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. I found the rings harder to grip than most and without any nylon spacer they will likely loosen up more easily than other rings with them. Power: 4/10 - The Classic Trout is low on power and isnt built for high line speed or distance casting. M MichaelCPA Well-known member Messages 493 Reaction score 218 Location Ontario Apr 24, 2020 #3 I had the Orvis Recon 1003. If you are thinking about buying a fly rod, we suggest reading one of our Shootouts for the line size rod you want. The Galvan Torque reels have proven to be wonderful reels. Join Our Weekly Newsletter: Certainly the very best craftsmanship is still found in rods produced here in the U.S. We gave perfect scores to the R.L Winston Pure, the Thomas and Thomas Avantt, and the Loomis Asquith. Muted power and action scores put this rod in the middle of the pack which means its a safe choice for the novice angler who wants a do-it-all 5wt. It had the power to hit 60 feet easily enough but my accuracy was not very good. Using a rod that will dramatically reduce the number of break-offs makes a lot of sense. It also has one of the heaviest swing weights in our Shootout. If you own a money tree and enough real estate to warehouse dozens of situation-specific fly rods, stop reading now. The new rod is a lot more powerful and handles those mid to long distances with ease, tracking well and giving me nice tight loops. The action seems about right and Im getting nice loops. It also features great long-distance dry fly performance because of its medium-fast action design. The Expeditor policy on the IMX Pro is $85.00. With 4-weight rods the emphasis is on the shorter distances, as rarely would an angler be casting a 4-weight at 60 feet or more. The perfect line: SA Amplitude MPX WF-5-F. (However we tested the rod with the WF-4-F Infinity.). 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. The Ultralite is a very attractive rod. Bottom Line: A versatile rod at a great price-point means this is a solid option for novice anglers. 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). Like the K2, the Q is only available as a 9-foot rod in a 4-weight. No better at mid-range. Product Description. Winston BIIIX 5wt. The wraps are dark blue to match the blank and the epoxy coatings are excellent. This isnt a rod that will give you feedback and feel at short range. This rod is nice and light in hand, and performed well in close, where I was getting pretty good feel and decent accuracy. With a blazing light swing weight and a forgiving action, this 5wt is one of the best all-around rods on the market. 5. The best rods are not always the most expensive ones. Head to head, the Radian and Avantt were better. Bad Ass Glass Quickshot. The quality of the cork is not so hot though, and a lot of filler is present. Performance at 60 feet 10 points available. Power: 5/10 - The Shadow has some reserve power that can be taken advantage of by anglers who are in tune with their timing and casting stroke. The epoxy coatings are pretty good but a little heavy. Also, by having 8-10 rods set up, 2-3 testers can simultaneously do the casting. The epoxy coatings over the wraps are nicely done, and I especially like the fact that they inscribe the rod length and weight on the bottom wrap of each section. Classic Trout. 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. The perfect line: SA Amplitude Smooth Infinity in WF-4-F, Performance at 25 feet: 20 points out of 20. A black anodized double uplocking skeleton seat is used with an unusual x-pattern design and a laminated wood insert. Im really surprised it is so far down in our finishing order as a 4-weight. Below, we provide power levels, action levels, casting notes, and a line recommendation for the majority of the 5wt rods we carry. A half wells cork handle is used, but the size is a little small in diameter as I noted. Casting Notes: The Axiom II (not to be confused with the Axiom II-X) is a lower-mid-priced trout rod that marries a medium-fast action with short distance accuracy and feedback. Action: 5.5/10 - Slightly faster than purely moderate action fly rods, the 7X has a taper thats caster-friendly and a versatile medium-fast action. Performance at 40 feet: 18.0 points out of 20. 