It is currently 28 Mar 2024, 17:00


1, 2  Next New Topic Add Reply
Author Message
Post 06 Jun 2018, 15:25 • #1 
Master Guide
Joined: 03/09/15
Posts: 684
Location: Arkansas
Looking for line suggestions for the 6 wt. Used Cabela’s base line. Wasn’t a fan. Was casting nymphs. I like the feel of the glass but am not a fan of the handle grip. Am thinking of sanding it down a bit but not too much. May round off the top and bottom of the handle a bit and possibly take a millimeter off the middle. Rod picture below.

Thoughts on line and sanding? Thanks.

Image

Image


Top
  
Quote
Post 06 Jun 2018, 16:59 • #2 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 12/27/14
Posts: 1501
Location: ON, Canada
Shaping grips is one of my favourite pastimes. Be careful, though, you’ll start finding excuses to build rods you don’t need just to sand down grips...

For lines, haven’t cast the rod, but I really like the WF6F Epic Glassline as an all around 6wt. Im also a big fan of the Rio Smallmouth line for bass bugs.


Top
  
Quote
Post 06 Jun 2018, 17:00 • #3 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 02/10/07
Posts: 1632
Location: The Netherlands
Looks like a full wells grip we see in all those factory built rods?
Is it too fat for your taste?


Top
  
Quote
Post 06 Jun 2018, 17:04 • #4 
Master Guide
Joined: 03/09/15
Posts: 684
Location: Arkansas
A little fat. I would like to alter it but I am concerned that it may affect casting such as turning over a heavy flies in a tight area. Perhaps just throw off its general construction for proper casting on a 6 wt.

I haven’t had issues with other full Wells but this grip seems just a bit odd to the feel and grip.


Top
  
Quote
Post 06 Jun 2018, 17:10 • #5 
Master Guide
Joined: 03/09/15
Posts: 684
Location: Arkansas
brockton wrote:
Shaping grips is one of my favourite pastimes. Be careful, though, you’ll start finding excuses to build rods you don’t need just to sand down grips...

For lines, haven’t cast the rod, but I really like the WF6F Epic Glassline as an all around 6wt. Im also a big fan of the Rio Smallmouth line for bass bugs.


Ahhh. I always use Cabela’s line but I guess it’s time for a change and get something quality and with better characteristics. Haven’t heard if the Glassline. Thanks.


Top
  
Quote
Post 06 Jun 2018, 17:36 • #6 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/20/07
Posts: 8920
Location: US-ME
I fished a favorite Fisher today that I built, grip shaped to hand, about 30 years ago, with a few swipes of sandpaper to fine tune it the first year or so. Unchanged since. Darn, it felt different today. I guess my hand/grip as changed. Guess. Maybe. But maybe not. I've been fishing rods with very different grips lately. I won't take out any sandpaper until absolutely convinced the grip no longer suits me. I need to fish with it more first, and won't be surprised if the absolute comfort and control it provided for so long will re-establish itself.

This is just a way of saying, I wouldn't be impulsive about the change. You may become accustmed to it and could then even perceive the others as too slender. I would look at reels and how small changes in dynamic balance guide your hand to the most natural position the grip provides. Give it a chance just in case your hand does find a sweet spot. You can't put sanded off cork back on, not that that would be the worst thing in the world, since you could always replace the grip entirely if thinning wasn't satisfactory.

Probably you know, but just in case, the sanding may reveal voids or cause fills to fall out, which may or may not matter to you.


Top
  
Quote
Post 06 Jun 2018, 18:48 • #7 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 11/06/17
Posts: 2498
Location: South of Joplin
What about the line did you not like?

I have favorite line brands and tapers, but they might not be right for you. With a new unknown rod I will normally try it with several lines some heavier than the rating and some lighter. A first try on that rod might be a Cortland Fairplay WF7F, at 13 bucks from Amazon it'd be worth having just as a trial line.


