Hello,

I'm from Malaysia and i'm not good enough in English language.
I'm a newbie to flyfishing. Im owned TFO Lefty Kreh Professional Series WT 5 and a Lamson Konic 2.0 reel. Here, I want to ask about this combo.

1) Is this combo enough to do light saltwater flyfishing? Fly fishing for tapon (average size is 4lb), baby snapper, or even barramundi?

2) the largest flies can be cast by this combo.

3) In flyfishing, we usually weight the rod by WT, different from the spinning or conventional rod that use lbs (e.g 6-15 lbs, 10-20 lbs). Can somebody help me to classified WT 5 in what lbs.


Please advise me. Thank in advance.

I have little experience of fly fishing in saltwater; I do it occasionally as coastal fishing.

My thoughts are: wind can be a problem so if you use light gear like a rod for a WF5 line you may restrict your fishing to relatively calm conditions. Big, wind resistant flies require stiff rods in higher AFTM classes IMHO. For my coastal fishing I use a #7 or #8 rod although I seldom encounter very big fish.

The last question seems to be somewhat of a mess up. For spinning gear and trophy or record fishing the braking strain of the line is of importance. For fly fishing, the AFTM rating e.g. WF5 is the profile (weight forward) and the figure 5 tells us how much about the first 10 m of the line weighs. The braking strain of a fly line is to my knowledge not standardized. The braking strain of the leader can be of importance though.

A link that explains more:

http://www.igfa.org/

I write this in spite of my distaste for any competition connected to fly fishing; be it casting the longest line, catching the biggest fish, biggest number of fish, having the most expensive gear etc. I want fly fishing to be a retreat from the every day "chicken race".

ROEM:
I use a 6 wgt for a lot of my light salt water fishing. A 5 wgt might be to light, but sometimes you have to go with what you have. I've landed some fish in the 20 inch range on my 5 wgt but none that grow in salt water, and certainly not a 4 lb tarpon. The TFO rods have a good reputation.
Magnolia raises some good points about wind and large flies. Since you're new to this you most likely haven't started tying your own flies. If you did you might be able to tie 3-4 inch flies that can be cast with a 5 wgt. Still if you're fishing in the back country for small fish you really won't need large wind resistent flies.
As far as breaking strength of a fly line that's not an issue. The strength of the leader is more important. I would suggest a 6 to 8 foot straight piece of mono or fluorocarbon with a breaking strength of no more than 12 lbs. With too heavy a leader you risk breaking your rod if you hook a larger than expected fish. Start with 8 lb and see if that handles what you're catching and allows you to turn over your fly. Move up to 10 lb if you have too many break offs, but I wouldn't go higher than 12. You should be able to handle the fish you've mentioned with that.
Good luck and let us know how you make out.

Thanks s for your useful replies.

Im usually using 10 lbs tippet connected to 12lbs knotless leader. The flies that im usualy use is, clouser minnow, crazy charlie, popper flies n shrimp fly. I already can tie the flies. Usually I tie those flies up to 3 to 3.5 inch on hook size 2 / 4 / 6 / 8.

Last month, i went to stillwater fishing trip and i bring along some large flies (clouser minnow, hook 1/0 and 2/0, lenght is 5 - 6 inch). Using my WT5 combo seem to be a problem to get distance. Can you help me on this?


By the way, anyone have use Ross Worldwide 7/8 Flystart combo? How about the reel performance? Is this combo suitable for saltwater?

Five weight setups are not designed to throw such big flies. The 1/0 or 2/0 Clouser is a heavy and wind resistant fly that needs the power of a 7 weight to throw it. I normally use an 8 weight or larger to throw those size flies.

I would not recommend the Ross Worldwide 7/8 Flystart combination for what you want to accomplish. The reel is of very low quality. The drag unit will not be strong enough to fish in a saltwater envioronment. Also the reel will be prone more to saltwater corrosion due to the lower quality finish.

AbelBoy

I would not recommend the Flystart combo either, if you plan on buying a saltwater outfit. On your 5wt, it is designed to cast flies no larger than 4 to 6, and flies that are no longer than 1-1.5 inches. That is the reason for your difficulty with distance casting.

Abelboy is right, the reel and the drag for a saltwater outfit is of utmost importance. Fish such as the tarpon you are chasing require a very good drag. I would recommend a TFO 7 or 8 wt TICR or TICRX, with a Ross CLA of the correct size (3 or 3.5). You might also look at the Orvis Battenkill BBS in the larger sizes, it can be had for close to $100. Good Luck!!

Thanks to Abelboy and johnsonr1948

I search the new set for my saltwater flyfishing. Abel is the great reel, but its too expensive.. I search on the eBay for a cheaper and good reel. By the way, is Lamson Konic is good enough for saltwater? or any suggeston on the reel below $150.00.
For the rod, I love to buy TFO flyrods..

I'm not too crazy about a Lamson Konic 3.5 for 7/8 weight saltwater usage. What I am concerned about is the durability. Compared to other Waterworks/Lamson reels, the Konic is made of a lower grade aluminum that is cast rather than machined from aircraft grade aluminum. I have seen cast reels chip and crack. Also the finish quality isn't as nice as the higher end reels. This can have an effect on the reel's corrosion resistance.

If you want a Lamson, look at the Velocity. It costs $100 more, but it's made from machined aircraft grade aluminum and has a more durable finish.

When it comes to saltwater fishing though, there are two brands that are superior to others: Abel and Tibor.

AbelBoy

Hi Roem,
Having "Lefty Kreh"'s signature on this rod...I am assuming that the rod(#5wt) is at least 8'6" or longer...am I correct? He most always uses a long rod. If the #5wt rod is 8'6" or longer...you can throw a WF6F (or S -sinking) line....the butt section is substantial enough size-wise...just work on adjusting your stroke to make the "butt" section do most of the work....and, if possible, try to either tie or get hold of the flies(Clousers...etc) in smaller sizes. True, a rod officially designated at the factory to match a line of a specific weight, but the casting stroke can be altered/tailored to reduce the amount of action of the rod's tip section plays in a cast...use more of the stiffer butt section...(ie..a little more arm movement while maintaining a stiff wrist(on the forward cast)). Practice with shorter length line to get the feel for it...and you'll do fine....after some practice.

Have fun.....
Steve

BigSpencer,

Im using 9 foot, 4 pieces, 5wt TFO rod.

Here is the other question.

1) If im using fly line WT6, what is the benefit?

If you are using a 6wt line on a 5wt rod, the rod will load better with a short cast (20-25 ft). If you are fishing smaller rivers and streams, where your casts are shorter, this will help you.

The heavier line will be more difficult to cast longer distances (over 50 ft), because the overall weight of the line may be too heavy for the rod.

Lines are rated based on the weight of the first 30 ft of line. If you only have 20 ft of line out on the 6wt, it will cast like a 5wt. If you have 50 ft of 6wt out, it will feel like a 7-8 wt line. That might be too heavy to carry in the air for your 5wt rod. That being said, if your 5wt is a TiCRX, it is as strong as most 6 wts, and would be fine.

Good Luck!!

Hi,

Thanks for the kindness replies. Im really appreciate it.