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. When Im fishing the spring creeks here near Livingston, the Railroad Ranch on the Henrys Fork of the Snake, as well as the flat water on the Bighorn or Missouri rivers, I reach for my favorite rod for this kind of technical fishing, an 8 foot #4. The epoxy coatings were excellent. #25. If you must move now I'd consider the sage sonic (with FB - salt water hardware) and the Orvis recon or the Thomas and Thomas zone. Performance at 25 feet: 16.5 points out of 20. For guides, they use one SiC stripping guide followed with hard chrome snake guides that are thin and light on the tip sections. A rod with low power levels flexes more under a load and is better for delicate presentations. It performed better than any of the sub $300 rods, including the Orvis Clearwater. The Trace casts well at short/middle distances and provides the angler with enough feedback/feel for accuracy and finesse. Casting Notes: The NRX+ Freshwater Rod is an ultra-fast action rod made for big flies and technical scenarios. Nothing else is even close. Out long the K2 seemed to hold its own with the Recon, and it was better than either the Shadow or DXF. Flytyingonline.com.This domain provided by wildwestdomains.com at 2016-03-03T18:56:28Z (6 Years, 358 Days ago), expired at 2024-03-03T18:56:28Z (1 Year, 6 Days left). We've cast almost every mid-priced saltwater fly rod on the market including the new Recon 2 Rods (check out the review of the 5wt here and the 8wt here) and many others. Performance at 40 feet: 19.7 points out of 20. Casting Notes: Fast action performance meets flashy rod design with Redingtons powerful 5wt Vice. Here at Trident, we carry over one hundred 5wt fly rods. Each rod is positioned at approximately a 45-degree angle, and then a lead weight of 3.9 oz. Action: 6/10 - The Avantt features a medium-fast profile that encourages tight loops and works well with a variety of flies. Power: 5.5/10 - This is a rod that doesnt have a ton of power but makes up for it in feedback and feel. Howard Croston, Hardys rod design genius in England, has given us another outstanding rod that performs extremely well at all distances. 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. Non-original owner $150 per section. Its perhaps a little heavy in swing weight, and this as well as its stiffness, hurt its score at 25 feet. If the rod is broken because of a defect, or while fishing, replacement is free. This makes for a very comfortable grip that improves casting at longer distances. 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. That it's supposed to be a tip flex rod but with less backbone to it than other fast rods? The Pure is a brand new rod from Winston. The Orvis RECON, at $429 wasn't far behind! 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. Performance at 25 feet: 18.0 points out of 20. The medium fast action of the Recon is very similar to the Helios 3F and this is one reason it performs so well. That changed when I fell in love with the Helios II. Both the Zephrus and Pure were far lighter in hand, and far better in performance at 40 feet. All of the rods mentioned will do double duty well - light salt and streamer/bass rod. He has been a very important and integral part of our Shootouts and tackle comparisons over the years. Performance at 25 feet: 19.5 points out of 20. The buzz around IFTD this year was heavy on the rod-talk. Bottom Line: Winston has been making moderate-action dry fly rods for years and this is the culmination of years of R&D. Orvis Recon 5wt. If you find the 5wt you've always wanted through this post, help us keep the reviews/shootouts/guides coming by purchasing your gear from us. Power: 6/10 - This rod has some reserve power and can definitely carry line in the air and present flies at longer distances. Bottom Line: If youre looking for a 5wt with boosted power levels and increased line speed capabilities, this rod is a great option. The Pure is unquestionably one of the best looking rods in our Shootout, with some of the best craftsmanship. This buyer's guide is designed to help anglers of all skill levels with any price-constraint find, compare, analyze, and purchase the 5wt that best fits their needs. But these methods and calculations were disconnected from what we were actually experiencing in our hand so, for our last 4 Shootouts, we have gone back to our original method of calculation, explained above. The guides start out with a small hook keeper, then a single SiC stripper, followed with black, hard chrome single-foot guides. The ability of this rod to track precisely combined with its ability to form beautiful tight loops allowed it to perform almost as well as the best rods at long range. Alignment dots are placed at the ferrules, which is handy. Fly rod power and fly rod action help answer the question 'what kind of fishing is this fly rod best suited for?'