There is plenty of evidence the fly caster and not the fly rod is the source of casting accuracy, no matter what advertisers claim. I suspect the same is true of casting distance. I am certain the fly fisher, not the tackle, is the source of fly fishing success, regardless of how much is spent for tackle.

Agree.....my cousin keeps spending money on new sets of golf clubs.....trying to buy a swing. Same thing.

practice!

True 100% on practice and performance.
Kinda funny thou they do make offsets, different lies, longer and short lengths. There is always the comfort level physically and mentally.

This is really, really, really getting old Phil.

Dang those advertisers, they keep throwing us curveballs..is that better Phil..lol.

As soon as I saw "Source of casting competence" I knew the author would be Phil. Phil, let it go. Start to enjoy life again. Your crusade is futile. Most of us understand it. Think!

I believe that physics work, and thus a rod with a faster or more powerful reflex would add some distance to a well timed cast relative to one with slower reflex. I don’t think it is a meaningful amount in most real fishing conditions, and this certainly isn’t “free distance”. You have to put more work into loading these kinds of rods to get the extra distance. We know this as a famous apple-man stated that physics requires an equal force in the opposite direction. The Thomas and Thomas Horizon II series hit my fishing preferences the best. These offered decent line speeds without having to be worked as hard as the rods that offered more. They still had enough flexibility to protect leaders while offering good sensitivity and hook sets. Rods that generate the fastest line speeds do so at the cost of other important fishing parameters. The only truly free lunch appears to be when an apple bruises a loafing man’s head.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/07/2021 12:53AM by Kendall Cikanek.

Phil is trying to convince everybody that maximum performance comes down to the angler and the quality of the tool he is equipped with has nothing to do with achieving maximum performance which is complete and utter nonsense and he knows it . Both are equally important , having one and not the other will always be a dismal failure.

good stuff Kendall, thanks...

Lefty could throw a full fly line with no rod - just his arm and his hands - and with enviable accuracy, too. Every bit of the energy for his casts was generated by his arm, since he had no rod. Every bit of energy- line speed is generated by the angler, NOT the rod. The only way a rod can produce energy is to burn the rod. Apparently this fact offends some anglers. My apologies. If my posts offend then ignore them or refute them. Madison Ave. advertising hacks claim that buying something expensive will make you competent at some task or skill. Good luck. BTW: Rods do NOT generate line speed. Rods are class three levers which require a power source to even move, let alone cast a line.

Phil, why do we use tools, why do we even need tools..

Right, Ben. Phil, neither do hammers, scew drivers, hand saws, and baseball bats generate energy. Is it possible that tools let us utilize the energy that we generate more effectively? If the rod is so unimporant then why can I not cast 30 feet with just my arm? And the last time I tried to drive a nail without my hammer. . . .it was ugly.

Is it possible that all tools are not equal? That maybe I might be able to cast farther with a 9 foot rod than I can with a 6 foot rod? That I might be able to drive a larger nail with a heavier hammer? Even though neither hammer generates energy?

Is it possible that all tool users are not equal? That maybe this tool works better for me and that one for you? I wonder why, in spite of being able to cast with only his arm, Lefty chose to use rods when fishing? And probably a different rod in Maine than he used in Belize?

Did any of you guys ever see an advertisement for a fishing rod that claimed that the rod being advertised generated energy?

Responding to Ewaniki's posts is a serious waste of time !!

Rods, nor any other hand tool, produce energy, but they do store, release and/or transfer energy that has been imparted to them.

These sort of posts really belong on a fly fishing forum somewhere.

..............

I have a solid grip and my wrist and arm motion develops maximum swing and energy transfer also my aim is perfect but somehow I cant drive a railroad spike with my tack hammer??????????

I have no problem driving tacks, may be I am not biting down on my tongue hard enough


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I can't afford a fly rod which will make me a really good fly caster: a rod which will cast straight enough to make me an accurate caster or a rod which generates enough energy to let me make long casts. You have uncovered my guilty secrets. If only I could afford a $1,200 fishing pole . . .

phil, you can build one yourelf better than that..

Did anyone else note that Phil said "a rod which GENERATES enough energy" ? Phil, I thought your whole point, was the rods DO NOT GENERATE energy!!! You have been a unmasked as a fraud!

Never been happier to have absolutely ZERO interest in fly fishing. Lol