Thursday, February 16, 2012

UL Fly Fishing

I've used 3wt and 4wt rods before while fly fishing, but this week I've taken my first real steps into becoming an ultralight fly fisherman. I ordered a LaCrosse Custom 7'0" 2wt rod and an LL Bean Pocket Water reel. The reel arrived today and the rod arrived yesterday. I put the combo together today to see how it looked and felt. I'll admit that it feels like a great set-up. When the rod and reel are combined, there is a good balance point and the grip of the rod fits my hand perfectly. The combo is going to be lined with a Sage Performance Taper line and a furled leader.

This outfit is starting to become one of my favorites in my collection already and I haven't even cast it yet. (However, I did do the "wiggle-test" and some careful imaginary casting strokes and I love how this thing responds.) This little rod makes my 6wt look and feel like a tarpon rod. I can't imagine what casting my 8wt will feel like after a date with this little sweetie!

With that being said, the panfish better beware because there's a new sheriff in town and he's lookin' to get scaly and slimy.







Sunday, February 5, 2012

First post of 2012!

First off, here's the first post of 2012! Auglaize Fly Shop has some big changes coming this spring and I certainly hope you folks (Readers/Subscribers, Online Customers, Local Customers) will enjoy them!

I took some personal time off this winter to concentrate on spending the holidays with my family and friends, but it keeps getting closer to spring. On an insomnia-based rush, I cleaned up the bench, dusted off the equipment, and tied a couple random woolly buggers to warm the vise up and get back in the groove. Judging by the unusually warm winter we're having here, I may open back up sooner than expected. I've also been drawing up new ideas for patterns and will have some tied up soon, but they'll be on the down-low until I open back up. (They aren't going to be available until I get to test them either. Trust me, I don't sell flops.) I think the fish will find them irresistible though. I'll be sure to update more when it starts getting closer to spring. Stay tuned!