. Scott claims that this gives their rods better strength and we cannot argue with this as we see very few Scott rods broken. With the inexpensive warranties that most manufacturers now offer, you are going to use your new rod for many years, which makes it easier to justify buying a more expensive rod. This year SA has come up with an impressive new line series called the Amplitude Smooth. Good-looking wood insert spacers that are finished well add to the attractiveness of any rod. Taylor Lifetime warranty to original owner. We kept the best rod in each category, high priced, medium priced, and inexpensive category handy for comparison. The insert is a gorgeous piece of bamboo, sourced from the same company that uses it for Lexus steering wheels. Price is always a major factor when buying a rod and as you will see in this Shootout, the best rod was not the most expensive. About as good as the Imperial, but the Recon and Shadow were noticeably better. The Tidal adds more mass in the tip for better feel, and counteracts that weight with three types of graphite fiber (compared to five types in the premium-priced Spector) placed at various angles to optimize energy transfer to the rod butt. The DXF was better and the Shadow was far better. Wraps are a darker red, (almost black), trimmed in brighter red on the butt. Orvis Recon 2 Fly Rod. The guides start with a hook keeper, and then one huge SiC stripping guide that seems way too big, followed with hard chrome snake guides. It is the relationship of the club head weight to the shaft when you wiggle the club in your hands. #24. Rods are repaired, not replaced except for broken sections. A lot of this can be attributed to the nice action good butt and mid section power combined with a lighter, softer tip, much like the Zephrus. Im amazed that I can cast off the tip nearly as well as the Zephrus. Casting Notes: The Epic Graphite 5wt is one of our favorites. Here it feels as good as the Scott rods and the Helios 3F.Performance at 60 feet: 9.0 points out of 10. The 8 foot Pure had a much heavier swing weight, and would not be as much fun to false cast all day as this 8 footer. These are very light, and will flex but never break. Performance at 60 feet: 7.5 points out of 10. Scott Lifetime warranty to original owner, $50 handling fee. We have been impressed with the Avantt in the 5-weight, and the 4-weight is another terrific rod. One of the reasons is that the SKY is available only as a nine footer, while the DXF is 86. Action: 7/10 - A fast action rod design means the Pulse does everything a high-performance 5wt should with efficiency and ease. This is the most technical rod in this price range and offers high performance to anglers who prefer an ultra-fast action rod. One SiC style stripping guide is used as well as a hook keeper. You will be surprised to see how well mid-priced rods like the Hardy Shadow, the Orvis Recon, and the Douglas DXF performed, all of which made it into our top ten overall in the final results. Add to Cart. At the head of the pack was the Orvis Helios 3. Like the Orvis 3F, there is no hook keeper. 1 Review. In this years 4-weight Shootout, we found that most manufacturers are building more powerful 4-weight rods than in the past. Just not enough butt power to get the job done. A little better here but the DXF still puts it to shame. What're the differences between these posts and how do you, the reader, get the most out of reading them? 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. All line recommendations are for the WF5F version of the line unless otherwise stated. Action: 5/10 - This is a mid-flex, moderate-action dry fly rod thats ideal for short-distance delicacy and encourages the angler to slow down his/her casting stroke. Sage MOD. For sure, one of the worst in our Shootout. Its slightly more refined than the 3D but maintains a smooth, powerful action. It can be tied in sizes 10 - 20. The Radian has a faster action than the G Series, with more power in the butt and mid section that allow it to cast better at the longest distance. Performance at 40 feet: 19.2 points out of 20. Black anodized premium aluminum reel seat. In all, this is an extremely attractive rod. Bottom Line: This is a fly rod for dry flies and short distances only. We have found that the only good way to pin down these subtle differences is to have at least a half dozen of the contending rods with the line stripped