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Post 04 May 2020, 19:43 • #1 
Sport
Joined: 03/10/18
Posts: 86
I have to start with an explanatory digression. I've been on this board since it was Clark's board, in the early 2000s, with the handle "Streamcaster," having logged in about 450 entries, but with a change in platforms and a lost/unremembered password that required a new handle, here I am back again, a new person(!)

Having said that, I have 5 trout range, and 4 smallmouth weight glass rods, and I'm looking for two particular additional rods. Not maker and model, necessarily, but for feel and capability. I'm looking for an 8 or 8 1/2 foot strong 7 weight. I want a rod that I can feel loading and unloading, sweetly, if that's possible with such a unit. But my problem with most smallie bass rods I can FEEL is that heavy streamers hit the water behind me on the backcast if the rod/tempo aren't fast enough. But I like to feel the rod's LOADING BEND, durn it! Maybe I'm looking for a strong butt rod or a semi parabolic? Are there any nominees?

At the other end of the spectrum, I'm looking for a 7' multi-piece 4 wt for the small streams of the San Gabriels in So Cal when I visit my mother there. (Who knows when that will be in these closed in/ closed off times?) I have a 7' 3 piece Klassic Glass "3/4" weight from Archfly. I also have a factory Fisher 6'9" 3 piece 4 weight. The Klassic Glass feels like it's giving me a little resistance on the forecast rather than the sweet bending of my Fisher original graphite 8' 4/5 (equivalent in feel to pre IM6 Winston, I think.) The Klassic may be a 5 or 5.5 weight for me, but not for THAT water! The Fisher 6'9" feels too loose, bouncy from tip to butt. May be I just need to slow down and learn how to let it tell me how it wants to be played.

In the mean time, I'm looking for that sweet, soulful 7' 4 wt for dries, small nymphs and roll casting.

Fish on!
Peter


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Post 04 May 2020, 23:44 • #2 
Master Guide
Joined: 07/12/17
Posts: 390
Location: SW B.C.
For a longer 7 weight, there has to be a Fenwick that will make you smile and I'm sure Ron will recommend a Phillipson for the roll casting prowess. ;)


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Post 05 May 2020, 01:44 • #3 
Administrator
Joined: 01/10/06
Posts: 7811
Location: Holly Springs, NC
1streamcaster wrote:
I'm looking for an 8 or 8 1/2 foot strong 7 weight. I want a rod that I can feel loading and unloading, sweetly, if that's possible with such a unit. But my problem with most smallie bass rods I can FEEL is that heavy streamers hit the water behind me on the backcast if the rod/tempo aren't fast enough.

If you are losing control of heavy streamers, you aren't using enough fly line. With big streamers you don't need the 'subtle' presentation of a 7 weight. You need grunt. Try a 9/10 weight line. If you are going to make a change, then make a big change!

Remember those Sage Bass rods a few years back? Even the Bluegill model was a 9 weight. One thing I felt they got right - heavy line rods don't have to be 9 feet long. At 7' 10" long they handled their big lines nicely. There are some similar rods in glass. Epic's 8' 10 weight Bandit and Echo's 8' BAG 9/10 weights come to mind. Fenwick FF909s and FF9010s are always available on eBay. There are plenty of options for a big rig. Be bold!


Tom


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Post 05 May 2020, 07:23 • #4 
Piscator
Joined: 08/10/05
Posts: 19077
Location: downtown Bulverde, Texas
The best 7-wt para I can think of is Harnell, 645 (7-1/2') or 652 (8')
here fishing a TS-250 from a boat dock - effortless 60+' casts with a roll pick-up and single back-cast for line speed.



btw, there's an old Lefty trick to prevent back-slap by preventing breaking your wrist:
Turn your hand so you can't see your thumbnail, i.e., reel toward your cheek, and you can't physically break your wrist.
Combine that with a mental image of Aim High on your back-cast.
Lefty was an opponent of double haul, calling it an unnecessary trick, but if you shorten your arm movements and work haul in there, will improve everything, especially with a para taper rod.
Arguably, simply holding the line in your line hand creates haul, because you're moving the rod away from your line hand, but if you think about the load feel in your line hand, the timing of haul becomes intuitive, and you simply modulate a little pull with your line hand at the load point.


