The Radian is both stiffer and faster in action. I love the appearance of the DXF, with the blank finished in a flat, non-glare dark green. 1; 2; First Prev 2 of 2 Go to page. $279.99. Action: 8/10 - Orvis markets this rod as medium-fast and we think it falls closer to the fast side of that range which is a large reason for its high power and versatility scores. The epoxy coatings are pretty good but a little heavy. This can be a huge help if you have multiple rods and the sections get mixed up. Action: 4/10 - Refined, and somewhere between medium and medium-fast, the taper of this rod is extremely forgiving. To improve on the previous Zenith, which won our original 4-weight Shootout, Howard gave the Zephrus a slightly stronger butt and mid section as well as a softer tip. The guides start with a hook keeper on the butt, then a single SiC stripping guide, followed with hard chrome single foot guides that seem sturdy enough, but are not nearly as good (or as light) as the nickel/titanium single foot guides used on the NRX LP. The swing weight is light but it cant match the Zephrus or Pure. Moreover, if you want to fish with a 4-weight we consider to be the optimal choice, you dont have to spend $850, $900, or $1000, but only $679 for the Hardy Zephrus. The F Series, concentrates more on finesse, without sacrificing too much power. The reel seat is a black anodized, single uplocking skeleton seat with a dark wood insert. $279.99. Get this rod out in the sunlight and it really lights up. Because of the cost, we downgraded the Asquith to 7 points. This is one of the worst scores at long distance in our Shootout. What gives? A big part of the score at short distances is a combination of accuracy and thefeelyou get through the handle which imparts your confidence to put the fly exactly where you want it. Often novices entering the sport of fly-fishing opt for one of the least expensive rods, but weve found that it makes more sense to spend the money on one of the better performing rods, at least one in that mid-price range, that will allow an angler to develop his or her casting skills much more rapidly. Nothing beats this rod at 40 feet. Power: 8/10 - Loomis built a ton of power into this rod so you can feel confident throwing streamers, nymph rigs, and dry flies at long distances. So if you like what we are doing, the best way to thank us is to buy a rod, reel, or outfit from the Yellowstone Angler. In Livingston we usually have plenty of wind, so we had to wait until we got some fairly calm days, to do the casting. This hurt somewhat in its scores for swing weight and light tippet protection. Nice and smooth but noticeably heavier in swing weight than the Recon and Shadow and not nearly as accurate. Since it is a lot shorter than my preferred 8 foot #4, it ran up some high scores in both overall weight and swing weight. Casting Notes: Loomis new LP rod is built for delicacy and finesse. Sage Lifetime warranty to original owner. Casting Notes: The Zone is a versatile freshwater 5wt with the ability to throw a variety of flies from nymphs to dries to small streamers. Usually takes 1-2 weeks. For most of my fishing with a 4-weight rod in critical conditions Im using one of our 12-foot leaders down to a 5X or 6X tippet, but in the Shootout we stick with 4X Rio Powerflex as a tippet in order to minimize breaking off the yarn indicator. Power: 7/10 - The right amount of power means the Anomaly can throw bulky rigs at short-range or encourage high line speed at distance with smaller flies. Pros I felt the best rods at long range were the Helios 3F and the Loomis Asquith, as well as the T&T Avantt and the Scott Radian. $598.00. T&T designed this rod to cater to the widest range of anglers and its versatility shows through in its power and action levels. Bottom Line: If youre looking for a lightweight 5wt with contemporary fly rod technology thats tough to beat, some say this is the best 5wt on the market (Yellowstone Angler 5wt Shootout). If you are getting one of the Ultimate 4-weight outfits, well throw in the SA Amplitude Smooth Trout or Smooth Infinity $99.95 line for free, and also ship it to you for free! Only one way to find out cast and compare them all. This rod is so soft that I just dont have the power in the butt and mid sections to get good tight back cast loops, or the line speed I need to get the job done. Better as I get more line in the air, but still not nearly as good as the NRX LP or the DXF. Action: 4/10 - Similarly, Redington built this rod with a moderate-slow action. Call us at 406-222-7130, or e-mail us at [emailprotected] and we can discuss your needs and wants. Like the K2, the Q is only available as a 9-foot rod in a 4-weight. When Im fishing dry flies Ill use a 12-foot leader most of the time as this keeps the fly line farther away from the fish, minimizing the number of fish you spook while casting. We have fished all over the world in both fresh and saltwater for a variety of fish, and well be glad to answer all of your questions, to help you choose the perfect rod or outfit. The heavy swing weight and stiffer tip gave me very little feel. Here, any rods that rate 9.5 -10 are superb, and would be at the top of a Perfect 4 category. Thomas & Thomas Zone - $499 