Which will be the best? I have a feeling that neither one will be better than the other. One may cast better in close, one may have some "extra" kick on the long shots, but both of these rods are at the top of the list. That list has 3 rods on it and two are in the picture above. It's going to be fun fishing this winter and summer.
What about the Sage ONE?
ReplyDeleteThe Sage one is the 3rd rod mentioned. I don't have one and I probably won't get one. I have cast it and played around with it, but I think these two are better than the ONE. The 5 wt. that I fished with was great, but overall, the feel was not what I wanted. It's a faster rod than these two and would be great for a 6wt for me but in the 5w that I fished, it was a tad bit too stiff/fast for me. I also do not like the grip on the ONE. If the grip was different, I would like it more.
ReplyDeleteJuan,
ReplyDeleteI really like my Sage One in a 4wt. It has a great feel to it. It is fast, but seams to have a soft tip. I do have it overlined a little with a SA GPX taper. I did fish it with a standard 4wt line and was not impressed with the rod.
It is super important to make sure you have the right line on the rod to make it feel like it should or how you like it. If you had a high end sports car and you put the wrong tires on it, it just wouldn't feel right. Rods are the same way. I first cast the 4Wt Helios with a regular shop line and it felt great. The next time I cast it, it had a different line. It only felt OK. The next time, I took a Rio Gold and it really felt great, even better than the first time I cast it. The same was probably true of the ONE that I cast. I don't know what line was on it, but a different line may have made a huge difference. I am willing to fish with the 4wt. ONE if you want to let me borrow it!
ReplyDeleteI have cast the One and the Hardy. They both cast very well for me. I don't know what line was on them, but they both felt very good. I have heard some very good things about the Heios 2. It never hurts to have another quality rod in the mix. On another note, I have not fished them. The proof is in the fishing. I hope one or all of them shine. Let me know what you come up with. Jerry
ReplyDeleteGonna go out on a limb here, but in an experienced casters hand, all of em are gonna be great. I have been throwing a Scott G 8'8 5wt now for 22 years. Is a Sage ONE, Hardys or Orvis gonna make me catch exponentially more fish? NOPE. But the 600-700 bucks saved form not buying one of these sticks will get me exponentially closer to more fish when i spend it on plane tickets! HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI agree! I love those old Gs and have a few, but not that one. I have the 8'8" G2. That is such a good rod. I can only guess how that 8'8" G feels like. In the era of faster, lighter, more expensive, those old rods still have a place for us. I wouldn't trade those Gs for anything. And your point of saving money to actually get somewhere to fish the rods make perfect sense. Question for you. What line do you like on that rod?
ReplyDeleteJuan, I like, believe it or not- the Old Cortland Peach DT5F!!!! The modern equivalent is something like a RIO Classic. Just a great dry fly set up. For gunning bigger flies, It throws a RIO Grand WF5F. I like that setup in the wind or from the boat. There is a modern rod out there that I find SCARY close to the original G.... The Red Truck Diesel 9'5wt. Slightly faster, and a hair lighter in the hand, but man they are similar. I had a G2 8'8" 4wt, and it was OK. I ended up trading it on an original G 884/3....old habits die hard...
ReplyDeleteI like the Rio Classic on the G' but have found that a size smaller in the Rio Gold is a pretty good match for the Gs if you want to make the rod a bit "faster". I have yet to try a Rio Grande, one size smaller to see how that feels. I wish I could find someone who would trade me a G for a G2!
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