Home Water
Site Map
About Us
Smallmouth
Trophy
Record
Features
True Tales
Fly Kids
Photography
Fighting Tips
Float Trip Checklist
Fish Recipes
Flotsam & Jetsam
Jokes
Flies & Stuff
Bass Flies
Top Ten
Fly Tying
Fly Rods
Fly Reels
Fly Line
Gear
Watercraft
Canoe buyer
Methods
Wading
Floating
Casting
Strategies
Top Water
Sub Surface
Deep Water
Water Temperature
Information
EBooks
Travel
Guides
Journals
Maps/Info
Flow Rates
Learning
Resources
Movies

Fly Blog
Contact Us
Link to Us
Links

Fly Fishing Tackle for Bass

Fly Rods

First there was Fenwick, and Orvis, Scott and Thomas & Thomas and others. I own a few of the aforementioned. They are nice rods. Since I build most of my rods, I continue to look for “good deals” on blanks. I watched as Sage prices slowly escalated through the years becoming rather spendy along with most of the others on the list.

I tripped over St. Croix in the early nineties when they entered the market initially with a solid line of fiberglass rods and moved into affordable graphite. I have several and really like St. Croix rods. They too have started to get beyond what I call a great value.

My quest for inexpensive good quality fly rods took a recent twist as I tried a Temple Fork Outfitters, Lefty Kreh signature #8 for smallmouth. It’s worked well but I thought the action was a bit...clunky. The pricing structure on these rods are very attractive. I have also used Diamondback and Reddington and believe these are great rods for the budget minded.

My favorite all around rod is a #8 Cablela’s GT II I built about fifteen years ago. I’ve caught everything from baby tarpon to king salmon with it and never had one single issue with the rods. Cabela’s has a great line of affordable rods. 

Fly Reels
Let me get up on the soap box for a minute here. ...OK, there we go. Now, here is where I believe you can save a big chunk of change within this sport! You absolutely need not spend more than about $45.00 on a fly reel with or without interchangeable spools. The interchangeable spool make very quick work of switching to weighted lines as you fish deeper - simply pop one out and another in - and you’re done.

Yes, you can pay $500 if you’d like. With freshwater fish you don’t need drag. If you are not buying a quality drag system, you don’t need to spend any real money here. My Fin-Nor tarpon reel was $550. I need world class drag in this situation. I don’t need it for inland freshwater fishing. Simply pinch the line with your index and middle finger of the rod hand or palm the spool.

Set the drag on your reel so you can strip off sharply without overrun - that’s all the drag you need. That being said, look for a good looking, cheap reel and buy it. Get an extra spool if available for your intermediate or full sink line. They last forever unless you happen-in to a steelhead or salmon. If you’re doing a lot of salmon fishing, you’ll need to spend a bit more on a reel with good drag, but you can find something to suffice for under $100 here.

Fly Lines
Cortland and 3M have set the standard for innovative fly lines for every possible fishing situation. Teeny, Rio, Wulff and Cabelas all have good fly line available, again some specialize in particular types of fishing approaches. I like Cortland’s Bass taper and Rocket taper as the best value for a high end proven line that’s durable and casts beautifully.

Bass bug taper works a bit better than regular weight forward in short casting situations which happen often when wading. You can try intermediate sink which drops slower than a full sink line. It is a matter of personal preference here. You may like full sink and use it all the time or use weighted flies and floating line. Experiment with both techniques extensively.

Copyright 2009-12FlyBass.com All rights reserved.
Site Design BAMsites- Webmaster: info@flybass.com