Rio Big Nasty for smallmouth?

[Jaysop]

As a novice I may be putting to much thought into this.

I picked up a TFO impact 6wt for light weight smallmouth fishing on the Broad river in SC and some other LMB fishing locally.

I've been looking at what lines are available and have somewhat narrowed it to Rio Big nasty, Rio smallmouth, and Orvis Hydros HD trout(local shop recommend).

I've had really good results with Rio line in the past some I'm leaning towards that.

Any reason why the Big Nasty line wouldn't be a good choice?

 

[Ard]

Study the head design, think on the size & weight of flies you want to cast and the distance you expect to have them land at. Once your casting is up to the level of making a 50 to 60 foot cast I think it will be fine.

Remember the head is 40 foot - your leader should be about 9 feet and your rod will extend in front of you at least 8 feet. That's darn near 60 without any shooting / running line out.

 

[jr spey]

As a novice I may be putting to much thought into this.

I picked up a TFO impact 6wt for light weight smallmouth fishing on the Broad river in SC and some other LMB fishing locally.

I've been looking at what lines are available and have somewhat narrowed it to Rio Big nasty, Rio smallmouth, and Orvis Hydros HD trout(local shop recommend).



I've had really good results with Rio line in the past some I'm leaning towards that.

Any reason why the Big Nasty line wouldn't be a good choice?

The Impact is a decent lightweight smallie rod and the Big Nasty throws big flies really well. I don't think you'll like them paired up, though. My choice for that rod would be the Rio Smallie.

 

[sixwtslinger]

IMHO, the Big nasty is a specialty line and won't be a real smooth / fun and or accurate line to cast close in. The Rio smallmouth line on the other hand is made for what you are looking to do with it. i.e. Throwing bass sized bugs at bass fishing distances.
Lastly, while I generally like Orvis lines ( and admittedly havn't cast this particular one) it should be noted that the one you mention is textured. Texturing is a good thing for adding distance but can be very noisy ( and annoying) as it runs through your guides . That noise turns allot of folks off. ( Myself included.) I would want to test cast that one before buying it blindly.

 

[Jaysop]

I may be over thinking this but I know theres a difference in how the lines are made warm water/cold water.

The water I've been fishing never seems to get "pond warm" and I'm wondering if that may make the line to stiff if it's a warm water line. At least that's what a lot of reviews of the Rio smallie line are saying.

As for the Big Nasty line, I see what you mean by needing a lot of line out. That probably wouldn't work to great.

I ordered some flys online. In person they are bigger and much more wind resistant than I thought they'd be. Casting from a kayak I wont really need a lot of distance but these flys are going to take some enthusiasm to get out there.

 

[sixwtslinger]

If your goal is casting big flies from a kayak, you might want to consider a 7wt line ( or at least a 6.5wt) You'll benefit from the rod loading better with just 20-30' of line out the tip. ( It's hard to hold allot of line in the air from a sitting position.) Again, another reason to try a line before buying.

 

[VaFisherman]

Unless you just must have a Rio line I would highly suggest a Wulff Triangle Taper Bass in Ivory color.

 

[stinger22]

SA Titan or Titan long 210gr for 6 wt should throw a bug that Impact is a med fast rod I have one in 4wt like it

 

[clouserguyky]

The Impact is a true to weight fly rod. It requires a true to weight line to maximize performance. My advice, DO NOT OVERLINE IT. That rules out the Big Nasty, Titan, Rio OBS, etc.. While those are excellent lines for the bigger smallmouth flies you might throw on a 7 or 8 weight rod, those lines will feel clunky at best on your #6 Impact. Just one man's opinion.

If I was you, I'd line it up with Rio Smallmouth WF6F. The Hydros will work fine too, but if you're going to fish it specifically for bass, you should just get the Rio line. It has a harder coating designed for warm water fishing. That will be an excellent light smallmouth set up for flies up to about size 4. After that it will be a little more work to throw larger flies, but not impossible. I personally use Rio SMB on my 7wt among a bunch of SA and Orvis lines in my collection and LOVE it. It has held up well and casts smallmouth flies well.

 

[Jaysop]

Any feedback on doing the Orvis Hydros Bass line vs the Rio Smallmouth line? I only ask because its locally available and on sale.

