[13536]

A buddy who I fish with on the Oregon coast looked at me crossed eyed when he saw I was using a 10' 6weight for winter steelhead. Well I recently learned why he looked at me that way. I had a 10lb+ native steelhead make a fool of me when I tried fighting him on my noodle rod. I couldn't even budge the fish...with one head shake he broke me off. So now I am in the market for an 8 weight single hander. I am a big fan of Echo rods and the price is right. I was looking at the 10' Echo Ion...any thoughts??? What are peoples opinions on 9' vs 10' when it comes to fishing the small coastal rivers?

 

[NomDeTrout]

I'm no expert but I use a 9' and would have no complaints. 9'6" or 10' for the beach for 9' for rivers. any bigger river and I'll grab for my spey rod.

with that said, I have a a Sage VT2 9'6" 8wt that I am in love with. Not bad on the wallet either.

 

[Don Freeman]

I have two 8 wts, a 9' TFO TicrX that is more than adequate. I think they run around $250, and they make an Axiom which is even stronger. For nymphing I use 10' Sage XP, which is superb, but NOT reasonably priced.

 

[Tyler Speir]

Whats your budget?

 

[13536]

$250 would be the max And I will mostly be using it for nymphing

 

[13536]

so if I am using it for mostly nymphing should I go with a 10'?

 

[Nate Dutton]

I use the TFO Axiom 8 wt. It is a freaking cannon for casting and has a lot of backbone for those nice fish. The fit and finish on the rod is really Top Notch, great cork and hardware. I would recommend this rod to anyone! I do A LOT of nymphing with my 9'. it works great never had a problem. The TiCRX would be a great choice too....and the Echo. The rods in that rage are very very comparable in performance.

 

[SHARP]

Stick with 9' i bought a TFO Pro Series 9' 8wt medium fast action. It will throw good sizes bugs. 159.00 great rod and better than sage warranty. I have sages also. I would go with the TFO rods.

 

[NomDeTrout]

Stick with 9' i bought a TFO Pro Series 9' 8wt medium fast action. It will throw good sizes bugs. 159.00 great rod and better than sage warranty. I have sages also. I would go with the TFO rods.

how do you figure TFO's have better warranty than sage?

 

[cutthroatking]

Echo Ion.This is a great rod that sells for $189.00.If it were me I would get a 10' rod for nymphing for steelhead.I have this rod in a 10' 7wt and use it on the Grand Ronde and haven't had a problem.On the coastal rivers I might use a 8wt

john

 

[Nate Dutton]

TFO warranty might be cheaper....$25 is all. that may what he meant by better than Sage?

 

[Mumbles]

I've cast a Sage VT2 9'6", TFO Axiom 9' and Loomis Native Run GLX 10' in 8wt. All damn fine tools in my limited experience. I'm sure there are other great options and others with more experience that can make good recommendations. There are a lot of very fine rods these days and it seems that most have very good warranty coverage and service. If you are not hell bent on buying a new one, scour the classifieds here and maybe some other sources and find something that fits the budget and will handle the fish. Best of luck.

 

[Salmo_g]

Any rod you like of 8 wt will do just fine. You'll probably get the best value at 9', but 9 1/2' in 8 wt is nice. And longer rods are usually preferred for nymphing I hear. Finding a rod you like to cast is more important than how much you spend IMO. And for nymphing with split shot, why waste a good and expensive and really smooth casting rod on that task? Lot's of good rods in the $100-200 range.

Sg

 

[orangeradish]

Stick with 9' i bought a TFO Pro Series 9' 8wt medium fast action. It will throw good sizes bugs. 159.00 great rod and better than sage warranty. I have sages also. I would go with the TFO rods.

iagree I've got the same one, and it's pretty tough to beat at that price.

 

[Poopy McButtfart]

I'm a big believer in the 9' rod. After fishing a full winter season with one, it's the only single hand length I want to use now.

 

[Don Freeman]

And for nymphing with split shot, why waste a good and expensive and really smooth casting rod on that task? Lot's of good rods in the $100-200 range.

Sg

Since I had to use that Sage warranty once from nymphing with split shot, I quit using lead. I find I don't get the hookset on a long line, or the range with my other rods like I do with the 10'XP. I don't know if I'm wasting the rod, but I'm sure having a good time with it.

 

[Robert Engleheart]

The 9'-6" Native Run GLX in 7 wt. that Yellow Lab has on the classifieds for $350. Steal it! These are sweet and lifetime warranty follows the rod.

 

[Aaron O'Leary]

I have a few Echo Ions, I am really happy with them. I use 9' - 9'6" 8wt for throwing heavy indicator rigs, not 10' so much any more. I think the Ion 890 is a good winter steelhead nymphing rod and you can't beat the price.

 

[Bug Out]

Have you considered a Redington CPS or RS4 9' 8 wt? Both are under $160 (I think the CPS was 159 and the RS4 was 139 in the 8 wt) and as of two weeks ago I still saw two for sale at a shop in CDA.
I think both are good rods for the money but I will admit that I am not a coastal river/steelhead expert - maybe someone else on the thread can fill in their thoughts on how those rods would handle in a coastal river steelie situation

 

[SteveA]

You might consider a used rod. Several years ago I bought a Sage XP, 9.5 ft, 8 wt for $300 on eBay. I had it repaired after watching it fly off the roof of my car as I drove down the road. I think it cost me about $100. The point being, a used rod without a warranty can still be repaired for a reasonable price.

I don't put gear on the roof of my car anymore.