Colton Reels

[Fredrick]

I think the reasons for the low price is that he has were little overhead and you are buying direct so there is no mark up by the retailer . Kinda like what Albright is doing now with thier product ...

 

[afishinado]

Fredrick wrote:
890-4 Z-AXIS G 9'0" 8 4 4 $700.00
896-4 Z-AXIS G 9'6" 8 4 4 1/8 $705.00

Afishinado wrote:
The Sage Launch and XI2 are on sale now. How bout the Flight? Also, what about the Clouser TFO rod you were looking at? Redington Predator? St. Croix Ultra or Elite? As well as the Colton. There's a lot of rods out there to cast.

Who said anything about a Z-Axis?

 

[Fredrick]

Tweed wrote: who said anything about Z-axis

Z-axis 8 wt weight about the same as the colton ....

What 8 wt do you have Tom a RPL ?

 

[afishinado]

Fredrick wrote:
Tweed wrote: who said anything about Z-axis

Z-axis 8 wt weight about the same as the colton ....

What 8 wt do you have Tom a RPL ?

Well Fred since it casts like a Z buy it!

I have an RPL. I've had it going on 20 years and have caught more SMB, LMB, Steelies, Stripers, and yes, much to my dismay Carp with it than I can possibly remember. The rod has become an extension of my arm. And while at the time, it was one of the most expensive rods on the market ($300 +/- at the time), amortized over 20 years it was a bargain, IMO. Many guys I know have bought many rods in the last 20 years, and have never been truly satisfied with any of them. Which rod was the real bargain?

My only point is to choose carefully my friend. Checking out a website and deciding to buy the rod based on that is IMHO no the best way to chose a rod. Casting/fishing is an individual thing. One FFers treasure is another FFers trash. So the opinion of others on a rod may be useful in giving you an idea which rods to test, but the next step that I take is to cast a bunch in your price range including the Colton, and choose from there. What is the downside in checking out a bunch of rods? It’s actually a fun process to me. I would hate to see you looking for yet another SMB rod next year. The choice is yours.

Getting back to Colton. I don’t believe they are made in England. Hardy/Greys was the only manufacturer in England that I am aware of, and they now have their rods produced in Korea because of high labor costs in England. I cannot see a rod/blank at that price being made in England or the US. But no big deal though, some decent rods are made in the Far East.

As far as “fast” and cheap, I have not found a rod that is great fast action rod at a cheap price. For example TFO’s are a decent fast action rod, but they are very heavy for their rod weight. The less expensive rods use a lower modulus graphite and need thinker walls and a heavier butt to achieve a tip action rod. IMO, clunky best describes the feel in my hand.

There are many medium action rods out there that cast well, but faster rods are more expensive to build because of using high modulus graphite to keep weight down but make the rod durable. Check out the price of faster Sages, Winston, Scott, St. Croix, etc. They all are the most expensive rods in the line. I don’t think there’s collusion among rod manufacturers! I someone can build a light and fast rod for a modest price, it would be done. Like I said earlier, one FFers treasure is another ones trash when it comes to fly rods so my opinion is just…….my opinion.

Good luck on your search.

 

[gfen]

Are you refering to Tweed mans wiener dog ?

:-o

I assure you, I would've quite clearly referred to his dog's wedding tackle, should have been the case, sir!

 

[Fredrick]

Thanks tweed for looking out . I only have one 8 wt and its a orvis T-3, it gets the job done but its heavy and lacks power with casts longer than 60' . So i'm looking for another 8 wt .I highly doubt that Coltons cast like a Z but i'm hoping it comes close :-D I'm hoping they are going to be at somerset next year so I can get some hands on with the rods.

gfen wrote:

Are you refering to Tweed mans wiener dog ?

:-o

I assure you, I would've quite clearly referred to his dog's wedding tackle, should have been the case, sir!

gfen don't call me sir I work for a living ;-)


Tom are you going to be able to do some fishing Fri ?

 

[afishinado]

Fred,

The Somerset show is a great place to test out a bunch of rods.

Not sure about Friday yet.

 

[JasonS]

I've got a 6wt colton. The first rod I ever owned. They are extremely fast rods and can cast a mile. The owner, Bob, is a good guy and he usually posts on the bassbarn.com in the saltwater fly fishing forum. Check that often if you're interested in a colton, Bob will run specials and post them there, you can get some great deals. If someone would like to test the 6wt let me know, we can meet up somewhere.

Jason

 

[Fredrick]

JasonS wrote:
I've got a 6wt colton. The first rod I ever owned. They are extremely fast rods and can cast a mile. The owner, Bob, is a good guy and he usually posts on the bassbarn.com in the saltwater fly fishing forum. Check that often if you're interested in a colton, Bob will run specials and post them there, you can get some great deals. If someone would like to test the 6wt let me know, we can meet up somewhere.

Jason

Jason I might have to take you up on that offer it would be a great excuse to do some fishing .

 

[afishinado]

Fred,

FYI, here's some more info from a post about Colton rods:

http://www.theflyfishingforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=11244

 

[Fredrick]

Well if some of you haven't read my salwater thread I took the plung and bought a colton reel and its a great deal for the money I don't think I could get a better deal for the money on a reel . It lives up to the hype IMHO . I bought the CRGII 8-10 and put 200 yards of 30lbs dacron on it with a WFI 9 rio outbound and hooked it up to my Beulah 6/7 switchrod . :-D

 

[gfen]

FWIW, "coltonreels.com" is an interesting read compared to "coltonfly.com."

Someone has an axe to grind.