i got a 5/7 weight rod and a 6/7 reel and 6 line .. not sure if it is just me but today whilst practicing casting the line felt quite heavy for the rod , would a 5 weight be better ?


billy

Is the line a DT or WF.
In reality there is no reason for the line to be too heavy for the rod unless the line or the rod are wrongly rated.
Even with a DT6 you should not be feeling that it is ''too heavy'' for the rod.
Jim

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The line is WF .. The tip of the rod bends quite easily with the line running through it .. is there much difference between a 6 and a 5 weight .. im comfortable with a rod in hand as i do plenty of fishing so it's not a case of not used to holding rods..

hard to explain , just didn't feel balanced if that's not a strange thing to say .. as if i was having to give it some grunt to get it any distance

could it be that the physical weight [ounces] of the reel is a bit heavy for the rod,quick way to find out,set your rod and reel up, now were the cork joins the rod try to balance the whole set up on your finger it should balance on the last part of the cork handle just before it meets the rod itself hope that helps

i have to have my finger about 2.5 inches in front of the cork for it to balance.. this is all cheapo stuff off e bay so it's not an expensive rod/reel by any means..

it may just be a case of it all being new to me , holding course rods is one thing and casting a fly another ..

You have to use loads of ''grunt'' because the rod is not being loaded.You need someone who is a competent caster.to show you how its done.

I do not go along with the balance thing. but enough folk believe it for it to become an urban myth.


Jim

__________________
The Fishermans Friend is the Flirty Fly,Fickle Food for Fleeting Fish.

Hi Billy

It is just possible that the rod may be a slightly "soft" model and therefore will seem to be bending under the weight of the line when you are standing with the rod out in front of you before you cast.

You may also have a lot of line out throught the rings before you start your cast?


It is largely important for a new starter to seek the advice and instruction of an instructor. The importance of this cannot be stressed enough as it really does make it easier quicker to get the basics of casting ingrained.

You dont want to be like me who took years to self-teach yourself

Starting fly fishing in SA where instructors were very few and far between and far too expensive for this lil ol' Saffa. Luckily, by the time I arrived here over 10yrs ago, I had become a little more competant.


I hope you manage to get this sorted. Please keep us updated on your progress


Best of luck


Ben

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hmm interesting!

I'll say first up that I am very much still in the beginner camp with fly fishing, but "balance" is something I know a fair bit about, and I trust Jims opinion.

as I read horses comment I was thinking "oh no not again!"

The idea that the "balance" of something can be demonstrated by where it balances along it's length is at best too simplistic, at worst completely misleading.

The problem is the word has 2 different meanings
balance - literally the point on which it balances
"balance" - the partly subjective feeling of how easy or comfortable it is to move the object around in the way it was designed to be used.

The 2 aren't closely related.

I make wooden swords and restore antique ones - a field in which "balance" is extremely important.
you can have 2 swords with the same point of balance that have completely different "balance", or 2 that feel similarly "balanced" with completely different points of balance!
"balance" is down to things like distribution of weight and centre of rotation.

I have seen people talking about the "balance" of swords by comparing the pob and also a guy selling an open razor showing how well "balanced" it was with a pic of it balanced on his finger. So the misunderstanding is fairly common.

a bit off topic there and not actually much help with your problem but don't worry too much where the pob on your rod is, is what I was getting at

You really need an experienced caster to look at your set-up. A #6 line should not feel too heavy on a #5-#7 rod. Perhaps it's because you're not used to casting a fly and have not got your technique right. Casting lessons would be a good idea.

As to the urban myth. Purely from a logical, engineering point of view. Your wrist acts as a fulcrum so a having a balanced reel makes sense and will actually feel lighter and more comfortable to use - ask any engineer.

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Will captivate a greedy mind - Isaac Walton.

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changing the reel will change the "balance" and also the pob, it is changing the "balance" that will make a difference. As an engineer I'm sure you understand the concept of centre of rotation, which is more important in a moving object than pob
Fine tuning the "balance" of a setup is probably something for expert fishers.
He isn't using a #2-3 reel so the chances are the "balance" is in the right ballpark and isn't what needs adjusted.