[tbacala]

I just picked up a Cabela's Traditional II/Prestige Plus four piece 6wt. outfit as a beginners outfit for my son and thought I'd pass on my first impression (based on backyard casting only).

The outfit was on sale for $109 and included the rod, hard rod case, a mid-arbor Prestige Plus reel, and Prestige Plus fly line.

The rod seems to be well made with a nice reel seat and good cork in the handle. The guides are large, but it seems like the wire in the snake guides are just a tad lighter than normal. With the reel attached, the outfit balances out just forward of the grip---just a little tip heavy.

The reel seems O.K., but without a fish on the other end, it isn't fair at this point to give it a grade.

As to casting, the rod easily throws nice tight loops. The line floats high (in my swimming pool) and for the price, I may outfit my other fly rod with the same line.

While this outfit can't compete quality wise with top end gear, it certainly seems to be a viable choice as a low cost combo. I should point out that I'm not much more than a novice fly caster myself, so other more experienced individuals may be able to expand upon my first impression. However, I seriously doubt that there are better outfits out there in this price range.

[strangercreek]

Cabelas gear is definitely on the map. They always get reviews from Field and Stream etc and are considered a competing Fly Fishing Gear manufacturer/seller. I just bought a Cabelas SR1 reel because it was on close out ($80) and the bearings/drag are just as good quality as $300 reels I was looking at. I like alot of their stuff. Just like any other big retailer, ie Bass Pro, Orvis, etc, some of the stuff is lower end but some of it is great quality as well.

The line that comes on their house combos is a Cortland 333 from what I have been told. They also told me that the Prestige line is a Cortland 444 and the Prestige Plus is an SA Mastery (I've talked with guys in the Cabelas fly shop as there is on 13 miles from my home).