Rod WT?
 

Hey Gang,

I currently have a 7/8 WT rod, and I'm thinking about finding a rod with a lower WT. My schedule has changed a bit as of late, and I'll be able to do more evening fishing trips. I will be hoping to get into some pothole lakes around Edmonton, as I work in the City and live near Onoway.

The 7/8 was a gift as my first fly rod. Would it be worth it to get a lower WT rod? Will it make much of a difference in the fishability of smaller fish? I'd also like to try my hand at Pike fishing with it, and fishing the NSR, so that is where I'm torn. It's either sell the 7/8 to get a lighter rod, or keep the 7/8 and fish with it.

Thanks for your feedback,

Jeff

Depends on what you want to fish. You currently have a good pike rod. If you are looking more for trout, etc., I'd drop down to a 5 or 6.

For pike/walleye, would I be too light with a 5/6?

Dilemma.
Personally, I would get a 5/6 wt. Enough power for pot hole lakes and weighted junk, but not over kill. Can handle pike on the NSR. I use mine all the time on the NSR with no issues.

Yes as others have posted, keep the 7/8 as a pike rod and go with a 5 or 6 for trout (5 wt). A great general rule is the rule of 2 (move up or down 2 rod wts)...

I would keep the 7/8wt. as your pike/bow river rod and get a 5wt. for general trout fishing.
Soon after, you will want a 3wt. which is fantastic for 14" and under trout.
Once you acquire the above, you'll be pretty much set. Although, it never really ends.
I, too, thought a couple of fly rods would be all I'd ever need. That said, in the 2 years that I have been fly fishing, I now have rods/reels/lines in 3 thru 8 wt. and multiples of some and continue to keep my eyes open for something that sparkles. Hah!
Good luck on your never ending journey!

If I read correctly, it seems you would sell the 7/8 wt if you were going to buy a lighter rod. If in fact this is the case, keep the rod and fish it where ever and whenever you want, until you can afford to get another, lighter rod. Yes, catching smaller trout on a 7 weight isn't as much fun as it is on a 5, 4 or 3 wt, but it is still fun and there will be a time when you have to spend the money to buy back that 7/8 wt you sold. You will likely never regret having too many rods (I have 18 of them) but there will inevitably come a time when you regret not having enough (I need one more).

Rod Wt
 

fallen
Mostly fish rivers and streams with spinning gear but have a 9', 7/8 wt Starsilk rod(20 years old) that I use when the family comes fishing, sometimes 3 to 5 of us, and I follow up downstream with my unit and catch fish from 6" to 20" depends on the stream. Don't use flies much smaller than #10(cant see em). Just read the water and enjoy your gift. Save up and buy a lighter wt rod if you think you need it.

PS. It's all about fooling the fish not the bend in your rod.

For the most part, it would be too light for pike. It is 5/6 is great for walleye, but they are side catch to pike, most of the time.

There are 3 key factors that determine what rod you should use.

The first is how big the fly you are casting. I have broken my 6wt rod casting a pike fly medium sized pike fly (I fully admit, it was likely ready to break anyway, and I just did not know it).

The second factor is the size of fish you catch. Steelhead and salmon do not eat very big flies, but they fight like demons. Most Alberta pike (i.e. under 5kg) can be fought with a 6wt rod. But that 100cm+/10kg+ pike is not meant for a 6wt.

The 3rd factor is environmental. If you have to fight the wind, a heavier rod makes a huge difference. Take almost all saltwater fishing. Sure, saltwater fish fight extremely hard, but the heavier rods are necessary to punch through the wind.

A 7/8wt is a workhorse rod, and probably the most practical rod you will own. It is the half-ton pick up truck of fly fishing. I would never get rid of this rod. If I had to run from my house in an apocalypse moment and I could only take one rod, it would definitely be my 8wt.

As professori said, it is still totally fun to catch 30cm fish on a 8wt rod, but you will find yourself getting frustrated trying to cast a big pike fly on a light rod.

I understand a budget as mine isn't very big as well. As we all know you can never have too many rods but also you can have few and be perfectly happy. I have been fly fishing for 11 years with a 5wt and only just got an 8 weight last year. Keep the rod you have and you can catch whatever you're fishing for. If you really want a lighter rod. Go cheap. You can get good set ups that you will be happy with for less than $150. That's rod reel and line. As long as you use the lighter rod for what it's made for you will never have any issues. There really is good stuff out there for the budget you have if you look hard enough and are ok with not having the top of the line. So just use what you have until you can afford something else.

Got to agree there. I even have more fly rods now than Mr. Professori but way, way back in time I used two glass 8 wt Fenwicks that served the purpose, with enjoyment, for many years until I could afford the graphite stuff. Still, have the old Fenwicks in my museum!

Thanks for the replies, fellas. I'll be keeping my 7/8 wt, and down the line I'll pick up another... When the time is right ;)

You guys have been very helpful.

Now anyone wanna hit Muir with me this summer and teach me a thing or two? ;)

Jeff

95% of people at Muir are in belly or pontoon boats nymph fishing. You'll be most successful following the crowd. I don't like using indicators so that's all I can give you. You need to get your fly down to a certain depth in that lake :)

Rod weight is releative to size of fly you wish to cast not the size of fish you can land.

I did not know that... I'm certainly learning lots, still!

Thank you :)

Yes that's true to an extent, but also dependant on what size of fish you are targeting, as well!!

Yea true bu he wants to know if he can target smaller fish in the nsr with 7/8 weight imo thats the perfect size for that river. If you wete say thinking of salmon or 25lb pike then you may eant to upsize ur rod but more importantly your reel

?? I'm in the 5% doing something else and will likely catch more than the others!