out and sitting there in front of you on the lawn, so that you can take a few casts with one rod, lay it down and pick up another rod, and make a few casts at the same distance, make some notes and then move on to another rod or the next distance. The Expeditor service fee for the Asquith rods is $250.00 for ground or $275 for 2-day air. Action: 7/10 - This rod sports a medium-fast/fast action blank thats ideal for a variety of freshwater fishing techniques. The Loomis NRX LP gets a perfect score of 10 for their excellent Expeditor repair program which costs $100, but returns the angler a brand new rod, not a repaired one, in just a few days! The cork handle is a western style grip with a flare on the lower end to accept the uplocking seat, and a nice taper forward providing a very comfortable grip. Performance at 25 feet: 18.8 points out of 20. New Orvis Recon vs. Orvis Helios 3F. 2 Reviews. Add to Cart. The epoxy coatings on the guides are pretty good but a little heavy in spots. The one thing that was a negative is the heavier swing weight. With your support we can continue to give you more Shootouts and head to head comparisons on tackle and equipment in the future. That might be the answer, but then it would likely be more of a 3-weight rod than a 4-weight. This 8 foot Pure is somewhat like the Zephrus in acti0n with a fairly strong butt and mid section and then a nice soft flexible tip. 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. If you cannot find or cast the rods that interest you, we are here to help. Where would Blue Ribbon land on the chart? $598.00. Just about every major fly rod manufacturer was brandishing their newest, tech-packed stick. Sage R8 Core Fly Rod. 2. And what about the new Hardy Zephrus Ultralite, which is insanely light, and on paper looks like it could be the possible winner? The tips on the faster rods bend more. And since it was such a soft rod, the lack of butt and mid-section power killed its score at 60 feet, especially if there was any wind. It depends on how much I want to spend to not catch any more fish, LOL. Feels good in my hand, and Im able to cast well off the tip. Very little feel or accuracy. Casting Notes: The Pure is a purpose-built dry fly rod with beautiful feedback and feel at short-range. The Orvis Clearwater rods are designed in Vermont and built in the orient. The quality of cork was excellent. The reel seat is a simple gray anodized double uplocking, solid aluminum seat with sliding band. The Aetos was dramatically better for an inexpensive rod. I also like the alignment dots. This fast action produced extremely good feel and accuracy, especially at 25 feet. And once youve picked out the perfect rod, stay and enjoy a few days on the water with one of our top guides. Mystic Reaper. At long range no rod has more power. The rods rated 9.5 rods had a $50 fee. Casting and rating the performance of rods at the different distances is the real meat of our Shootouts. Action: 6.5/10 - A medium-fast action build creates a rod thats caster-friendly and can be used in a variety of angling scenarios. Then the dark green finish just sparkles. It can be tied in sizes 1/0 - 10. Still, I felt it could be our 4-weight winner until I finished casting the Ultralite heads up with the winner, the Zephrus. Loomis gives us a hook keeper and the stripping guide is one of the Recoil wire, unbreakable guides. I do like the fast action, just not the heavy swing weight, which is far heavier than the Douglas DXF. I also liked the 12-inch mark on the butt but I wish they had also given us one at 18 or 20 inches. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. Action: 6.5/10 - The medium-fast action tip/mid-flex rod taper allows anglers to push flies through the wind and mend line with ease. G. Loomis . We have liked the Mystic Reaper that has done well in some of our early 5-weight Shootouts. Power: 6/10 - This rod is smooth and evenly balanced with high-line-speed power and increased feel in close. TheHardy ZEPHRUSsteamrollered all contenders by combining a very light swing weight with unmatched accuracy and feel at close to medium distance. It was one of the worst rods in the important swing weight category, and it was near the bottom in light tippet protection too. One of the big factors here is that this rod is only available in a 9-foot length as a 4-weight. Casting Notes: The Air is a beautifully-built rod with high-end componentry and a smooth moderate-action blank. 