Last seasons new toys

[Tom Butler]

Went a bit crazy last year and bought 3 new rods, which I needed like another hole in the head, but I've been happy with all 3. Two of them were actually 8' 5wt's in somewhat exotic materials, the other a boring 10' 3wt Echo carbon xl ESN rod, which is actually really nice and fun to fish.
One exotic was a Leonard 66H replica, by Steve Blake. This is a really nice rod and works well with a Wulff bamboo line.


Another winner, and probably the most fun to cast, is the 8' 5/6wt Steffen built by Shane Gray. This one seems to work best with a 1/2 size heavy line.


Why 2 8' 5wts. Well they have different characters, are just beautiful, and I could.

 

[Tim L]

Beats spending it on therapy. Nice toys!

 

[Bambooflyguy]

Beats spending it on therapy. Nice toys!

Oh good Tim.....you finally got some therapy! Pass lake withdrawals can be fatal!

 

[Dave Westburg]

Lovely looking rods although 8' is a betwixt and between size for me. Too small for float tube or lake or beach fishing when you want to keep your cast off the water or the shingle. Too big for little blue lines. I have an 8' 6 weight Orvis but sold my 8' Pennington 5 weight because it didn't get enough use. Now if I owned this 8' Payne 201 which a doctor bought to our cast around a couple years ago I might feel different. Didn't want to put it down.

 

[Tom Butler]

Lovely looking rods although 8' is a betwixt and between size for me. Too small for float tube or lake or beach fishing when you want to keep your cast off the water or the shingle. Too big for little blue lines. I have an 8' 6 weight Orvis but sold my 8' Pennington 5 weight because it didn't get enough use. Now if I owned this 8' Payne 201 which a doctor bought to our cast around a couple years ago I might feel different. Didn't want to put it down.
View attachment 2265

I like the 8' length for casting on the local streams. My 6wt cortland bamboo is the same length. My longer rods give me more line control, but are not as fun to cast. 7' is just too short.

 

[Dave Westburg]

Tom if I fished your small to middle sized streams I'd prob feel the same way. But I'm either fishing this...


or this...


or this...

or this...

Have to confess, however, that I'm using an 8' 6 weight Orvis impregnated rod in the second picture. But I broke a lot of hooks on the shingle behind me while casting.

 

[mcswny]

Beats spending it on therapy. Nice toys!

Hey now. I buy rods AND pay for therapy. Is something wrong with me doc

 

[Tom Butler]

Tom if I fished your small to middle sized streams I'd prob feel the same way. But I'm either fishing this...

View attachment 2279
or this...

View attachment 2282
or this...
View attachment 2281
or this...
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Have to confess, however, that I'm using an 8' 6 weight Orvis impregnated rod in the second picture. But I broke a lot of hooks on the shingle behind me while casting.

Those shots are just fantastic. I think I mentioned this the other day, why it could be so hard to say what's gonna be best when someone asks, just so many variables. I got really good advise though from forum members in choosing these two. I doubt I'm done, but for the moment I got a pretty good group, no itch to scratch as it were.

 

[@Dryflyphotography]

For me, the 8' bamboo rod is ideal. Short enough to fish on smaller streams but long enough to reach as far as I want on my casts, mend the line and really feel the bamboo working. That's the length rod I've used when fishing the Metolius, Rock Creek, East Fork Bitterroot, Crooked River, Upper Deschutes. The last rod I built (on a wonderful blank made by Jeff Pope) was an 8' Payne 201 replica. This is the P201 on the banks of the Metolius last summer.

 

[Tom Butler]

The Cortland 444 LTD 6wt I got about 15 years ago is 8' long, and I like it, that's why I wanted another boo. The two are completely different in action but both are fun. The Leonard loads from the top down, this one the whole rod to the butt seems to load up.