Well, we’re pleased to tell you that Steve Rajeff, the G. Loomis head rod designer and famed tournament caster, worked his magic yet again! On my own 5-weight rods, I’m normally using a 12-foot leader, with tippets from 4x to 6x, fishing dry flies. Although their comments will differ slightly from mine, you will see that we all drew the same basic conclusions as to which were the top rods and how they finished. Taylor – Lifetime warranty to original owner. 1. At least they are fairly thin in diameter to keep the weight down. Rods are repaired, not replaced, except for broken sections. The rods with more backbone and the ability to mend line well get the best scores here. But will they make you a better angler? I think the medium-fast action and softer tip are just about perfect. Of the Helios 3 rods, this 3F (F standing for finesse) has a softer tip and is more suited to accurate, delicate presentations we are looking for in the presentation rods. It is silky smooth with better dampening and better tracking ability than any other rods in the Shootout. FLY LINE RECOMMENDATIONS a handy guide to help you get the most from your rod. Usually takes 2 weeks. A gorgeous amboyna burl wood insert is used to complete this attractive rod. Here is another very attractive rod that you’ll be proud to show off to your fishing friends. DXF Series Fly Rod: Not only did they earn the Best Midpriced Rod award from George Anderson’s Yellowstone Angler, Douglas’ DXF Fly Rods are finished with the highest-quality components. The standard sized cork rings were not nearly as high quality as we saw on the Hardy Zephrus. He and Chloe are also responsible for many of the great photographs you’ll find in our Shootouts. Magazine editors need to protect their advertising clients from any kind of negative publicity, not create it! As Steve explained it to me, the new graphite fiber is slightly higher in modulus but has a much higher strain rating. Including fly, float, spinning and casting rods. Yes, the craftsmanship is not quite as good as the other presentation rods, but what can you expect for under two hundred bucks? This was ideal for casting, especially at the shorter distances. Mid-range is the H3F’s best distance and here it is wonderful. A small hook keeper is used. Centralize your organization’s live and on-demand video, build secure viewing destinations, or monetize your video library. The reel seat is pretty drab for a rod in this price range, utilizing an anodized black aluminum up-lock seat with a synthetic gray insert – no fancy wood here. The Fenwick Aetos is still the best inexpensive rod at $199.95. The action is very similar to the Zephrus and is one reason this rod performs so well. The Shadow seems like it is running out of gas at this distance. I’ve often had a fish grab a halfway submerged fly in the surface film, when I haven’t been watching closely enough, and bolt off before I could react, snapping my 6x tippet. It gave me impressive feel and accuracy at all distances. picked up a SKY G 5wt at Crownest this spring. In the Presentation category, the NRX+ LP was amazing, but the Douglas Sky G and Helios 3F were not far behind. This is a fast action rod and the deflection profile is a lot like the SKY G, and NRX+ LP, with a slightly softer tip. Temple Fork Outfitters (TFO) – Lifetime warranty to original owner. You are familiar this term if you play golf. The Orvis Clearwater is our best inexpensive Power rod. Rods are repaired or replaced. This meant leaving out a lot of … Instead of a chart with all the rods, we are breaking this down into multiple charts for easier viewing. Rods that are light in overall weight and swing weight, and ones that have softer tips, eliminate a lot of break offs caused by an inadvertent heavy-handed hook set. We talked to Fred at length about the older Loomis LP and why we liked it so much. Knowing the new NRX+ is even tougher than the old one is very good news. But this also requires an angler to double-haul well and form good, tight back cast loops. One composite ring is used at the bottom for durability. In the power rods, the Fenwick Fenlite Streamflex at $339.95 is our mid-priced winner. A black anodized aluminum double up-locking reel seat is used, with an attractive piece of dark burled wood for the insert. The swing weight of the rod is the weight you feel out ahead of your hand, holding the rod horizontally. I’m having trouble getting good tight loops and the accuracy was not nearly as good as with the best rods. If you don’t count any of the newly-added sticks in my vintage rod collection, it’s been a long time since I picked up a new-to-me rod that elicited an honest wow. Next, holding the rod horizontally, we position the grip over the foam pellet so that the pellet is centered under the exact spot where you will most likely hold the rod. We usually set up the casting line so that the wind will be at our back and slightly off our left shoulder (we are all right handed casters). Anglers that are primarily indicator nymph fishing are better off with a slightly longer 5-weight like a 9 ½ or 10 footer, or even jumping up to a 6-weight rod in the same lengths. As you’ll soon read, our #1 rated rods in both the Presentation and Power categories, the Douglas Sky G, and the G. Loomis NRX+, sell for $795.00. Leaders are extremely important in obtaining accuracy, particularly ones that will turn over well at short distances with very little fly line in the air, especially at 25 feet. I’ve been in the fly-fishing business now for over fifty years, as a guide, fly shop manager and finally owner. backing and fly line. Sage introduced their new Trout LL, which won the award for the best Freshwater Fly rod at the 2019 ICAST show. But we were all impressed at how well the SKY G performed at 70 feet as well. A little waggle helps you to feel this. They use a stack of high quality cork rings but I’m seeing a little more filler than I found on the similar grips on the G. Loomis and Scott rods. All these changes result in rods that anglers are going to love. A more flexible tip would help a lot in close. Save big on sale items from Simms, Sitka, Patagonia and more! But the Radian is more of a power 5-weight and you’ll find that it places 2nd in our power rod final results. Crowsnest Cafe and Fly Shop is where I got my Douglas Sky 6 wt from, great people to deal with. If you want to economize, in the presentation rods the Hardy Shadow is our best mid-priced rod at $359.95. $35 handling fee. Improvements over the old NRX are the result of advancements in both materials and the production process. They’re also lighter than the old NRX rods, which is always a bonus. I developed a reputation as one of the best anglers in both fresh and salt water and many leading many rod makers and manufacturers consult with me in their rod design process. However, if all rods are measured on the same day, the relative numbers will be consistent. This series of versatile four piece rods is constructed with patented next generation nano carbon xmatrix materials. Those subtle differences thus become immediately apparent. Mid-priced rods, like the Fenwick Fenlite Streamflex at $339.95, the Beulah Guide Series II at $295.00 and the Douglas DXF at $395.00 all put in impressive performances in the Power Rods category. The finish is a bright medium olive, with darker brown wraps. Rods are repaired, not replaced except for broken sections. $25 handling fee on current rods. I love how easily I can cast off the tip of the rod with a flick of my wrist. The T&T Avantt finishes 4th again, with the Orvis Helios 3D right behind it in 5th. In our casting trials, we first tried to identify the best performing rods in the highest price category. They both utilize a light shooting texture that delivers longer casts. Why test with 12-foot leaders? Winston tells us that the Air combines their Super Silica resin system with high modulus boron in the butt to reduce weight but as you’ll see in the Objective Observations chart, the Air was one of the heaviest presentation rods in both overall weight and swing weight. In my hand it has a nice light feel and the swing weight is even lighter than the Orvis H3F. Cheaper rods often utilize pre-formed grips employing a lot of filler in the cork that can chunk out or erode with hard use. Broken sections are replaced. It is light and powerful with excellent craftsmanship. That means that the Sky G is stronger and lighter than graphite rods... but we'll get to that later. 3. This is a rod that performs extremely well at all distances, but is especially good in close, and in that 25-45 foot range that we are fishing so often. Accordingly, we have separated the tested rods into two categories, thus comparing each rod against others, which are best suited for the same fishing application, as follows: 1. Fly selection is far less important. Nearly as good as the LP+ and SKY G. A very pleasant rod to cast, giving me smooth tight loops and excellent accuracy. Overall it is a lot softer than the Avantt and its slower action hurt its performance, especially at long range. Nice and delicate but the tip felt too slow to give me really good accuracy as I was getting with the top four rods. It will be a pleasure to cast all day if you are fishing dry flies. Looking back at past specs from the NRX LP, the new NRX+ LP is slightly lighter in overall weight but substantially lighter in swing weight. To my way of thinking, the best Power Rods need to score best at 45 feet, but as you’ll see, there are several rods that scored very well at all distances. We have found that faster action rods with softer tips give you better feel, improved accuracy, and more delicate presentations, especially at closer distances. You can evaluate which categories, such as price, are critical to you when selecting a new rod. The new NRX+ rods are the smoothest and best-dampened rods we’ve ever cast. Rod manufacturers continue to innovate, incorporate new materials, and dramatically improve rods across the price spectrum. The cork handle is a half wells design with some fancy cork rings at the bottom. This reel is the one that won our 2016 5/6 Reel Shootout. In general, the best rods are in the higher price brackets, and are usually worth it, even if you have to save up to buy the one you really want. To see perfection of both wraps and coatings, take