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Post 05 May 2020, 08:46 • #5 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/20/07
Posts: 8920
Location: US-ME
If staying with the 7 weight, select "large" flies that aren't as bulky as a wet mophead. If they flop around, the leader is too long, the tippet to fine/flexible, or both. Think of the backcast as the "up" cast. Gradual progressive application of power is a better way to think of it than "fast." The heavier lineweights deliver a fly by momentum of a greater mass than the in "line speed" mantra of lighter mass lines which need higher velocity to deliver energy.

Others will cover various contemporary models well, but with heyday 'glass, it would be hard to pick a bad one and there is a big choice of good/great ones. In classic 'glass, the 8 1/2' Sceptre is a powerhouse. SA System 7 is right up there, too. Fisher or Winston 7 weights. The yellow Fenwick 8 1/2' for 7 would be another. The hardest thing in suggesting good classic 7 weights is forgetting or leaving an entire line out that is more than sufficient--Phillipson or Orvis variants for example. And any of the various Feralite 7 weights would do.

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=68560

Casting a 7 weight 'glass rod should be comfortable, with the rod doing the work. Otherwise, if using larger, bulkier flies, an 8 or 9 weight as jgestar described. viewtopic.php?f=2&t=65563


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Post 05 May 2020, 08:57 • #6 
Master Guide
Joined: 04/07/18
Posts: 382
Location: Reston VA
SA System 7?

Heddonist


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Post 05 May 2020, 09:20 • #7 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/20/07
Posts: 8920
Location: US-ME
Scientific Anglers System 7 'glass. And that reminds me, there must be a bunch of solid Heddon 7 weights 8' and 8 1/2'.

Here's another good one that covers some sevens. viewtopic.php?f=2&t=65210


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Post 05 May 2020, 09:23 • #8 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 11/06/17
Posts: 2498
Location: South of Joplin
well, I've never found a unicorn either.


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Post 05 May 2020, 11:36 • #9 
Guide
Joined: 06/28/18
Posts: 338
Location: Bozeman, MT
Trev wrote:
well, I've never found a unicorn either.

For me the unicorn for which I search is a FF83...


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Post 05 May 2020, 12:09 • #10 
Administrator
Joined: 01/10/06
Posts: 7811
Location: Holly Springs, NC
pgwulf wrote:
For me the unicorn for which I search is a FF83...

I keep them in the same rod tube, but no luck so far.


Tom

Image


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Post 05 May 2020, 12:51 • #11 
Sport
Joined: 06/17/14
Posts: 43
Location: US-NY
Greetings,
For me it's a glass Hills Custom Rods (Bernard Hills) built in the late 70's or early 80's when Bernard was retired from Heddon. I have a few of his bamboo rods but can't find a glass one.
Vern


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Post 05 May 2020, 13:07 • #12 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 02/27/16
Posts: 2327
Location: US-IL
berkley parametric.i have an 8'6 gowdy rated as a 7 wt but throws an 8 bass bug line well.It does not get overwhelmed and run out of gas,has reserve power when really flexed.


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Post 05 May 2020, 13:26 • #13 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 11/06/17
Posts: 2498
Location: South of Joplin
Quote:
I keep them in the same rod tube, but no luck so far.
Do those roll cast a 4wt line?


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Post 05 May 2020, 13:57 • #14 
Administrator
Joined: 01/10/06
Posts: 7811
Location: Holly Springs, NC
Trev wrote:
Quote:
I keep them in the same rod tube, but no luck so far.
Do those roll cast a 4wt line?
Yes. In general, I don't think 3 & 4 weight outfits roll cast as well as 5/6/7 weights. To me the FF84 with a 5 weight line is an overall smoother outfit.