Casting Notes: The Zone is a versatile freshwater 5wt with the ability to throw a variety of flies from nymphs to dries to small streamers. It is a very smooth rod to cast and was excellent at short and mid-distances, but at the longest distance the Radian, Helios 3F, and Avantt were much better. The matte gray blank does look nice, and the guide wraps are a dark gray, trimmed in black on the butt section. This year SA has come up with an impressive new line series called the Amplitude Smooth. A stack of thin diameter corks is used and the quality is good. Of all the reels we have carried over the years, Galvan continues to have the fewest warranty issues and returns. Now that we have dropped our Perfect 4 category, this category gives you our opinions on the best rods and how they stack up. The Pure is unquestionably one of the best looking rods in our Shootout, with some of the best craftsmanship. The soft, slow action produces a delivery I noted as mushy. A sliding band and one easy to grip locking ring are used. We simply place each rod horizontally on the scale, read the weight and round it off to one tenth of an ounce. We like the lower price, and you cant expect the same kind of performance as the $845 Avantt which uses a more expensive, higher modulus graphite. A 12-foot leader also gives you a stealthier presentation. T&T uses multiple coats to produce a finish that is simply beautiful. Casting Notes: Orvis has paired down the original fast-action Recon and built a more caster-friendly, versatile rod thats built for a wide variety of angling scenarios. #2. Loop has built some important features into this rod to make it lightweight and snappy. Like many of the other 9-foot rods in our Shootout, it was at a disadvantage in weight to the shorter 8 and 8 foot rods. The Helios 3 rods are available in both the D and F Series with the D series more designed for distance and power. Guides start with a hook keeper, then two SiC stripping guides followed with fairly large diameter hard chrome snake guides. Makes sense because its the most expensive rod in our buyers guide. Out long the overall softness of the rod is a handicap. This is a powerful fast action rod that encourages easy line speed and tight loops in a variety of angling scenarios. An attractive X-pattern graphite wrap is used behind the logo, just above the cork handle. For guides, there is a hook keeper, (The 3F has none), a single SiC stripping guide is used followed with hard chrome snake guides. The cork handle is that same snub nose, half wells found on the X and feels very comfortable to me. This rod uses the more conventional slip over ferrule design as on all but one of the other rods in our Shootout. He used Gartside's Super-Secret Stuff as a flash material but here we will use Hareline's Ice Wing Fiber as a substitute. The rod also has the power to slug it out with sizeable game, and the fighting butt to tuck in your gut and settle in for the fight. After fifty years in the fly fishing business as a guide, shop manager and shop owner, Ive learned a lot about what it takes for a fly rod to perform well. Once the grip of the rod is placed precisely on the foam pellet, with the rod horizontal, we apply pressure, by pressing down with a fingernail to the very end of the reel seat, and then read (and note) the weight indicated by the scale. Swing weight was light but not as good as the Zephrus or Pure. Light in hand but the stiffness in the tip is not giving me as much feel in close as the Zephrus, and the accuracy is not as good as the best rods. Its not as caster-friendly as others in this category but provides the capable angler with technical fast action performance. When I put this rod in my hand it feels more like a 5-weight than a 4-weight! And the Fenwick Aetos, that finished at 11th, higher than the middle of the pack, is only $179.95! Heavy in hand! I now own 4 H2s and fish them all the time. This is a smooth line, rather than one with a textured coating. The thing that killed this for me was the cheap looking reel seat. $25 handling fee on current rods. Performance at 60 feet: 7.0 points out of 10. TFO uses an olive green blank for this rod, with olive wraps that are trimmed in gold on the butt sections. Next, holding the rod in a horizontally, we position the grip over the foam pellet so that the pellet is centered under the exact spot where you will most likely hold the rod with your hand. The epoxy coatings on the wraps are a little heavy, but Ive sure seen worse. Orvis also makes the Recon in a 3-weight 9-foot model better suited for dry fly fishing. If you feel your rod has broken because of a defect, you pay to send the rod to their warranty dept. It has a larger swell than most rods, and the swell is set closer to the top of the grip, than most rods well forward of the center of the grip. Equal to the Orvis Recon, but head to head the Avantt and Helios 3F were far better. Action: 8/10 - This is an ultra-fast action rod. He has been a very important and integral part of our Shootouts and tackle comparisons over the years. The wraps are dark blue to match the blank and the epoxy coatings are excellent. Now the good butt power helps and Im getting very nice loops, good control and excellent accuracy equal