Which reel to accompany my Shimano Power Loop?

[ikilledflipper]

This is my first post, so to begin I'd first like to say hello to everyone.

 

I have a slight problem, I currently have a Shimano Power loop rod & it's very heavy to use. Although it is a naturally heavy rod to start with, I matched it up with a very light weight reel - a Leeda LC 100. This means the rod is extremely top-heavy & I tire very quickly.

 

I live nowhere near a tackle shop & would have brought my rod around to try with some inexpensive reels if I could. Could any of you advise of an inexpensive reel to perfectly match the weight of the rod?

 

Is there anything else I can do? I've even thought of weighing the reel down in some way - perhaps adding some lead wire beneath the backing.

 

I'm not a power-fisherman, so do not have the excuse (or the means) to spend big on a reel!

 

All your help is greatly appreciated, thanks!

 

PS, I have an inclination toward double taper #7 line.

[ikilledflipper]

Right okay, I've done a little weighing & the like & have managed to find the correct weight to balance my rod.

 

Now, the rod does not have a butt - so I think that may be adding to the problem, nonetheless, I've found that a total of 450g would perfectly balance the rod where I hold it.

 

My LC 100 reel with line & backing only weighs around 190g - so as you can see - I have good reason to tire quickly when using the rod.

 

I have a few more focused questions which might be easier to answer than the ones in my first post.

 

*Am I correct in wanting to perfectly balance my rod - or have I got the wrong end of the stick?

 

*If not, am I correct in looking at counter balancing at around 450g - or is this overkill?

 

*Would the addition of a butt make any real difference & are they easy to fit?

 

*Are there any inexpensive reels with swappable spools weighing around 400g?

 

*Will correct balancing make life easier, or have I been lumped with a rod I shouldn't be trying to use?

 

Thanks

[chuby]

Right okay, I've done a little weighing & the like & have managed to find the correct weight to balance my rod.

 

Now, the rod does not have a butt - so I think that may be adding to the problem, nonetheless, I've found that a total of 450g would perfectly balance the rod where I hold it.

 

My LC 100 reel with line & backing only weighs around 190g - so as you can see - I have good reason to tire quickly when using the rod.

 

I have a few more focused questions which might be easier to answer than the ones in my first post.

 

*Am I correct in wanting to perfectly balance my rod - or have I got the wrong end of the stick?

 

*If not, am I correct in looking at counter balancing at around 450g - or is this overkill?

 

*Would the addition of a butt make any real difference & are they easy to fit?

 

*Are there any inexpensive reels with swappable spools weighing around 400g?

 

*Will correct balancing make life easier, or have I been lumped with a rod I shouldn't be trying to use?

 

Thanks

Hi

Can't quite see your problem!!!!!!!!!!!.

Reel weight should not really make an awful lot of difference,lighter the better i would have thought.I assume you are using the correct weight line for the rod?.You could try going one weight up ie if its a 7 weight rod go to 8 weight line and weight forward.It will load the rod faster.

I assume you also mean that the rod does not have a 'fighting butt'!!!!!!!!!!!!,this will make no odds at all.

Edited July 27, 2010 by chuby

[Sportsman]

Hi

Can't quite see your problem!!!!!!!!!!!.

Reel weight should not really make an awful lot of difference,lighter the better i would have thought.I assume you are using the correct weight line for the rod?.You could try going one weight up ie if its a 7 weight rod go to 8 weight line and weight forward.It will load the rod faster.

I assume you also mean that the rod does not have a 'fighting butt'!!!!!!!!!!!!,this will make no odds at all.

 

Chuby is quite right, the last thing you would want to do is add any more weight to the set up, it will just make it worse.

It sounds like a new rod might be in order< i am not familiar with the shimano although I would be surprised if they made heavy rods.

I still use cane and fibreglass fly rods with the lightest reel I can get hold of.

Might I suggest you read this, it explains it much better than I can

 

http://www.sexyloops.com/2010.shtml?0624

 

Sexyloops is probably the best fly fishing resource out there. This is likely to be very sound advice.

Edited July 27, 2010 by Sportsman

[ikilledflipper]

Thank you both for your advice.

 

My reasoning behind wanting to apply more weight to the reel end of the rod is it would balance it a bit better. With the reel attached & the line not fed throught the eyelets, I found it takes a little effort to hold the rod horizontally as it is that tip heavy it tips over straight away.

 

I was always told, when the reel is attached to the rod, you should be able to balance the rod on one finger - just before the cork handle starts. I have no chance of doing this with my current setup.

 

My uncle gave my dad this rod as it was giving him a bad back, my father tried to use it a few times - but it was too heavy for him to use.

 

I enjoy using the rod, but I fatigue quite quickly - which didn't happen with my shakespeare and bob church rods - which I no longer have.

 

I guess the idea behind this balancing is it counterbalances the top of the rod. Okay - when you start casting the rod will obviously become more and more top-heavy because of the airborne line. However, the light reel seems to be adding to the top-heavyness - If you know what I mean.

 

The rod weighs in at around 165g, however, it's 10.5 feet long.

 

I love the very fast tip action of the rod, but I can only use it for a short time- and I'm no weakling!

[chuby]

Thank you both for your advice.

 

My reasoning behind wanting to apply more weight to the reel end of the rod is it would balance it a bit better. With the reel attached & the line not fed throught the eyelets, I found it takes a little effort to hold the rod horizontally as it is that tip heavy it tips over straight away.

 

I was always told, when the reel is attached to the rod, you should be able to balance the rod on one finger - just before the cork handle starts. I have no chance of doing this with my current setup.