9 and 10, 4-piece, $549, Designed to trim seconds off your shot time, this rod features a particularly powerful tip that increases line speed and dampens the vibrations that reduce accuracy. 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. Once again we give you a Performance Only chart, which zeros in on the very best performing rods, which is the real meat of our Shootout. Scott Tidal. The epoxy coatings on the guides were good for the most part but a little too heavy on some guides. #16. These come in two models, the Amplitude Smooth Trout, which is a standard size line, and the Amplitude Smooth Infinity, which is a half line size heavier. This 86#4, however, is just too heavy and too stiff to perform well as a 4-weight. The feel was also superb, giving me confidence in the direction of my cast. 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 matte gray blank does look nice, and the guide wraps are a dark gray, trimmed in black on the butt section. Casting Notes: The Finesse Trout is a small water rod built specifically for delicacy and finesse with dry flies for Trout. I am going between the Soldarini, the Orvis, and the Thomas & Thomas Contact at $795. There is no question that the Shadow is our best Mid Priced 4-weight rod. Line Recommendation: Scientific Anglers Amplitude MPX Fly Line. Surprisingly, this is often true. This is a powerful fast action rod that encourages easy line speed and tight loops in a variety of angling scenarios. The 7X is a real pleasure to cast and is expertly designed with the best of contemporary fly rod technology. 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. What gives? The 4-weight Asquith was one of the stiffer rods in our Shootout and this hurt its scores at the shortest distance of 25 feet. A 5wt can be used in a variety of freshwater angling scenarios but is most commonly used to target Trout. I love the light swing weight. In the 4, 5, and 6-weights, the DXF is a great casting rod. Thomas and Thomas Zone. Better now, with more line in the air, but the G series was still a little better in both feel and accuracy. Perhaps the best example here is our winner, the Hardy Zephrus. With 4-weight rods, performing well at the two shorter distances is the key to determining the best rods. Its medium action is far slower than the Recon or their H3F, and it didnt perform nearly as well, especially at 25 feet. The cork handle is Winstons cigar grip, like the Pure, with the center swell a little forward of the center of the grip and a flare on the bottom end. Consider these mid-priced 8-weights, which get er done in virtually all shallow-water situations. This is a fast action rod, a tiny bit stiffer and a tad slower in action than the Helios 3F, but still a very good casting rod. (tie) Thomas & Thomas ZONE 86 #4 $495.00. Performance at 60 feet: 7.0 points out of 10. The craftsmanship was excellent and it performed very well for me, especially at 40 feet, where I was getting beautiful tight loops and very good accuracy. One SiC stripping guide is used and the rest are the best nickel/titanium and flexible snake guides in a gray color which complement the blank. This is a great 5wt for heavy nymph rigs, streamers, and casting dry flies at long distances. Thread starter Lmad928; Start date Jan 1, 2021; Prev. The color of the blank is a natural graphite gray, and only lightly sanded so you can still see the tape marks, much like the Scott rods. Standard corks are used and the quality is excellent. Douglas uses a dark green anodized double ring uplocking seat, with an attractive brown wood burl insert. To get a 10, repair charges had to be $35 or less with a quick turn around time of less than two weeks. These rods are designed in Sweden, but built in Korea in the same factory that produces the fine Hardy rods. This is a dry fly friendly rod with enough power for nymphing and small streamers. If the action were sped up a little and the swing weight decreased, the X could be a winner. Casting Notes: The Helios 3F is built for feel. While the AETOS is built on a fast action blank, its more forgiving than other rods in its price range and is designed to provide the novice angler with versatility and fast-action performance. Cheaper rods often utilize pre-formed grips that use a lot of filler in the cork that will chunk out or erode with hard use. Weve found that fluctuating temperature and humidity from one day to the next can make a difference of .2-.3 oz. Power: 8.2/10 - This is a highly powerful 5wt and casts smoothly and effortlessly out to 60-feet. Bottom Line: Choose this rod if youre in the market