Hi folks,

Been off flyfishing for quite some time now, due to a bit of illness..and unfortunately like an idiot sold most of my gear when i thought that my fly fishing days were over.

But now i am a whole heap better.. and am really looking forward to getting back at the waters edge.

My query is this.

I have always used rods of 7/8wt and 9' 6", but now I want a light weight rod and reel, and have been thinking about an 8' 6" four weight.

I will be fishing mainly a stillwater fishery in North Yorkshire, and wonder what the feeling is about using maybe a 4wt rod of this size when i know there are regular fish 3 to 6lb coming out of there and the record recently went with, i believe a 13lb fish.

I still have my old 7wt Nicholas Whipp rod if i need it, but its a bit heavy for me now.

Budget is a bit limited now, so i need to keep the cost of rod and reel under about £150 - £200.

So any thoughts/recommendations please would be very much appreciated.

Thanks a lot folks,

Cheers for now
Keith

PS Sorry but i think i have put this in the wrong place.. so Mods please move it if you want to.. thank you.

I think the best all round stillwater rod weight is a 6wt for most situations, other would likely say a 7wt and I can see the merits of a 7wt.

I would not choose a 8ft 6" 4wt as my primary stillwater rod. I would say 5wt minimum. I have been using a Greys g-tec 9ft 5wt for a lot of my fishing over the last month or so but when its a little more windy and/or I need more distance I have being using an Atomsix 9ft 6wt with a Rio Grand 6wt line.

9ft 5wt or 6wt for me. But would lean towards a 6wt for all round fishing.

Yes i would tend to agree that a #4 is a bit light,as gar73 has said go for a #5 but if the stillwater that you are going to fish is prone to being windy i would go for a #6 or #7 and as for length well i use a 10ft for the boat and for the bank i use 9ft.As for rod recommendations i think rod selection is a personal choice as for reels sunkisbob on here is selling some very nice reels[i know,i have just bought one]best of luck.

Go for it Keith.I know several who have turned to the lighter outfits due to similar reasoning and enjoying their fishing again.Think 8'6" is a little short especially if your agility is maybe not what it once was.Bloke XL50 9ft 4wt if you can find one has plenty of grunt if you need it might not break the bank.If you just plan on fishing nymphs and dries with a floating line you will enjoy.Good luck on your quest.Ony word of friendly advice is just because you are using a 4wt rod do not use a tippet which is too light for the fish you mentioned.

gar73 not trying to be in your face because you are not wrong just another angle for folks who are struggling for one reason or another.

JP

Firstly Keith, I am glad to hear you are well enough to go fishing again, I have recently done a similar thing to you, as I just found using a 9.6ft #7 all day was doing my arm in.
I now use a 9ft #5 as my rod for stillwater work, and to date it has proved very successful, landing many fish of 4 to 5 lbs at Tinto lochs.
I mainly fish rivers, so it's just a few times a year when I fish stillwaters, but as said, the 9ft #5 covers it all for me, and it's far more relaxing IMO.
An 8.6ft is a bit under gunned I think.
Steven.

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"A glint of sun has warmed the air,The flies will soon hatch out, To lure and tempt from their deep lair, The bonnie speckled trout." SKB tackle supporter. I love Furled Leaders.

Thank you all for the advice.. very useful for me.

I thought that the shorter rod might be a bit too far to go...

It looks like a 9' 4 or 5 wt would probably be best for lake fishing, so will take a look round the sites for any decent buys.

I already have been looking and the Vision Atom seems to be a decent rod, and so does the Sonik 3 and the wychwood. Will also take a look at the bloke 4wt.

Thanks again, and if you have any more advice please don't hesitate to give it. Also any information or recommendations about a decent reel for these rods?

Cheers folks

Keith

Hi, just read your post,
redington now do a fantastic range of rods called the pursuit series and rs4 and they do them in a 9' 5# 4 piece,I personally own one and they are fast action accurate very light offer a full lifetime warranty (sage influence I think!!) they cost £99.99 and £149.99 respectively their isn't a bought new rod on the market that can match these rods for price and quality,and for a real,vision do the vision 'koma' at £69.99 or the vision 'deep' at £50 and are both one of the best very powerful but smooth reels on the market they like the redington rods are a true quality bargain offering very high priced gear to the new starter and experienced angler at low prices,you can also easily pick up the koma reel used for around £25-40 on the forums regularly,I hope this helps and you enjoy your fishing once more!! Luke.

Not a problem I am looking at a 9ft 4wt for some stillwater fishing but I would not rely on it as my primary goto rod for all occasions. I would fall onto a 5 or 6wt. I am fortunate I have a 5wt, 2 6wts, 3 7wts and a 7/8wt. Lots of bargains out there Garry Evans might even have x-flites in 5wts.

You got your health back which makes everything else secondary.

Six weight - 9'6"

Good to hear your health is better.

I use a sonic 3 its a 9' 5/6# and i love it. Plenty strong enough I've landed fish to 14lb on it and it didn't feel under gunned. Yet its delicate enough for dry fly too. Plenty of combo deals on this rod all over the market

hope you get what you like and enjoy your fishing again