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first purchase


Peter M

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I am interested in getting a fly rod and reel, not for trout but for chub on rivers. I know next to nothing about fly fishing and will probably be on this forum a lot in the coming months asking really obvious questions. Here goes with the first. On looking on the Net for fly rods I noticed this sign # next to a number could you please tell me what it means.

take a look at my blog

http://chubcatcher.blogspot.co.uk/

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Hi Peter, welcome to the forum.

I am by no means an expert on fly fishing as I have only been at it a couple of years myself but I can tell you that the number you are looking at is classed as the weight of the rod.

That is the weight of the line for that rod.Fly lines come in all different weights as I am sure you will find out, depending on the size of water you are looking to fish will determine the weight of line/rod you will need.

IMHO start with a rod of something like #6 or #7 that should suit most waters. If you are looking at biggish still waters then perhaps an #8.

Most of the time the number refers to a floating I think and if you go to an intermediate sinking line then go for one weight less than the rod number.

Hope that gives you some idea.

Dave

ANMC Founder Member. Always learning
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That is the AFTM (Association of Fishing Tackle Manufacturers) number - a measure of how heavy a line it will cast. ie to cast an AFTM 5 line you need an AFTM 5 rod (also called "5-weight")

 

The AFTM numbers range from 0 (Ultra ultra light) up through 1 to 4 (fairly light) through 6 (medium), 9 (heavy) to 12 or more (extra heavy) There is supposed to be some agreement as to what these numbers actually stand for in terms of what line weight they will cast, but there are slight variations between different rod makers.

 

There is a fair bit of leeway in what a given rod will cast - a beginner with six yards of double-taper AFTM 6 fly-line in the air is casting just about 6 grams, a more experienced angler with say 12 yards of the same fly-line aerialised is casting around 12 grams. A decent AFTM 6 rod should cope with either.

 

For practical chub fishing IN RIVERS (which is what you asked about) I would start out with an AFTM 6 outfit. Get the feel of such a medium-weight outfit before considering anything heavier. BTW for rivers a double taper (DT) floating line is best - Weight-forward (WF) lines are for still waters.

 

As a guide, get the best rod and line you can afford, but get the cheapest reel that will do the job (Leeda Rimfly reels are what I use for most of my medium-weight fly fishing) I reckon to spend more on my fly-line than on my reel.

 

[ 27. June 2003, 08:46 PM: Message edited by: Vagabond ]

 

 

RNLI Governor

 

World species 471 : UK species 105 : English species 95 .

Certhia's world species - 215

Eclectic "husband and wife combined" world species 501

 

"Nothing matters very much, few things matter at all" - Plato

...only things like fresh bait and cold beer...

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Thanks a lot guys. Since posting I have been looking in a catalogue and saw the abbreviation AFTM which you thankfully explained to me. Funnily enough I spotted one that has a AFTM of 6/8 which they say is good for a beginner although it doesn’t look very nice and I have set my heart on a Leeda obsession 2.89 m AFTM 6/8 which has a nice cork handle. Just looking through the catalogue I realise I have a lot to learn. If anyone can put me on to a good book for fly fishing virgins I would be grateful.

 

By the way this is all John Wilson’s fault I was watching an episode where he was chubbing with a free lined worm on his Avon rod, something I do quite regularly and really enjoy. He also took along a fly rod and used it in conjunction with a may fly nymph and caught on that. It looks tremendous fun. Once again thanks for the advice.

take a look at my blog

http://chubcatcher.blogspot.co.uk/

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Peter Martin:

I have set my heart on a Leeda obsession 2.89 m AFTM 6/8 which has a nice cork handle.

Don't know that particular rod but Leeda are usually pretty good value for money. Perhaps a 7 weight line would suit such a rod better than a 6, especially as you are just starting.

 

What 6/8 is telling you is that the rod will cast from 10 to 14 grams. That means you would have to aerialise ten yards of 6-weight line, (but only eight yards of 7-weight), to get the rod loaded to 10 grams - so a 7-weight line might be the best option for that rod.

 

 

RNLI Governor

 

World species 471 : UK species 105 : English species 95 .

Certhia's world species - 215

Eclectic "husband and wife combined" world species 501

 

"Nothing matters very much, few things matter at all" - Plato

...only things like fresh bait and cold beer...

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on the subject of lines, I noticed that fly line comes in different types. I don't think i need floating line, as I am not going to use dry flies and fast sink line I suppose is for use in deep water. This leaves me with intermediate or slow sinking line. As the water I fish is between 2 and 7 feet deep I am a tad confused what to buy, any advice appreciated. also thanks for the link.

take a look at my blog

http://chubcatcher.blogspot.co.uk/

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Floating line is not just for dry flies (although bushy dry flies are excellent chub catchers) - you can fish a wet fly several feet deep below a floating line. Make sure your leader sinks easily though if you are using wet fly - rub some clay or earth on the leader. Use flies that sink - ie tinhead, gold head, leadhead etc.

 

Thus a floating line gives you the option of fishing wet or dry (that's the flies, not the angler :D )

 

 

RNLI Governor

 

World species 471 : UK species 105 : English species 95 .

Certhia's world species - 215

Eclectic "husband and wife combined" world species 501

 

"Nothing matters very much, few things matter at all" - Plato

...only things like fresh bait and cold beer...

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Thanks for that. I was thinking that a floating line might give me more options, for example using it for floating dog biscutis for carp. One further question, I am a bit confused about the terms tippet and the cast when talking about lines. can anyone give me a definition please.

take a look at my blog

http://chubcatcher.blogspot.co.uk/

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Hi Peter.

First you have your fly line, on the end of that comes the leader, (usually tapered) then there is the tippet or cast which the fly is tied to.

Using a tippet means that when it gets to short to tie any more flies onto you just renew the tippet, that way you do not lose any length from the leader.

Dave

ANMC Founder Member. Always learning
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