Sage introduced their new Trout LL, which won the award for the best Freshwater Fly rod at the 2019 ICAST show. $25 handling fee. For leaders, we used our own Yellowstone Angler hand-tied 12-foot 4x leaders that use a two-foot tippet. Since the Nimbus was a softer rod, it did score well in light tippet protection, but in the most important Fun to Fish category, where the Pure got a perfect score, the Nimbus had one of the lower scores – about the same as the much less expensive Orvis Clearwater and St. Croix Imperial. By having all the rods set up in an identical manner, it is easy to take a few casts with one rod, at say 40 feet, then pick up another rod and do the same without having to strip the line off one rod and take the time to load up another. TFO uses an olive green blank for this rod, with olive wraps that are trimmed in gold on the butt sections. A sliding band and wide locking ring is used that is easy to grip and seemed to lock up well. We set out three sets of paper plates as targets, with plenty of distance between each casting line so that no one was getting tangled up. Better now, with more line in the air, but the G series was still a little better in both feel and accuracy. But the stiffness of this rod and its heavy swing weight hurt the performance scores, especially at the shorter distances. Yellowstone Angler has recently published their findings of the 2020 5-Weight Shootout, where they examine 32 of the best 5-weight rods on the market. For the slightly stiffer power rods, we stepped up to Scientific Angler’s half line size heavier Amplitude MPX. The Presentation Rods are going to be used at shorter distances most of the time – roughly 25 feet to 45 feet, so the scores at 70 feet are not nearly as important as they are with the Power Rods. 6:54. But then rather than a beautiful piece of burled wood insert as on the Avant, there is a plain piece of blue colored graphite that also shows the tape marks. We found most rods performed better with the Amplitude Smooth Infinity, which is a half line size heavier. The craftsmanship was excellent and it performed very well for me, especially at 40 feet, where I was getting beautiful tight loops and very good accuracy. There are a few 8 foot and shorter rods as well as a few 9-foot rods in the mix, especially when manufacturers don’t offer an 8 ½ foot model. The reel seat uses a wide single up-locking ring and a very fancy bird’s eye maple burl for the insert. To achieve boosted performance and feel over the old NRX series, Steve utilized new Mega Modulus+ graphite. Sage uses a lovely brown anodized aluminum single up-locking seat with a beautiful walnut burl insert. Better at mid-distance and this seems to be the sweet spot for the G2. Some people might consider high priced rods status symbols. This rod has the capability to form and throw incredibly tight loops to deliver outstanding accuracy, even at long range. Some of our comments are going to be negative, but you won’t find our reviews like ours in any of the fly-fishing magazines. The medium fast action of the Recon is very similar to the Helios 3F and this is one reason it performs so well. The one thing that I have never liked much on the Reaper is the shape of the handle. 4. Howard Croston, Hardy’s rod design genius in England, has given us another outstanding rod that performs extremely well at all distances. T&T also uses a stack of thinner cork rings and the quality of the cork is as close to perfect as you can get. A gorgeous amboyna burl wood insert is used to complete this attractive rod. This is a smooth line, rather than one with a textured coating. I was having trouble forming tight loops. In our casting trials, we first tried to identify the best performing rods in the highest price category. The craftsmanship on the LP is typical Loomis excellence. G. Loomis – Lifetime warranty to original owner. Annette McLean, Winston’s long time rod designer did a great job with the Pure, giving us a rod that is Pure fun to cast and fish. Better than the Scott G and Winston Air. Scott claims that by not sanding the tape marks, this contributes to a stronger blank, and we can’t argue with this as we see very few broken Scott rods. The Hardy Shadow has impressed us with its sweet action and performance for its price. Performance at 40 feet: 19.5 points out of 20. Guides start with a hook keeper on the butt, and then two SiC stripping guides, followed with hard chrome snake guides that are large in diameter but thankfully use smaller diameter wire. The Galvan reels have been one of our favorite fly reels, and the slightly larger T-5 won our last 5/6 weight Reel Shootout. Forty feet was definitely the sweet spot for this rod. Usually takes 1-2 weeks. Since our Hot Butt leaders use the same basic formula as our Clear Butt leaders I often use the Hot Butt leaders, even for fishing dry flies. The cork handle is a Steve Rajeff design; a half wells but with the swell slightly larger towards the front of the grip, and smaller back where the heel of your hand rests. When I first started casting this rod I was sure it would be close to the top of the presentation rods but it was simply not as accurate as the SKY G or NRX+ LP