to the Avantt and even better than the Zephrus. If you look at the deflection charts you will see how soft the butt and mid of the Mod are compared to the best performing rods. Power: 3.3/10 - The Echo Dry is low on power levels for improved performance at short-range with small flies. Orvis Recon 5wt. We were all especially anxious to see how the Orvis Helios 3F and the new Winston Pure would fare, compared to our favorite 4-weight, the Hardy Zephrus. The epoxy coatings are good but too heavy for my liking. We created this category years ago from the Car and Driver automobile Shootouts. Rods are replaced. But that was about all I liked, other than the very light overall weight that earned it a perfect score. Casting Notes: The Epic Graphite 5wt is one of our favorites. The blank is a pleasing burgundy that sparkles in the sunlight. A darker composite cork ring is used on the bottom of the grip that is flared out to accept the uplocking seat. Still not so good with very little feel or accuracy. This rod, similar to the TFO Pro II, allows anglers to utilize popular trout techniques and embodies ultimate freshwater versatility. The reel seat is a double uplocking skeleton seat in anodized gold, with a pretty wood burl insert using green and brown highlights to complement the blank. The X provides the angler with finesse in close and power when you need it, a nice combination of feedback and backbone. How well are the guides wrapped and how nice are the coatings? In close, I could not cast off the tip of the Ultralite nearly as well as with the Zephrus. Hardy is using their best Sintrix 440 graphite in this rod, also used in the Zephrus. Sure, most of these 4-weight rods will turn over a 9-foot leader, but having to turn over a 12-foot leader requires a rod to perform at a higher level. Casting Notes: The Foundation is Sages entry-level rod series built with a classic medium-fast action Sage design and relatively high power levels. For ex I was looking at the Scott Flex, and on their website they label it's flex profile as "fast." I just didnt care for the moderate action that was a lot slower than the X. The cork handle is a half wells design with a stack of thin corks as on the Helios 3F. Action: 6.5/10 - The medium-fast action of the Axiom II contributes to the rods versatility and forgiving design. Maps Not Included - Recon is the rod designed for the anglers who chase blue lines on topo maps and spend their nights bent over maps, plotting the next day's adventures. How about TFO Blue Ribbon series ? This year, as is the norm in the industry, all of the rods tested are 4 piece rods. It often takes a little time for the rod to settle down from all this movement so we do this procedure 4-6 times and then take the average weight we are getting from the scale. What is a cheap rod like this doing up here with all the far higher priced rods, many of which cost $700more? The top three rods were a lot better. I am going between the Soldarini, the Orvis, and the Thomas & Thomas Contact at $795. The ability of this rod to form and maintain very tight loops helped it give me slightly more accuracy than the Helios 3F or Scott G series at mid-range. Hardys half wells cork handle is used, similar to the Zephrus. For this we downgraded the craftsmanship a half a point. Nickel silver is used for the winding check and rear grip check as well as the hardware on the reel seat, which is a sliding band and one wide locking ring. Cortland MKII Euro Nymph Rod. But that nice soft tip produces great feel and exceptional accuracy. The NRX LP has proven to be an outstanding rod as a 5-weight, winning our 5-weight Shootout several times. The DXF has been one of our top mid-priced rods, but there was no denying the Hardy Shadow and Orvis Recon were better. From 25 to the 40-foot mark, these lines were just magical, and stretching the distance out to 60 feet was easier than with a standard belly line. #15. Thomas and Thomas Avantt. Some people might consider high priced rods status symbols. We found most rods performed better with the Amplitude Smooth Infinity, which is a half line size heavier. Only out long did I feel at a disadvantage to the best rods and I think part of this was due to the lighter Trout line. St. Croix Lifetime warranty to original owner, $85 handling fee. The best rods in our Shootout can handle this distance with ease, and are actually capable of casting much farther in an expert casters hands. The JXP is also very stiff. As you have seen, the best rods in this 4-weight Shootout are medium fast or fast action rods with softer tips. The ring seems to lock up well. About as good as the Imperial, but the Recon and Shadow were noticeably better. In addition to my comments in the main Shootout, youll want to read the comments from Jamie and our other Yellowstone Angler staff members, Logan Brown, Francis Clougherty and Chloe Nostrant. Mystic Lifetime warranty to original owner. With your support we can continue to give you more Shootouts and head to head comparisons on tackle and equipment in the future. Now Im getting nice tight loops, and the rod tracks very well with better feel and accuracy. Power: 2/10 - Low power levels reflect this rods purpose-built design. Hardy has given us another