Good Luck. Best recommendation is to find some 07 colesouts at a fly shop and try casting them to find what action your looking for.

Thanks Matt R.

Please forgive my ignorance in advance but I don't know much about rods yet and I'm trying to figure it all out. So the fly rod manufactures don't label their rods with their respective actions, you have to actually feel that out for yourself? That would explain why I haven't been able to find that info on most of the rods I've seen online. What does a medium action rod feel like? I wouldn't know it from any other rod I've cast. What I do know is that different actions on rods effect how they bend. Slow has a deep bend from the cork up and is challenging to cast. Fast bends more near the tip and has a lot of backbone and is easier to cast. Medium would be in-between and is supposedly a ton of fun to catch fish on.

Emerger,

Based on JT's suggestion a while back, I bought a Scott V2 about a month ago for $136. I have seen them on Ebay this past week for around $110 to $120. The V2 is a basic, no frills, medium action rod. I have test casted it a few times and it lays out line really nicely and accurately in the 30- to 50- foot range. If you muscle up to push out more line, the rod starts to fold-up (overload) with about 60-feet of line out (something I would expect to happen with a medium action rod). As far as the V2 goes, I could care less about distance, I mean how often do you need to lay out more than 30- to 35-feet of line at Putah? I switched to the V2 from a fast action St. Croix rod. I found that while the fast action rod could sling a lot of line with little effort, it was to stiff to lay-out a decent roll cast. I now value a good roll cast more than distance when fishing Putah due to the tight vegetation surrounding the creek.

Most manufacturers should give a description of a rod's action on their website; the rods aren't usually marked with the action. You should try to test cast a rod so you can to feel the action before buying it. Case in point, I bought a Scott X2S 8WT for steelheading site unseen; a rod described as having a fast action. I ended up selling the rod because the action felt nothing like a fast action rod when I finally got to cast it; the rod was more like a medium action. If you can't test the rod before buying it, you will just have to go with the manufacturers description.

They have a Powell Advantage XL on sale at Sierra Trading Post for $119. I bought a 6 wt last year and like it.


http://www.sierratradingpost.com/Product.aspx?baseno=70786&cdf=TopSeller


TK

I have a 4 pc 5 wt yellowstone rod I got for I think 100. But I don't recommend it. It's pretty stiff and doesn't load up that well. I'm looking for a new rod also in the same price range as you.

reddington makes some really nice rods, i have a 9ft 6wt 2pc redfly. its fast action, which i am not big on but it works great for steelhead.

and just so you know sage makes reddington, sage is made in the usa, reddington is made overseas.

they dont make redfly which i have, but the new model is the redfly2, ranging from 130-300.

they make a crosswater 9ft 5wt for 110, ask wyteurp how he likes it he has one.

dont over look echo, tfo, st croix or scott, great rods for a cheap price.

Emerger, you know what a medium action rod feels like, The thomas&Thomas I let ya try out a few weeks ago is a very good example of a medium action rod. My personal opinion about fast action rods is this, I'll never purchase another one, They just dont suite my style I guess, The level of "feel" you get from a medium action rod is awesome, With mine I can feel everything that is going on. You may also want to look into a 4 weight for all around trout fishing on rivers about the size of putah and smaller.  Research the topic well, Its the most important peice of gear you will buy ! One more thing, If you buy your rod online you may wanna look around, some places will include a free fly line of your choice, I got a free $60.00 rio grande line when i bought one of my rods I also purchased it from a shop in oregon called the fly shop out of welches oregon, So i paid no sales tax, free shipping and a free flyline, and the service was excellent. I'll email ya a link to there sight.

-- Edited by thecaptain at 16:17, 2008-01-24

Hey all
TFO pro series fly rods are around $200 with a med-fast action. I got a 4wt one of these and so far I am really impressed. Crisp, clean loops and good for roll casting. Another rod I would highly recommend is the Echo and Echo 2 series of rods by Tim Rajeff. I have an Echo2 5wt that comes with 2 tips, one for distace and one for accuracy. I have never played w/ a sage or gloomis rod but with that said echo rods are the finest rods I have ever cast. The Rajeff brothers actually worked for loomis before starting their own company so that gives you an idea of the quality of these rods. They are also really pretty. The Echo1 was a little to slow for my taste but every one casts differently so you might want to cast a few rods and see which feel right to you. Echo1 rods are around 15o I believe and the echo2 are about 250.
Just my 2cents
chuck

I got an Echo Classic 9' 4wt 4 pieces (medium fast) from The Fly Fishing Shop in Oregon (http://www.flyfishusa.com/) (my local fly shop dosen't carry them) last fall. And I love it. At $140, with rod sock and tube and unconditionnal life-time warranty, I think you get a lot for your buck with an Echo. And free delivery (free fly line only with certain more expensive rod and reel). Even I can smoothly and easily rollcast an impressive distance with it. And I think the action probably saved a few break-offs already. I fought a monster on it one time, tought the rod was gonna snap like a toothpick, but it didn't. I tought about getting a 2wt, but they don't make them smaller than 3wt. TFO also has a product line (Pro series) in this price range (and they make a 2wt!).

-- Edited by Bugger at 20:40, 2008-01-24

I think cabelas still has the redd. Rs2 or 3's. My dad has one (which i use when he is away). I love it.

Emerger,

Besides the Fly Shop in Oregon, you might want to check out Gorge Fly Shop (in OR). Same deal--free shipping, no tax. See if they have any specials to go with rod. Purchased my Echo 3 wt. from them. Very quick and courteous...

Ok, I will add my 2 cents...

Emerger, I second the Captain's advice on the 4wt. Also, definitely get a medium action rod. The medium action won't throw 80' casts very well, but you will appreciate the accuracy it provides you on more realistic distances like 30-40'. Plus, it will throw wiggle and reach casts well and mend a lot better than a fast action rod, which is important when you're trying to fool wary trout with a drag-free drift.

I know you're looking for something relatively inexpensive, but if saving up is an option for you, I bought a (discontinued) Sage SLT 490-4 (4wt 4pc) new on ebay with warranty card for $320, and it is so incredibly sweet! I self-justify spending that much on a nice rod because I will fly fish for the rest of my life, and because of the enjoyment it brings me. Not saying you need to spend more $, but it is something to think about.

   hey why dont you try to make your own??? it can be cheaper then buying a new one...i make all my own rods its a much better feeling when u hook up on a fish on a rod that u made...question email...been making rods for awhile...

I also intend to fish my rods all my life. But for now, I think I still prefer to get 3 pretty good rods of different sizes from a specialist than 1 excellent rod on e-bay... Plus, if you're a beginner or if you're not sure of what you want/need, e-bay can be confusing, often there's not much info on the rods...