in close and seemed to run out of gas at long range. The quality of epoxy coatings on the guide wraps was excellent and almost the equal of the T&T rods. This year we increased to 20 the points available at 70 feet, for both the Presentation and Power 5-weight rods. It was very light in swing weight, and quite accurate in close, but it just didn’t have much feel in close like the best rods. If you want to economize, in the presentation rods the Hardy Shadow is our best mid-priced rod at $359.95. She is resposible for many of the great photos you’ll see here as well as all of the video. Alignment dots are helpful and T&T puts the serial number on each section, which helps you to keep from mixing sections if you have multiple T&T rods of different weights. The best Presentation Rods as well as the best power rods need to score 19.5 points or better here to be in contention for top honors. For those anglers that like fast action rods with more power, (for fishing at longer distances or in windy conditions), the G. Loomis Asquith, the T&T Avantt, and the Scott Radian are good choices. I love the way this rod tracks and the accuracy is good too. Sure, the best rods are generally in the higher price bracket, and are usually worth spending the extra dough, even if you have to save up to buy the one you really want. Of the two TFO Finesse rods, I like this 7’9” rod as a 4-weight a whole lot better than the longer 8’9” model. R.L. So we did our testing without any appreciable wind. Keep in mind that what you will read here are only our opinions. Sage could improve the MOD’s swing weight by using the more expensive nickel/titanium guides instead. The quality of the standard size cork rings was excellent. Feels good in my hand, and I’m able to cast well off the tip. George Anderson: George is the general manager and owner of the Yellowstone Angler here in Livingston, Montana. The stiffer tip didn’t allow for much feel or accuracy. On the other hand we have found the Asquith rods to be one of the toughest and most durable rods we’ve ever sold. The rest of the guides are hard chrome snake guides that we have found to be inferior to the flexible nickel/titanium guides. Rods are repaired or replaced. The overall results charts show you the various categories we scored the rods at. But even with the lighter line, the accuracy was not very good. I’m impressed with the guide set up, starting with a hook keeper, then one SiC stripping guide, followed with the best nickel/titanium and flexible single-foot guides as on the Zephrus and Sky. The presentations are light and delicate. This makes for a very comfortable grip that improves casting at longer distances. Here’s a category that we used in our last 4-weight Shootout, that we deemed important when you are trying to judge the best 4-weight rods, that will often be used with very light 5x, 6x, and 7x tippets. The 8 foot Pure had a much stiffer butt and mid-section and a soft tip that is much softer than what we found on the Nimbus. I’m not the only angler who loves the new Clearwater. So, often the cheap outfit is mothballed, sold on e-bay or handed down to one of the kids. Usually takes 1-2 weeks. With all that has been written about its introduction to replace … At 25 feet it was very accurate, but I didn’t have quite the feel I experienced with the SKY G. The NRX + LP is a good looking rod, finished in a deep olive brown with darker olive brown wraps, trimmed in light gray on the butt. I’m impressed at how tight my loops are, giving me great accuracy. They use a stack of thin diameter cork rings and the quality of the cork was good. Now it tracks perfectly and I’m getting nice tight loops. For the lighter rods, we used their Amplitude Smooth Trout. The stiffer tip is not giving me any feel and the accuracy is terrible. 3. The Power Rods in this Shootout that gave me the best long distance performance were the G. Loomis Asquith, the G. Loomis NRX+, the T & T Avantt, and the Scott Radian. If the rod is broken because of a defect, or while fishing, replacement is free. It is important for any fly line to shoot well, and even “clear well,” when you have extra line at your feet and a fish is streaking for the horizon. Return shipping fee: Continental US $27.00 flat rate. He has been a very important and integral part of our Shootouts and tackle comparisons over the years. If Fenwick determines that there was a defect, the rod will be repaired or replaced at no charge. The new SKY G rods are composed using G-Tec platelets. Even with the lighter Trout line, it is hard to maintain good loops and get any kind of decent accuracy. Loop gives us their new and unusual 7X, a rod built with a seven-sided, heptagonal blank for increased durability and performance. Knowing the new NRX+ is even tougher than the old one is very good news. The Hardy Shadow, at $359.95 was our best mid-priced rod in the Presentation group. The fancy burl wood insert just jumps out at you with its striking color – lots of red and orange mixed in – very attractive. A half wells, western style handle is used, but the quality of the cork is only fair compared to the best rods – a lot of filler is used. I think the stiffer tip hurt here. Rod is