# What's good?



## Saltwater_Slayer (Jun 15, 2017)

I want to get into fly fishing but I am not sure where to start. I don't know what type of reel, rod, or line to use. I typically fish salt water for trout, red fish, and flounder. I don't want to spend a ton of money but I don't want to buy trash either. I am looking for something in the middle that would be go for someone starting to fly fish. Any suggestions would be appreciated!


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## karstopo (Jun 29, 2009)

Fishing primarily out of a skiff, wading, kayak? 

New to fly fishing? 

Hard to pick someone else's gear. You have the buy quality, buy once, cry once way of thinking. Say you even get the wrong rod for you if it's a quality set up you can sell it, but not likely what you pay for it. 

The other approach is to get something that's not the top of the line knowing that it will not be the last rod you ever get if fly rodding takes. 

TFO makes line up of low to mid priced rods. I've had the BVK, Axiom, and Minimag in the 8 weight range. They are all okay. Great warranty I hear, but I've never used it. 

My favorite salt water stick at the moment is my 8/9 G. Loomis Short Stix. It's kind of in the Minimag mold, but blows the minimag away in every way. At $400, that's a mid range rod these days. 7'6" rods in 6-12 weights are not the norm at all, but when standing up in a boat or kayak I don't think it can be beat for accuracy, fish fighting, and just being less of a pain than a 9' rod. My next rod will be the 7/8 Weight Short Stix. 

Everyone else will tell you to get a 9' fast 8 weight and that's probably what you should get. Maybe one of the fly shops around town can get you set up with some casting lessons and then you might be pointed to a particular model.


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## Worm Drowner (Sep 9, 2010)

Salt water fly fishing (to me) is much tougher than freshwater. Make certain that it's for you. Spending can add up quickly! 

Before spending your hard earned cash, try out a few rods and take a few lessons. Just because a rod works for one person, doesn't mean it's a fit for the next guy. 

Try EBay for a good used, but not abused starting rod. I've bought several on there and have had very good luck. If you must go new, Orvis and Redington both have good starter combo sets. You'll eventually want to upgrade, but they'll get you going.

8 weight is almost standard issue for specks, reds & flounder, though you can go down to a 6 or up to a 10 with no real problems. Floating line is most popular. A reel with a good drag is nice, especially if Mr Jack takes your fly, but most of the time, you won't be using the drag much.

For flies, clousers, bendbacks, seaducers and redfish crack are top producers, though there are plenty of other choices out there.


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## salty_waders (Feb 13, 2006)

I've never casted one but many folks like the TFO rods, and they are not too expensive. As mentioned, a 7-8 wt is appropriate for flats fishing in TX. You can always start with a cheap Cabelas or Bass Pro rod and upgrade later. Scott, Orvis, Sage, and Gloomis make great rods when your ready to upgrade. I wouldn't buy a really fast rod if your a beginner fly fisherman. A slower rod is more forgiving and easier to learn the basics. Don't skimp on the line! This is a common mistake with beginners. Good fly line is expensive but it can make or break your learning experience. I personally love the Wolff Bermuda Triangle line. Scientific Angler is pretty good too. I don't like the Rio lines.


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## Popperdave (Jul 9, 2016)

I agree with the other post, try a few and take a lesson or two first. But if you want to jump right in and buy an outfit I would highly recommend the Orvis encounter, it comes with rod reel, line backing , and I think they throw in a leader. Everything you need to start fishing. And at $169 it's a great deal. If you want to To go a little better the Orvis Clearwater outfit is on sale for $337 and comes with a 25yr warranty. Both of these outfits in an 8wt will work fine for coastal fishing. If you can swing it is would get the Clearwater . it's good enough that you may never need to up grade.
Good luck and good fishing


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## Worm Drowner (Sep 9, 2010)

salty_waders said:


> Don't skimp on the line! This is a common mistake with beginners. Good fly line is expensive but it can make or break your learning experience. I personally love the Wolff Bermuda Triangle line. Scientific Angler is pretty good too. I don't like the Rio lines.


Good advice. Funny though. I've never used Wulff, don't care for SA (now owned by Orvis) and have always been a fan of Rio. LOL!

