novice fly fishing questions

[uplandhunter870]

tried fly fishing on my dads rod and had a blast, now im hooked but have a few questions as to gear.  ive been doing some research and two things that i cannot figure out are line/backing/leader and reels.  what is a good low price end reel for a newbie, and how does the whole backing and line work also what is the best line, double taper, weight forward, ?

appreciate any help, thanks all
Steve

[uncoolperson]

what do you plan to catch (size/specie/type of water [lake/river/stream])?

[uplandhunter870]

small-mid sized trout and possibly small mouth, crappie and perch.  would mainly be stream and lake fishing.

[SpokaneSlayer]

I am not an experienced flyfisherman by any means, but I think Wal-Mart has a kit that pretty much has everything you need to start off with.  I have one and it works pretty good.  Backing is there in case a fish runs and takes all the fly line.  I don't know much about lines except that it needs to match the weight of the rod, and they come in floating, sinking, and sink tip.  With leaders, again, I'm not well versed.  I do know that you don't tie directly to the leader.  Instead, you attach what is called tippet, which is basically an extension of the leader.  The blood knot is a good knot to use.  Hope this helped a little.

[jackelope]

Weight forward line for a novice, 5-6 weight if you want to catch bass...8-9' rod.
I would look hard at Redington reels and rods and Temple Fork Outfitters makes a real nice rod for the money. To get good gear advise, you should tell us your budget.
There's a huge price range swing with flyfishing stuff and you really get what you pay for.

[uncoolperson]

I'm not much of an expert... but I was taught fly fishing gear goes in this order as far as importance

fly rod
assocories (forcepts, clippers, etc...)
line (going to be replacing this every year or two)
reel (if you get crazy getting the balance right is nice, otherwise it's just a place to store the line...)

If it's just smallish fish, and you don't plan on a light leader I'd say forget the backing (I've never bothered with it, and I've never run a reel to the end).

I'd say find a decent 5wt starter set that will suit your needs (if you're backpacking make sure it breaks down small, the fewer the pieces though the better the action, one and two piece if you're drive to and have the room). Find some basic gear (forcepts, clippers), add a few tapered leads and a spool of tipet (goes on the end of the leader, makes em longer and then you're destroying the tipet when you change flys (or in my case catch trees) and not the $2 leader.

Then plan on getting a better rod when you know what you're style is.

My first setup (or rather my setup for the last 6 years until I went to a 3wt):
Eagle claw trailmaster (fly/spin), it worked but it wasn't awesome...
cheapest 5wt reel I could find
mid grade 5wt floating line, I've never paid much attention to the various tapers just got what was handy.
half dozen leaders
tipet
forceps (that I've lost) and clippers (that I've lost) , and a knotless net (for C&R only places).
about 40 flies to target what I'm going after.
And a good book describing what flies for what circumstances and the various strategies.... though I've pretty much given up on following any of that, and it works out okay by me. But I can now almost talk flyfisher.

I use nail knots when I'm not frustrated (sometimes they just don't hold), and blood when I am

for my flies I use a knot that looks kinda like a Centauri Knot, but is modified a bit... no idea where I learned it, but it's what I do.

[jackelope]

the reel holds the line, thats all it does when you're talking normal sized trout.

[uncoolperson]

the reel holds the line, thats all it does when you're talking normal sized trout.

yeah, I supposed I could have been more clear about that.

[whacker1]

what is your budget?

[uplandhunter870]

hoping to get a rod for 100 or less, found a redington for 70ish and a three forks for 50 at cabelas site. as far as a reel and line/backing im hoping to stay under 100 for the lot, so under 200  not including flies

thanks a bunch everyone
Steve

[GEARHEAD]

finally, i get to help someone, instead of always asking. with your price range you will be fine. i'd recommend as mentioned already a 5/6 weight rod, thats kinda inbetween 5 and 6 weight, then i'd get a good, floating weight foward 6 weight line, RIO has a good line up. as for the reel, with what your doing, get a 6 weight reel, anything over 50 bucks will be plenty good enough. the reason for backing is two fold, one, it helps load up the reel a little bit so that your fly line gets more return per wind of the reel. the other reason is in the event that you hook Walter, and he pulls your 90 feet of flyline off the reel, the backing serves as a back up. i would recommend getting a reel that has spare spools available, this way you can put a sinking or moderate line on it, and have it available if you decide to switch, from trout to like small mouth for example. should be able to get a good rod for under 70 bucks, the reel for 50 bucks and line for 50 bucks. the rest is the skies the limit with regard to terminal gear and technique. there are a number of fly sites out there you can check out or buy a couple videos, Teeney has a few out there. that rod should also be big enough for those puny Methow steelhead that will be in the river in October. fishing a steelhead fly under a float will work best, but get you scorn from those elitist flyfishing libral wackjobs, but f'em, get ya some fish. best of luck to you.

[youngbull]

try to up one weight on your line it will allow you to feel the cast easier

[whacker1]

The orvis battenkill line of reels are good in that price range.  I have 3 of them....

[Aneoakleaf]

try to up one weight on your line it will allow you to feel the cast easier

Get some Maxim 6 lb leader and a couple size 12 and 16 elk hair cadis, Egg sucking leaches, black flies, ants...in no time you'll have over a thousand flies like the rest of us, LOL
I use my intermediate line as much as I use my dry line and occasionally my sinking line.
Take your dad shopping and let him pick out some stuff! He'll have fun!
Definitely get a Knotless net, you'll be turning loose a lot of fish, We catch 100 to 150 on a good day and keep 0..
Washington has some great fly fishing only lakes. Over cast days are the best for fishing. Have fun!
Annie

[cohoho]

the reel holds the line, thats all it does when you're talking normal sized trout.

Tell that to my knuckles from Kings and Reds burning my drag.... lol

They still hurt thinking about it  ---- lightly palming the reel...