Rod for Redfish

[mrfzx]

I am reposting this thread to this forum as I think it may be more appropriate here......

I have a trip booked for Redfish to Louisiana in June out of Sportsman's Paradise in Cocodrie (near Chauvre..spelling?). The guide in Capt. Blaine Townsend. I fished with him last August. He roccommends either an 8 or 7 weight rod. Last year I went over and under gunned at the same time. I took two rods: a 10wt BVK, and an 8 wt TiCrX, both from TFO. The 8 weight was fine, but a bit more rod than necessary, as anybody who fishes these sticks knows; the 8wt is probably more closely a 9and 1/2 weight rod. So this year i am planning a bit better....I hope.

I went to my school's football field with a bunch of rods in my arsenal: the 8wt TiCrX, a 7wt loomis Eastfork, a 7wt Loomis NRX (borrowed), an 8wt Orvis Silver label mid-flex, an 8wt March Brown, a 9wt Cortland CL, and a 7wt 10 foot JIm Teeny.

The Reds will run up to 10-12 pounds, but you have to keep them out of the reeds and brush. We will be sight casting in very shallow water, and often need to reach 80 feet or a bit more quickly......meaning minimal false casting. Capt. Blaine loves Spoon Flies, and his probably weigh 1/4 ounce give or take.

My quandry is this: of the rods listed above, I am able to get the most distance accurately from the TiCrX. The NRX casts nicely, but to my surprise, has a lot of flex....and is pretty expensive. I should note the NRX belongs to the guy taking me on the trip....so I won't be using it. I am looking for some reccommendations from the members here on what rods I should look at. Criteria: Very fast action (can't be too fast), 7wt, 9 foot, 4 piece, great warranty. I am a poor working class boy, so price will be a consideration.

Anybody got any suggestions. Right now a BVK is heading the list. Thanks in advance.

 

[sweetandsalt]

I have not fished Louisiana for reds but it sounds like my kind of fishing and I hope to some day. Based on my bonefishing and some research I have been doing and sticking in your middle price point range I would select a 9'/#8 BVK, Tim Rajeff ECHO3, Steve Bechard Rise Fishing Level Series or a previously owned Sage Xi3. I like the NRX #8 a lot but it is expensive and the Hardy Proaxis is double the cost of some of these as well. With thoes heavy flies and the cance of wind a #9 back up could be in order too and perhaps more appropriate than the 7...but I have not fished there.

 

[pegboy1]

The NRX casts nicely, but to my surprise, has a lot of flex....and is pretty expensive.

Agreed!! I think G Loomis and Sage (ONE) are trying to redefine what fast action is, and leaving us true fast action lovers out of the mix a bit...haha.

 

[kwb]

Louisiana is MUDDY water, clear water there is 3' of viz and a long cast is typically 40'...

I have a LOT of days in the area he will be and know it well...

Sure you can spot em if they show their back at distances of 80' but your guide shouldn't have you casting that far at them. There is no need for it...

Get a rod you can cast well with at distances of 10' - 40' and that will cover 99% of your Louisiana Redfish fly fishing needs...

Take come Chart/White Clousers and be sure to take some surface flies that time of year as well, Dahlberg Divers in Chartreuse will work well. I am not a fan of those spoon flies, they work well in grass, but a lot of that areas grass was destroyed by Katrina and the chart/white Clousers will work day in and day out, no problem...

Just my two cents

 

[mrfzx]

No offense taken. I am not exactly a novice, I put more than 100 days a year on the water, most of it on smaller freshwater bodies, but I can estimate distances with the best of them.

A lot of the casting was indeed probably between 30 and 50 feet, some fish were only 5 feet from the boat. But when I need to reach out to those longer distances quickly, and it did happen regularly, a fast action rod is what I want, especially in wind.

As far as flies....capt. Blaine supplies those. It has been my experience, after having fished from Labrador to AK to Costa Rica.....fish what your guide tells you. I'll take a box full, but if what he says to fish is not in there, then I'll happily tie on one of his. We fished literally 100's of acres of grassy flats down there where the reds were chasing shrimp and crabs.

---------- Post added at 11:17 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:15 AM ----------

Capt. Blaine did sya that there was less grass than in years past......seemed like a lot to me!

 

[kwb]

It's very interesting to watch that fishery change...

The marsh is literally wasting away, never to return in that area...

I have never been one to prefer a "tip action" rod, while I like fast recovery, I want something that tracks better with heavier flies and loads easily for accurate casts. Many of the saltwater rods on the market today, don't match that line of thought...

Some rods I really like are:

Scott S4 908-4

Scott S4s 909-4

Orvis Helios 909-4 "I had too many of this specific model blow up for no apparent reason and would never suggest anyone buy one, their nice while they last though"

Orvis Helios 908-4 Mid-Flex Sweet rod that has caught a lot of 30+ pound Reds in its day, mainly when my 9 weight Helios sticks would break and I had to go to it as a back up. Great rod for Louisiana...

These would all be considered on the lower end of the spectrum as far as "fast" goes the way most utilize that term nowadays. Definitely what I prefer to use though and I have no issues punching the backing knot through the guides when I need to, never ran into a situation in Louisiana where anything like that was necessary...

I have cast a bunch of TFO rods and never really handled one I disliked, but I don't know exactly what models they were. Bottom line, you just need to go cast rods yourself as everyone has different taste in rods...

Good luck fishing down there!