All discussions about equipment
must, by virtue of the physics involved in casting, start with
the rod and line because those are the two things that do the
work.
Rods
Let's pretend that you're a beginner and don't want to give up your first born child in order to equip yourself. You've probably fooled around on the internet looking at equipment and gettting opinions about various outfits. You've even driven over to a couple of the Big Boxes to perform the wiggle test on the rods. However, the outfits you're interested in are encased in plastic and there doesn't seem to be anyone around who's available to help you. What do you do? Choose the name brand that screams PANFISH! on the label or the house brand that leaves you wondering what you're really buying?
This year we're featuring a Redington Crosswater outfit, pre-rigged for only $120. The reel and line are adequate to get started, but the rod is a dream; lightweight, smooth, easy to cast and an absolutely lovely casting tool. If you don't want to clutter your mind just throw your money on the counter and grab one of these outfits. Plus, we'll teach you how to cast and serve you coffee while you're hangin' around. What's not to like?
If you're looking to upgrade please consider the Redington Pursuit. This is a smooth, faster action four piece rod that's a great choice if you're just beginning and want something a little better than our kit rod. For only $120 this rod is going to surprise you. It's also a great choice for a backup rod for anglers who travel to fish.
Last season we introduced a proprietary rod, the Driftless. This rod comes in only two models both eight feet long and designed for either a 4 weight or 5 weight line. These are progressive, light, responsive and are about all one needs to fish the smaller spring creeks in SE Minnesota, NE Iowa and SW Wisconsin. They're priced at $280 with a tube and bag and The Shop donates $50 to TU DARE from every purchase. These are our best selling trout rods.
Sage has done it again, dropping one of their most popular series, the Z Axis, and introducing a new one, the ONE rod. And once again, it's lighter, faster, stronger and this time, way more accurate. Stop this rod on your forward cast and the line slings out perfectly straight, directly at the target. No more excuses. They start at $715. For people who prefer a slightly slower more progressive action we also carry a couple of models of the Z-XL, a perfect trout rod for the midwest and starting at $685. If you're looking for something to remind you of the vaunted XP, look no farthur. The new VXP is a smooth, fast action rod you can cast all day for under $500. Three years ago Sage decided to upgrade their very popular FLi rods. The new Flight series is a line of lighter, smoother rods with higher line speed and better feel. The four piece models start at $350. Finally, there's the new Vantage, a gorgeous, smooth, entry level rod that performs well beyond it's entry level price of $225. The 8 wt is the smoothest bass rod imaginable.
Lines
About 90% of our line sales are floating lines. There are way too many choices out there so we've tried to simplify them. Your choice will depend on the type of fishing you do and the conditions under which you fish. Listed below are the lines we'll be carrying in 2010.
Cortland's most popular line is still the old reliable 444. Supple and silky smooth it's an excellent trout line for $59. We carry these in double tapers for the pure trout anglers among you.
Scientific Anglers’ introduced a new family of lines called the Textured Series. These lines offer many of the advantages of the Sharkskin lines with none of the disadvantages...$79.95 The Trout line is a supple, low memory, fly line with a compound concave front taper designed to dampen the presentation…$69.95. This is my favorite line because it does everything well and it comes in orange, my new favorite line. This is our fifth season carrying the GPX and it's become our best selling all purpose line. It's designed to be a half size heavier to help load the quicker rods...$69.95. The Nymph line, part of the Textured Series, is a smart idea, a line that was designed specifically to cast weighted nymphs, shot and an indicator longer distances with the added benefit of a high floating tip…$69.95. The Headstart is an over-grained, supple line that defintely improves everybody’s casting…$39.95.
Rio makes one fly line which every bass angler
should own, the best selling Coldwater Clouser, a line that will deliver any bug accurately
at any distance…$74.95. And for you saltwater people, our Rio rep, Tom Andersen, says the Rio Bonefish line is the best he's ever used...$74.95. New last year is the Smallmouth line, designed by Tom Andersen and featuring a head designed for a smooth turnover and a slightly heavier running line for easier line management...$74.95.
Wulff lines have come out with a screamer two years ago called the Ambush. It's a seriously over-grained line that the guys on the west coast have been using for switch casting and spey casting and retails for $74.95. You can forget about Scandi or Spey when you grab this one.
Reels
For a simple storage device it seems kind of silly to
offer so many choices, but that’s what we do. That way
we can offer you a wide range of choices and the best values.
Ross USA offers extremely durable machined reels with lifetime
guarantees. The CLA, a single action large arbor hybrid, starts
at $175 and is a tough reel with a long history of reliability. The Momentum LT is the first really serious saltwater reel Ross has made and it's a killer starting at $445. Ross Worldwide reels are very nice die-cast reels with functional disc drags and represent a solid value. The Flystart 2 retails at $63 and if you want a true large arbor at a reasonable price take a look at the all new Flyrise starting at $100.
Orvis reels are dependable, purr like kittens and are covered by exceptional Orvis service. The Battenkill Bar Stock is a light weight, machined aluminum reel with disc drag starting at $135. Even after a price increase this year this is still the best bargain in a fly reel.
The big news is that we've added another reel to the mix, Nautilus. We're carrying the FWX series, tough reels designed for everything from trout to bonefish and harboring absolutely no plastic or nylon. Even the handle is machined aluminum. A reel for a 3 or 4 weight line starts at $240.
Waders
Neoprene waders were the most oversold material to ever hit the fishing industry. If you’re in the market for waders buy breathable. If you can afford the $500 to $700 buy Simms, arguably the best in the industry. We’re a small shop and can’t afford to carry them, but we've found a terrific alternative in Dan Bailey waders and Redington shoes.
Dan Bailey has made the transition from retail to import/manufacturer. I got a pair of Lightweight waders several years ago and can't say enough good things about them. When you look at them critically you can tell they were designed by anglers for anglers. For instance, there's no seam to wear out on the inside of the leg, the built-in gaiter has a velcro closure and the waders are cut generously. And the Barebones, the wader we're carrying, is less money but is still a serviceable wader with reinforced knees and built in wader belt for $149.95. I'm absolutely confident you won't be disappointed.
We'll be carrying one wading shoe. After much searching and a false start or two we found the Redington Skagit Wading Boot. It features a sticky rubber sole and it's priced at $99.95. Now you can get a shoe that'll let you wade with the confidence of felt soles but you won't have to disinfect them after every use. Plus...if you need waders and shoes you'll never spend more that $250 at Bob Mitchell's Fly Shop
Flies
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