7wt or 8wt fly rod; I have 5wt’s

[Wapiti1]

OP didnt say a price range, but if it's just a dedicated streamer rod...the Moonshine Rods - Drifter gets pretty dang good reviews for a fast action 10ft 7wt at $199. Even comes with 2 tip sections for that price.

I'm a big T&T Avantt and Exocett fan, but they dont offer a 10ft 7wt...if you go 9ft, look at T&T and compare to the top of the line Sage / Loomis offerings.

That is the rod I was going to suggest. I use one for pike and bass in an 8wt and it will shoot big flies well.

Great rods.

Jeremy

 

[Ridge Ghost]

If trout are the primary target, get a 7wt. An eight weight may fight the wind better, but it will be overkill when you have a fish on. If you plan on using it for saltwater, steelhead/salmon, bull trout, etc, then consider bumping up to an 8wt.

Temple Fork BVK and Redington Predator are two great fast-action streamer rods in the ~$300 range. Sage makes great rods and my primary trout rod is their One model, but I don't think you need to pay $800 or more for a rod when you are just chucking streamers.

For line, I like the Rio Versatip. It has interchangeable tips for different situations. I use the intermediate sink tip when fishing rivers, but you can switch to a heavier tip for deeper lakes like you mention.

 

[Brightwhite]

Thank again everyone, I went this afternoon to a fly shop and put a few casts on several rods outside and I walked out with a G Loomis NRX+ 9’ 8wt, and added a Lamson reel with some sink tip line.

I know the 7wt was the majority winner on here, but when I cast that 8wt the power and and control was awesome so I went up a size. I also tried the sage X and still liked the NRX better. Looking forward to throwing some double and triple streamer rigs with this setup.

 

[Salmonchaser]

Very good rod, you’ll be happy with it particularly when you make it out to Bristol bay. That happens to be a Loomis 8 wt rod, Lamson reel, 11 year old angler and a nice sockeye. The rod is older than she is.

 

[Riplip]

Thanks. Google is telling me that Scott makes a good rod which I don’t own. My dad has a Winston 9’ 5wt that I will inherit someday as he will never get rid of it, and I have the sage one 9’ 5wt..:so maybe it’s time to try a Scott.

Scott has been producing some incredible rods the last few years. I own four of their Saltwater rods and two freshwater (5 & 7). They are coming out with an updated version of their Radian line so expect to start seeing some great deals on the current model. 8 weight is overkill for anything in Colorado. Just my $.02

If you like a more of a fast action rod the Sage X is hard to beat.

 

[Salmonchaser]

This is why I like 8 wts on Alaska’s big rainbow rivers. 331/2x 20 on his third cast. Black articulated leach. Yours truly in green. About 1700 hours today.