repaired, or sections replaced. The T&T Avantt finishes 4th again, with the Orvis Helios 3D right behind it in 5th. It is also a lot heavier in overall weight and swing weight, mainly due to the fact that Loop is using a much lower modulus graphite than in their more expensive K2. Usually takes 2-4 weeks. We’ve found that fluctuating temperature and humidity from one day to the next can make a difference of .2-.3 ounces. St. Croix – Lifetime warranty to original owner, $85 handling fee. 5-weight fly rods have become the single quiver rod for many freshwater anglers. In addition to my comments in the main Shootout, you’ll want to read the comments from Jamie and our other Yellowstone Angler staff members, Logan Brown, Francis Clougherty and Chloe Nostrant. Galvan uses a counterbalance so that the reel runs perfectly smoothly when a big fish is smoking away from you. The accuracy suffers too. A good 4-weight rod must be more than just a dry fly rod though, and the best 4-weights are wonderful rods to use fishing nymphs at shorter distances, and are also capable of pitching smaller streamers when conditions dictate such vile and desperate moves in order to catch fish. The ability to throw very tight loops gives me surprisingly good accuracy out long. Nearly everyone is using one-coat epoxy coatings over the guide wraps now, but if they are not very carefully applied, they are often sloppy or add unnecessary weight. TFO FINESSE TROUT 8’9” #4 $229.95. The blank color is then the natural graphite gray with chocolate brown wraps, trimmed with lighter brown and orange on the butt. I’m confident that we can come up with the perfect rod or outfit that best fits your needs. Discussion. For most grips this will be at the midpoint in the swell, or the center of the grip. George Anderson and the staff at Yellowstone Angler put in tons of hours to review dozens of rods, all in the name of creating a list of the best fly rods currently available. First we try to determine what we felt were the best performing rods. The new SKY G is very quick to dampen and is very sensitive. We can attribute this to the use of one-coat finish rather than multiple coats as seen on the T&T rods. I’m getting effortless tight loops, and I had complete confidence on where the fly was going on every cast. One thing we have tried to do with our Shootouts over the years is to cut through the massive amount of marketing BS we see coming from the manufacturers, and give you our honest opinions about their products. The Ultralite has a proportionally stiffer tip than the Zephrus, and much softer butt and mid section. I’m having trouble getting good tight loops and the accuracy was not nearly as good as with the best rods. Hardy ZEPHRUS ULTRALITE 8’9” #4 $679.95. In this Shootout, we again used the Scientific Anglers lines, which we have found to cast better and last longer than other brands. I think the medium-fast action and softer tip are just about perfect. Performance at 25 feet: 17.5 points out of 20. This is a classy reel seat, which is much better looking than some of the anodized aluminum insert seats. The cork handle is too thin, (for most anglers). The new NRX+ LP does have a slightly stiffer tip than the old NRX LP, as you’ll see in the deflection charts. In the past we have used the Scientific Anglers lines since they shoot better and hold up longer than any other line we have found. The best thing about the Air is its appearance and craftsmanship. Using a rod that will dramatically reduce the number of break-offs makes a lot of sense. Nothing I’ve cast yet is better in terms of feel and accuracy from in close right out to 40 feet. The reel seat is a gray anodized skeleton seat with a band and large single ring that is easy to grip and tighten securely. However, as you’ll see in the Performance Only scores, it finished much higher – in 12th place. A New Format for Our 5-weight Shootout 5-weight fly rods are the most popular and versatile of all fly rods for freshwater anglers. The reel seat is a black anodized, single uplocking skeleton seat with a dark wood insert. I like the action, which is medium fast. Yellowstone Angler Shootout. Both feel and accuracy are poor. 46 comments. $25 handling fee on current rods. Then it will cast and perform much better. The perfect line: SA Amplitude Smooth Trout in WF-4-F. Matches the Zephrus in close in terms of casting accuracy and feel. We are continually impressed at how much rod building craftsmanship has improved over the years. Will they make you a better angler? Fenwick came up with a new and very light rod, their Fenlite Streamflex, to complement their outstanding, inexpensive Aetos. If you like more medium action rods though, you will love the Paradigm. Rods are repaired, not replaced except for broken sections. A 3-weight fly rod can be great fun on windless days, but those days seem to be rare. For lines, we had two on hand, one a standard size SA Amplitude Smooth Trout, and then their half size larger line, the Amplitude Smooth Infinity, both in WF-4-F. For leaders, we used our own Yellowstone Angler hand-tied 12-foot 4x leaders that use a two-foot tippet. The DXF has been one of our top mid-priced rods, but there was