Skagit rec for Sage 8126

[pescador do mosca]

Hi,
After looking on the forum and the Rio site, does the 550 rec rio has work well on this rod?

Any input concerning cheaters and which lengths would be appreciated also.

I have the 5ft compensator on with the class 3 tip and it works like a champo. Moved up to streamers and the class 6 tip and everything feels slowed down.

Any input would be appreciated!

Thanks :thumb:

[Philster]

That'll depend on you, but it's a great starting point. The rod will cast it fine. you may want more weight or less depending on your style, but if I was handing that rod to someone I didn't know who wanted to try skagit, I'd probably string that line up, watch them awhile and adjust from there.

[Red Shed]

I personally would not use a cheater on that rod but I agree with Philster, anyone's rod/line recommendations are just a starting point. Only some test casting defferent combos will dial it in. Have you tried it without the compensator on the type 6 tip? How does it go without the compensator on the type 3 tip?

[pescador do mosca]

Thanks for the guidance guys. I was out today and tried the 10ft compensator. Tommorow I will try the line without the compensator and see how it works.

I think I narrowed down the problem though. I may be getting too much line stick with the class 6 tip. I was pretty much waiting the same amount of time to let the stick develop with the 6 as the 3 so the I think the 6 was actually deeper in the water when I went into my second motion of a double spey. Does that make sense? Speeding up my stroke I had less stick and things seemed better but still slow. Hopefully just using the line as is will keep me going no matter what class. Will post results of your guidance.

Thanks again!

[Red Shed]

Your analysis seems reasonable to me. Please let us know your results.

[Paul Huffman]

I'm not expert, just getting started with this stuff. For sure Inland is going to disagree.

I started out with a Rio Windcutter multitip on that rod, and kept on going shorter and shorter with cheater sections until I settled on the shortest, the 5 ft. section for fishing the type 8 tip. Or even no cheater, just a tip on the body. But then I lost all that stuff when my truck was prowled 8/24. Since I was already progressing into the short head thing, the only line I have picked up to replace it, so far, is the Airflo Skagit head with their braided green running line. What's it called, MCR? It seems to me like the easiest way to lift and cast a sink tip yet. Airflo talks about using a more sustained anchor to cast this Skagit head. That's the way it seems to me as well. It seems a more sunk tip can been used as to your advantage when tightening up the D-loop. It even seems to work best on a circle T to let the line drift back to you to sink the tip a little before making the D-loop.

The down side of this system is you sure can't roll anything into the line once the running line is outside the tip guide by more than 5 feet or so. And it's a step back to the shoot out, strip back in rhythm of fishing a single hander. So it's not something you'd want if you like to keep 60 or more feet of line out and repeatedly work the same section.

[Brian Scott]

I use that exact rod and line. I've been using 10' lengths of T-14 and the 15' rio tips; no compensators. I think throwing the 15' tips is easier for my style of casting (gotta be quick with the shorter heads), but the T-14 gets down faster, which is nicer for winter flows and big flies. I may go with 15' lengths of T-14 this winter for schitts and giggles. I have to adjust my timing just slightly for the Rio 15' ers. It seems that using the skagit w/compensaters for the 8126 is adding too much weight, but if you were using a 14'-16' 8wt you would need them based on Rio's recommendations for head length vs. rod length, so go figure. Use whatever suites your casting style and puts the fly infront of the fish. You don't have to cast well to catch fish...but it helps. :)

[pescador do mosca]

Thanks guys for the input! I didn't have a chance to try the different line config today, but will post results tommorow.

Thanks again, I appreciate the help!

[Paul Huffman]

Yeah, Brian, I just set up a 10 and a 15 ft. t-14 tip and want to try them tomorrow.

[Brian Scott]

I have to say that the skagit is a great line and I use it alot when I'm fishing in tight quarters (Sol Duc mainly); however, a primary reason I switched to two-handed rods was to be more efficient and gain more line control, so I'm not so sure that I'm accomplishing the former when using such a short head due to the time requirements to strip all that line in to set up a cast. When possible I prefer to use the windcutter because of the extra 20 feet on the head. Less time striping means the fly is in the water longer increasing the likelyhood that it'll pass infront of a fish. The WC also seems more forgiving, but that's just me. Yeah, it's cool to shoot 100' of skagit line, but mending the head with only the running line is problematic and it's takes just as long to set up a cast with a one hander as it does using the skagit line when shooting long distances. I'll have to try a midspey this winter to compare the three. Here's an idea: buy one heavy WC to use with two rods, say a 9 or 10 wt and a 7 or 8 wt. Use only the WC body as a skagit head on the lighter rod for upclose/tight quarters work, then add the tips for weight and use the heavier rod for more open areas/bigger water...