The line profile can make a material difference in how a rod feels & casts. Try and use a similar line when comparing rods. Better yet, use the same reel on different rods to ensure consistency.


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## tx8er (May 19, 2015)

DO NOT get the Orvis Encounter for saltwater. It will not last and Orvis does not warranty this combo the same way they do their others even though their website specifically says it is a saltwater set up.


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## karstopo (Jun 29, 2009)

tx8er said:


> DO NOT get the Orvis Encounter for saltwater. It will not last and Orvis does not warranty this combo the same way they do their others even though their website specifically says it is a saltwater set up.


Right, my neighbor's Orvis Encounter disintegrated after a few trips to the salt.


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## Ish (Oct 30, 2008)

all good advice above.

are you left-handed or right-handed? if you're left-handed make sure not to buy a right-handed rod like i did.

and are you gonna be casting for accuracy, or distance? blue line is for accuracy and yellow line is for distance. don't confuse the two.


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## flynut (Jun 30, 2009)

x2 what ish said


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## Maven (May 23, 2017)

I have tried most of the 8wt wf lines but for salt water my favorite is Wolff Bermuda Triangle. Short or long it is the best in my opinion. What ever you buy plan on spending a lot of time practicing in windy conditions. Take lessons and read about the technique of fly casting. I have bought several high in rods used off eBay at more than 1/2 of what a new rod costs.


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## Joe T (Dec 13, 2012)

make us all jealous and get the Axiom2


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## southpaw (Feb 25, 2009)

Ish said:


> and are you gonna be casting for accuracy, or distance? blue line is for accuracy and yellow line is for distance. don't confuse the two.


And make sure you couple your line with the appropriate backing. White for distance and yellow for accuracy. Orange backing is for advanced techniques.

I see your location is Atascocita so your closest fly shop is probably the Orvis in the Woodlands or if you don't mind driving a little further you could go to Bayou City Angler in Houston. Take a trip to one of those and try to get a feel for some different gear and see if you can cast a few different rods and get some pointers on casting. That will at least give you a feel for what action rods you like. Fair warning, you'll probably be overwhelmed at the price of some of the Orvis rods. Personally I'd recommend going to Bayou City Angler. The folks there know their stuff, are really helpful and will for sure let you demo a rod. They're also having a 35% off sale on Sage rods right now so you could possibly get a high dollar rod for mid range price. Just know, high dollar doesn't necessarily mean it'll fit your casting stroke. Other than that I'd go cast a mess of TFO rods. They're great rods, with a great warranty and price.

As for reels, there's a whole slew of mid priced reels that you could get for a good price. I've used and abused an Allen Alpha III for the past 4 years or so and it's yet to give me any trouble. It's landed countless reds as well as a handful of smaller jacks and ling. Allen Flyfishing sends out coupons regularly so you can probably pick one up for around $130 or so. Other reels that you could go for in that price range are the TFO BVK, Orvis Hydros or Batttenkill and Lamson Guru. The 3-Tand reels are also getting a lot of buzz but I don't have any personal experience with them. You got some options there so just deal search and I'm sure you can find something in your price range. A lot of guys will stress the importance of a smooth drag for reds and sure it's nice, but the majority of reds you'll catch in the bay you could probably catch on a click and pawl reel. My fist reel was some cheap Okuma Integrity that I bought on clearance at Academy for like $15. It landed plenty of reds and black drum before I got my Allen reel.

There's plenty of line suggestions in the previous posts, I'll just note that different tapers and lines will cast very differently on the same rod. You may think you hate a fast rod with a long gradual taper, but then love the same rod when you cast it with a short heavy taper. I'd suggest matching rod and line to make fast accurate casts in the 30-40' range if redfish is what you're primarily after. For me that's a fast or extra fast rod with a redfish (short) taper line.


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## Saltwater_Slayer (Jun 15, 2017)

*Thanks!*

Thanks for the advise, everyone. It is very much appreciated. I Will be looking to buy soon. I think I am armed with enough good information to get my first rig. Keep fishing!

Jason:cheers:


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## Ish (Oct 30, 2008)

make sure you don't get a wrong-handed reel too. that can be very frustrating.


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