The new line has already taken home accolades, winning "Best New Fly Line" at EFTTEX 2015. I had the chance to pick up a brand new #5 Rio In Touch Single Hand Spey Line. That is admittedly broad. Rio In Touch Single Hand Spey line. Those of you who haven’t watched a lot of Monty Python or Premier League soccer may have a bit of trouble with Andrew’s accent, but luckily he mimes the proper motions several times. After a few casts, though, it all comes back; the timing, the feel, the grip – all of it feels as natural as scratching an itch. The most common Spey casts include the “Double Spey”, “Single Spey”, as well as “Circle/Snap-T”, and “Snake Roll”. The world of trout spey (or whatever moniker is most popular at any given time) is constantly evolving. Go. Spey lines are usually lines that have a fairly long head length - something in excess of 50 ft, and usually with an integrated running line. Both methods insist that the cast is thrown with emphasis on the under-hand (if you are Scandinavian), or bottom-hand (if you are North American). It is just so efficient. Basically, if you can roll cast, you can single hand Spey. They are all essentially the same creature just living by various names. Not all of the time, but more times – when it makes sense. Both the Skagit and Scandi Lite are in my opinion the ideal evolution of the ultra compact head design taken to the required next level with a trouble free, ideal diameter integrated running line. Specialist gear is not required, however in some situations (tight surrounds, heavier tips and flies, sustained anchor casting ) a short skagit head will make life a lot easier. Once the spey casting basics are achieved, you can now apply them to the shorter single handed fly rods matched with properly tapered fly lines. RIO, with its new InTouch Single Handed spey line recently joined the party with one of the first integrated lines designed specifically for spey casting with single hand rods. With single hand fly rods and fly lines, there is a pretty straight forward system: a 5wt fly line goes on a 5wt rod, a 6wt fly line goes on a 6wt rod, and so on. The Highlander SX single handers will have grip assemblies typical of any 10’0” single hand rod, with a 2.5” fighting butt (as shown in the image above) They are ideal for correctly grain matched OPST Commando heads, the Scientific Anglers Spey Lite integrated Scandi lines … See for yourself why spey casting and fly fishing has grown in popularity throughout the North America. Longer rods make it easier to Spey cast with single hand rods. A common point of confusion for new spey anglers is the grain weight system used to designate the line weight of Skagit (and Scandi) heads. You can make any spey casts with a single-hand rod. The Single Handed Spey performs great, even on the shortest of fly rods and really bombs out long casts with pie plate accuracy. The rear weight distribution loads a rod deeply in the tightest of quarters, allowing anglers to make long, effortless casts with obstacles close behind. In a nutshell, a modern switch rod is designed to be cast as both a single-handed and two-handed rod. “Live line” simply means the fly line has energy in it which results in a cast that requires appropriate timing so … Products primarily intended for two-handed/spey are heavier than the same number designation (6wt) in single-hand. It is like holding a feather. fishing for trout mostly on the Lower Sacramento River in Anderson, CA. Spey Pages Since 2000 A forum community dedicated to Spey casting, fishing, flies, and enthusiasts. A couple years later, I met world-class caster Way Yin at the Sandy River Spey Clave in Oregon, and he explained how he uses Spey casting techniques with a single-hand rod all the time. Pros: Get better casting performance out of any weight rod due to ability to appropriately match grain weight of tip to grain window of rod, a great tip option for lighter weight spey and switch rods, looped and labeled. WFF Supporter. You can cast the lines with them just fine, but you lose a lot of that easy flow that Skagit lines are famous for. It’s a powerful cast that works when you are casting from river right, if you’re a right-hand caster. The feel of the strike on a one-hand rod; you can actually FEEL the fish’s pulse, the one-to-one retrieve ratio combined with the sound of the drag (I am old-school; I still prefer click-drag reels for steelhead and all freshwater fishes) the direct contact between angler and fish is just more intense with the shorter, more playful 9 foot rod than with a 12 to 15 foot rod. Two-Hand fly rods (now commonly called Spey rods) are powered with both hands. Between 10'6" and 11'6" long, switch rods are shorter than traditional spey rods and longer than most single-hand rods. Switch rods are usually between 10 and 12 feet long. Also at least in the fishing I do lots of times i need the fly to be fishing and swinging slowly and properly immediately when it hit the water, no time for mending. "When it comes to finding the right Spey rod... the best length really depends on how far you need to cast. 8 footers are short by Montana trout rod standards, and they aren’t the best for casting these Scout lines. Two hands are better than one! I’d actually describe it as a really, really , aggressive Triangle Taper. I have to admit I use a two-hand rod more often than a single-hand for steelhead, but I am slowly coming back around to the pure fun of casting, fishing and catching on a single-hand. It feels so light and SHORT. 