10' or 11' 3wt for euro nymph rod???

[ghostwulf]

Looking at adding a 10' or 11' 3wt euro nymph rod to my quiver, took out my 9' 5 wt hardy zephrus and used the Czech style nymping and had great results, just was not as tip sensitive as it needed to be. Just don't want to drop the money on a 10' and later wish I had bought the 11'. I will be mostly fishing on Weber and Provo rivers in Utah. Thanks for your time.

 

[jastrout]

First not familar with the water you are fishing and/or size of nymphs you are using . Owning the Zenith in 9'5 , some claimed your Zephrus was an improvement in tip sensitivity , which is always very subjective . I did take advantage of the previous sales and picked up the 10' 4 Zenith which is my Euro type stick . I think the 11'3 wght configuration would be limited in size of nymphs, added split etc? Again I have not compared a 11' length Rod on either 3 or 4 wghts, but before I spent $400 on the the Hardy , I first purchased the Cabela's CZN Rod on sale to see and evaluate if this style of fishing would be comfortable on my home waters. Found out that it is effective, enjoyed it, then upgraded to better Rod.
Love to hear your thoughts on the Zephrus Thanks Jeff

 

[ghostwulf]

The Zephrus is my first premium rod, and I'm in my third year of this great sport so still green behind the ears. I have had it out about 10 times this year and absolutely love it. I have landed about 5 18" to 20" Browns and handled them well, and plenty of smaller fellas. Throwing 2 weighted nymphs and 3 or 4 split shot has been no problem. Have landed about a dozen on dry flies mostly size 20 to 14 Adams. The rod gives me good confidence in my gear and in turn I believe makes me a bit better of a caster. I did hook 8 first time trying the Czech style so the tip was sensitive enough to detect hits well enough.

 

[wjl]

I think for most streams in Utah and surrounding states the 10' will work well.
I had a 11' Cabela's Czn it was a bit too much and just ok. Replaced it with a hardy zenith 3 wt 10', blast to fish.
I don't know your budget but this is a good deal on ksl. He started out at $750.00 link below.
I did take a class at the Wastach fly fishing expo about euro nymphing 10' is the most common rod length.
Good luck :thmbup:
Do not know him, looks like a great set up.
Classifieds for Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming | ksl.com

 

[comeonavs]

I have a 10' 4wt and have never wanted the extra foot. I am glad I got the 4wt so it can handle a yarn bobber and a bigger double nymph rig pretty easily.

I needed up with an Allen ICON and its a great rod. I didn't want to buy uber cheap nor go all the way to a $850 rod.

 

[ghostwulf]

I saw that zenith on ksl, says brand new but... just not sure I want to buy a used fly rod with my limited experience. Just have had a couple bad experience purchasing things used would rather pay a little extra for the peace of mind.
Have been reading as much info as I can on the subject and I am leaning towards a syndicate 10' or the 11' 3wt. But I'm all ears on other options but at the moment 400$ is my budget.

 

[mcnerney]

I'm a little suspicious that that Hardy Sintrix rod is new. It could be, but realize that a couple years ago Hardy was dumping those rods with the metal reel seat on the market for around $330. Afterwords, Hardy then came out with the newer version of the Hardy Sintrix rod which had a wood reel seat. I have two of the older rods with the metal reel seat and one with the wooden reel seat and paid around $320 for each rod and they were all new. I have no idea what that reel is worth but to me it doesn't seem like a great deal to me.

 

[james w 3 3]

To directly answer your question as you wrote it . . .
11'.
During my dalliance with Euro nymphing I used a Greys 11' 3wt which was actually made specifically for this application. Polish, Czech, French, Spanish is what it was made for and did beautifully. No quarter pound of lead suspended under an indicator the size of a throw pillow, heck, I didn't even have any fly line on the reel.
The extra foot really does help since you're fishing essentially right under the rod tip.
Rods made specifically for Euro nymphing are made with a more flexible tip while retaining some real backbone further down, and often come with an optional butt weight/extension to help balance a rod you're holding out at arm length all day.
Echo is now selling one, and I've heard nothing but good things about it, sadly I think it's only made in 10' which I find inexplicable.

 

[sndmn11]

I think the 11'3 wght configuration would be limited in size of nymphs, added split etc?

If you are talking about indi nymphing with split shot, the answer is no with the two 11;3 rods I have fished: an ESN and a Greys. If you are talking euro style, that makes no sense and the answer is still no.
Mcnerney has it right about the "deal". That rod is a fantastic one, that probably cost a little over $300 as that is what I paid for mine new. The reel seat is also the older version, and I would imagine it hasn't sat in a closet for over a year. I would find the reel undersized by a few ounces for tight lining.
At one point I had four 10' rods 2-4wt. I then built myself an 11/3 ESN and have sold all the others. I will be building myself a 9'6" 3wt for dries, and small tree covered creeks like Bear Creek here near Denver. I can't think of any reason other than overhead space not to fish an 11' rod for any style of nymphing.
I just sold an 11/3 Greys, and it was a fine rod, but would have never been fished. If you can find one under $200, it is worth it. Redington makes an 11' rod but I have not cast or fish it. The 10' model showed good tip settling with the few bounces I gave one in a shop. I am not sure that it is worth $300, but I would buy one over a Syndicate any day....which you couldn't sell me for more than $50 and I would have to be desperately rod-less. Cortland makes a 10'6", and Echo's rod can be made to be 10'6" or 11' with their extension kit. I would buy an ESN if you have the money, the Echo with the kit next, and then the Redington if you don't have the money.
Regardless, this length of rod on a quality blank can handle more than just tight line nymphing, if I had just one rod to fish Colorado the rest of my life, and 11/3 would be it.

