Redington Vice 907

[DrCreek]

So I bought this rod from my friendly little local fly shop a little more than a month ago. Here's why...

When I first started fishing the salt, I went with a slightly-over-medium action Echo 6wt that Jon Stanbery had sort of customized for me (I knew I'd be comfortable learning the salt by throwing a 6wt as long as it was a slower action rod - just to get used to things). I liked it so much I bought another one, and again sent the new one off to Jon for some similar work.

What happened was I started getting into bigger fish - and bigger "doubles" of bigger fish due to a mass of time spent on the water, a greater knowledge of the sport, an increased comfort zone and good equipment at hand. And all those massive tugs I was getting - and losing - also helped seal the new rod deal for me. And truth be told, that legal Halibut that I took at Spanish Landing a while back was the one that sent me over the edge. Even though I had it hauled in after several rough minutes of yanking and dragging, the medium/fast Echo 6wt "Stanbery Special" I was waving around was simply too little for that fish, and I knew it. I remember the rod being nearly doubled-over and ya, I admit I was thinking it was going to fold and snap. Hence, the faster - much faster - 7wt.

I really like the Vice rod. It sports a smaller/thinner full wells grip for starters. I hate the full wells grips found on most all rods, but this one works beautifully for me - I love that aspect of it. A rods' actual visual (color) appearance has never mattered to me. This one's a metallic Irish green blank - looks kind of like a color that you'd paint a Hot Wheels car, but definitely not something a traditional fly rod blank should look like. I dont care though. It threw line in the parking lot pretty good, so I took it. When I got home, I mated it with a brand new Redington Rise 7/8 reel and SA Textured Streamer Express Sink Tip line. A great combo that didn't rape my budget... too bad.

And ya, it throws line pretty fast. My only real problem throwing a fast rod is, I need to remember to allow the line to take some water on the backcast while loading, and allow my hand/wrist to feel the power it brings at the back end. Once the line gathers some moisture and comes forward, its flying. I never dreamed I'd be launching line from a float tube of all places. But it works - not that I actually ever need to "throw" any line, mind you. The only time I've actually needed to throw line were the times when a bait ball would bust close by. And then, the rod threw line right on top of where the bait ball was.

So my limited salt sense says, the Vice rod is pretty cool - for me anyways. 200 clams. Well worth it, physically and mentally. I take it when I'm fishing any place that has proven to be hazardous to my little 6wts. I used it last week with Richard at Tidelands. Glad I had it as that Yellowfin took some decent line and pulled like a small truck. Definitely happy to have a little more backbone in my hands.

[RichardCullip]

Next up a fast action 10wt for some big bonito and yellowtail out in the big deep blue. After that a 12wt for some real fish.....

[flyster]

Kickin it up a notch is wise. Especially when larger fish have that vertical descend on you. Just no leverage. Creating that infamous candy cane. Next, 8WT.? I'm telling you "when will it will never end!".

[BrownBear]

Next up a fast action 10wt for some big bonito and yellowtail out in the big deep blue. After that a 12wt for some real fish.....

Gotta put in a pitch for the Temple Fork TiCrX in both 10WT and 12WT. Right in your price range and a better backbone for big fish than rods costing a whole lot more. The 10's are our standard for big saltwater king salmon here in Alaska and tarpon to about 50# in Florida. The 12's just hammer bigger tarpon. We have Sage, Winston and Orvis in the rack, but the TiCrX are just better fish fighters and get a lot more use.

Here's my wife getting ready to net our guest's TiCrX production:


Success! They even managed not to step on the rod. Yeah, TiCrX are tough!


And a better look:

[acorad]

Hey BB, thanks for chiming in!

Are you on a FL forum? I'd love to follow your catching down there.

Andy

[BrownBear]

Hey BB, thanks for chiming in!

Are you on a FL forum? I'd love to follow your catching down there.

Andy

I haven't had much time to sort through them and see which suits me best. I'm pretty much anti-ad and anti-politics on fishing forums, so that narrows the choices too.

Last winter was kinda busy too, between getting settled into the new place and learning the waters. We've been fishing in different boats and studying models in the marinas and online. The shallow waters are pretty specific about what works and doesn't, so we want to buy the right boat for our needs. Boat prices have jumped a bunch in the last couple of years, so we're fighting sticker shock, too. Best for our needs so far beats our planned expenditure by over 2x!

Of course, when you winter somewhere with great fishing you get lots of visitors, too! Soon as you get down there you'll learn zackly what I mean! You're gonna need just the right boat. And extra bedrooms!

[BrownBear]

Speaking of 6-weight rods, if you're ever in the right place and time in the Pacific Northwest or points further up the globe, run don't walk to the nearest river with pink or humpbacked salmon. At 3 to 8 pounds or so, they're perfect fish for 5-6WTs and they return to rivers in the millions. It's nothing to hook more in a day than your hand, arm and back can take. I'm talking 20-30 on a tide, even if you sit down for a much-needed rest.

These photos are hot off the press following yesterday's pink salmon adventure with my wife. That's a 6WT in her hands, and I was tossing a 5. The pinks might not always show you your backing, but they do it often enough to make you glad you have it.

[DrCreek]

That's incredible ! Not sure if I want to go any bigger than a 7wt though. We all know what would happen... my next purchase would have to be a boat.

[BrownBear]

We all know what would happen... my next purchase would have to be a boat.

Awwww..... You see right through us!

But boats are like fly rods. One is never enough!