WF or DT on your small creek rods?

[woodrivertroutbum]

I am wondering what most people prefer? I have only used weight forward lines but my local shop suggested a double taper line for my new 2wt rod. He said it will roll cast much better as well as present the fly much more gently. This sounds great for the small creeks I plan on using this rod for most of the time. There is one river, the Farmington in CT that is pretty wide in spots and although it doesn't require super long casts, I do want a line that will cast well.

Even on my local river, it is mostly roll casting do to the narrow width and thick brush along the banks. Sometimes a 20' cast is required but I don't consider that far at all. Would the double taper still cast well at this distance? He suggested the Cortland 444 double taper. I have always liked RIO and have been leaning towards the SA Master series lines but now I don't know. Too many options! Thank you guys for any and all input on the subject.

Alex

[williamhj]

I have two DT's for lighter rods and like them. I've never cast it head to head with a WF on the same day in the same river, etc. But I like the way it casts and presents the fly. Just got a Cortland DT Sylk, but haven't gotten it on the water yet.

[woodrivertroutbum]

Thanks for the input William. I think I may go with the RIO selective trout DT line, without having any experience with DT lines and not knowing anyone that uses them I am shooting blind.

[Hardyreels]

Hi Alex,

When you say 'small creek rods' I'm thinking of 3 rods in particular. I have a 6' 6" Orvis flea 3 weight made of bamboo and a 6' 6" Full Flex fiber glass also by Orvis. Both of these are slow casting rods for tight spots and accuracy and both are used with DT lines. For fishing streamers in tight water I have a 6' 3" Lami graphite #5 rod that I use a well worn WF 5 on...... Many folks will say that a DT line and a WF line are identical........... maybe so but if you fish lines as long as I do, someday you'll need to swap those DT lines end for end.

Ard

[woodrivertroutbum]

This will be for a 7'3" med/fast(ish) action graphite rod. I haven't seen much about using a DT on graphite rods, it is usually about glass or bamboo. I kind of wish he never said anything about the DT because I would have grabbed a WF and would have been happy with it since I wouldnt know if I was missing out or not lol.

Alex

[Hardyreels]

Just remember, if you are still using this rod 10 years from now you'll be able to use the back end of the DT line and not need to replace the line.

[mysticm]

Ard makes some excellent points. To add - I too use a DT on my light graphite rods for the reasons he has stated. If roll casting is your primary intent, either a DT or the Wulff Triangle Taper would be excellent choices. The taper geometry of these types of lines makes them easy to roll cast. Another good reason to use a DT is that they tend to be easier to mend on the water.

[sweetandsalt]

Except for the future reversability of a DT, you won't see much difference between a WF and DT on the Wood R. On the Farmington though, some longer downstream style presentations will be required. A RIO Gold or SA Trout Stalker will give you Farmington presentations and will roll cast fine between the brushy banks of the Wood in RI. There is usually little differnce in the taper of the first 30' between DT and WF lines and the 25' extended rear tapers of the above mentioned lines will facilitate roll casting and mending at longer distances. The new Cortland Boss is worth a look too.

[silver creek]

Buy a DT. No need for a WF on small creek rods since you won't be casting very far. The extended back taper of of some WF lines offer no advantage offer a DT since there is no "back taper" on a DT until you get to the forward taper on the other end of the DT line.

On my small creek rods, I use DT lines by cutting the 90 ft. line in half. Then I add Cortland floating running line to the cut end of the DT with a loop to loop connection made by whip finishing the fly line core into a loop. When I wear the first line, I swap it out for the other half. It is how we used to make our own WF and shooting heads.

The spare half a fly line stored in a cool dry place on the original spool will last longer than putting the whole line on the reel. There is an extra expense because you need to buy a spool of running line, but I have used the same running line for 25 years. The running line comes in several diameters. For the 4 wt and below, buy the thinnest .027".

You have now basically made your own 45 ft. extended head WF fly line with a spare extended head. That is how the "old fly fishing fogies" tweaked our fly lines.

If your routine casts are not enough to load the rod, you can even go up a line wt to a 3 wt to increase the castibility in tight quarters.

[woodrivertroutbum]

Tons of great info, thanks guys! I am thinking I will get the DT now and then just pony up for a WF and spare spool as well. This will be with me on future trips so I think the investment will be worthwhile for the times I come across a small mountain pond or am on a larger river like the Farmington. The DT will be perfect for the Wood and the smaller stuff I plan to fish.