# Newbie questions



## YakMan (Dec 2, 2005)

I recently got into fly fishing.Bought a phleuger medalist and started chunking.Went to the Frio a couple of weeks back and had a mishap witch involved a broke rod.I bought a Redington while I was up there and like it alot better.Night and day diff. Anyway I fish mostly salt water and did not think ahead when I bought the rod and ended up with a #5.Its fun on schooly trout but will it handle a red?I see everybody else uses 6-8 and some 9's . I also have a new Redington CD 7/8 reel that I havent spooled up yet.What line do I need and how much(backing,etc...)? I fish mostly in the bays and sometimes in the surf for specs and a red here and there.This fly fishing turned out to be one of the funnest things Ive done since I started fishing.


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## Stuart (May 21, 2004)

I think you could get by with it on days with light winds. I guess the question for me is in the heat of summer would you stress out a red too much trying to land it with a 5 wt? Maybe someone more knowledgeable will chime in.


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## Not For Hire (Jun 30, 2009)

It will handle a red but you are going to need a slight tail wind. It is going to be difficult for you to make an accurate cast across or against the wind with that rod. Save that rod for the Guadalupe etc.


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## Salty Dog (Jan 29, 2005)

It'll handle a redfish fine. Not a problem. The problem will be, is it big enough to cast the flies you need to cast in the conditions you find on the coast?

The biggest speckled trout I have landed on a fly rod was a 27"er I caught on a little 5 wt setup. So, yeah, it is up to the task if you can catch a day that is calm enough and throw some flies that are small enough and get close enough, and hold your mouth just right, and...


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## Salty Dog (Jan 29, 2005)

Stuart said:


> I think you could get by with it on days with light winds. I guess the question for me is in the heat of summer would you stress out a red too much trying to land it with a 5 wt? Maybe someone more knowledgeable will chime in.


It mainly would depend on the leader you choose and the hook size you choose as to how much you could pressure the fish. My 5 wt rods have as much backbone as alot of the plug rods that are popular on the coast. tie up a leader ending with a 10# tippet and you can pour the coals to them.


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## dsim3240 (Nov 12, 2008)

It has been my experience that the Redington are a bit soft(full flex), which isn't bad if thats your casting style. But trying to up size the line does not work well. I would recomend staying with the 5wt line. You are going to find that it will be hard the throw the large flies that you really need to use to catch reds. For saltwater fishing I recommend at least an 8 or 9wt rod. The 9 is really the best for newbie's learning to cast, it will give you more distance with less technique. I also suggest Orvis or Sage rods with their life time warrenty. Yes they cost more upfront but the broke rod isn't a problem later on. Do your research on which rod you like, then check out Ebay, I have bought several good rods at half price.


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## YakMan (Dec 2, 2005)

Thanks for the info. I just ordered a St. Croix 8wt blank to start with.


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## Salty Dog (Jan 29, 2005)

YakMan said:


> Thanks for the info. I just ordered a St. Croix 8wt blank to start with.


I have two 8wt rods I built on St. Croix Legend Elite blanks and I really like them.


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## YakMan (Dec 2, 2005)

Thats all I have been building on lately is St. Croixs. For some reason I cant get away from em. Did you make 1 or 2 piece?


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## Salty Dog (Jan 29, 2005)

My 8 wt St Croix's are 3 piece. I just finished a 5wt St. Croix and it is a 4 piece.


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## clarkster (Jul 22, 2009)

*Which rod, which reel.*



YakMan said:


> I recently got into fly fishing.Bought a phleuger medalist and started chunking.Went to the Frio a couple of weeks back and had a mishap witch involved a broke rod.I bought a Redington while I was up there and like it alot better.Night and day diff. Anyway I fish mostly salt water and did not think ahead when I bought the rod and ended up with a #5.Its fun on schooly trout but will it handle a red?I see everybody else uses 6-8 and some 9's . I also have a new Redington CD 7/8 reel that I havent spooled up yet.What line do I need and how much(backing,etc...)? I fish mostly in the bays and sometimes in the surf for specs and a red here and there.This fly fishing turned out to be one of the funnest things Ive done since I started fishing.


I have caught reds on 8wt,9wt,5wt. Would like to catch one on my 2 wt. I once used a Redington 5/6 reel on a $ 12 Kmart rod. Caught a 26" red. You can catch on anything. What I notice is how bad my shoulder hurts at the end of the day. The better quality rods are just so much easier to "chunk". Especially in the 8/9 wt sizes. I would rather use a 5 wt any day.


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