The Complete Fisher Forum

[AlexH]

My dearly beloved's father is taking up the noble art. He had a half day lesson in Scotland and was offered a Hardy Ultralite and Sovereign combo for £700 ish.. I think this is outrageous and was thinking about alternatives.. As a beginner i think it's daft to spend this sort of money, although it is available, and have suggested the following (to be used on a small stillwater and river)

Greys GRXi and GRXI reel with COrtland 444 floating line.

Greys Greyflex with GRXi reel

Sage Fli and Lamson Velocity.

I think a mid action is best for a beginner, he will want some decent kit, and whether or not we think an odyssey/rimfly option is best for a beginner it wont cut the mustard. what would you recommend for say £400 as a max for an outfit.

cheers

[royvs]

I have a FLi in a #3 weight and really like it but, as we all know rods differ in their characteristics in different ratings.

However, I know a chap in the other place who is an excellent fisherman and he swears by the FLi #6 for still water work.

I think it's a quality rod at a decent price.

You definately won't go wrong with Lamson reels..I have far too many What about a Konic?
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Roy

[Wizard]

Is that what your Father wants or just that the instructor recommended it?

I guess your talking 9' 6wt?

If it has to be Hardy - Demon outfit £414.99 www.fmtc.co.uk
Slightly over budget, but better than £700.

Rods are a very personal choice. How can he know which Rod will suit his style, until he has learnt to cast?

If you can persuade him to use your rod and spend his money on lessons, until he can appreciate which rod he really wants.

I am very surprised that an instructor would recommend such an expensive outfit for a beginner.

Cortland Endurance outfit RRP £289 now only £149 www.carrilon.com

Sensible instruction http://www.aapgai.co.uk/scotland.html
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Cheers
Wiz

www.wandlepiscators.net
www.wandletrust.org

[westcountryboy]

Alex PM me as you know i work for W&S and could sort a out for his budget.

WCB
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[fossil-fish]

Alex,
I think that the Greyflex is a rod of good quality but is still suitable for a beginner. I certainly find mine very easy to get on with. The FLi is also an excellent rod, but for a complete beginner I would suggest a weight rating one lower than his intended line size.

Not at all sure about the Cortland line, I think there would definitely be better alternatives for a new comer. I have found them to feel a little light and difficult to shoot. I think perhaps something like a Snowbee would have a bit more positive feel for a learner.

None of the above thoughts are in anyway expert, just my own feelings on some of the gear that I have used as a beginner myself in the last year. If pushed to choose I would opt for the Greyflex mark 2.

[AlexH]

[Viking]

Hi Alex

Sportfish at the moment have the Greyflex M2 on offer at £99, the 5/6 should be a nice easy tool to use, it's 3 piece so it would fit into most car boots with little problem, matched to a nice quality reel like a Lamson Konic 5/7 weight 4.7oz (iirc) @ £110 or possibly a bit cheaper.
Line wise do yourself a favour and buy British, the shaky stable produces some very fine lines indeed, Snowbee are great but not the cheapest, The Pirate (Stewart) sells lines which take a lot of beating, infact I'm still using a PP 7wt which I purchased 2 seasons back and is still working very well indeed, Mike Barrio, Steve Parton and many more also sell the shaky lines and are all good, no memory and shoot well, have a look for the Pirate on this forum he's always very helpful.

Good Luck V
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Perfection will do!!.......

[tenet]

If you live the west side of London take a trip up the M4 to Theale near Reading and use Sportfish's facilities. You can then try every combo across a broad price spectrum on their casting pond.

Regards

Tenet

ps You can win the argument but lose the sale.(remember he is your prospective fil)

[Viking]

Just noticed the Konic comment, should read twice!!

I have a 3wt Konic and so far so good, but if you are unsure the rest of the Lamsons are great put the prices are high and to be honest if you have money to spare you would be better spending more on the rod and perhaps go for the Guideline LPXe or Hardy Demon.
So an other reel, try the Okuma Helios under a ton it's a lovely reel, Toby (WCB) has been selling Orvis LAs for a very good price also a nice reliable quality reel.

Regards V
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Perfection will do!!.......

[AlexH]

[narfish]

Probably a bit late now but I would have thought for £400 you could set him up with everything from rod and reel to fly jacket, net, fly boxes etc.

A GRXi kit or Greyflex kit should serve him well!

£700 for a beginner is barmy! (Don't suppose he wants to buy me a "starter" kit by any chance does he? )

[Wizard]

Alex

If he really wants the best get him to take up WCB's offer, you can't go wrong with Scott.
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Cheers
Wiz

www.wandlepiscators.net
www.wandletrust.org

[AlexH]

[barbus]

£700 and £400 is mad for someone to start in the sport, how on earth is he going to know the good from the bad if he is getting top notch gear straight off, you dont need a 200 + rod or a 100 + reel its stupid, teach him to fish first and then water craft and once he starts catching and casting right then step up the gear.Im sorry if im abit sour about this , but nothing annoys me more than people with more money then sense turning up at a water with all the kit and cant fish to save there lives, you cant buy yourself into being a good angler, it takes learning and alot of mistakes, theres an old saying which is very correct " you dont learn from doing things right, only from doing them wrong" That instructor needs a slap , clearly out for himself. I wish the your FIL all the best in his fishing exploits but please be sensible about the gear, spend the money on fishing not overprice equipment Tell him to give you £700 and go and buy him everthing he needs , rod /s reel/s lines, jacket flies boxes and all the crap we acquire for flyfishing then you will have plenty over to take him fishing for the year and teach him properly all about the noble art, the fishing will give him far more pleasure than forking out for a very expensive rod and reel, which he thinks will make him a flyfisherman
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If in doubt,get the montys out

[piscator]

I totally agree with Barbus. So many different aspects to learn in this sport first. What's the point in having top class gear if you cant use it. Seen it far too often.
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British by birth, Scottish by the grace of god