Watch these, this man is the best in the business. Get out in the yard and imitate what he does. Fly casting is very much about feel, so keep practicing. If you have an Iphone Lefty also has an app for casting. Good luck and keep at it.

Hey bonsai wax on wax off and you will have the best cast ever! That is semi serious. In all actuality where are you in dfw I am in the south Fort Worth area. When ever you can get a chance let me know and we will go do some practical application of the basic cast. We can just find a general area I travel 4-10 hours a week or more to fish I am sure we can find a place. What kind of fishing are you accustomed to? In the whole wax on wax off side I can find a way to relate the things you are accustomed with to the things you want to learn. As far as equipment for someone starting out line and rod will make a big difference a five dollar reel with just a clicker and no drag will get you by. I am learning first hand my gf and I fished today and she was complaining about here arm hurting. I got her a bulky starter 5wt from a box store like you mentioned. So I switched with her she was wiping out cast with ease with me tfo and I was wondering how she got the fly out at all with hers. Lesson learned. So let me know we can work with what you have and you can get a feel for another set up as well. I don't want you to get discouraged and quit. I have been witness to some of the most breath taking places this country has to offer while fly fishing. All the while sleeping in a tent. I am sure I am not as good as a lot of guys on here,but I do know I can catch fish on a fly rod lol. So let me know and hopefully we can get you started on an art form it will take a lifetime to master. You said the flyfishing guys are a nice bunch so that's what I have to offer.

I appreciate all of the help. i think i have the basic over hand cast or what ever it is called. got a little frustrated today, so i stopped and came back to it later. today, i got my tippet around my main line and it cut into it in several places. kinda frustrating, but oh well. i have been trying to get my rolls or what ever they are called to be nice and tight. i have managed to get that down. i also did as lefty said and let the line roll out, instead of casting. what a difference.

so..now that i will have to replace my line soon, what should i look for?

also, how are Martin rods and reels? that is the brand i have, but i have never heard of it...granted, i fish spinning rods and bait-casters mostly. so is it good, meh, or take it back?

Bonzie, post a new post with "Newbie in ______ (exact location, ie: SW Arlington, Uptown, E Garland) looking for casting lessons.

and bring beer, preferable some of Bridgeport's Hop Czar IPA
cause it is just so good.

I�ll try to answer some of your questions.



First, how bad are the cuts and how close are they to the end of the line? If they are within a few feet of the end, you can often extend the life of a fly line by cutting off the bad section and retying the leader to the line. Casting on the grass and dirt is hard on a fly line, so it doesn�t hurt to keep an old line around for practicing.

As far as which new line to get, you�ll get a lot of differing opinions about brands and models that are different people�s favorites. But there are a lot of good choices out there and you can often find them on sale. My vote would be to get a 6 wt WF (weight forward) line. I don�t have a favorite brand.

A good quality line is critical in fly fishing, but there are a lot of mid-priced lines that are good options for a beginning fly caster such as Scientific Angler�s �Head start� line. Also, I think Cabela�s has some of their house brand fly lines on sale right now as part of their July 4th sale.



The Martin brand has been around forever primarily used on fly fishing reels. But these days, the brand is pretty much only used on lower cost introductory level equipment. Most Martin kits that I�ve seen are not heirloom quality equipment, but they will get started fishing. If your budget is tight, my vote would be to keep the setup, but replace the line as soon as possible. Then fish it for a while. If you like fly fishing, then upgrade the rod after you�ve learned more about fly fishing and you�ll be in a better position to pick a new rod that matches the way you like to fish. I�d replace the reel last, this one should last a while if only used in fresh water, but you�ll eventually want a better one.



The rolls are called �Loops�. A �tight� loop will have the rod leg and the fly leg nearly parallel in shape. An �open� loop will have a more round shape to the loop. The shape of the loop is determined by the path of the rod tip. Moving the rod tip in a straight line path will produce parallel loop legs which equals a tight loop. Moving the rod tip in an arc, similar to a clock hand or windshield wiper path, will produce an open loop.

At the rate you�re going, you�ll be thoroughly addicted before the weekend gets here, and there will be no hope for you after you catch your first fish on a fly rod.

the main line is cut pretty far from the end. i would just cut it off and retie, but that would waste a lot of line.

Normally for bass combos, i would replace the line immediately...but since i needed to learn to cast first, i kept it.


ill have to check around to find a good price and a good quality.

Bonsai, there's a chance that the store that sold this new combo to you will exchange the line, it wouldn't hurt to ask.

i could call and ask them. Whats the worst they could do? Thats a good idea, thanks.

Hey, Bonsai,
Amazon has the Aircell flylines for very little scratch. Like 16 to 20 bucks. I just picked one up for a rod I bought off of Pearow. You will have to put some kind of loop on the ends, but there's several options (and posts on the forum) about how to accomplish that. I just whip a loop on the end and seal the cut to keep it from wicking up water and sinking.

Kirk

So i took my rod back and got another one. i ended up with a pflueger combo. this one doesnt have a leader, or any flies with it. it is a 5/6 wt and is 9 feet. i was out casting it a little and that extra foot is taking a little to get used to. it takes a little more effort to get it swinging, but too much will casue the line to crack like a whip. I am not sure if the rod is much better, or if i think that it is. I casted with my 8foot rod and averaged 34 feet per cast. with this 9 foot rod (with no leader) i am getting about 41. so my cast distance is ok, not amazing but ok.

the reel has a drag system...which i am rather thrilled about since i am used to fighting fish on a bait caster with a drag. it has a clicker, which i cant turn off, a little annoying but I can live with it.

the rod seems a little slower, but maybe there is just more leverage because there is an extra foot on there.

so far, i like it. it will take a bit for me to get used to it, and slow down my casts a bit so i dont snap off the flies. i think that is everything...soo



Thanks, Bonsai.

9 foot is pretty much standard length for rods from 5 weight to 8 weight, you are going to find that the opinion of a "dime store pflueger" is not very high...I am fond of saying its harder to find a bad fly rod than a good one, but those are close. If you are serious about fly fishing look into one of the 3 forks rods from Cableas, White River from Bass Pro or a low end TFO any of those is going to be a better option...remember the most important part of a fly rig is the the rod & the line, the reel is only used to hold line (not fight a freshwater fish) you can also look into "How to cast" videos on you tube. I would work on accuracy & technique, distance will happen when those 2 are mastered.

I agree about the dime store rods not usually being up to par. but for a beginner, a combo that wasnt too exspensive is the best, IMO, way to get them to like a sport. I will definitely be sticking with it (for one, it is mesmerizing to watch the line whip back and forth..that may just be me though)

Do not cast without a leader tied on. It can damage the end of the fly line. At a minimum tie on 6ft or so of straight mono fishing line to the fly line.

Cable's is supposed to have all the rods Bass Bug mentioned on sale right now including a TFO Pro. I haven't look but they supposed to be listed online.

oops. well...i am going to get a leader and some flies tomorrow. that leads to another question: How do i choose flies? If it is the same as choosing a lure for bass then i will have a pretty good idea, but a few pointers would be greatly appreciated (or even pictures or links to pictures would be awesome)


Thanks, Bonsai.