Fishing The Fly Scotland Forum

Ben Dixon

Hi Iain,

Get onto E Bay and buy atape measure.  For the difference in price, you are as well getting a 200' job.

If you really want to work on your distance then get something with a longer head and work on smooth carries and increasing your carry, A GT125 or GT90  is perfect for that.  A 65' carry should get you there easily with a long head.  We measure carry from the hauling hand to the end of the fly line and exclude te leader.
If you are hitting high 80's with a #5 SLX, that is a good chuck  :z16


Cheers

Ben

Iain Cameron

thanks for the tips Ben - Mike B has suggested a GT125 too, so I'll get one organised.

Not high 80s yet! low 80s, on a good day... but it's satisfying to see how the shorter casts seem smoother and easier to attain. So as long as I'm seeing improvement, I'm happy. A work in progress for the winter ahead.

So, a 65' foot carry on the back cast, and then let that shoot? cool. i'll see what I can do.
cheers
iain

Rob Brownfield

I fancy a go at the double hander, looksfor all the world like a beach caster, and I can put one of them a long way. Have to say compared to how one loads up a beach caster, there does not seem to be too much "wind up" going on.

I wonder how someone like Terry Carroll who puts a lead 300yard+ would get on? Could be fun :)

Marc Fauvet

there does not seem to be too much "wind up" going on.

I wonder how someone like Terry Carroll who puts a lead 300yard+ would get on? Could be fun :)

hi Rob,
the 'wind-up' is either false casting with a single-hand rod or creating the D-Loop with a double.
in the end and as in any kind of casting, it's all about moving weight with the rod tip and i'm sure Terry would pick up fly casting in a pinch as the mechanics are always the same.   :cool:

cheers,
marc

Ben Dixon

thanks for the tips Ben - Mike B has suggested a GT125 too, so I'll get one organised.

Not high 80s yet! low 80s, on a good day... but it's satisfying to see how the shorter casts seem smoother and easier to attain. So as long as I'm seeing improvement, I'm happy. A work in progress for the winter ahead.

So, a 65' foot carry on the back cast, and then let that shoot? cool. i'll see what I can do.
cheers
iain

Hi Iain,

If it is going even low 80's with turnover  then it is a long cast mate.  The SLX, whilst it will go over 100' was not conceived with anything like that distance in mind, to get it there requires quite a long carry as the head is not long enough to fly huge distances before it turns over.  It requires a lot of overhang which can get very messy!

If you can carry 65' under control with a GT90 or GT125 then you should be able to get it to lay out at 90' without too much trouble, its only a shoot of 25'.  Don't over hit the delivery, float it there and concentrate on tracking, late long & fast haul with a smooth rod stroke.  Also useful to put a hula hoop at 90' along the tape and aim to put the fly into it rather than just twatting the rod and hoping the fluff will land at 90'.

Get the tape measure asap, that will tell you exactly how much you are carrying and exactly how far you are throwing, it doesn't lie and is foolproof unlike pacing stuff out.  It's how far the fluff is away from your feet that counts, don't try to work it on how much line you've cast particularly if you are lifting the rod.  With a "game fair lift" I could often cast a full GT140 #6, fluff would land at about 120' and I'd have a huge big pile of slack at the rod tip  :z4

Cheers

Ben

Hamish Young

So, a 65' foot carry on the back cast, and then let that shoot? cool. i'll see what I can do.

If you fancy coming North one weekend for a chuck on grass, give me a shout.

H :z3

Iain Cameron

Also useful to put a hula hoop at 90'

Thanks Ben - I've ordered a 200' tape. Sure that'll come in useful around the house too... for.... err.. ah well, I'll think of something. And Mike found me a 125 to play with. (really need to buy some more reels/spools now).

Did think about Hula hoops - improvised instead and been using some lengths of  thick red cord - I can form them into circles to make targets, or I can just lay them out straight as distance markers, or in parallel pairs for straight casting etc. And simply stuff them into a wee grab sack when I'm done. Versatile & portable.

It's been time well invested so far - I'm seeing benefits on my fishing, especially yesterday in the strong winds I felt I had more punch at short fishing distances.

Hamish - aye, would be good to come up again and learn more about your "brute force and ignorance" (tm) methods!

cheers
iain

Rob Brownfield

hi Rob,
the 'wind-up' is either false casting with a single-hand rod or creating the D-Loop with a double.
in the end and as in any kind of casting, it's all about moving weight with the rod tip and i'm sure Terry would pick up fly casting in a pinch as the mechanics are always the same.   :cool:

cheers,
marc

Hi Marc,
I was refering to the double handed, over the head cast on the video. The actual arc of the rod seems very short compared to the likes of say an off the ground cast with a lead. Now I realise there has to be differences due to the fly line behaving very differently to a lead, but the rod just does not "seem" to load as fully. MAybe taper?

 




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