I think I'll try the skagit head for some silvers from the beach this weekend...sort of like an outbound I suppose. Has anyone dones this yet?

[pescador do mosca]

Hey guys,
Just got back from the river. Lined up my stick with the WC standard head with the tip 2 compensator and class 6 tip, worked great. No problem with throwing #2 streamers and nothing was as slow as it was. I think that the above posts talking about overloading the rod were spot on. It took me a minute to adjust to the new line configuration, but once I dialed in my stroke it was gravy.

On a side note, I have been hitting the local water early to see if I could find the first salmon pushing up and it has been sparse. A week ago I had a nice bright & chunky coho come to hand swinging an olive madonna. Every day this week I have been out swinging through this run and have been skunked though. Today was nice, I had another guy show up with spey in hand and it was great to actually work a run with someone instead of standing in one place for the whole time. 3 swings and 3 steps to the end and then start over again, the way it should be. Afterwards we talked and he let me cast his rod. He had a CND Expert in 14' 9/10 lined with a 9ft WC Versittip. Let me say that that rod is no slouch, as many of you may know. It was the first time I have ever seen one up close and when I cast it I knew I had to go farther and it did like it was nothing. I was so impressed with it, I just stood there looking at it and thinking about my rent payment due soon!!!

Anyway, wanted to thank everyone for the great input and help in dialing in my line for the rod. If anybody makes their way out to N. Indiana or Southern MI drop me a line and we'll wet one.

Take it easy and tight lines!!

:beer2:

[Paul Huffman]

Brian - I don't disagree with you at all. The Skagit head takes you a step back toward the Shewey and Maxwell "Fly Fishing for Summer Steelhead" method of using shooting heads and mono running line with a single hander. But for the short, stiff 8126, I think it makes a good match and has been the easiest way so far for me to handle a sink tip. I think my strategy will be to fish the 8126 with a skagit head and sinktip when I want to fish deep or I'm in tight quarters and line my longer softer rod with a windcutter or long head type line for when I want to skate, fish shallower, or I'm on some big open rivers.

[Brian Scott]

Paul,
I like your thinking about using a longer rod for more open water. Ever try a Sage euro model 9141? I've tried a few of the Sage traditionals, but prefer the faster European line since most of my steelheading involves fast, heavy tips and big flies. I'm thinking of picking one up since they've been discontinued and I can probably pick one up for 20 to 30% off somewhere. I've been told that it's a standard AK king rod, but I'd be using it primarily for steelhead. Too much rod for an 8-25lb fish? I dunno, just looking for something to supplement my 8126.
B

[Paul Huffman]

Yes- I suppose the 9141 is the one I'm lusting for the most. What about that 7141? Can such a light line really cast distances if combined with a long rod? I suppose I'll just have to buy all of them!

I tried a 10161 at the Sandy Clave two years ago and it made me giddy. But I knew there was no place I would use such a rod.

I find myself often crashing through the poison oak and rosebushes on some fairly small Columbia tributaries. I could cover the water on some of these rivers with a one hander, but with the extra length of casts, I can angle more downstream and slow the swing. But if I'm going to angle downstream, I need to throw a line that will sink into the strike zone quickly. The 8126 sets up quickly out of the truck, goes through the brush easily, carries on top of the van or on the pontoon easily, and covers the water I fish. I think it even makes a pretty good rod for overhead casting.

[Ron Crawford]

Following a few thoughts from above ....

I agree that the skagit head does require more time to strip in and then shoot out the head. Last year I bought a midspey thinking that I could avoid the stripping step and also have line control for mending with a lot of line out.

Here's what I found - the midspey was great for mending, even with 100+ feet out there. The downside was getting set up to cast when I was using a sinking tip. With the tip down deep and 100+ feet out there it was next to impossible (for me at least) to get the tip out of the water and then set up the cast. The only solution I came up with was to roll cast 3 or 4 times directly downstream until the sinking tip was near the surface AND THEN set up my cast. In the end I became convinced that it took just as long to get the tip up to the top as it did stripping the skagit line back in. So I sold the midspey and went back to a skagit head and I am enjoying the casting more now.

CAVEAT - I am not all that great at spey casting. This is my second season at it and I am having a great time learning. So take my comments in the context of a beginner. There may be some way to get a midspey sinking tip up to the surface that I don't know about. Oh well - learning is all part of the fun.