Buying first salt rod. need some help.

[frohbego]

So i'm looking to buy my first salt water rod setup.

Mostly going to be used at NJ shore and in new england (nantucket) for striped bass. But i would also like to be able to use the same rod for big trout out west as well as the florida keys if i take a trip in the near future.

Can anyone recommend an all around combo setup.

I was looking at the Orvis Clearwater combos.

http://www.orvis.com/store/product_directory_chart.aspx?dir_id=758&Group_ID=759&cat_id=14816&subcat_id=7015


also what else am i gonna need other then some flies and a striping basket.

thanks!
- JON

 

[Spyder20oz]

9wt or 10wt
Aluminum reel
intermediate and sinking line
Fluoro 15-25-60lb tippets
good salt safe pliers
stripping basket
cleats
And balls to hop on the slippery jetty with waves crashing around you

 

[frohbego]

thanks Spyder20oz. will that setup work for some other spots and fish?

can ya recommend a good stripping basket and cleats

 

[Spyder20oz]

The orvis stripping basket and stabilicer cleats

You have to drill/cut some holes in the orvis basket to let water drain.

http://www.32north.com/prod_stab.htm

 

[Fishidiot]

froh,
Good advice from Spyder. While I prefer a 10WT for most work at the NJ shore - in you're case I'd recommend a 9WT. Normally, it's better to be overgunned than under, but a 10 is an awful lot of rod for western trout fishing and is heavy for Keys bonefish. Other than for muskies, large salmon, or very specific applications, a 10 really isn't a freshwater rod. As others often suggest, try casting some rods to get a feel but, I think for your first salt outfit that will double for fresh, a 9 would be best.

 

[JoeE]

I fish the Ocean at OBX with a 10’ 9 wt and sound side with a 9’7 wt (Sage RPLXs), large reels that hold a lot of backing and teeny salt water lines. I also us a stripping basket, the same Orvis that is shown above (the best I’ve owned and used).


Joe E

 

[frohbego]

did some more reading online. thinking the salt rod will be for mostly strippers. A 9ft / 9wt should work really well.

heres the one at orvis - http://www.orvis.com/store/productchoice.aspx?pf_id=2815_B&dir_id=758&cat_id=14816&subcat_id=7015&Group_ID=759

also can anyone else recommend some footwear for slick jetties. would my patagonia wading boots work? or not enough grip?


Also would my 9ft / 5wt trout rod work out west for freshwater?

 

[Fishidiot]

froh,
Your 9' 5WT will work fine for western trout fishing (frankly it's the standard trout rod out there). For jetties, you need felt soles for wet rocks however most jetties have slimy algea covered surfaces and for these you must have cleats (if you stay on dry rocks, rubber soles grip fine). I wear Korkers brand cleats. I suspect if you have wading boots with a felt/cleat combo it would probably be okay, just be careful on the slime/seaweed spots. Korkers cleat spikes are much larger than what you find in typical wading shoes. I also like a walking stick for jetties.

 

[Raff]

As far as rods go, I don't think you can get a better bang for your buck than with Echo fly rods. Tim Rajeff really knows his stuff, and he's engineered some amazing rods. They're warranty is amazing, I would put his Echo rods up against any rod out there. I think the Orvis rods are a bit overpriced for what you get. There are better rods out there for the $210 pricepoint.

One of those rods is the Echo Ion. This will handle salt and fresh for a lot of situations you need. For $190 you'll feel like your casting a $600 Scott rod. This is a new rod to the lineup, and the reviews have been stellar.
http://www.rajeffsports.com/echo_ion.php

Rods:
The Echo2 comes with two tips, a distance and an accuracy tip, and for salt the distance tip is an absolute cannon and casts like a dream. For $290 is not too shabby either. The Echo2 are my favorite rods made, and the only rods that I own. They are that good!
http://www.rajeffsports.com/echo_2sw.php

I fish an Echo2 9"0' 8wt SW and it works really well in the salt for bones, steelhead in Washington, and for Tiger Muskie in Idaho.