1 of 3 Go to page. Fishing the two-hand rod has improved my single-hand casting and I find I can use a some of spey casts on the short rod; such as the switch and single-spey casts. Some of it goes back to my beginnings with fly fishing. OPST also has 7.5' and 5' tips available which pair well with shorter spey/switch rods as well as single hand rods. Fishing the two-hand rod has improved my single-hand casting and I find I can use a some of spey casts on the short rod; such as the switch and single-spey casts. Spey fishing has a few more parts and terminology compared to single hand fishing, however, it gives you more options and more ways to fish various flies with just one rod. 6wt in two-handed/spey doesn't equal 6wt single-handed. Two parallel systems. In the old days anglers used heavy double tapers to cast the long two handed Spey rods. They are definitely NOT the same line, however. It is a “live line” technique that requires an “anchor” on the water. You can also make overhead casts with a spey rod, although there are some good reasons not to make a habit of it. We often get the question in the shop what is the difference between spey and switch rods? Which rod do you choose? Two-Handed Spey casting can require longer two-handed fly rods with specially tapered lines that allow for a variety of easy casts resulting in longer distances. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Between 10'6" and 11'6" long, switch rods are shorter than traditional spey rods and longer than most single-hand rods. A switch rod is a style of fly rod. SBT reminds me of a Skagit line – a blunt instrument that works really well for chucking a lot of weight. Peter Pancho Active Member . I have a two handed, Winston 5wt, 11'6", 4 piece, Boron III. Spey Rods and Two Handed Fly RodsSpey rods are also called "two-handed" rods and overlap with another name called "switch rods" as well. It is a cross between a single-handed fly rod and a two-handed Spey rod. He showed me a few tricks, and I headed home intent on trying out these moves to see if they worked with my styles of fishing. We tested the 200- through 275-grain Skagit Trout Max lines with Redington's 3-weight Hydrogen Trout Spey ($350) and found a sweet spot with the 250-grain head. Jul 26, 2003 #1 Hello. Skagit vs Scandi Heads – Keeping it Simple, Captains for Clean Water: A Mission That Holds Water, Deneki Custom Fly Series: Andros South Shrimp, Deneki Chronicles: Spey Casting Tips – Anchor Placement. I plan to start with good old fashioned single-handed fly-casting and then move on towards spey-casting and double-handed rods in later posts. Spey and switch rods can cast dry flies, however, they lack the finesse and accuracy of single hand rods. Spey vs Switch Rods and Spey Casting AdvantagesEver wondered why one would Spey Cast in certain situations versus traditional single hand rod techniques? http://amzn.to/2AY3U7dhttp://amzn.to/2kAgZx08'6" #5 single hand rod, rod length mono leader, little wooly bugger. Spey casts use different methods to form the D loop and load the rod but are very similar and add a whole lot of extra power and distance. A single hand rod, except in the hands of a tournament caster, is just too difficult to make cast after cast and firmly control the line in this situation. Ideally i want a rod to do both with so i have been looking at switch rods in the autumn sales. If you plan on fishing large Steelhead rivers where 90' to 120' casts are the norm, a 14' to 15' rod is the weapon of choice. The InTouch Single Handed Spey line has been designed to be a fantastic tool for anglers that prefer/need to perform roll and single-handed Spey casts. Now, there are so many qualified spey-casting instructors that can make learning and using correct casting methods a breeze, there is really no excuse to not learn or improve your spey casting skills. I wish I could have the casting and fish-playing fun of the shorter rod and the line handling qualities of the longer rod. Learning spey and switch casts are essential to help you understand where, how, when and why you should be using this very effective style of fly casting. The Advantages of a Switch Fly Rod. Now, it is rare to see a single-hand rod on the river. Why would you choose one over the other and why would you spey cast instead of single hand cast? M. Mark Kadoshima Active Member . Clarkman Huge Fly Guy. New to Spey/skagit. The versi-tips are classified as a two-handed product. Spey refers to a style of casting, and this can be performed with any fly rod, single or two hand. Thanks for the advice. In spey, we speak in terms of "grain weight". I learned by doing (which is not always the best way) with the long rod and I still carry my signature bad habits with me to the rivers. Switch rods are usually between 10 and 12 feet long. A couple years later, I met world-class caster Way Yin at the Sandy River Spey Clave in Oregon, and he explained how he uses Spey casting techniques with a single-hand rod all the time. September 16, 2016 5:36 pm. Whether you fish it single hand or with two it has its advantages and opens up areas that were unfishable with traditional casting. Mar 17, 2020 #31 serious blast from the past. When I started fly fishing in 1967, two-handed rods were just not used. Its not quite as easy to cast as the tiny Scandi and … These rods are normally 12' to 15' long. However, it’s important to note that by definition spey casting is a style of fly casting, one that can be performed by both two-handed “spey” rods AND your run of the mill single-hand fly rod. Spey refers to a style of casting, and this can be performed with any fly rod, single or two hand. single hand spey rods. 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