Top
  
Quote
Post 06 Jun 2018, 19:55 • #8 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/05/10
Posts: 5229
Location: Mid Hudson Valley of New York
be careful with the grip... i'd fish it some before taking it down. Remember: you can take it off, but can't put it back on. :-)


Top
  
Quote
Post 07 Jun 2018, 02:34 • #9 
Master Guide
Joined: 07/12/17
Posts: 390
Location: SW B.C.
I'm all for taking down plump grips. I have XL hands and find the most important thing for comfort and control is grip length. There is a misconception amongst manufacturers that large hands and/or powerful casting requires a fat grip, but that is just not the case.
Shrimpy


Top
  
Quote
Post 07 Jun 2018, 09:08 • #10 
Master Guide
Joined: 03/09/15
Posts: 684
Location: Arkansas
I may wait until after the fall to think about sanding. Maybe 7 hours in a boat isn’t enough time to really get the hang of casting it either. It is a faster glass rod than I’m used to casting and Nymphing isn’t something I do often. But man, that bend. It feels more like a 5 and it will handle as a 6. It’s a blast in swift water with some of those robust Browns and Bows. I guess the next test is weighted flies and Smallies. I’ve been laid up most of the Spring with few medical issues and a bum knee. I’m almost 100% though. I’ll give 7 WF a try and do some more line research.


Top
  
Quote
Post 07 Jun 2018, 12:15 • #11 
Master Guide
Joined: 02/14/15
Posts: 684
Location: NM
Echo has a line chart on their website for the BAG. Of course, all of the lines suggested are made by Airflo, but you can figure out the grain weight of those lines easy enough and then use that as a starting point. That's what I did with my BAG 10wt. Good luck!


Top
  
Quote
Post 08 Jun 2018, 05:58 • #12 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 12/27/14
Posts: 1501
Location: ON, Canada
picketpin52 wrote:
be careful with the grip... i'd fish it some before taking it down. Remember: you can take it off, but can't put it back on. :-)


Well you could replace the grip entirely. Then while you’re at it maybe try a different reel seat. And put on an agate stripping guide that matches the blank. Trim wraps and ferrule rings.

Hang on, this is the ‘Tackle Tinkering’ forum, right? ;)


Top
  
Quote
Post 08 Jun 2018, 07:39 • #13 
Master Guide
Joined: 03/09/15
Posts: 684
Location: Arkansas
skunked_ wrote:
Echo has a line chart on their website for the BAG. Of course, all of the lines suggested are made by Airflo, but you can figure out the grain weight of those lines easy enough and then use that as a starting point. That's what I did with my BAG 10wt. Good luck!


Thanks! I did look and the line is for saltwater and tropical stuff but it did provide grain info, etc.


Top
  
Quote
Post 08 Jun 2018, 07:41 • #14 
Master Guide
Joined: 03/09/15
Posts: 684
Location: Arkansas
brockton wrote:
picketpin52 wrote:
be careful with the grip... i'd fish it some before taking it down. Remember: you can take it off, but can't put it back on. :-)


Well you could replace the grip entirely. Then while you’re at it maybe try a different reel seat. And put on an agate stripping guide that matches the blank. Trim wraps and ferrule rings.

Hang on, this is the ‘Tackle Tinkering’ forum, right? ;)


Lol, I figured to post here about the grip because I was wondering how changing a grip may affect the traits of the glass as it was built to cast and recover, etc.

I would like a smaller fighting butt too.


Top
  
Quote
Post 08 Jun 2018, 08:21 • #15 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 11/06/17
Posts: 2498
Location: South of Joplin
It's kinda peculiar. because my hands are xxl for gloves yet I find 80-90% of tool handles are too fat to be comfortable. I have cut down and reshaped hundreds of handles over the years, including some fly rods. I have noticed that most people would rather get blisters or be awkward than to fit the handle.
On the couple rods that I reworked the grips of, I don't think it changed the flex any at all.My belief is that only shortening or adding length to the grip could change the flex.
It did make me feel lots better about using the rod because it fit my hand when I was done. No doubt it would hurt the resale value, if it was offered to a collector at some future date.
I guess that I would fish that rod exclusively for a while and see if I got used to it; then decide whether to dump it on the market or to chop it up. If it suited me in all other aspects, I'd not balk at grip, reel seat or number of guides/guide placement-but, I'd go into it knowing that when I got done, it would no longer be an Echo.
I have fished a lot of nymphs without the bobber that is so popular in the Ozarks, and I have tried the bobber system some too; my thought is that using a bobber on a fly rod makes a good tool into a mediocre tool. I'd suggest that you give that rod a bit of time with other types of flies and with nymphs fished bare leader before making any judgements.
You said " Nymphing isn’t something I do often." and I can see the "strike indicator" in the picture. A little known item in the world of Ozarks nymphing is that you can use the end of the fly line as a strike indicator. You can also use your fingers.