Reels:
Lamson Guru. Hands down the best value reel out there. For an 8wt, you're looking at $200 for an aluminum, machined, and silky smooth drag that can handle steelhead and bones. And the kicker is that spools for the 8wt only cost $85. I hate it that "top shelf" reels also cost a small fortune to get the spools. The Guru doesn't have that problem.

Rod: Echo Ion $190
Reel: Lamson Guru $200
Line: Rio Gold $60

For $450 you have a hellavu setup that will handle pretty close to anything you can get into.

BTW: the only time you'll need an 8wt out west is if you are going after steelhead. I don't know of any trout fisheries that warrant that much rod. I've fished a 6wt on Henry's and the Maddy, but most of the time I use my 5wt Echo2

 

[frohbego]

anyone ever see this stripping basket -

http://linekurv.dk/en/stripping-basket-27/stripping-basket-56.html?category=27&sort=default

 

[CPR]

If you can get by the "Made in Korea" tag the best blank on the market for strippers in the surf is the Temple Fork Outfitters TiCrX.

I have built several and have found them to be a fast powerful blank capable of throwing big stuff in even the stiffest coastal winds. They are best described as "cannons" and even poor casters can throw a long line with ease. The TFO "No questions asked" warranty can't be beat.

Whether you go custom or buy an off the shelf rod the cost/quality/performance ratio of the TiCrX is hard to beat.

matt

 

[tomgamber]

CPR wrote:
If you can get by the "Made in Korea" tag the best blank on the market for strippers in the surf is the Temple Fork Outfitters TiCrX.

I have built several and have found them to be a fast powerful blank capable of throwing big stuff in even the stiffest coastal winds. They are best described as "cannons" and even poor casters can throw a long line with ease. The TFO "No questions asked" warranty can't be beat.

Whether you go custom or buy an off the shelf rod the cost/quality/performance ratio of the TiCrX is hard to beat.

matt

I love strippers!!!

I have a 9' 8wt of that clearwater II...I like it. 25 year guarantee...I heard that.

 

[GreenWeenie]

I bought a 9’ 8wt Temple Fork TiCr rod and Ross CLA 4 reel for about $500. I bought this as a combo heavy fresh/light salt rod.

In retrospect I wish I bought a 9wt. The 8wt is too big for my freshwater needs and a little light for salt water unless fishing inlets and places where strong wind isn’t too much an issue. If I were really serious about salt water fishing though, I’d get the Sage 9’, 9wt Z-Axis but you’ll be dropping upwards of $800 on the rod alone. However, it is one sweet rod.

You may like the TiCrX. I tried that one too but felt it was a bit too stiff and heavy for my liking. TFO also now has the Axiom model, which is even stiffer than the TiCrX, but you may like it.

Try the TiCr, TiCrX and Axiom because for the money you just can’t beat the TFO rods.

 

[StudentofTheStream]

I'm a big proponent of test casting as many rods as you can get your hands on at once to help narrow the field. Then from there take the few that you really like do some more casting to see which you think has the best feel for your stroke. I own TFO's and Echo's as listed above as well as a few others but those models may not be for everyone.

Also for the reel you can check cabelas for the Ross Momentums they have on sale for dirt cheap comparatively to what they normally are. You'd be hard pressed for a better drag but they are pretty heavy. Just picked up the model 5 for my 9 wt but it weighs 9.8 ounces without line. Might wear you down after a day of long shore casts. There are some other good deals on reels out there too if you keep your eyes open. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

 

[ryguyfi]

GreenWeenie wrote:
I bought a 9’ 8wt Temple Fork TiCr rod and Ross CLA 4 reel for about $500. I bought this as a combo heavy fresh/light salt rod.

