4wt Line

[Paulson]

Just bought a Redington CT 9' 4wt, they were half off. Also bought a Rise reel in 3/4 to compliment it. So, what do you recommend for a 4wt floating line?

Thanks

 

[Lonewolve]

Paulson,
What kind of water do you plan on fishing? Big or small?freestone or limestone spring creek? What kinds of weather do you fish in?Is it ever windy?

I personally prefer a Cortland 444 double taper, I also have become fond of two other lines...a Rio Windcutter {weight foward} in various weights and Wulff Triangle Taper flylines.
For Trout fishing these are very good choices IMHO. Your milage may vary.

 

[Paulson]

I fish White Clay Creek (freestone, stocked) mostly because it is so close to me. I plan to branch out to fish some limestone creeks in the future. But mostly smaller waters, the largest I could see myself fishing would be Penns. I will fish in any condition that I have time to fish.

I am looking at Rio LT DT and Scientific Anglers Master Trout DT. I guess they are more about presentation with dries and nymphs which seems to be the direction I am heading anyway as far as learning. I could easily buy another spool, but would like to avoid that for now. Not necessarily looking for the best all around end all be all, but I would and do like to fish streamer patterns often. Would these "lighter" lines be okay for that or would they not give me the versatility?

 

[Lonewolve]

The Rio Trout Lt is a great double taper too. I have never been a fan of Sci Angler lines. Cortland, Rio, also Airflo are good in my book.

Some folks prefer Sci Angler though.
The Trout Lt is designed with less spooky presentations... but also alot like with anything depends on the user too.
If you get the Rio please let us know how it works out for you.

 

[outsider]

Cabela's has lines on sale in the fly fishing dept. I just bought a Cortland 444SL DT4F for $32, about half the original price. They also had some Rio lines on sale, same approx. savings.

 

[Paulson]

I might spring for the Rio, says made with spey casts and roll casts in mind. I use a roll cast but not a spey cast so much, kind of makes me want to learn more about it and apply it, I can see situations where it would help. Where I fish there is almost no room for an overhead cast in most situations, so I rolling and mending are important skills I use. I also use some backhand casting, but it is slightly difficult for me (could be my rod action to, its moves quicker than my skill set I feel. With a slower rod I will try it out some more).

Outsider, that is where I got the rod and reel from. Seems they are pushing out all the CT's for the Tempts coming in. I have never casted the rod, but they seem to be sneaking up and a real underdog in the rod industry. Its a slower action to, which I have casted rods like, but never had my own. For that price level, its worth the experiment. Someone on here recommended a Pursuit to me and I've had a Redington rod on my eye since. I simply cant justify a Sage or Winston at this point in the game, especially when I have been reading that some of Redington's stuff is on par with casting ability. Aesthetically, maybe not so much, but again, worth the purchase. sorry for the offshoot...

I'm going to do some more research and look at the Rio LT some more and check out the SA stuff. I will let you know if I purchase the Rio, and I'll try to give a decent review with my inexperience. Can help me with some questions to ask myself so I can help you guys out? I'll double check what Cabelas has. Seems to be a good time to score some nice deals on gear.

 

[Lonewolve]

Paulson Imho then a double taper and or a wulff taper will suit you fine. I trout spey as well as use various single hand spey casts for alot of given situations. Theres a guy named Jeff Putnam who has some really good DVD's out on Speycasting, also one on single handed spey casting..if you google his name i am sure you will find a bunch of places to look into that as well as to buy the dvd's.
IMHO the Speycast is nothing more than a different kind of roll cast.
The Rio Gold has been touted as a great all around line too, but I didn't like it.

 

[gfen]

assuming you bought it in the store, i tried that very rod in your possession, i know this because it was the last one in the barrel. anyways, i had tried it with a cabela's prestige 5dt.

it was orange.

that line is also available with the name cortland 444 on it. it still wasn't a "slow" action, regardless of what marketing says.

i'm unsure of the backing colour, but it was probably white.

fwiw, the 905-4 casts better with a 6. i regret not trying the 6 on the 4, and i bet it would've been splendid.

the moral of this story is don't be afraid to stick your 5wt line on it. or a 6. i bet its splendid with a 6.

 

[Paulson]

Speycasting looks interesting. I agree that it seems like a modified roll cast with an over exaggerated reach outside. Can be useful in a few areas along the bank around a bend where I can get my line over the water but not behind me as much...if I am seeing the picture right.

I have Courtland Prestige 6 Wt on my Imperial 5 weight rod. It loads all right, but I hate how the rod loses its feel on the back cast, and a few reports share the same about the CT. I personally didn't like the line for memory issues, but my experience is limited.

I was slightly afraid of that, slow, fast and medium all seem to equal fast in the world today (opinion only, not trying to stir a pot here). I still want a Winston one day, but that will have to wait.

 

[afishinado]

Paulson wrote:
I fish White Clay Creek (freestone, stocked) mostly because it is so close to me. I plan to branch out to fish some limestone creeks in the future. But mostly smaller waters, the largest I could see myself fishing would be Penns. I will fish in any condition that I have time to fish.

I am looking at Rio LT DT and Scientific Anglers Master Trout DT. I guess they are more about presentation with dries and nymphs which seems to be the direction I am heading anyway as far as learning. I could easily buy another spool, but would like to avoid that for now. Not necessarily looking for the best all around end all be all, but I would and do like to fish streamer patterns often. Would these "lighter" lines be okay for that or would they not give me the versatility?

Most of the major line mfg make decent fly line. I would stick to the WF lines, though. 90%+ FFers use a WF taper line. Most DT and WF are tapered exactly the same in the front end of the line, while WF tapers down to thin running line for shooting, and DT maintains its diameter, and only tapers back in the rear.

No real advantage to DT, unless you wish to swap ends when it wears. No difference between the two in short casts, but WF would better serve you for shooting line when fishing streamers, as you mentioned above.

Good luck with your new rig.

 

[Paulson]

Update....

I went for the Rio Gold in 4wt and I'm glad I did. I like having the weight forward for getting into the wind, casts smooth, and works well with my rod. It doesn't feel like I need a higher weight line either.

Overall happy with the line and my setup.