Fly fishin guys

[fishnate]

Thanks for all the advice everyone thanks

[jackelope]

I personally disagree with a  lot of the last few posts...
a newbie fly guy doesn't belong on Rocky Ford with a 3 weight...maybe a guy with a lot of experience fighting big fish on light tackle, but a newbie...no way.  don't get me wrong, I love the big fish light tackle stuff as much as the next guy.
Bone...I have a really hard time throwing big leeches with a 4 weight on a calm day...nevermind in the wind. I happen to like chucking the big stuff at times. I have 15 fly rods...one for every different possible condition. when I go to e-wa to go fishing I usually will have 4-5 different rods with me but thats not the point of this thread I guess...the guy wants 1 rod to do everything possible as a place to start flyfishing, and for that I am sticking to my guns with a 6 weight. you can do everything trout-wise period, and if you get a chance to do some summer steelhead fishing you've got your rod, and you've also got a rod for humpies and maybe even some coho's.
as far as reels go...thats a whole nuther can of worms...

[ribka]

I will have to agree 6 wt would be best choice. Especially for beginning caster and 6 wt covers, bass, trout, steel head, carp etc.
Enjoy catching on lightweight too. I take my 2 wt 7 ft Scott fiber touch rod to Idaho to catch cuts on dries every Summers. What a blast!

I only have 8 fly rods and wife gives me a hard time. I will show her this post in order to convince I need more

[boneaddict]

I think if you look and re-read my post Jack I wasn't suggesting a 3 weight for him. 

[Intruder]

Bone's suggestion regarding overlining by 1 weight is good advice.  Much easier for a beginner to get the feel of the road loading. 

Again... 5 or 6 weight rod in 9-9.5 foot is going to be the best choice for most of what it sounds like he's doing.  If you don't want to go w/ Cabela combos Orvis makes a decent one too in the Silver Label brand.  A lot will really depend on what you want to spend.  You can put together a decent setup by mixing and matching if you know what you like.  There are a lot more quality rods/reels out there today for a decent price than say 15 years ago.  2 pieces of advice
1.  Go with a 4 piece rod.... !!!.... so much more convienent to travel with and store.  Way out weighs the small cons (price and flex).
2.  Don't scrimp on the line.... buy a high end line.  They last longer don't have as much memory, float better, etc.

[jackelope]

I think if you look and re-read my post Jack I wasn't suggesting a 3 weight for him. 

gotcha bone, I was talking about this one:

I also like a 4 weight on those eastern Wa lakes Jack is talking about becasue of the wind/float tube situation

more or less referring to my ability to throw the heavy stuff with a 4 weight...

[Hunter mike]

Bottom line: No matter what you buy or how much you spend, you're gonna end up with more than one

5-wt is probably the most versatile for a first rod (or 6-wt if you're fishing for bigger trout or in the salt at all)

I would reccomend having a 3-wt in the arsenal if you fish any of the smaller streams around Washington - it makes the little 5-10 inch cutts that seem to be so plentiful a lot of fun.  Most streams will produce well with a box of dry flies on a summer morning/evening.  Many places I fish, it doesn't even matter what the fly is!

And also, don't buy a combo spin/fly rod!  Just get a fly rod setup and a seperate spinning reel (most the combo rods cast like crap).

[MichaelJ]

Anybody ever fished the Platte River in WY?  I definitely need a new fly rod and am 'supposed' to have chances at trout up to 4 lbs pretty easily in that area...  I taught myself to fly fish last summer and got pretty decent at it... I've found that casting is not very important, fly presentation, and not getting too close to the waters you want to fish are much more key, as well as practice setting the hook...  A whole lot of fun that I'm looking forward to getting better at!

Mike

PS:  Hope u don't mind me asking a question on your thread fishnate!

[Pathfinder101]

For what it's worth, I would say a 9foot 6 weight rod would be perfect for a first rod.   

[Intruder]

Anybody ever fished the Platte River in WY?  I definitely need a new fly rod and am 'supposed' to have chances at trout up to 4 lbs pretty easily in that area... 

Same deal as folks have been saying.... 9' 5 ro 6 weight will be fine on the Platte.  Wind can be an issue so a faster 6 may be a better choice.  You could carry an extra 7 weight line on an extra spool if it gets really blustery. 

[MichaelJ]

Thanks

[fisheral87]

I agree with the six weight as well as the step up in the line weight. But, you should be careful that the rod that you do choose has an action that will handle the step up in weight. The extra weight will not always help you. Form, will go just as far to helping you in adverse conditions.
Best thing to do is to go to a quality shop, any owner worth his salt should let you thread one up and cast it before you buy to make sure you get the setup that will work for you.

I have casted G. Loomis and Redington rods which are affordable options as well. Okuma reels I think are an under rated reel, some of their models have good ergonomics and decent drag systems for the money. 

I don't know much about TFO rods but I have heard good things.

 

Let us know what the outcome is.