2 replies to this topic

[Yukondogloshua]

Hey all,
I'm very new to fly fishing, I've recently ordered a 8ft 6wt outfit off of amazon, it comes with fly line and tippet, however it doesn't come with backer line. As I don't live close to any major retailers who would sell fly fishing gear I would like to know if I could use 8 pound flourocarbon line as the backing for my reel. I fish mostly trout in a fairly large pond and I don't have any worries of the fish pulling line down to my backing. I also plan on fishing for largemouth and smallmouth bass alike with my flies, I've picked up some bass poppers and minnow imitators for them. This leads to my next question is a 6wt rod too light for bass fishing?
Thanks

[FrequentFlyer]

what did you order?  fly line backing is like $10 for 100yrds  

fluoro is too thin for backing, fly line backing is usually 20-30lb dacron braid, made so you won't lose your fly line if you happen to hook into that hot fish that does take you into backing if you decide to venture out for bigger game.  fly line is only 100ft long  keep that in mind

 

a 6wt for bass is fine, where you will run into issues is getting enough power into your cast to throw the bigger not so wind resistant flies, like poppers and streamers, thats where i like an 8wt because it has a little more power and will throw those bigger flies without issue, think of casting a light action soft flex rod compared to a med-heavy rod

[Ibroxlad]

1. Buy a proper backing. You may never have a fish run enough to need it, but it will be peace of mind knowing you've set up your rod/reel properly.

 

2. I fish a 5/6 weight rod, and it is strong enough for bass as long as you're fishing it properly, and not just reefing it in to land the fish. The casting of larger flies is something that takes a little bit of technique, because you won't want the usual tight looping line flow, in case it hits the tip of your rod. You'll want to open up the backcast a little, much as you would when fishing a nymph/wet fly with a split shot. There are many sites and videos online that you can watch and learn from; here is one of the best. 

 

https://howtoflyfish.orvis.com/

 

Pete Kutzer is regarded as one of the best casters around so you won't go wrong watching the videos on this site.

 

Have fun