with 5X tippet tied on and 6X on my dropper fly. Pretty similar to Flytire. This worked well with most flies we used out there, mostly size 14-16. This was with a 9' 5wt rod that I use for most all of my fishing until Salmon time. With streamers though I would go heavier with the leader and tippet.

[tidewaterfly 0]

Ct, most fly rods will cast a wide range of fly sizes. However, there is a difference between what they can cast & what is practical to be fishing with. Just as an example, I've thrown flies tied on 2/0 size worm hooks on my 6 wt. It's not something I would do on regular basis, or want to do. The distance is also very limited & it sure isn't pretty!

 

On my 3 & 4 wt's I've cast small deer hair bass bugs, tied on size 8 & 6 dry fly hooks. Again, distance is limited, as this type of fly is quite air resistant, but not particularly heavy.

 

There are many variables that can affect the size flies that are practical. Skill level of course is one of those variables.

 

IMO, size 6, such as a sparse streamer, or nymph, is probably the upper end of the size range that you would want to cast with a 3 wt, provided the fly is unweighted. Add weight & the sizes should be smaller. As in my example of the tiny bass bugs, a size 6 dry fly hook is lighter than a size 6 that might normally be used for bass bugs. Add a windy day, and it becomes even more impractical.

 

The size's you choose to use, are up to you. Take onto consideration what the others have said about tippet selection. As the wind resistance increases, so should the tippet diameter, at least slightly.

 

None of this is absolute, and sometimes it takes a bit of experimenting to determine what you'll be comfortable with casting.

[ctfisher 0]

tidewaterfly, I agree that it is more personal preference and how the rig as a whole feels while casting. I was just looking for some general guidelines for a smaller rod compared to my 5wt., and it seems like most of you answered my questions for me. One last question thought, is a shorter tappered leader a better bet that the 9-12 ft leaders I use on my 5wt.?

[fly~by~night 0]

i use 7.5' leader on my 6'6" dunno what the X is on it ( tapers to 5-6 pounds) then 2# floro for tip ( 2 foot (ish) )