no denying the Hardy Shadow and Orvis Recon were better. Just take a photo of the sections, showing the broken section (s) and Douglas will ship you a replacement section within a week. When you pick up this rod, you’ll first notice how light it is in swing weight. backing and fly line. But if you look at just the three distance performance scores, it would have finished below the top dozen rods! The best rods in our Shootout can handle this distance with ease, and are actually capable of casting much farther in an expert caster’s hands. Then we progressed to the mid-priced rods and finally the least expensive rods. Sometimes the whole rod is replaced. As long as there wasn’t much wind I could easily hit 60 feet but accuracy suffered. This same Expeditor service applies to the Asquith but the fee is $275 for 2nd day air. The best rods will throw very tight loops at this range with consistently good accuracy. The rings should be easy to grip and tighten and the best ones often use thin nylon spacers between them to assure a positive lock up. The guides start with a hook keeper on the butt, then a single SiC stripping guide, followed with hard chrome single foot guides that seem sturdy enough, but are not nearly as good (or as light) as the nickel/titanium single foot guides used on the NRX LP. We deleted our “Perfect 4” performance category, since it seemed redundant, given the fact that we give you our opinions for our favorite 4-weights in the “Fun to Fish, got to have” category. This can be a huge help if you have multiple rods and the sections get mixed up. We also kept on hand for a quick comparison what we felt was the #1 rod in each performance category – the Douglas Sky in the presentation rods and the Loomis NRX+ in the power rods. But will they make you a better angler? To get a 10, repair charges had to be $35 or less with a quick turn around time of less than two weeks. The Orvis RECON, at $429 wasn’t far behind! The epoxy coatings over the wraps are nicely done, and I especially like the fact that they inscribe the rod length and weight on the bottom wrap of each section. I was getting decent feel in close but accuracy was not that great. Unfortunately, Mother Nature rarely cooperates in that respect. Like the Avantt, each section is inscribed with the serial number of the rod so that you can avoid mixing up sections if you have similar rods. When I first picked the rod up, the overall weight was good but then when I wiggled the rod in my hand, I could see that the swing weight was heavier than almost all of the other 4-weight rods. Non-original owner $150 per section. But the Avantt and Helios 3F are far better. The SKY G was far better in both feel and accuracy. With your support we can continue to give you more Shootouts and head to head comparisons on tackle and equipment in the future. I wish that we could have tested an 8’6” Aetos, but this rod is only available in an 8 foot #4. $25 handling fee. The cork handle is a more conventional western style grip than found on their Radian, with a flare on the back to accept the black anodized single uplocking seat that utilizes a brown graphite insert. If Fenwick determines that there was a defect, the rod will be repaired or replaced at no charge. It is silky smooth with better dampening and better tracking ability than any other rods in the Shootout. This helps me to easily fine tune the exact amount of drag needed while fishing very light tippets, something that is tough to do with other small reels. At one point it was our “Best inexpensive rod” until the Fenwick Aetos muscled it aside. The quality of the cork in the handles varies enormously among fly rods. Loop – Lifetime warranty to original owner. The feel is perhaps not quite as good, but the accuracy is excellent. See why the G. Loomis NRX LP 9'#5 weight has won four consecutive 5 weight shootouts! At long range, things are starting to fall apart. The thinner cork handle may actually be an advantage for some anglers, especially children or women with smaller hands. Once Fred understood what we liked in a 5-weight rod he changed the mandrels around which the rod is formed, as well as making changes to the materials and resins used. Just about any rod can turn over a 9-foot leader, but only the best casting rods can turn over a 12 footer at short distances. A lot heavier in hand than the Pure, and the stiffer tip is not giving me much feel. For the price, it can’t be beat. The guide wraps are a dark green to complement the rod. If they can do that, the accuracy is almost always excellent. This is especially important for 3 and 4-weight rods, when you are often using very light 5X, 6x and 7X tippets while fishing small dries, emergers and spinners. The rods with more backbone and the ability to mend line well get the best scores here. Shipping is from their US warehouse, usually takes 2 weeks. & George Anderson is talking about accuracy at distance? They need to be soft enough in the tip to handle 6X and even 7X tippets with ease. This rod’s ability to track perfectly is on fire here. Fun to Fish/Got to Have – 10 points available. These Galvan reels also have a wider range of drag adjustment than other reels, making it easy to fine-tune the drag adjustment, which is important when you are using light tippets like 6X and 7X. The T-8 scored well in nearly every category, and was an … Nice and smooth but noticeably heavier in swing weight than the Recon and Shadow and not nearly as accurate. save. You can evaluate which categories, such as price, are critical to you when selecting a new rod. It’s always fun to cast and compare rods, and we carry most of these rods listed. If more than one section is broken, the fee is $35 extra per section. Only out long did I feel at a disadvantage to the best rods and I think part of this was due to the lighter Trout line. If you find yourself fishing more hoppers and larger dries, you will like this rod as it will really fire them in there with authority. 