Fly rod suggestions

 Hey my people's
I was hoping you guys could help me out with some suggestions on a good fly rod for trout fishing and maybe steel head. I read online that a good all around rod is a 5-6 weight about 9 foot long.  Fly fishing is totally foreign to me , I went on the sage web site  cause I heard there good rods and couldn't believe how expensive those rods are. I just want a rod and reel I can practice and learn on and use for a few years that's not junk. Any suggestions would be awsome. Thanks 👊🏽☀️

TFO (Brand) cant go wrong with professional series II 5 WT. 9 FT. 4 piece .. Will run you around $160. or little less .. good luck !

Right on I just checked that rod out I think that's The one I'm going to get do you have any suggestions on a good reel?

5wt generally for trout but if you are after Steelhead you will need to go up a few sizes for various reasons. 7-9wts for Steelhead for single handed flyfishers. I guess you could go lighter for two handed styles of casting but I cant offer any advise there I have never casted a switch or spey rod.

Right on I just checked that rod out I think that's The one I'm going to get do you have any suggestions on a good reel?

I went with Elusive's advise on this too and got the TFO II W HOBBS Reel combo from BassPro.  $189 I think.  Still have to try it though.

Tfo got a great warranty, break it just pay for replacement. No question ask.  A 6wt is a good around rod.  I like my 4wt for trout though better fight.  I never steel head fish before so no comments.

I dont know how much you are willing to spend on a reel . but if you are willing to dish out $150. you should check out Orvis Access Mid-Arbor II ($150) , Sage 2250 ($140) and Lamson Remix 2 for ($160) Retail Price and Im pretty sure you can get this for a lot cheaper online (Ebay) .. These Reels are voted one of the best for 2015 5 weight Reels for under $250.

I dont know how much you are willing to spend on a reel . but if you are willing to dish out $150. you should check out Orvis Access Mid-Arbor II ($150) , Sage 2250 ($140) and Lamson Remix 2 for ($160) Retail Price and Im pretty sure you can get this for a lot cheaper online (Ebay) .. These Reels are voted one of the best for 2015 5 weight Reels for under $250.

+1 on the reels
You might want to make sure the reel you get will be able to change out the spool. It's easer to change spools than to change lines. There are many ways to fish fly lines. There are floating line and a lot of different sinking lines. I use at least 3 spools to a reel one that floats one that sink slow one that sinks fast. You can also add sinking line to the your fly line like T8, T11, T14 and so on. There are lots of different methods talk to a pro. Good luck

Cabela's has their brand on sale right now and they are pretty good. I am in total agreement on TFO since I own a 4 wt and love it. I found it almost 10 years ago on the bank of the Stanislaus River and let Ebbetts Pass Sporting Goods hold on to it for a few years.so it could find its owner. The owner never came in for it so Mr. Reynolds handed it over to me and I have had it ever since.

I also have a new Cabela's 8 wt that I will use here in Texas for Striped Bass and Largemouth come spring. I will also use it for sockeye salmon when I trek up to Alaska for teh annual run.

Don't know anything about these but I just saw this ad on Reno Craigslist you might be able to get a good deal on something
http://reno.craigslist.org/sgd/5332785489.html

I bought a Fly Shop brand rod:  http://catalog.theflyshop.com/fly-rods/the-fly-shop/

Awesome utility rod and best of all: unconditional warranty!  You can't beat that.  I broke a section and they just handed me a new one, free of charge and no questions asked.

I matched it with a Lanson Konic reel: http://waterworks-lamson.com/products/lamson-konic/

Great combo

thanks for all the info everybody once I get everything all dialed in and hook a fish I'll post it 

The TFO Professional Series rods are great rods and if you decide flinging flies it's not your sport you'll get a good return on it if you sell it or trade it   Sierra Trading Post has some good reels at sale prices if you sign up for their email ads - and don't mind a full Inbox every morning.

An old saying that's still true is that when working on a budget, put your money into the best fly line you can afford, get a decent rod, and don't worry about the reel.

For steelhead, you want to be concerned about the drag on the reel.  Not so much for trout.  The Waterworks-Lamson Guru is a great steelhead reel that will also hold it's value for trade or resale.  It's been clearance-priced for quite a while, in the $150 range.

But Okuma makes some solid reels at low prices and the SLV or Integrity reels will do the job, but will not have the lifespan of a more expensive reel.

Fly lines can be staggeringly costly.  Sierra Trading Post always has good fly lines at fire-sale prices and you can usually find a fly line at 1/3 retail there.

You need backing for the fly line, leaders and tippet (plain old monofilament) all of which are, thankfully, cheap.  And then the flies.  The Fly Shack comes to mind as one source for quality flies at discount prices, and there are others that I'm forgetting since I've started to tie my own flies.

The right way to choose fly gear is to decide what fish you want to catch.  In general, it goes: Species dictates size of fly.  Fly dictates weight of leader.  Leader dictates weight of the fly line.  Fly line dictates weight of the rod.

You can't get an ideal, all-around system for the fish you're after.  Sorry.  What works best for trout is too light to work for steelhead - if you want to do more than watch the steelhead swim off with your fly.  With time and patience, you can land a steelhead with a 3wt rod, but the fish will die from lactic acidosis, so don't do that.

I'd like to suggest you start with a 6wt system.  Longer is better, so at least 9-feet for single-handed rods.  Two-handed Spey rods are silly expensive, and you might want to stay away from them for now.

Catching smaller trout with a 6wt won't be as much "fun" as with a 3wt or 4wt, but a 6wt TFO Professional II rod will do fine.  You'll lose some steelhead because of the lighter rig, but you'll bring enough to hand without killing them - and it'll be a heck of a battle.  A 6wt is perfect for bass, too, should you lean that way.

There have been days when we were on the river for steelhead and couldn't find them, so we'd change leaders and tie-on little 18-20 dry flies and had good time with trout.

You can catch small fish with rods meant for bigger fish, but it rarely works the opposite way for a beginner.

Have fun.

P.S.  I have no affiliation with Sierra Trading Post, and in fact, am irritated that I have three or four "coupon" offers in my Inbox every morning... but they do have great prices.

All the advice sounds good, especially if you are just starting.  My first rod was a 4wt TFO Lefty Kreh, which I lost before it ever hit the water.  TFO replaced it anyway!!!!  Great warranty.

Now that I have more experience, the TFO is not my favorite rod.  It was enough to do the job, but it was too mushy for anything other than light flies.  I've since become a fan of SAGE, which is expensive, but you can find them used or on sale.  I also really like St. Croix - This is mid-priced with a lot of performance.

Like any other type of fishing you need to select the gear to your task.  Heavier weight rods for bigger fish.  Stiffer rods for nymphing, and even stiffer for streamers.  More flexible rods for placement of dries. Too big of a rod and its not fun - just winching meat, or watching the smaller fish fly by your head when you set the hook.

+1 on the Okuma reels.  Again, not the highest quality, but I use them on my backcountry setups because they are relatively light, and replacement spools are cheap - because, yes, I take more than one rod in the backcountry.  Being able to change out the spools saves me weight for my waders!! 

Oh yeah - And it doesn't matter what you get to start.  No matter what you choose you will likely decide you want something else if you like fly fishing.  Just get a decent rod and reel and get out there, and you will know if its for you.

Please note that I know nothing about catching steelhead, so refer to the other folks advice for that.  I've only caught trout (though genetically, a steelhead is a rainbow trout).

I'd be happy to fish with you!

I have a very nice sage for sale. I can get specifics on it if your interested.  I spent a lot of money on it and just never got into fly fishing.