Top
  
Quote
Post 09 Jun 2018, 11:02 • #16 
Master Guide
Joined: 03/09/15
Posts: 684
Location: Arkansas
Trev wrote:
It's kinda peculiar. because my hands are xxl for gloves yet I find 80-90% of tool handles are too fat to be comfortable. I have cut down and reshaped hundreds of handles over the years, including some fly rods. I have noticed that most people would rather get blisters or be awkward than to fit the handle.
On the couple rods that I reworked the grips of, I don't think it changed the flex any at all.My belief is that only shortening or adding length to the grip could change the flex.
It did make me feel lots better about using the rod because it fit my hand when I was done. No doubt it would hurt the resale value, if it was offered to a collector at some future date.
I guess that I would fish that rod exclusively for a while and see if I got used to it; then decide whether to dump it on the market or to chop it up. If it suited me in all other aspects, I'd not balk at grip, reel seat or number of guides/guide placement-but, I'd go into it knowing that when I got done, it would no longer be an Echo.
I have fished a lot of nymphs without the bobber that is so popular in the Ozarks, and I have tried the bobber system some too; my thought is that using a bobber on a fly rod makes a good tool into a mediocre tool. I'd suggest that you give that rod a bit of time with other types of flies and with nymphs fished bare leader before making any judgements.
You said " Nymphing isn’t something I do often." and I can see the "strike indicator" in the picture. A little known item in the world of Ozarks nymphing is that you can use the end of the fly line as a strike indicator. You can also use your fingers.


I prefer SWMO Smallies to anything. The local Tailwaters aren’t great and can be a bit crowded for me to the point I’ll dodge floaters for Bronzebacks.

Not a fan of that “indicator” either but it did the trick on a dropper rig in swift water and drifting in a boat. I’ve never nymphed from a boat before. When I do Nymph for warmwater fish, I don’t use an indicator but will use foam when drifting for trout locally but I mainly just use Buggers or midges.


Top
  
Quote
Post 11 Jul 2018, 17:35 • #17 
Sport
Joined: 03/22/15
Posts: 55
Location: US-ID
I cast my buddies 6wt 8ft BAG with the Airflo Super Dri Xceed and it absolutely launched that line. The Xceed is a jack of all trades, master at none type line that does fairly well at most things If you know you are going to only nymph with the rod maybe a more specific nymph line will be the ticket. Be careful with those lines as many are 3/4 to a full size heavy for the line weight (the Xceed is 1/3 heavier). Either way you got yourself a pretty sweet rod!


Top
  
Quote
Post 13 Jul 2018, 16:24 • #18 
Master Guide
Joined: 03/09/15
Posts: 684
Location: Arkansas
[quote="Fireroad"]I cast my buddies 6wt 8ft BAG with the Airflo Super Dri Xceed and it absolutely launched that line. The Xceed is a jack of all trades, master at none type line that does fairly well at most things If you know you are going to only nymph with the rod maybe a more specific nymph line will be the ticket. Be careful with those lines as many are 3/4 to a full size heavy for the line weight (the Xceed is 1/3 heavier). Either way you got yourself a pretty sweet rod![/quote

I typically fish creeks with most Smallmouth being average size (Ozark Smallies aren’t so big as they are mostly ferocious fighters) and a few fatties here and there. It took me a lot of reading on reviews to spend a decent amount of money on a rod which to me is about as big as I go on rods - don’t like to go over 6 wgt.

I like the action available for that “quick shot” cast back to that missed strike and a quick load in a small area with weighted flies.




Top
  
Quote
Post 06 Sep 2018, 10:05 • #19 
Master Guide
Joined: 12/23/15
Posts: 654
Location: Texas bound
My experience / casting style says Echo rods like heavier than rated lines. So stuff like a 6.5 or 7 weight on a #6 rod, for instance. If the rod has a dual line rating or grain window the heavier works better.

If you like Cabela's (Rio) lines bump to their Prestige Plus, which IIRC is a half weight heavy line.

Otherwise a SA GPX taper is good of you like WF lines. Are you fishing in close, or trying to get the whole head out and fish 40+ feet away?