magical rod that produced an absolutely stunning performance to blow away all the contenders. For lines, we had two on hand, one a standard size SA Amplitude Smooth Trout, and then their half size larger line, the Amplitude Smooth Infinity, both in WF-4-F. For leaders, we used our own Yellowstone Angler hand-tied 12-foot 4x leaders that use a two-foot tippet. Here youll find our recommendations in three price ranges: The Ultimate Outfit, Mid Priced Outfit and Best Buy Outfit. Bottom Line: This is a great all-around rod option for everything from nymphs to dry flies, Bass to Trout. The skeleton reel seat is a gray anodized double uplocking with a dark gray laminated wood insert. Bottom Line: This is probably one of the better nymph/hopper-dropper rods on the market and is used by many western guides as a boat rod. To read each staff members casting notes and performance finishing order, please click on their photo above. Pick any rod here that we rated a 9.5 or better and you have a winner! Ive fished this Zephrus myself for the past two years, and it has been my go-to rod when Im fishing small dries, emergers and spinners in the surface film. Guides start with a hook keeper on the butt, and then two SiC stripping guides, followed with hard chrome snake guides that are large in diameter but thankfully use smaller diameter wire. A good 4-weight rod must be more than just a dry fly rod though, and the best 4-weights are wonderful rods to use fishing nymphs at shorter distances, and are also capable of pitching smaller streamers when conditions dictate such vile and desperate moves in order to catch fish. Here it matches the NRX LP and the Recon. Copyright 2023 Sport Fishing Magazine. Fly rod power and fly rod action help answer the question 'what kind of fishing is this fly rod best suited for?'. #25. Click on any of the charts above to see more charts. I was getting far better presentations and accuracy with both the Hardy Zephrus and Winston Pure. The swell in the middle of the grip is a little more forward than most. The guides start out with a small hook keeper, then a single SiC stripper, followed with black, hard chrome single-foot guides. The accuracy was good but not as good as the DXF or all of the best rods. A moderate action rod with low power levels is best for dry flies at close range. It is nearly impossible to cast off the tip of the rod like I can with the best 4-weights. The Clearwater is heavy in overall weight andvery heavyin swing weight, making it a chore to cast. Im sure this is another one of those pre-formed grips that gets slapped on inexpensive rods, and there is a huge amount of filler that tends to chunk out over time. The H3F rated slightly higher over all, but the Asquith had a lot more butt and mid-section power to blast out long casts. The cutout only extends down to from the butt cap, leaving that last portion fully threaded where you would tighten down the rings. Wraps are a darker red, (almost black), trimmed in brighter red on the butt. Nothing else is even close. The cork handle is a western style grip with a comfortable swell in the middle and a nice taper forward. This is a variation of a fly tied by Jim Misiura. Quantity: Preorder you will promptly be contacted with available date. Annette McLean, Winstons long time rod designer did a great job with the Pure, giving us a rod that is Pure fun to cast and fish. Messages 29 Reaction score 6 Location . Just about any rod can turn over a 9-foot leader, but only the best casting rods can turn over a 12 footer at short distances. Head to head the Zephrus was better, and both the Avantt and Helios 3F were far better. Tippet materials are getting stronger every year, and today we end up fishing 6x, 6.5X, and 7x fluorocarbon a lot of the time, trying to get that perfect drift to entice a big fish to sip in a fly. Overall weight is certainly a factor, lighter being better, but swing weight is far more important. Here, the softer rods, ones with softer tips and rods with lighter swing weights post the highest scores. Heavy, slower action rods never perform well. One of the things I like the most is that they have a large drag knob and a very wide range of drag adjustment. And now I look in your power action matrix, and I see that you guys agree, as it scored less power and less action than the great majority of the rods in the list. The result is often that the cheap outfit is mothballed, sold on e-bay or handed down to one of the kids. It was hard for me to get any feel or accuracy with such a stiff rod and a light line. Below the final results charts we give you the exact repair charges for each manufacturer. I liked the full wells cork handle better than the odd grip on the Reaper X. A counterbalance opposite the handle is used to keep the reel running smoothly when a fish is racing away from you. Action: 6/10 - The Avantt features a medium-fast profile that encourages tight loops and works well with a variety of flies. Youll find these on our Yellowstone Angler home page atyellowstoneangler.com.If your favorite local shop stocks the rods you are interested in, by all means visit them, try a few rods and purchase an outfit from them. I just dont think the 3Fd is nearly as good looking as some of the more traditional looking rods, in our Shootout like the Scott, Winston, T&T, and Hardy. Thomas And Thomas Zone 1.0 Fly Rod. There's no other place online that has as many or as comprehensive reviews as you guys, and it really helps. Carbon XL. A great 4-weight rod is the best tool Ive found to meet these demands. 