Opinions on fly rods needed

[Outdoorsman70]

Thinking of buying a 6w and 4w Greys GRXI+ rods. Has anyone used them?? Are they a fast or medium fast rod?. Just getting back into fly fishing after starting it about 18 years ago and could use the opinions. Have also looked at some TFO's and St. Croix Imperials to start out with.

Is a fast rod to much to start out with or should I just jump in and learn on the fast rods built today
Could use the opinions. I don't mind spending on good quality but lets say is a Hardys too much for a beginner??

[shaneo]

Depending on what type of fly fishing you are going to be doing will dictate what speed of rod will work better for someone starting out. I slower rod will make casting weighted indicator rigs a bit easier, and a faster rod will make zipping a small dry out effortless. That said, you can get away with both tactics with either rod, you just have to adjust your cast style. If you know you will be doing one type of fishing more than another, you can make a choice accordingly. If you want to 'do it all', I recommend a medium fast.

One other suggestion I might make is to choose a 5 and 7 weight. This will offer a far wider range of versatility. The 7 will usually have a fighting butt, allowing for much greater control over larger fish and an easier time tossing weighted streams. Great for big bass and steelhead. The 5 will do everything the 4 will as far as finesse, but also allow you to switch up to streamers from dry fly a bit easier in a trout steam. My preference after trying rods from 2-9wt is a 5 7 9wt split. And 2 for fun, but I rarely use that.

I started out with the SC Imperial, and while its an all-right rod, I don't think it has as much value for the $$ as some others on the market from newer companies with less of a name. I cant say much about the Greys as I have not used one, however I have fished the TFO and found good value in the Left Kreh Pro Series. The rod offered solid backbone when fighting large fish and the casting distance was great too. I also really like the value of the Amundson Top Fly. For its price point, it is a very well rounded rod, well put together and very sharp looking. Great distance and solid hook setting power. They are offering a lot more for you $$ than some of the lower end, over prices BIG name rods. They may still have the rod and reel combo which is what I used. Great set up.

Hope that helps you out a bit.

[Outdoorsman70]

Thanks for the input. I've been looking at everything from a Sage Approach, Hardy Sintrix, Various Greys and St Croixs. The Hardy is expnsive and would maybe be my dream rod so maybe I'm better off paying more high end up front and starting to learn again with the high end instead of buying three less expensive rods.......Not sure lol. I was just at a store today and I believe the Sage Approach is a medium fast and the Hardy Sintrix a fast. Hard to justify spending 3 to 5 bills on a fly rod but ....GRRR....not sure .
I have taken your advice though and am now thinking the 5w. I did already purchase a 8w for bass and maybe some steelhead in the Ganny. After I bought the 8w I regretted it as I think it is overkill maybe for these parts. Mainly I want to do some early season steelhead in the L Ontario tributaries and some speckled trout fishing up north were there are some nice size rivers and smaller creeks. Also some Algonquin Park Speckled trout. I guess the five would handle most all of that and maybe a short 3w for the smaller creeks. So many options. I did have in my hand today a Greys 6.5 foot 2w. Felt nice but I'm guessing only on a very calm day.

[J-Kill]

i have a 5 wt (a cheap 150$ bass pro model), i've landed 6 inch specks up to 14 lbs chinooks on it, along with more bass than i can count. if i buy another rod it will be a 6 wt

[spoonplugger]

I have 4 grxi rods from greys, they are awesome rods to cast, moderate tips cast well, load well, shoot line like a rocket on a forward haul,cant beat the quality for the price.GRXI rods are great beginner rods to learn to cast with, a fast tip hardy is a great rod once you have a few seasons of casting under your belt.If you are just getting started you cant go wrong with the grxi series 5 through 8 weight.

[dabam]

I don't think that you can go wrong with Temple Fork but as with everything to do with fly fishing its about the feel. I would never buy a rod without testing it out to some degree. Any shop selling fly gear (worth its salt) will let you play with it first before buying.

[screener]

Two of my most used rods are the Hardy Sintrex a 4 pc 4 wt. and a sage 4wt 2pc Mod 490.Both are 9 ft.I also have St.Crox"s Lamaglass,Fenwick GX"s,all brand names are good performers.Depends on what are you fishing for,What style you are going to fish, dries streamers nymphms.Each will do a good job but some will do it alittle better.

[JBen]

As others have said. Allow the waters, species to decide. Easiest way to think of it is K.I.S.S.
The heavier, bulkier the fly, the heavier your line needs to be. At its simplest, a foam popper is easier to cast than a hair popper. Wind/air also factor in. So it's not about the the fish, it's about the fly. 10wts aren't for big Musky because it's Musky, it's about throwing wind resistant big streamers and the line needed to do that.

Can you fish for and catch Steelhead on our tribs with a 5wt. Yep, no reason you can't. But a 7-8wt is far better suited. As a couple others have suggested, a 4-5wt and a 7-8wt. Will give you a combo you can use for pretty much everything in Ontario.

Brands, specifics.
Better rods will cast better, the actions, really boil down to your casting technique and the rod loading. At its simplest, a change in your timing. Me personally, I prefer fast over slow.
Another way to describe that.

There's a world of difference between my Loop 4wt, and my Bamboo 4wt. If I'm going to Nymph the Grand, I'd grab the Loop. If I wanted to spend a day chucking #20 dries and laying down the leader gently, the Bamboo. But if you want to experience slow.......try bamboo.

[swampsinger]

You asked f