a look at the Thomas and Thomas rods – they are stunning, but require multiple coats, very carefully applied. Rods with softer tips help you reduce break-offs like these. The good-looking reel seat is silver anodized single up-lock design with a nylon locking ring that provided a secure lock-up. The SKY G is an attractive rod, finished in a dark gray color, with black wraps. One rod simply cannot suit all these purposes perfectly well, in our experience. If I’m fishing a more wind-resistant fly like a hopper pattern or stonefly, I’ll cut the leader down to 9 feet or less and end up with a 3X-4X tippet. After doing a lot of casting on several different days, we were almost always in general agreement on which were the top 4-6 rods in both the Presentation and Power categories. The feel you get through the handle of the rod that imparts confidence helps you put the fly exactly where you want it. We are sorry if we offend some people or some manufacturers. The 3F performed extremely well, especially at the two longer distances. Tippet materials are getting stronger every year, and today we end up fishing 6x, 6.5X, and 7x fluorocarbon much of the time, trying to get that perfect drift to entice a big fish to sip in a fly. The Loomis rods get a perfect score of 10 for their excellent Expeditor repair program which costs $100, but returns the angler a brand new rod, not a repaired one, in just a few days after you call them. Fenwick– Lifetime warranty. We loved the old NRX LP with its softer tip and upper mid-section; the deflection pattern of the new Douglas Sky G is very similar. I’m getting nice loops and good control as well as good accuracy at mid-distance. Three thin coats of epoxy are applied to the wraps, rather than a thick one-coat like so many other manufacturers use. Short to mid-distances are the sweet spot for this rod. Our earliest rods grew from fiberglass roots. If Fenwick determines that there was a defect, the rod will be repaired or replaced at no charge. At first glance, the rod is well-made and the blank is sleek and straight. Contrasting rubber/cork rings are added top and bottom for increased durability. Iron Bow carries them. The amazing new Douglas Sky G wins in both Overall and Performance Only categories! LEARN ABOUT THE SCOTT DIFFERENCE One of the first things that I noticed when putting the rod together were the alignment dots on the blank. This makes it easier to justify buying the best performing rod. Using a rod that dramatically reduces the number of break-offs makes a lot of sense. But the soft tip did earn the Paradigm the best score in Light Tippet Protection. The Orvis Helios 3D was the last rod I reviewed that made me think, I need one of these for myself, in a few different weights and lengths, just for good measure. St. Croix – Lifetime warranty to original owner, $85 handling fee for accidental breaks. For fly lines, we had two on hand, one a standard size Scientific Anglers Amplitude Trout for all the Presentation rods, and then SA’s half size larger line, the Amplitude MPX, both in WF-5-F. For leaders, we again used our own Yellowstone Angler hand-tied 12-foot 4x leaders that utilize a two-foot tippet. With the slower action, it was harder for me to cast off the tip of the G to get the same kind of accuracy I was getting with the Radian. GL8 resin is “self-propagating”, meaning the resin creates its own nano-particles. We kept the best rod in each category, high priced, medium priced, and inexpensive category, handy for comparison. You’ll never regret spending those extra bucks once you get the rod in your hands and see how well it performs compared to your old rod. In the power category, the Loomis NRX+ is the same price – $795.00. There is only one wide up-locking ring, with a nylon ring on the upper side, but it seems to lock up securely enough. I’m convinced the key to catching more trout and especially larger trout, is casting accuracy. I much preferred the Radian and the top four Presentation rods. But that alone doesn’t make our fly rods exceptional. This one is simple – the least expensive rods get the highest points. With these 5-weight rods I’ll usually start off with 45 feet to get the feel of each rod, then try them at 25 feet, and finally at 70 feet. The Hardy Shadow is our pick for the best mid-priced rod at $359.95. Better than the Scott G and Winston Air. When I’m nymph fishing I often switch to one of our Hot Butt Leaders that utilizes five feet of fluorescent red Amnesia for the butt section, followed with the same clear Maxima we use in our Clear Butt leaders. This is more or less cut and dried, but some rods, like the G. Loomis Asquith have the blanks rolled in Japan and then the rod is completed here in the US at the Loomis plant in Woodland, WA. For Helios 3, new Recon (2020) and the new Clearwater rods, Orvis has introduced a new section replacement program with a 5-business day turnaround. Surprisingly better than either the Scott G or Winston Air. Once we did all the casting to compare the two rods, it was obvious that the SKY G was a lighter rod in swing weight, and performed better at short to medium distances, where we gave it perfect scores.