As for grips, If you mod go light and keep going till it feels right when removing material. You can add material back, but it won't be cork, and won't feel the same. I have the opposite problem from most - factory grips are often too thin or just misshapen. I have nerve damage in my hands, and thin or funky grips hurt. I have been playing with reshaping by adding foam and tape, or tennis racket/rod handle wrap. My Cabela's Synch 10 weight had a grip that got racket wrap treatment, its cushioned, fatter, and almost perfect. I'd rather throw that rod anymore than my lighter 7/8s.

I like the BAG action, but if I get one, It'll get a grip treatment similar.


Top
  
Quote
Post 06 Sep 2018, 22:33 • #20 
Sport
Joined: 10/06/15
Posts: 70
Location: US-DC
I feel like the BAG series cast really well with streamers. I stick with the indicated line weight.


Top
  
Quote
Post 13 Sep 2018, 07:27 • #21 
Master Guide
Joined: 03/09/15
Posts: 684
Location: Arkansas
So, after taking the BAG out yesterday for Smallies, it really shined.

I had purchased this rod for a smallmouth trip on Crooked Creek in Arkansas but the water was down low and blah blah blah to make a long story short we ended up fishing for trout in Cotter. It was fun and the rod felt great but the casting to me stunk because I figured it was the line.

However, this rod is at its best when casting big or weighted flies.

To me, this rod feels very similar to the FF786 but the casting is totally different than the Fenwick. It’s definitely a faster rod and you can tell that this is made with longer fibers. I wouldn’t say the tip has a deep flex but I didn’t catch anything over maybe 12 or 13 inches and even though this rod is a 6 wgt, I would say it feels like a 5 weight or a 5/6 but definitely casts superbly as a 6 weight.

I’ve gotten used to the handle and my previous trip for trout made me think I needed a better line but I do not. This rod is a bug slinging machine (or is that me?, he he) and I do cast some heavy stuff.

Fun on the not so small stuff and a blast with the Smallies. Can’t wait for a nice fat one.

Just a couple from yesterday. Not as productive as previous trips to the creek but still fun.

Image

Image




Top
  
Quote
Post 13 Sep 2018, 09:05 • #22 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 02/12/16
Posts: 4093
Location: USA-CO
Pretty fish!


Top
  
Quote
Post 13 Sep 2018, 18:55 • #23 
Guide
Joined: 09/22/14
Posts: 203
Location: Charlottesville-VA
There is no perfect standard grip shape.

As someone who has hyperextended my right thumb too many times to count, I have a hard time with a "thumbs up" grip. So a more squared handle is better for me.

Honestly it's not a priceless piece of memorabilia so worst case scenario you redo the whole handle. While not optimal, it is possible to add extra cork back onto a handle, then re-sand it to shape. That's how they repair handles last I saw.

Anyway. If you can trade it out for a rod of the same value with the perfect grip and perfect action, then go ahead. If the grip is the only problem then I say solve it :D

Bob


Top
  
Quote
Post 14 Sep 2018, 06:07 • #24 
Master Guide
Joined: 03/09/15
Posts: 684
Location: Arkansas
bob138 wrote:
There is no perfect standard grip shape.

As someone who has hyperextended my right thumb too many times to count, I have a hard time with a "thumbs up" grip. So a more squared handle is better for me.

Honestly it's not a priceless piece of memorabilia so worst case scenario you redo the whole handle. While not optimal, it is possible to add extra cork back onto a handle, then re-sand it to shape. That's how they repair handles last I saw.

Anyway. If you can trade it out for a rod of the same value with the perfect grip and perfect action, then go ahead. If the grip is the only problem then I say solve it :D

Bob


Thanks. I do think that handle is best for leverage or for when transferring energy forward when casting the rod. The handle didn’t feel right because I used the rod to cast nymphs back in June. I’ve used that type of grip but it does seem to have a large diameter.

Wish I had been using this rod for the past few weeks. But I love my Fenwicks too.




Top
  
Quote
Post 26 Sep 2018, 18:20 • #25 
New Member
Joined: 08/07/18
Posts: 2
Location: US-AL
I have the 8' 8wt BAG. I have had the best performance on a SA GPX. I tried a RIO Bonefish line that has a super short head and wasn't impressed with it.


Top
  
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  

1, 2  Next New Topic Add Reply



Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 13 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum

Jump to:  
Google
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group