What is the best bass fly rod

[willdeb]

I was wondering what the best largemouth bass fly rod was

 

[PatrickC]

Give us a little more info, like what you'll be fishing? I fish ponds with a 3 or 4wt. I have an 8' 8wt that is specific for yanking big bass out of tight cover.

 

[willdeb]

i would like it for lakes and ponds with medium cover

 

[PennKev]

What's your favorite food?


Same sort of question. No single correct answer that applies to everyone.

 

[ratgunner]

Do you use a boat or wade or fish from shore ? Smallmouth lakes are few in PA. But maybe you're going elsewhere I don't know. But more info would help. What flyrod action do you prefer ? How big are the flies you want to use ? What's the size of the average fish ? And anything else you can share.

 

[ratgunner]

Oops I thought you said smallmouth bass. Sorry. But still it would be good to give more info.

 

[PatrickC]

If you want a versatile rod you could use for a variety of other stuff, a 5wt 8'6" rod with the level of action you like would work.

The TFO Mini Mag 6/8 8' rod is specifically designed for the exact usage you describe.

As others have said, there are a million answers that could be right.

I caught this a couple of summers ago on a little 3wt. That's why there are a million answers.

 

[troutbert]

Consider a 9 ft, 7 wt.

You could use it for largemouth, smallmouth, and steelhead.

 

[Fishidiot]

willdeb wrote:
i would like it for lakes and ponds with medium cover

I'd suggest a 9' for an 8WT line. Don't go lighter than a 7WT.

 

[ryguyfi]

You want a rod that no only handles your fish but probably more importantly handles the flies you're tossing. Big poppers and streamers will not fly right on a 3-5wt rod IMO and depending on conditions I'd say your best bet is a 7-8wt rod. Will help cast larger flies, even in windy conditions and can toss line farther with less effort. There's my .02

 

[The_Sasquatch]

Shakespear Wonder Rod, right Ryan!?

 

[ryguyfi]

No that thing is a piece of junk. I sold it to some sucker!

 

[JackM]

Six or Seven. If you want to also use it on say steelhead, go seven. If only for bass, I would suggest six, unless you expect mostly 6 pound bass or larger.

 

[flipnfly]

sage makes a bass specific rod for tournaments which is only 7'7"

 

[milleger]

I second a 9' 7 weight for its versatility. Mine Has served me well for bass and steelhead and it would probably do the trick for a big water streamer rod as well.

 

[lv2nymph]

I too would have touted a nine foot seven weight, two weeks ago. Then I fished a ten foot seven weight, there's quite a difference from nine to ten feet. More than I thought there would have been, much for the better. It was much easier to mend, control, and abiltiy to keep line out of those nasty conflicting currents.

 

[JeffK]

For largemouth I am usually casting big deer hair bugs and prefer a 9' 8 wt and have even gone to a 9 wt in the wind. Big bugs, especially after they have soaked up some water, cast easier with a heavier line. I prefer a 10' rod for steelhead for mending and control, but they are a little long to me for punching out accurate casts to holes in the weedbeds - like a 9' better for that.

For streamer fishing I have gone down to a 6 wt. But then again, my favorite bass fishing is wading the shallows in June and casting deer hair bugs and a heavier rod helps with that.

 

[troutbert]

flipnfly wrote:
sage makes a bass specific rod for tournaments which is only 7'7"

What is their argument for using such a short fly rod for bass fishing?

 

[icyguides]

Troutbert, The rod is 7'7 because of tackle restrictions in bass tournaments not because it performs better. I think for most tournaments the maximum allowable rod length is 8 feet.

 

[jrmyln]

I have used the Ross Flystick in the past and I recently picked up the Bass II rod from Sage. I like the Sage rod and the short length comes in handy, especially from the yak. I picked up the Smallmouth model and the line's grain weight puts it right between 10-11wt standard so it can throw the heaviest and most wind resistant flies.

I prefer to use a 9ft 8wt for most of my smallmouth fishing.
There are some locations where I wade very deep and a 10 or 11ft works better.