Posted: 12/2/2025 2:45:27 AM EDT
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Merry early Christmas to me! Stumbled on this Orvis Superfine 3wt at Scheel's a few days ago. Floor model was the only one they had, and they don't have any other Superfines in 1,2,4 or 5 weights either. I took a spin around the other light rods they had and this is just on another level in terms of lightweight, delicate feel. It's a medium action, but doesn't feel as "floppy" as my Echo 3wt medium, or as stiff as my 3wt Orvis Clearwater medium-fast. It's the classic just-right "momma bear". I'm definitely curious as to what the 4wtAttached File and 5wt Superfines feel like. Will have to keep my eyes peeled for those in the future. The 1 and 2wt models must feel like broom bristles. I highly doubt that Scheel's would carry either of those. Too much $$$ for such niche rods. I'll have to be damned careful with this 3wt. I don't think that it'd take much to snap it anywhere on the last two sections. And I've read that Orvis ain't overly generous when it comes to warranty/repair work. So it'll cost me. Anyways, this is the most light/delicate rod I've got... excepting my 2wt 6'0" Temple Fork Outfitters, which should feel lighter, as it's a full 18" shorter than the 3wt and heavier rods that I have. All three of my 3wts are 7'6". Sure wish I could spend a day up in the Big Horns with this little rapier. Makes everything else I've got feel like a broadsword. A side channel on the Stillwater or Yellowstone will have to do until mountain streams open in late Spring. |
"From hell 's heart, I stab at thee."
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Originally Posted By Red_Label: Merry early Christmas to me! Stumbled on this Orvis Superfine 3wt at Scheel's a few days ago. Floor model was the only one they had, and they don't have any other Superfines in 1,2,4 or 5 weights either. I took a spin around the other light rods they had and this is just on another level in terms of lightweight, delicate feel. It's a medium action, but doesn't feel as "floppy" as my Echo 3wt medium, or as stiff as my 3wt Orvis Clearwater medium-fast. It's the classic just-right "momma bear". I'm definitely curious as to what the 4wthttps://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/32329/1000032829_jpg-3668640.JPG and 5wt Superfines feel like. Will have to keep my eyes peeled for those in the future. The 1 and 2wt models must feel like broom bristles. I highly doubt that Scheel's would carry either of those. Too much $$$ for such niche rods. I'll have to be damned careful with this 3wt. I don't think that it'd take much to snap it anywhere on the last two sections. And I've read that Orvis ain't overly generous when it comes to warranty/repair work. So it'll cost me. Anyways, this is the most light/delicate rod I've got... excepting my 2wt 6'0" Temple Fork Outfitters, which should feel lighter, as it's a full 18" shorter than the 3wt and heavier rods that I have. All three of my 3wts are 7'6". Sure wish I could spend a day up in the Big Horns with this little rapier. Makes everything else I've got feel like a broadsword. A side channel on the Stillwater or Yellowstone will have to do until mountain streams open in late Spring. Thats really nice! I have been thinking about a lighter rod. Funny you mention the Big Horns. My wife and I are thinking about hiking the Solitude Loup trail in the Big Horns in August. Do you think a 5wt or a Tenkara rod would be OK? |
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Originally Posted By dana: Thats really nice! I have been thinking about a lighter rod. Funny you mention the Big Horns. My wife and I are thinking about hiking the Solitude Loup trail in the Big Horns in August. Do you think a 5wt or a Tenkara rod would be OK? @dana I've never fished a tenkara. But it seems like it might be great for some of those tiny creeks up there. I have actually fished a 5wt up there. It was by accident though, and I was angry with myself about it (still am!) I rode my adventure motorcycle there (about 140 miles) for a night of camping and fishing, so I didn't have the luxury of space to choose to bring a few different rods. So I grabbed what I thought was one of my 3#s, and once I was up there and had set up camp, I realized I had one of my 5#s instead. Well, gotta fish what ya brung, so I hit the creek (actually, the headwaters of the Tongue River) that evening and early the next morning with the 5#. It turned-out to be my most successful fishing trip ever. It was non-stop brookie action, with a few small browns thrown in. I pretty much couldn't cast without hauling a fish in. I was mostly just using a tiny copper beadhead nymph with no feathers or hair. It was in late May and the creek was high, but clear. So these fish were ravenous/hungry, and not used to the flies that they become wary about later on in the summer when the hoardes of fishermen have blown through there, the creek is low and slow, and the they have become wary. That was several years ago and I tell myself that I'm gonna get up there again with my tiny 6 foot 2# and a 7'6" 3#, and have a ball. Loved catching those very small fish even on a tree trunk of a rod. But that stiff feel robs a little fun out of it. If your planned fishing spots are narrow creeks in brushy areas (like half the streams up there are)... than the tenkara might be more fun. In a lot of those places you really can't throw out a lot of line before a snag (lots of willows up there, below the tree line anyways). I hate trying to fish a long, stiff rod that's made for casting distance at big fish... in tight vegitation. Lakes are really the only proper use of anything bigger than a 4#. Even then, since the trout up there are small even in lakes... I prefer taking my "whippy" medium action Echo 3#. All of my other rods at 2# - 6# are med-fast action (I generally prefer the crisp precision of a med-fast). But this medium 7'6" Echo 3# loads-up the action really well, so I can get it out there a ways. So it's got the distance of a 1# heavier rod, with the light responsiveness of a 1# lighter rod. I'm no flyfishing expert (AT ALL!) So take my advice strictly as the subjective observations of someone who is still just a noob in such a sometimes complex world of flyfishing. I look at FF as I look at golf... fun to do (even successfully), but tough to master. I grew-up throwing lures at trout (my preferred non-fly rod is an ultralight spin combo, and lure is a gold Thomas Cyclone spoon). I've caught thousands of trout and whitefish throughout my 58 year old lifetime on that lure, and I can put it in a bullseye at distance, as if I was shooting. I can go toe-to toe with most anyone in that discipline. But I would never pretend or even believe that I'm anything but an enthusiastic hopeful in the realm of bug-throwing. Streamers a little more in my wheelhouse... and nymphs a little bit. But dries? I'm still clueless. But I've got a former country/rock bandmate who guided professionally for 50 years on three of the most prized trout fisheries on the planet (the Bighorn River below Yellowtail dam, the Stillwater River, and the upper reaches of the Yellowstone River... aka "A River Runs Through It"). Both are here in So Central MT where we live. Recently, we reconnected and plan to hit the rivers here in his boat... and I'll be soaking up everything I can. He'll want to let me fish and teach me, I'll want to sit back and observe the master. So maybe neither one of us will end-up fishing! 
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"From hell 's heart, I stab at thee."