 

[rsagebrush]

I use a Greys Streamflex XF-2 9'6" conv. to 10' 3wt, nice rod for dries too. Used it quite a bit on the Lower O.; worked well with a 4 too. I also have a Seele Tactical Trout 10'5" for a 4wt and great for dry fly fishing, that is effective too.


But if you really want to go all out try this:

Now I use rather stout (flex tip) Japanese Keiryu rods ranging in length from 9 foot to 14.5 feet. I just set up with a level size 4.5 Flourocarbon line and tippet ring to attach 3-6x tippet from 3-5 feet long. They are deadly and tons of fun because they are so light and limber. The reach and sensitivity of these rods are incredible. I use standard Euro nymph flies and have also found weighted 'Girdle Bugs' in size 6 and 8 to be very effective, actually my favorite flies for this method.
Don't attempt this with a standard light action Tenkara rod as they are not stout enough to set the hook on a deep drifted fly. You will probably break some of the tip sections too. Plus they are generally to light to subdue a fish in really fast water.

 

[jasonrenfro]

Hi,

I've had a chance to fish the 10' and 11' ESN rods from Sage. I've also been fortunate to spend some time with the Grey's Streamflex (now discontinued in the US), Douglas DXF and Beulah Platinum series Euro style models.

I personally own the Sage ESN 11' 3 weight, but I also understand that the price point can be an obstacle for such a niche rod. If that's the case, I think you'd be very happy with either the Douglas or Beulah mentioned above. Both were designed with tapers specific to this style of fishing so they offer light in hand and very good feel at the tip. Interestingly, if in a pinch, they both overhand cast a dry pretty well considering their design objective. I've also put an indicator on and fished them out to 30' or so without issue. All are very nice.

As an aside, Jim Murphy was part of the beginnings at Douglas upon his departure from Hardy USA after the acquisition by Pure Fishing. I don't know this 100%, but suspect the DXF is near identical, if not completely to the Greys Streamflex. Jim having worked for Hardy/Greys, likely had the contacts with the manufacturer of the Streamflex and also knew how popular they were amongst the Euro nymph enthusiasts. Given one of the first moves after the acquisition was to pull the Greys brand from the US, an opening was left for another rod to fill the bill so to speak.

In conclusion, each of the models listed above would be great. You can't go wrong amongst them from a performance perspective. Regarding long term warranty prospects, time will tell if Douglas has the legs to stay in the industry.

Best,

Jason

 

[ghostwulf]

Thank you everyone for all this great information. I appreciate your time, I'm going to keep gathering info and see if I can find a way to demo a few of these rods. And try to bump my budget a bit. I was going to ask which rod replaced the streamflex cause I have read so many positive reviews, but that got answered. The esn sounds like the way to go if I can get some extra doe. Thanks again

 

[tridentfly]

I don't know this 100%, but suspect the DXF is near identical, if not completely to the Greys Streamflex

Jason - the tapers on the DXF are faster, but similar.

---------- Post added at 01:42 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:37 AM ----------

Just don't want to drop the money on a 10' and later wish I had bought the 11'

Get an 11' rod. I've fished the 11' 3wt for years and have no regrets. It's just a very specific rod, and one that will likely never see much fly line through the guides.

 

[ghostwulf]

Looking at the Douglas dxf as my second choice if I can not afford the Esn anytime soon. Has anyone else had time on the water with the 10' or 11' Dxf?

 

[jasonrenfro]

I have fished the DXF and it felt like a Streamflex. You'd like it.

 

[sndmn11]

I had forgotten about the Douglas, and Trident is correct that it is similar but a little different taper and a slightly higher modulus graphite according to Mr. Murphy when I talked to him about it at the Denver show two years ago. I did cast it, yes actually cast, next to the ESN and there is a noticeable difference in tapers between the two although both did just fine. I felt the ESN was a bit faster in action, but the Douglas was a more refined Greys. To be perfectly frank, unless you are going to fish this style primarily and every week, you probably would never notice the very slight differences between an ESN and those half the price.
Douglas as of a year ago would send out a demo rod if you just called and asked, they may still do it. Fenwick also makes some long rods (Aetos) that may be similar to the Greys and quite a bit cheaper.
I also forgot that Thomas and Thomas makes some long rods, and the blank I just picked up yesterday and referenced in this thread is a Gatti from Italy.
Gatti Fly Rods Complete rods are also available, and it took about 2 weeks to arrive at this shop. The Rocky Mountain Rod Shop: Shop Online at rockymountainrodshop.com

 

[acorad]

11'


Andy

 

[ghostwulf]

Well after a bit of wheelin and dealin Im going to pick up a sage esn 11' 3wt, any additional information on esn would be greatly appreciated. Big question What line to put on it? And good reel choices for balance. Thanks for your time

 

[sndmn11]

I have used Airflo's River and Stream in 3wt, Rio Euro Nymph, and the Cortland Comp line .02 tip, and all have worked well for their intended purpose.
An Aspen 350 at 6.x ounces rides on mine to give it a decent balance, but I imagine the factory rod would take a little bit more weight in the reel since my rod has burl cork on it.

 

[jfh245]

Orvis Hydros 10' 3wt is incredible !!! List is $425.
Another great rod is the Syndicate or Redington Hydrogen. I believe they both list for $299 in the 3wt,