Anyone fish for GT’s with a two handed rod?
- Thread starter Brute
- Start date
I haven't but a former flyshop manager I know did it on Christmas Island - if I remember correctly it was a 9wt 11' switch rod. He said it worked well for throwing the big saltwater poppers with a bit less stress on the shoulder.
Rob Allen
Life of the Party
What I have found is that though 2 handed rods require more line weight to load and cast properly they don't have the material in their construction to act as fish fighting tools of single hand Roda that carry the same line weight.
As a general rule spey and single hand rod weights are comparable to one another. That is to say a 7wt spey and a 7wt single hander do roughly the same job.
So, whatever weight single you use for GT is the same size 2 hander you need.
As a general rule spey and single hand rod weights are comparable to one another. That is to say a 7wt spey and a 7wt single hander do roughly the same job.
So, whatever weight single you use for GT is the same size 2 hander you need.
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Copy…mahalo
Seriously Rob? A single hand 7 wt casts a line weighing around 180 gr., while a 7 wt 2-handed rod casts a line weighing 450 - 500 gr., more than twice the grain load of the single hand rod. And I once compared the dead lift power of a single hand 8 wt rod to the dead lift power of a 6/7 2-hander. The so-called lighter 2-hander lifts over half again as many pounds dead weight as the 8 wt single hand rod. That doesn't seem like doing roughly the same job to me.
personal experience with SH vs switch rods is the switch will cast one to two weights higher. The advantage of a switch rod to lower shoulder wear and tear is lost the moment you start OH casting and flare those elbows up..keep those elbows down and let the rod do the work...and for OH, the faster and lighter the switch rod the better.
All I use for tidwater Kings is a switch cast Oh...and prefer to size up on the reel to offset tip weight,
All I use for tidwater Kings is a switch cast Oh...and prefer to size up on the reel to offset tip weight,
Rob Allen
Life of the Party
Take your sage 9140 GT fishing and see what happens. Actually I think they use 10 and 12 wts for GTs. Not 9 wts.
But as an example Chinook are best fished with 9 and 10 weights single hand or spey
Same advertised line weight and roughly the same fish fighting ability. Go Chinook fishing with a spey 7 and you're toast
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It seems to me like you're saying that "fish fighting ability" and "dead lifting power" are not the same thing.
I recall the days when Fenwick was making fiberglass rods they made a 12 wt tarpon tamer model that had a dead lifting power of 12 pounds. That may not seem like much until you actually try it. It was designed only partly to cast 4/0 tarpon flies but more so with a butt section with immense lifting power for playing large fish. I don't know what the dead life power is for contemporary graphite rods, but wouldn't be surprised to learn that it is even more powerful.
I wouldn't use my 9140 for GT fishing, but I have used it for Chinook fishing. It's OK, but I also had at that time a CND 13' 8/9 wt Spey that definitely has more dead lifting power. I think that would work for GT. I don't fish for Chinook with my 7 wt Spey, but I doubt I'd be toast. I'd just be in for some work because the 7 has less dead lift power than a nine. But it has a hell of a lot more power than any of my single hand 7 wts. You shouild know this stuff can be, and has been, empirically tested. Check out Tim Rajeff's rod test videos.
Denwor54
Life of the Party
I think Double Spey was talking about me and I have the Atlantis series for GT’s. The rod was a 10/11 11ft rod I matched an intermediate shooting head and running line that also was an intermediate. Matched with a stripping basket it was a deadly combo. But I would not consider a two handed rod in the 12-14 length for GT’s as you’re not Spey casting when fishing for GT’s more of an overhead gig just my 2 cents.
Not GT's but I have a two-handed Beulah surf rod and a switch rod in Florida that I use whenever I go visit my family there. Have landed big jacks and reds in the surf. Haven't touched a one-hander in quite a few years. Rage head works great in the salt.
If you're more comfortable casting a switch than a single hand rod, it may be possible. If you're more comfortable casting a single handed rod, I'd recommend working on your casting stroke specifically as it relates to heavier rods. I've had shoulder issues my whole life related to being a swimmer. As time went on, it required me to learn to cast without extending my arm very far until my final cast (either going forward or backward). Eventually, this worked out to allow me to use a very compact stroke that protects my shoulder, yet has plenty of power to cast a long ways (when I was competing in fly casting, my longest distance with a 5 weight was 135'). Given the challenges presented by coral heads and the power of GT's, I prefer to use single handed rods - but I'm definitely much more comfortable casting single handed. It may be well worth your time to work with an FFI certified instructor to really dig into any shoulder issues you're experiencing while casting. It could be something relatively minor that 12 wt rods and casting big heavy flies amplifies into a bigger problem.
