Question on a TFO BVK 9' 6 wt. rod

[robow7 0]

Does anyone out there possibly own a TFO BVK 9' 6 wt. rod? and better yet does anyone own both this rod and the 5 wt rod of the same series? I built up a BVK 9' 5 wt rod and really enjoy it and was thinking of ordering the 6 wt. blank but was curious if the rod is only slightly more powerful and rigid or is it a really big step heavier (very subjective I know) ? You can never tell in any given series of rods, as the difference in weights can be subtle or dramatic. Anyway, if you have any info you can share with me, that would be great because I have no way presently of handling the 6 wt. blank or rod. It would be used for river smallmouth fishing and wondered if it loaded well with a bass taper 7 wt. line. As always, thank you for your input.

[Capt Bob LeMay 0]

If you don't get any responses.... go directly to TFO and ask where their nearest dealer is. I've found them to be happy to assist whenever I contacted them. Of course the TFO rods that I have (9, 10, 12wt Ticr-X) take a beating and I end up needing warranty service after breaking one now and then...

 

All those years ago when I was learning to build rods, being able to get a factory rod in my hands that was built on a blank I was considering was very helpful.... I might even have brought a tape measure and something to take notes with.

[whatfly 0]

The 6-weight is definitely a step up from the 5#, but if I wanted to throw a 7 weight bass line, I'd probably want the 7 weight, which I have not thrown.

[Poopdeck 0]

While I own TFO rods (3 & 8) and I really like those rods I do not own them in 5 or 6 weight. But,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, I started using a 5 wt for river bass fishing. The 5 weight just wasn't handing the size flies and the winds so I went to a 6 wt st. Croix imperial which was not much better. I then skipped right to an 8 wt TFO SSII and found, for me, it was the perfect rod for river bass fishing. Not sure why there is so much emphasis, pride and desire in casting big flies with smaller wt rods but I found I was working harder to get the fly where I wanted it. Maybe I just suck at casting but I ultimately went with Lefty Kreh and Bob popovics reccomendation of using an 8 wt on river smallmouth bass and haven't looked back. In fact I bought a second 8 wt from steedrifter at Midwest custom rods for almost half the price of the TFO. It's a stiff rod but not as stiff as the TFO but close. It is also a lot less work casting to SMB on the river. I keep one loaded with WFF line and the other with an intermediate shooting head.

 

I do use my 6 wt St. Croix imperial for small stream bass where I'm generally in a protected area tossing smaller and less weighted flies. Not sure what your definition of a river is as it may be different from mine. sorry I couldn't help with your question but I just wanted to toss out there my experiences with a big river SMB set up.

[vicente 0]

Personally I would skip up to a 7 or 8 wt unless you already have one, especially getting the same rod length.

[Dominecker 0]

I have a 9-foot 7 weight TFO that is my go-to smallmouth and trout streamer chunker. It's perfect to me for those things. I would go to a 7 instead of a 6, also.