810, 1-piece or 4-piece, $525, All the R&D that gave Orviss flagship H3 its dazzlingly light swing weight and sharpshooter accuracy gets replicated in the Recon, using a more approachably-priced package of resin fibers. Im confident that we can come up with the perfect rod or outfit that best fits your needs. Weve found that fluctuating temperature and humidity from one day to the next can make a difference of .2-.3 oz. Performance at 40 feet: 19.7 points out of 20. Wow It is hard to believe that this mid-priced Hardy finished up with the top rods! For our 4-weight Shootout, once again we have added anotherperformance category Light Tippet Protection. 'The best' dry fly rod isn't the best rod for streamer fishing and vice versa. The quality of the standard size cork rings was very good. Rods that were very light in swing weight like the Zephrus, Avantt and Helios 3F blew the X away in both feel and performance. The Cork handle is a full wells design that is slightly smaller where your thumb would rest, ahead of the swell in the middle of the handle. However, as youll see in the Performance Only scores, it finished much higher in 12thplace. Good butt power also helps me land fish in a minimal amount of time. Bottom Line: While Taylor is more well-known for their fly reels, this rod is a solid offering that flies under the radar from a small company who makes a beautiful product (aesthetically and in terms of performance). Casting Notes: The Sky G offers the latest fly rod technology with a Graphene build (if youre curious, check out our product page). The softness didnt allow me to make good hard backcasts in an effort to form tight loops. In the past we have used the Scientific Anglers lines since they shoot better and hold up longer than any other line we have found. For guides, they use one SiC stripping guide followed with hard chrome snake guides that are thin and light on the tip sections. It was even a little sloppy on the tip sections. The Recon has been one of our favorite rods, and this 4-weight version is terrific. #4 (Tie) Thomas and Thomas AVANTT 86#4 $845.00. Performance at 60 feet: 9.7 points out of 10. I was tempted to give it a perfect score for craftsmanship. And if there was any wind, I couldnt make good enough back cast loops to hit the distance. Keep in mind that what you will read here are only our opinions. It is also a soft rod, so it scored very well in light tippet protection. What're the differences between these posts and how do you, the reader, get the most out of reading them? Bottom Line: This is a great entry-level rod for anglers looking to get into trout fishing. Orvis has totally revamped the Recon series and this is a much different (and better) rod than the original Recon 8-weight. If broken from neglect or any other cause, you must use the Expeditor service. Certainly the Aetos wins points in the price category, but the biggest reason is its performance. The 79 model was far better and a lot more fun to cast and fish. But in looking closely at the Hardy Zephrus, Ultralite, and the Douglas SKY, they are also definitely near the top end of the craftsmanship ladder. For 4-weight rods, when you are fishing at shorter distances, (most of the time), it is particularly important that leaders turn over well. Winston BIIIX 5wt. #16. The Radian placed 2ndin our last 5-weight Shootout and I was surprised to see that it was this far down the list in a 4-weight. Black anodized premium aluminum reel seat. If you are a Scott fan and want a rod for fishing at short to medium distances, youll likely prefer this rod over the Radian. These are very light, and will flex but never break. This is not a pleasant rod to do a lot of false casting with, as you would fishing dry flies. #8. Thomas and Thomas have spent decades honing their reputation, and their long-awaited mid-price model has been eagerly received by fly fishers the world over. Here is a recap of each manufacturers current policy, their latest fees and what we have experienced for repair time required. I do like the 8 foot rods over the 9 footers as they are lighter and the shorter length allows me to strike more quickly, and they often provide better light tippet protection than the longer rods. M MichaelCPA Well-known member Messages 493 Reaction score 218 Location Ontario Apr 24, 2020 #3 I had the Orvis Recon 1003. 4 Reviews. (tie) Scott G SERIES 84 #4 $845.00. The stiffness is a bonus at long range. Perhaps the best example is the nickel-silver uplocking seat with a gorgeous birdseye maple insert, found on the Winston Pure. Performance at 60 feet: 7 points out of 10. Feels equal to the Avantt and Recon at mid distances. Broken sections are replaced. I could really notice the heavy swing weight in my hand. Feel is good and the rod is very light in hand. The accuracy suffers too. This isnt a rod that will give you feedback and feel at short range.
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