absolutely. in fact, some 8's are actually 10's and some 9's are actually 8's. some 7's are actually 8's or even 9's. rodmakers are really unfair to consumers about this. it's a mess. plus there's the issue of personal casting stroke differences and what you're trying to accomplish. i have a personal example:

the tfo 7wt axiom casts a perfectly fine 7wt line in dt or wf. it's a true 7wt. however, when i fish 8wt lines the 7wt axiom is still my primary rod...even with saltwater and sink-tip lines. in a really stiff breeze or a heavy sinking line or shooting head, i switch to the tfo 7wt or 8wt ticrx, which i will also use with a 9wt line and my 8wt airflo 40+ expert.

Sooooo, in other words, they'll both work just fine. Go with what you're comfortable with, feed the rod a line it likes, and go catch fish.

that's pretty much what it ends up boiling down to. i take the line weight designation on a rod as a "suggestion" from the mfg as a place to start playing with it.

This is why it's better to answer the "which weight" question based on the line rather than the rod (since rods don't abide by any standards at all). The line is the determining factor for the size of flies, amount of wind, etc. What a person ends up casting that line with can vary.

yes, but the question was which rod: 8 or 9 wt echo 2?

i got an 8 wt loomis crosscurrent for salt. im getting an extra spool to load with bass line to throw big bugs. i had a 7 wt and it was a little too light for the bay and sometimes too light for big bugs. i now have a 5, 7 and 8 wt, plan on probably selling the 7 later on

Great choice on the crosscurrent. Great rods.

And I know lots of folks think the 7 is an odd weight but I think that's why I like it. It's on the edge of both worlds: it's a heavy trout rod and a light SW rod. Perfect for most bass fishing. I like mine for carp too because it casts like most 6wts and it doesn't hurt to be able to muscle a carp. Hmmm that gets me to thinking. Maybe I should look into one of them specialty rods like the Predator.

I vote for my 8wt Clouser (no A in Bob's name) from TFO...but I think I'm gonna like my new TFO Deer Creek 9/10 15 ft Spey rod. It can be casted overhead like a one handed rod or Spey with all the sweeping, etc. My distance is yet to be confirmed as I haven't bit the bullet for a reel and multiple spools. I'll load it with Rio Spey and Rip Skagit, Cheaters and the new Rio MOW Tips. I'm sure my casting will suck, but I'm gonna learn this thing if it kills me (and I hope it doesn't !!!!)

On topic - the Crosscurrent is a great rod. If anyone wants one, we do have a nice 8wt in the shop that would make a great addition to someone's collection.

I have a 11'9" 7 wt custon, built on a Talon blank that I used for steelhead. I'm thinking it might make a decent back bay, flats rod. It's a little much for bass in fw, but I'm thinking specks & reds in sw.

That rod would work nicely on the Red River, below Denison Dam...reach out and touch those stripers out in the River... ;-)