 

My uncle gave my dad this rod as it was giving him a bad back, my father tried to use it a few times - but it was too heavy for him to use.

 

I enjoy using the rod, but I fatigue quite quickly - which didn't happen with my shakespeare and bob church rods - which I no longer have.

 

I guess the idea behind this balancing is it counterbalances the top of the rod. Okay - when you start casting the rod will obviously become more and more top-heavy because of the airborne line. However, the light reel seems to be adding to the top-heavyness - If you know what I mean.

 

The rod weighs in at around 165g, however, it's 10.5 feet long.

 

I love the very fast tip action of the rod, but I can only use it for a short time- and I'm no weakling!

Have seen the odd add for these rods.They seem to cover three line weights!!!!ie 7-9 etc.Can i again suggest that you try the upper nominated rating if you are not already doing so,you might be surprised by the change.

My rods are single rated except one which is rated at 5-6.Tried a six and it did not perform well at all,no way would it cast a five.Put a seven weight through it and it becomes a totally different rod,a pleasure to cast!!!!!!!!!!!.

[ikilledflipper]

Have seen the odd add for these rods.They seem to cover three line weights!!!!ie 7-9 etc.Can i again suggest that you try the upper nominated rating if you are not already doing so,you might be surprised by the change.

My rods are single rated except one which is rated at 5-6.Tried a six and it did not perform well at all,no way would it cast a five.Put a seven weight through it and it becomes a totally different rod,a pleasure to cast!!!!!!!!!!!.

 

I'm pretty sure my Uncle will give me a lend of a few higher aftm rated lines, I'll test it out to see if it helps make the casting less work.

 

Thanks

[Sportsman]

Thank you both for your advice.

 

My reasoning behind wanting to apply more weight to the reel end of the rod is it would balance it a bit better. With the reel attached & the line not fed throught the eyelets, I found it takes a little effort to hold the rod horizontally as it is that tip heavy it tips over straight away.

 

I was always told, when the reel is attached to the rod, you should be able to balance the rod on one finger - just before the cork handle starts. I have no chance of doing this with my current setup.

 

My uncle gave my dad this rod as it was giving him a bad back, my father tried to use it a few times - but it was too heavy for him to use.

 

I enjoy using the rod, but I fatigue quite quickly - which didn't happen with my shakespeare and bob church rods - which I no longer have.

 

I guess the idea behind this balancing is it counterbalances the top of the rod. Okay - when you start casting the rod will obviously become more and more top-heavy because of the airborne line. However, the light reel seems to be adding to the top-heavyness - If you know what I mean.

 

The rod weighs in at around 165g, however, it's 10.5 feet long.

 

I love the very fast tip action of the rod, but I can only use it for a short time- and I'm no weakling!

 

When you cast a fly rod you move the whole rod and reel. The rod does not pivot around the handle. I am afraid the whole point of balance thing is a myth.

Rod designers spend half their life trying to lose a few grammes from the weight of the rod and you want to add a pound to it.

Probably the biggest problem is the length. A 10.6" rod exerts a lot of leverage and when you add the weight of a 7/8 wt line that increases dramatically when you aerialise line during the cast.What would really make a difference is a shorter rod, around 9' and unless your fishing for Pike try a 4/5wt and put some pleasure back into your fly fishing

[ikilledflipper]

Right ok, I think I can clear things up!

 

I went fishing the other day and tried a few things.

 

I dumped the reel and tried casting without any additional weight. There was no great difference while casting - in feel or result.

 

In my opinion balancing the rod is not vital if you have a light one, if you have a medium or heavy rod I think it is essential.

 

This is not due to the required balance while casting - of course this is impossible anyway. This is actually down to holding the rod while you retrieve!

 

Retrieval accounts for the longest period of time while you're fishing, and holding a rod which is very top heavy becomes extremely tiring. The muscles in your forearm constantly have to work to prevent the rod tip hitting the water. This is why it is essential to balance your rod.

 

I added some weight to the butt end of my rod - I found the correct thread size and inserted a bolt and then wrapped lead wire round about until the rod was perfectly balanced.

 

What a difference! Again however, there was no real difference when casting, but it was a pleasure holding the rod while retrieving!

 

This relaxed my arm and hand muscles so that when it came to casting, my arm was not fatigued, this made casting a lot easier thoughout the day. I didn't need to force the line out due to tired muscles.

 

Thanks everyone anyway!

[Sportsman]

Right ok, I think I can clear things up!

 

I went fishing the other day and tried a few things.

 

I dumped the reel and tried casting without any additional weight. There was no great difference while casting - in feel or result.

 

In my opinion balancing the rod is not vital if you have a light one, if you have a medium or heavy rod I think it is essential.

 

This is not due to the required balance while casting - of course this is impossible anyway. This is actually down to holding the rod while you retrieve!

 

Retrieval accounts for the longest period of time while you're fishing, and holding a rod which is very top heavy becomes extremely tiring. The muscles in your forearm constantly have to work to prevent the rod tip hitting the water. This is why it is essential to balance your rod.

 

I added some weight to the butt end of my rod - I found the correct thread size and inserted a bolt and then wrapped lead wire round about until the rod was perfectly balanced.

 

What a difference! Again however, there was no real difference when casting, but it was a pleasure holding the rod while retrieving!

 

This relaxed my arm and hand muscles so that when it came to casting, my arm was not fatigued, this made casting a lot easier thoughout the day. I didn't need to force the line out due to tired muscles.

 

Thanks everyone anyway!

As long as your happy