In retrospect I wish I bought a 9wt. The 8wt is too big for my freshwater needs and a little light for salt water unless fishing inlets and places where strong wind isn’t too much an issue. If I were really serious about salt water fishing though, I’d get the Sage 9’, 9wt Z-Axis but you’ll be dropping upwards of $800 on the rod alone. However, it is one sweet rod.

You may like the TiCrX. I tried that one too but felt it was a bit too stiff and heavy for my liking. TFO also now has the Axiom model, which is even stiffer than the TiCrX, but you may like it.

Try the TiCr, TiCrX and Axiom because for the money you just can’t beat the TFO rods.

I also have a TICR TFO rod in an 8wt. I use it for steelhead, and have cast it in salt. I also use it on bass lakes, not because I need an 8 wt, but because I can throw it a mile off of the bank. It loads great, and turns a fly over pretty well, plus has the backbone to really muscle the steelhead around, rather than letting them get the best of you. I'm extremely happy with my rod, as it was my first non trout rod, and the TFO service is great. Busted the tip off the rod when it was iced over and got it back within 2 weeks. Can't put a price on good service.


Ryan

 

[frohbego]

Thanks so much for your help. I did some more research and just got home from Orvis. I ended up going with the T3 saltwater 9-ft / 8-wt - tip flex.
And again it will mostly be used off the beach and jetties in NJ and Nantucket.
I think it should get me started. Let me know what you think.
- JON

 

[pete41]

shooting heads and mono running line[amnesia good brand 20 or 25 lb test].
Say you go with a 9 foot 9wt-longer is not better
you can get ultra hi density and hi density heads
the trick is to buy 11 or 12 wt shooting heads
at the back[not tippet end]start cutting of a foot at a time until it balances the rod[loads it] when you have head through top guide and about five feet of running line.
That way you can strip the line in until about five foot of running line out and then double haul cast.
With a little practice you will be able to cast a fly half again as far as fellows with regular fly lines.
Can't believe that shooting heads aren't more popular in the East
west coast the way to go.
Sounds complicated but not and far better for shooting baskets.

 

[gfen]

Took the advice in this thread into consideration, then threw it all out the window when it came down to brass tacks...

I went to look at the TFO Ticr and -X models, and the Echo Ion rods at Cabela's... The Echo rods are catalogue only, and while the TFOs were nice, their XST salt water rods were on sale for $100...The TFO wasn't worth 2.5x the price of the XST in my test casts.

The reel was a no-brainer, too. The Cabela's XSS was also on sale, from $185 to $110 (or something). I think the reel, alone, outweighs my entire trout rig by an order of magnitude! Casting actually makes my arm sore at this point.

Rounded it out with the SA GPX Striper Intermediate Sinking line, and I'm ready to not catch **** at the shore.

 

[sandfly]

Orvis made a clearwater in the last version 9' 9wt. mid flex 8 that is a power horse but easy to cast. I have one left from when I worked for them.Love It. see if a dealer or orvis has any left, great salt rod.

 

[Pittflyguy]

I lived near the Chesapeake for a few years and spent quite a bit of time chasing stripers in the bay and surf. I own an 8,9, and 10 weight outfits and would have to say the 9 weight is hands down the choice for mixed salt. You can fish stripers and blue's, Snook, Reds, Sea Trout, and just about any other mixed bag. It is great for baby tarpon, Florida bones, even mid sized cuda. I think the issue is throwing the fly and managing the wind more so than it is fighting the fish. As long as you have a reel with a good stout drag, an 8-10 can handle any of the above.

As far as brand vs cost, there are so many great options. Buying a rod from a catalog is like purchasing running shoes because you like the color. Go to your local shop and cast a bunch and find out what you like. You may find out that spending $50 more or $50 less even was not the issue as much as finding the right stick for your casting stroke and your comfort level. Stiff rods are great, but if you can't load it and throw a tight loop then you have just wasted your money.

Not sure if that was any help as there has been a ton of good advice already on this thread.