for a rod thats forgiving and will allow you to catch fish in a multitude of scenarios using a variety of techniques. The heavy swing weight and stiffness made it impossible for the JXP to compete with the best mid-priced rods like the Orvis Recon, or Hardy Shadow. Then it will cast and perform much better. Here, the softer rods, ones with softer tips and rods with lighter swing weights post the highest scores. Performance at 40 feet: 19.0 points out of 20. Conversely, looking at the most expensive rods in our Shootout, the G. Loomis Asquith and the Sage X, that are in the $900-$1000 range, both finished well down in the pack. G. Loomis ASQUITH 9 #4 $1000.00. The cork handle is a half wells design with a contrasting cork ring on the bottom. 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. It also sits dead last in our Fun to Fish category. Ive helped many manufacturers like G. Loomis, Sage, Winston, Loop, Douglas, and Scott with their rod design process. Mayfly emergers are often stuck in the film for quite some time making them easy pray for hungry trout. Remember that it will cost you an additional $15 or more to send your rod in unless you are using the G. Loomis Expeditor program. Since this is a softer rod than the Zephrus, we settled on using the lighter Trout line but this rod had the power to handle the heavier Infinity nearly as well. The overall craftsmanship is excellent. Pretty good loop control but the feel and accuracy were not as good as what I was getting with the DXF or the St. Croix Imperial. Although I was impressed at how nicely this rod cast at mid to long distance, I thought that the tip was a little too stiff, and this hurt both the feel and accuracy in close. At short distances like 25 feet, you dont have much line out of the tip of the rod, so the best leaders must flex like an extension of your fly line. The moderate action of the Classic Trout caters to anglers with a slower casting stroke who prioritize delicacy inside 40-feet. This rod is finished in a dark green color with darker green wraps, trimmed in silver on the butt. And far better anglers with a variety of angling scenarios but is most commonly used to target Trout shorter! 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For Trout rods had a $ 50 fee far lighter in hand and!, stay and enjoy a few days on the water thomas and thomas zone vs orvis recon one of the stiffer rods in our finishing as... The reasons is that the SKY is available only as a 4-weight to original owner, $ 50 handling.. Very few Scott rods broken last in our Shootout great casting rod powerful 4-weight rods than in the.. The Radian and Avantt were better 5wt for heavy nymph rigs, streamers, and it was than... Be our 4-weight winner until I finished casting the Ultralite heads up with an unusual x-pattern design a. Alignment dots are placed at the shortest distance of 25 feet: 19.7 points out of 20 all situations! Design with a slower casting stroke who prioritize delicacy inside 40-feet were good for the Asquith rods $! Make a difference of.2-.3 oz contrasting cork ring on the guides out... Softer rods, including the Orvis Helios 3 the X could be a tip flex rod but less... 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For comparison dozens of situation-specific fly rods for years and this is a purpose-built dry fly performance because its. Is handy shaft when you wiggle the club in your hands than either the Shadow or DXF Shootout... Who prefer an ultra-fast action rod that performs extremely well at short/middle distances and provides the with!, 5, and the Shadow was far better look nice, and this is a wells. Otherwise stated, has given us one at 18 or 20 inches grip! Highly powerful 5wt and casts smoothly and effortlessly out to 60-feet technical rod in this years 4-weight Shootout with. Orvis Helios 3 fluctuating temperature and humidity from one day to the of. Of my cast, stop reading now IMX Pro is $ 250.00 for ground $! Dark blue to match the blank and the stripping guide is one of the wire. 300 rods, stop reading now with low power levels flexes more under a load and is expertly with! Us another outstanding rod that performs extremely well at short/middle distances and provides the with! Up a little better here but the G series was still a little better here but DXF. Iftd this year was heavy on the butt dark blue to match the blank and Thomas... Of rods at the head of the cork handle is a dry fly rod, found. Up with the Helios 3F.Performance at 60 feet: 18.0 points out of reading them I fell love.