8wt for short casting distances

[birdyshooter]

Hey all!! First post, long time fly fisher. I'm starting to do more saltwater fly fishing in NC now that I have a skiff. My current rod is a TFO TICR-X in 8wt. It shoots lazer rocket beams....... when I have 70' of line out. For shorter distances 30-50 feet..... forget it!! I've up lined it with a 10wt tropical clouser and it's much better at shorter ranges but this will get tiring quickly. So, what is a good medium to medium-fast rod for close in work?? Seems everything on the market these days keep getting faster and stiffer to make those magical +100' cast that are never required in most fishing situations. Best I can find would be the TFO Mangrove. What's your thoughts???

 

[karstopo]

Glass, go to a fiberglass rod. I use my 7’6” 7/8 weight Cabelas CGR a ton for those 30-50’ type of casts. The CGR will set you back all of $70. Redfish, Speckled trout, etc. are a lot of fun on deep bending glass rods. Another fiberglass rod to look at is the 8’ ECHO BAG Quickshot. 4 times as expensive as the Cabelas and more of a medium action instead of slow like the CGR.

I have the 9 weight Quickshot. It’s a canon and will conquer the wind, but it’s heavy. I got mine for bull reds, better jack creavelle, and juvenile Tarpon. Maybe the 6 or 7 weight would be a better option for smaller fish.

 

[Ard]

What he said ^^^

Welcome to the forum, no place on the www knows fly fishing like this membership!

Ard

 

[huronfly]

Those Ticr x rods are much like a broom stick, anything will feel better than that rod in close! I like my 8wt cabelas Lsi, though I believe it has been discontinued.

 

[silver creek]

Hey all!! First post, long time fly fisher. I'm starting to do more saltwater fly fishing in NC now that I have a skiff. My current rod is a TFO TICR-X in 8wt. It shoots lazer rocket beams....... when I have 70' of line out. For shorter distances 30-50 feet..... forget it!! I've up lined it with a 10wt tropical clouser and it's much better at shorter ranges but this will get tiring quickly. So, what is a good medium to medium-fast rod for close in work?? Seems everything on the market these days keep getting faster and stiffer to make those magical +100' cast that are never required in most fishing situations. Best I can find would be the TFO Mangrove. What's your thoughts???

An 8 wt for short cast is a 7 wt. I'd take your 8 wt line and reel and cast a 7 wt rod with it.

 

[dylar]

An over lined 7wt sounds like just the ticket. But a really short, super aggressive shooting head line might work as well.

 

[runningfish]

Me personally would rather use a shorter rod with the right line with less swing weight than over lining with added swing weight. Less tiring that way.

I have the Redington Predator 8wt 7'11" with Sage Bass II line 330 floating and Rio OBS intermediate 330 8wt. The rod casts short really well and good for medium distance. I don't cast to the sunset anyway. The Epic 8wt 8'8" fiberglass is also really good.

 

[fr8dog]

I have that rod in 7/8/9 wts. I use a SA bonefish taper WF8 on the 8 and it works well for almost everything I do. Bass to bones. (Not in cold weather). Maybe try a shorter head? I can do well with a 9 or even 10 line but I keep going back to the 8. Not really sure what’s on the 7 & 9 but they're not overlined to the best of my knowledge. The rod is kind of a broomstick and physically heavy, but it’s durable and I can trust it. I like them. I do a lot of short range sight fishing with that 8. Probably just used to it.

 

[mjkirshner]

Orvis Clearwater is a nice medium-fast rod. A 7 or 8 would probably do what you need. I just got a Blue Halo glass rod that I am enjoying. It is faster than the CGR but not as heavy as the BAG. The price is about the same as the BAG. The CGR is a remarkable rod for the price. An Allen Compass in 8 wt may also work. I have not tried the new one, but the first generation had a nice feel to it. The build quality seemed better than you'd expect at the price.

 

[fq13]

Orvis Clearwater is a nice medium-fast rod. A 7 or 8 would probably do what you need. I just got a Blue Halo glass rod that I am enjoying. It is faster than the CGR but not as heavy as the BAG. The price is about the same as the BAG. The CGR is a remarkable rod for the price. An Allen Compass in 8 wt may also work. I have not tried the new one, but the first generation had a nice feel to it. The build quality seemed better than you'd expect at the price.

I have an Orvis Clearwater #8 tip action for sale. It's 9' but a nice rod and I'll take $150 plus actual shipping. Ironically the reason I am selling it is because I bought a 7'10" Reddington Predator. I love both rods, but I don't need three eight weights. Either the Clear water or Predator will make you happy, just get a heavy grain line and slow down and let the rod do the work.
Ps I will throw in a Cabelas house brand reel made by Lamson with the konic drag loaded up with a Sa warm water redfish line for $75 more. All spooled and ready to fish, but I have nothing but love for the Reddington.

 

[mjkirshner]

Best I can find would be the TFO Mangrove. What's your thoughts???

PS: TFO considers the Mangrove a fast action rod designed for distance, which is what you've stated you do not need. I've never cast the Mangrove, but I have a BVK, and it is a great casting rod, but intended for distance rather than presentation. The Clearwater can hit distances past 50' with no trouble, but I feel as if its strong suit is in the 50' or less range. I think that a glass rod would serve your purpose, too, but I have very little experience with them, so my opinion on that doesn't count for much. I have a CGR 7/8 and it casts well, but I find it very easy to overpower if I don't keep my cast very slow. The Clearwater is more conducive to my natural casting speed.

 

[birdyshooter]

Hey Guys!! Thanks for all the feed back. I have a lot to think about.

 

[birdyshooter]

I have an Orvis Clearwater #8 tip action for sale. It's 9' but a nice rod and I'll take $150 plus actual shipping. Ironically the reason I am selling it is because I bought a 7'10" Reddington Predator. I love both rods, but I don't need three eight weights. Either the Clear water or Predator will make you happy, just get a heavy grain line and slow down and let the rod do the work.
Ps I will throw in a Cabelas house brand reel made by Lamson with the konic drag loaded up with a Sa warm water redfish line for $75 more. All spooled and ready to fish, but I have nothing but love for the Reddington.

I might be interested in that Clearwater if you still have it?

 

[scout1]

Last year I purchased a Sage X in 8 weight to partner up with a Sage Salt HD that I also have. I really like the feel of the action on the X series of rods. I have only used the X 8 weight about a half dozen times but I really like it for those intermediate distances that you speak of. The line that I've been using is a Rio Bonefish in 8 weight. BTW, I've been using this rod for stillwater out of a float tube. The fish are usually big and heavy. It's not my everyday rod but adds another tool to the game.