Getting back into the swing of things.

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karstopo
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Getting back into the swing of things.

Post by karstopo »

Good to see TKF back in business! I'm getting back into the swing of it after getting my right hip replaced January 15th. I feel better than I have in years thanks to Dr. Brian Parsley at Memorial Hermann Orthopedic Hospital. The whole staff of professionals there have been simply awesome.

They aren't ready to let me back in the kayak just yet, but it doesn't mean I can't cast off the dock. Yesterday, I got my biggest catfish on a fly at 8 pounds. Today, I broke in a new MaxCatch fiberglass 5wt I picked up off Amazon with a Christmas gift card.

Get out there and go fishing!
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Drifting Yak
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Re: Getting back into the swing of things.

Post by Drifting Yak »

Well it looks like you're heading in the right direction Karst!
Yak Dog
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Re: Getting back into the swing of things.

Post by Yak Dog »

Nice catch, I have always wanted to learn to fly fish. I’m just a bit worried about the investment because if I don’t like it , all that money could have went to a new rods, reels, or other kayak stuff I don’t need
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karstopo
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Re: Getting back into the swing of things.

Post by karstopo »

Yak Dog wrote:Nice catch, I have always wanted to learn to fly fish. I’m just a bit worried about the investment because if I don’t like it , all that money could have went to a new rods, reels, or other kayak stuff I don’t need
I don’t have one, but I’ve heard the eagle claw feather lights fly rods are about $25 and are real worthy rods. I fish with Cabelas CGR rods a lot and they regularly go on sale for $50-60. Reels are available for about the same or less. There's some decent line like Barrio or some top brands like SA or Rio at a big discount at times. I got some Wetfly fly line the other day for $15 and it’s plenty good.

Amazon sells a complete 5 weight set up rod, reel, line, leader and a few flies for about $100. I’ve cast one and they cast great.

Quite a few people sort of dwell on the need for high end gear for fly fishing and there’s some real nice rods and reels out there, but I don’t see high end gear being a necessity to have fun and catch some fish. If it ends up that fly fishing is for you, you can upgrade later.

Fly fishing gear with all the rod weights, line weights, leader types, materials and everything else is very confusing and it takes a while to get some kind of understanding of it. There’s a whole lot of perfectionist personalities in fly fishing and that can be overwhelming if you aren’t drawn that way. Nothing has to be even close to perfect, the gear, the cast, the technique to have a lot of success much of the time.

If you can find fish or good fish holding structure, you are already mostly there. It just takes a little time and experience getting the cast down and dealing with the loose line. If you can get a good fly pattern out a little and there are fish around, the fish will take care of the rest. All the years of fishing with baitcasting gear really helped me transition to fly fishing. It’s not so or doesn’t have to be so complicated or expensive as it’s often made out to be.
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Ron Mc
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Re: Getting back into the swing of things.

Post by Ron Mc »

good call on inexpensive tackle. For many years in the early 20-naughties, I ran a fly fishing life group from my church.
We attended Saturday church, and went fly fishing in the hill country every other Sunday morning.
Teaching the skills from ground zero was part of this, and every trip, I went prepared to outfit 2 other fishermen.
Venerable glass fly rods and click-pawl reels from the 70s were very inexpensive on ebay then.
I loaded up.
Glass is a wonderful learning tool, because it talks back to you - it's slow, determined and forgiving.
It teaches you to do it right, and if you're doing it right, glass is just as powerful as graphite in all but severe coastal wind.

There are niches, including Most of the hill country, where I much prefer glass rods to any other MOC.

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Yak Dog
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Re: Getting back into the swing of things.

Post by Yak Dog »

Yeah I understand that, thanks for the insight I will look deeper into the fly setup on the cheaper side of it. Keep those pics coming .
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Ron Mc
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Re: Getting back into the swing of things.

Post by Ron Mc »

Yak Dog wrote:Yeah I understand that, thanks for the insight I will look deeper into the fly setup on the cheaper side of it. Keep those pics coming .
This month, I replaced a 7' Phillipson I had sold several years ago to fund a project - one of my very favorite rods for the hill country.
That rod was marked for LL Bean, and this one is marked Orvis Fullflex, but they're identical except for the wrap colors.
I also matched it with the same reel I kept, which is a Martin LM45.
I paid $130 for the replacement, and I know I sold the other one (photo) for quite a bit more before.
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A good place to shop for rods is the classified listings on FFR - of course you need a membership there to pm sellers
http://fiberglassflyrodders.com/forum/v ... m.php?f=26
another nice sight-fished Sabinal bass on the 7' Phillipson
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I bought the Fullflex from Carl on this listing, and he has a few inexpensive glass rods listed there that would be great learning tools as well as fun to fish.
As long as you remember to hold the line in your free hand (line hand), you're ready to start casting - let the line slide through your fingers when the rod tells you.
Mid-weight rods (5- 6-wt) are the best way to start so you feel the weight of the line, plus, they'll let you throw moderately large flies (size 8 hook).
http://fiberglassflyrodders.com/forum/v ... 26&t=61238
I think his Heddon and Silaflex both look like nice rods at bargain prices - even though the 8' Silaflex is rated for old 7-wt, it will throw a modern WF6 just fine. The MkIV was a high-grade Heddon.
I have his e-mail and can connect you that way if it interests you that much.
Carl also has a very desirable Fenwick for sale
http://fiberglassflyrodders.com/forum/v ... 26&t=61714
Carl has another thread going with reels - he could probably set you up with a ready-to-fish combo
http://fiberglassflyrodders.com/forum/v ... 26&t=61656
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