Peter, perhaps look for a multipiece Lamiglas 7'6" four weight. Another option might be a 3-piece Dglass 7' three weight. Or a black glass, 3-piece Scott 7' F703. I like that rod with a WF4 line.


Tom


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Post 05 May 2020, 15:00 • #15 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 03/16/08
Posts: 3540
Location: Upstate-NY
jgestar wrote:
I keep them in the same rod tube, but no luck so far.


have you tried playing some Luther Vandross to create the right "mood"? lol


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Post 05 May 2020, 17:39 • #16 
Sport
Joined: 03/10/18
Posts: 86
Tom, what an awesome idea -- 9 weights! I'll definitely try that. I hadn't even considered 9s because I thought it would take such a club to wield one, but it's just 2 sizes above a FF857, and those reputedly like 8 weights. I have one; I'll try it

You know, I got the feeling I like using an FF80 with an 8 weight line.

SA System 7
Harnell paras
Berkeley Curt Gowdys

Yeah.

What about Orvis Powerflex 7 weights?

Fish on!
Peter


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Post 05 May 2020, 19:22 • #17 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 08/14/06
Posts: 1227
Location: Panther City, Texas
Kenney's 7 wts. are great rods though hard to find. Kenney has or had a stock of vintage Fisher blanks. I have an 8' 6/7 Fisher blank built up by Shane that is a very powerful 7 wt. LKenney may still be willing to part with a blank, IMO a vintage Fisher 7 wt is as good as it gets.


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Post 05 May 2020, 20:19 • #18 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 09/18/09
Posts: 5561
Location: Relocated to the Drought Stricken West.
If you can find a Barclay 70p, that would satisfy the 4pc small stream rod. I think the 7wt problem falls into two categories. First is to move to an 8wt. Second is to just work on casting. Casting a big fly 40-60ft (streamer or popper) is much different than casting a size 16 dry 30ft. I really don't think a fly rod is going to solve the problem, but a modern glass 7wt is probably the ticket. McFarland GTX or Epic would be where I looked first in glass.


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Post 05 May 2020, 21:30 • #19 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 11/06/17
Posts: 2498
Location: South of Joplin
I used to think I could roll cast pretty well but I wouldn't attempt it with a 4 or 5wt, 7-9 are so much easier to use.


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Post 06 May 2020, 07:51 • #20 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 10/09/09
Posts: 2796
Location: US-NM
My search ended last week when I found a bush creek companion great 6 pc. for packing..........Aurelio


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Post 06 May 2020, 08:24 • #21 
Piscator
Joined: 08/10/05
Posts: 19077
Location: downtown Bulverde, Texas
Aurelio, we need some rod photos


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Post 06 May 2020, 08:31 • #22 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 10/09/09
Posts: 2796
Location: US-NM
Ron I am really dumb about the internet MJ takes care of the website.........Aurelio


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Post 06 May 2020, 20:36 • #23 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/09/05
Posts: 2524
Location: US-CO
I am still looking for a replacement for the Lamiglas 7 1/2 ft, 6 pc, 4 wt rod that I lost on the trail. I have that rod in 2 and 3 pc but I want to find another 6 pc that will fit inside my backpack and hide the fact that I am hiking to an favorite fishing spot.

I do have the Lamiglas 6 pc in both 7 ft and 6 1/2 ft but I do miss my favorite, which is the 7 1/2 ft, 6 pc Lamiglas.


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Post 06 May 2020, 21:09 • #24 
Piscator
Joined: 08/10/05
Posts: 19077
Location: downtown Bulverde, Texas
Donny, I'd think if anybody could rescue that lost rod on the trail it would be you.


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Post 06 May 2020, 21:42 • #25 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 02/19/08
Posts: 2462
Location: Seattle, WA
Just more fishing time...got way more than enough gear.


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