 

[clouserguyky]

They are fairly similar. The Hydros Bass has a shorter front taper at 4.5' vs 7' on the Rio, and also has a longer rear taper at 8' vs. 7' again on the Rio. The Rio head tops out at 38', the Orvis at 35'. Both weigh in at 173 grains for the first 30' on line. A nice thing about the Rio is it has a 27' "handling line" before the running line, which is basically just a little bit thicker and will mend more easily.

Not too different honestly. I'd go with whatever is cheaper. Personally, I'm using Rio Smallmouth because I got a great deal on it, and it's held up great and is a really good match for my TFO Mangrove. I think it'd be awesome on the Impact as well. Likewise, I'm sure the Orvis line is awesome as it's made by Scientific Anglers, and it's most likely on clearance right now.

 

[trev]

The bass themselves are pretty indifferent to line brands or tapers, at least half my fishing is for smallmouth and I get by wonderfully with a $15 level line, or a 444 DT or a Wulff TT (not bass) I suspect that of the suggestions above I would pick the cheapest that wieghs ~180gn in 30' and pair that with a 5-6' leader and a #6-#4 fly or jig ~3" long.
In my medium size high gradient streams I have never been able to control the fly well at much greater than 30' of line plus rod and leader, simply too many cross currents and under tows. Most of my better smb are within about 20' of me and against or under structure, insuring trouble on a long or slack line, the slightly heavy line will load my rods better in close; as always ymmv.

 

[sixwtslinger]

The bass themselves are pretty indifferent to line brands or tapers, at least half my fishing is for smallmouth and I get by wonderfully with a $15 level line, or a 444 DT or a Wulff TT (not bass) I suspect that of the suggestions above I would pick the cheapest that wieghs ~180gn in 30' and pair that with a 5-6' leader and a #6-#4 fly or jig ~3" long.
In my medium size high gradient streams I have never been able to control the fly well at much greater than 30' of line plus rod and leader, simply too many cross currents and under tows. Most of my better smb are within about 20' of me and against or under structure, insuring trouble on a long or slack line, the slightly heavy line will load my rods better in close; as always ymmv.

Agreed. I'll likely get lambasted for this but truth be told, Aventec and Maxcatch make some very decent fly lines for $12 or so. I have fished a Maxcatch WF6F (1/2 wt higher) for bass all this season on one of my rods. It's seen a good dozen outings and has been stomped into the bottom of the boat on several occasions. It still throws a gurgler 75' when I do my part.
As for loading in close, it is something to be considered since the OP intends to fish from a Kayak. When I'm sitting in my yak, casts are usually less than 40' total and back casts are rarely more than 25'.

 

[mjkirshner]

Orvis Hydros Bass

 

[Jaysop]

I'm going to pick up that Hydros bass. Its $49 right now.
Not knowing much about how the taper really affects the performance I figure it's a safe bet for the time being. I also have the textured Hydros trout to fall back on if it's really not working out how I hope.

This forum is great for opening my eyes about what I dont know. With out you guys I'd probably be pretty frustrated trying to figure out what I'm doing wrong with these fly rods.

 

[Flyrod Buddy]

One my 6wt orvis glass superfine, I use the orvis bankshot, i can throw nice hairbugs and 4" gamechangers. This line is great for roll casting. I can pop this line under cover, but as I throw smaller flies I do have to perform textbook cast.

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[gpwhitejr]

Not to confuse the issue, but when bass fishing this year (shore or kayak) I had far more success with sinking line. Just sayin'.

 

[Jaysop]

Not to confuse the issue, but when bass fishing this year (shore or kayak) I had far more success with sinking line. Just sayin'.

All my bass this year have been from from bouncing off the bottom.

I figure I'll have to get a sinking line as well down the road.

 

[Flyrod Buddy]

All my bass this year have been from from bouncing off the bottom.

I figure I'll have to get a sinking line as well down the road.

I agree with the sinking line and that is why a may get the Orvis Bankshot sink tip, I already have a good sinking line.


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[sixwtslinger]

I usually fish with two fly rods. One lined with a floating to throw topwater bugs and streamers down to a couple of feet and a second rod with a class II or III sinker to fish down in the 4-10' range. Still,if I could only have one rod/line for bass, I'd go with a floating setup as It's just too much fun to get them on top.
Some years back, when I had less tackle than will, I made due fishing deep by:
- looping on a simple sinking leader selection (Cortland or lead core) - They weren't pretty to cast but they worked.
-carrying a selection of heavily weighted flies like clousers, coneheads, etc.
-long leaders and good old split shot in a pinch.