I have my choice, about to buy a nice rod(echo 2). What would you choose for a lot of surf fishing, with some back bay and skinny water fishing.

ill vote for an 8wt

I'll vote for the 9 wt to handle always present windy conditions.

Mostly surf and the occassional back bay/flats work?

9 weight all the way if you're only going with a 1-handed rod. But you may want to take a look at the TFO TiCrX 8wt and the Conversion Kit that turns it into a switch rod. That would give the perfect rig for both overhead 2-handed fly fishing in the surf and back bay/flats work in the Texas breezes.

Rajeff makes a good rod, though.

Start with an 8wt and then get a 10 or 11wt.
A 9wt is a little heavy for bay fishing....especially if you are blind casting, and a little light for surf / jetty big fish action.

I use an 8 wt TFO clauser, and im very pleased with it

and honestly if the wind isnt just cranking im throwing my 6wt

In general, I would go with a 9wt...but depends on your overall rod inventory. If you have a 7wt, then definitely a 9wt....if you currently have a 6wt, then I'd probably go 8wt and then 10 wt.

If this is the only one, then for sure go with 9wt for the versatility.

I love this discussion because it presents the difference between fresh and salt fly fishing. 9 weight as middle rod is a word away from the usual freshwater 6 weight as mid point.

Not for me Robin - 9 wt is my "mid-point" flyrod for Texoma stripers ...

LOL! We need to get you a gunfighter logo - George "Load to Shoot" Glazener

Robin,

You will find that this varies geographically depending upon the type of fishing, predominant weather patterns, etc.

In freshwater fly fishing, you will find large regions where the 4wt is considered "typical" or "medium weight," others where it is the 7wt. In my travels I've found everything in that range to be "middle of the road."

In saltwater, it really depends on where you are! I said 9wt here because he said "mostly surf fishing..." You buy a rod for what you do the most of, not what you'll use it for occassionally. That occassional use may have knocked him down from a 10wt to a 9wt, but that's it. Along the Gulf Coast, I consider the 8wt to be the mid-point. A 9wt is usually considerably "bigger" than an 8wt, while it's usually hard to tell the difference between many 8's and 7's. When you head to the outer bank, you start moving up the ladder until you're chasing sailfish off-shore with a 14wt. And many people catch bonefish and other smaller saltwater in-shore species on 6wt's. I even know a couple of guys who chase mullet and stuff with 4wt's. It's all about the line/leader/fly size you'll be fishing and how much rod it takes to control it. So you have to factor in wind resistance, avg casting distance, sight fishing vs blind casting, floating vs sinking lines, etc. And all of these things change as to what is the "norm" as you move around the Big Blue Marble.

YEP!

Then there's the fact that all 8's, 9's and 10's aren't exactly the same. Get yer' double haul out!

AMEN brotha!