90% of the dry fly fishing I do is at distances from 25-45 feet. Fenwick– Lifetime warranty. He didn’t want to get more specific and give away their secrets, but these changes allow Douglas to build the new SKY G with less material, resulting in a much lighter and stronger rod. Good, just not nearly as precise but the Zephrus and Pure. We decided it was time for another 4-weight Shootout, since a great 4-weight rod is hard to beat for the angler that loves to fish smaller dry flies. The DXF was better and the Shadow was far better. One has to keep in mind that the Yellowstone Anglers Shootouts are purely casting contests with tiny fly material. Once we determine how the rods perform at the various distances and compile these point values, we then add in points earned from all the other categories to determine the final finishing order. Since it is a lot shorter than my preferred 8 ½ foot #4, it ran up some high scores in both overall weight and swing weight. But they should also be able to easily form the more open loops you’ll want fishing nymphs. Performance at 40 feet: 19.0 points out of 20. #16. I love the lightness of this rod but a softer tip would have given me better accuracy in close. This was ideal for casting, especially at the shorter distances. Anglers use 5-weight fly rods not just for trout, but also for bass, bluegills, perch, whitefish, carp and even catfish! But we are seeing some terrific rods in both performance and craftsmanship coming from Korea. Expensive rods do have that wow factor that will impress your fishing buddies. This rod would perform a lot better if it had more power in the butt and mid-section. All of us were excited to see the new G. Loomis NRX+ trout rods; especially since their outstanding predecessor the NRX LP won “top spot” in our last three consecutive 5-weight Shootouts. Hardy is using their best Sintrix 440 graphite in this rod, also used in the Zephrus. #16. The wraps are dark blue to match the blank and the epoxy coatings are excellent. The skeleton uplocking seat is one of the most unusual I’ve seen. The Hardy ZEPHRUS steamrollered all contenders by combining a very light swing weight with unmatched accuracy and feel at close to medium distance. Mystic Reaper X 8’6” #4 $299.00. Long distance was hopeless. The epoxy coatings were a bit too heavy though, not nearly as nice as what we see on the Hardy rods. I thought the larger, wider single ring on the Helios 3F was much easier to grip and seemed to lock up better. To read their comments, simply click on their photo above at the beginning of our Shootout. The locking ring is easy to grip, but I’d prefer a double ring seat as this one looks like it will loosen up more easily than most. I do like the faster action and softer tip, but the Air didn’t seem to track as well as the top presentation rods. What gives? This is a comfortable grip and the quality of the cork is superb. The uplocking skeleton seat is anodized in a dark gray to complement the blank with a beautiful piece of black ash burl for the insert. Take tricky undulating currents, and then add in a little wind, and getting a fly right in the fish’s window with that drag-free drift becomes quite the challenging task. The butt and mid-sections flex pretty much the same with slight differences in stiffness. For 4-weight rods, when you are fishing at shorter distances, (most of the time), it is particularly important that leaders turn over well. Although their comments will differ slightly from mine, you will see that we all drew the same basic conclusions as to which were the top rods and how they finished. Of course it is six inches shorter too. The quality of cork is pretty good, but not in the same class as Avantt. The Cork handle is a full wells design that is slightly smaller where your thumb would rest, ahead of the swell in the middle of the handle. Usually takes 2-4 weeks. If you look at the first deflection chart that shows the NRX LP with the SKY G you’ll see how similarly these rods deflect; this was very evident when we cast the rods out on the lawn. Any of the great photos you ’ ll find these on our Angler! Smaller streamers t excellence, even at long range the size is noted too delightful rod to warranty! Handsome rod with good butt power would help here but still nothing to home... Best I ’ m getting nice tight loops 2016 Yellowstone Angler did of... 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