New to the Board?

[Walter]

Hi everyone
I cut my fly fishing teeth on the Stillwaters of Lancashire Uk
Then in 2001 I moved to the USA
Unfortunately fishing took a back seat with getting settled, new family etc
Then the lockdowns started, perfect time to get away from everyone and go fishing.
I've been fishing with bait and spinning gear for the last couple is seasons, but it's not really my thing ( can't sit still long enough lol )
So I got my sister back in the UK to ship my old custom made fly fishing rod to me ( can't believe it was still there )
I've been working on getting my casting going again over the winter but I seem to have developed a fault. Almost every cast lands with the last 6 feet or so bent at a 90° angle to the left. Any suggestions would be appreciated

I’m assuming you cast right handed.

Tracking could be one cause. Overpowering the cast or too hard of a stop could be others. When we are fishing many of us tilt the rod to the side a bit to avoid hitting the rod with the fly. If you do that, and overpower the cast, you end up throwing an overpowered curve cast. This will be especially true when casting a streamer and will happen even if your tracking is true.

One of the obvious ways to avoid this is to use less power in your casting stroke but if you are using a light rod with heavy streamers it can be difficult to get just the right amount of power (practice, practice). Also learn to relax your grip immediately after the stop to reduce counterflex and rebound of the rod.

You can also cast with the rod vertical instead of leaning a bit to the side. If you overpower the cast with a vertical casting stroke the fly will kick downwards rather than sideways. This will result in some slack in your presentation rather than a hook. If you do this you need to develop a stroke that makes sure the fly passes over the rod tip rather than hitting it.

It’s a good idea to practice casting in different rod planes from horizontal to vertical on your dominant side to as far as you can get on your non dominant side. This is great for dealing with wind coming from your side or dealing with the environment you find yourself in.

[Paul Arden]

Welcome to the Board, Dylan. Best of luck on your travels. Keep us in the loop as to how you go. If you throw the odd front page this way I’d love to publish. Sounds like a fantastic trip you are on.

Cheers, Paul

[FishingOnTheFly]

Thanks Paul! Will Do!

[brw0513]

Hi All.

New member here from Brisbane, Australia.

I've dabbled with fly fishing a few times over the past 30 years but now my kids are adult age, I have more time for my own interests.

Presently practicing casting and making my boat fly fishing ready.

Really looking forward to this journey.

Cheers.

[Paul Arden]

Hi Ian,

From your Bio you’d be a good man to know when my outboards fail! However I replaced two of them this year, so hopefully I have five years trouble-free running. (Fingers crossed!).

I do have a question though. I read somewhere recently that I should let them idle for a minute before exploding down the lake?

I’ve spent lots of time in Brisbane myself. Quite a few Board members from your area too and some fishing clubs you might be aware of?

I’m sure we can help with your casting!

Welcome to the Board

Cheers, Paul

[brw0513]

Hi Ian,

From your Bio you’d be a good man to know when my outboards fail! However I replaced two of them this year, so hopefully I have five years trouble-free running. (Fingers crossed!).

I do have a question though. I read somewhere recently that I should let them idle for a minute before exploding down the lake?

I’ve spent lots of time in Brisbane myself. Quite a few Board members from your area too and some fishing clubs you might be aware of?

I’m sure we can help with your casting!

Welcome to the Board

Cheers, Paul

Hello Paul.

I tend to let all my engines (boats, cars, models) warm up before asking too much of them. Maybe not to full operating temperature, but well on their way. Oil pressure and interface clearances are temperature related. I'm no expert though and just tend to be sympathetic to all things I tend to rely on.

I'm in the process of joining the Brisbane Fly Fishing Club and Mallard and Claret Fly Club. Some very friendly and helpful people at both.

I'm also going to do a bamboo fly rod building course in Tasmania in 2023.

I've been thinking about the science of fly casting for a long time. And I've done some experimenting by statically loading a fly rod and transferring the deflected shapes into CAD. Then tried to understand this "straight line rod tip path" versus "straight hand movement path". I've yet to reconcile the two to match most explanations. I've also been thinking of designing and making a fly casting machine to confirm/debunk ideas. But that's probably too nerdy even for me.

[Paul Arden]

That’s great Ian. I have quite a few friends there and you’ll meet my mate Tim Kempton for sure.

Quite a few guys are making Bamboo rods now in Tassie. I think that sounds like a lot of fun. Is that at Haysie’s place?

I agree the straight hand path is irrelevant or indeed misleading. It only matters for tracking and not for a straight fly leg.

I would love a casting machine! Bruce and Noel had one in the States. Interestingly in order to program it to cast they needed to insert a human cast readout from the Casting Analyzer to make it work. Trying to make it cast without this and from scratch I think would be quite a fascinating and educational exercise.

For one thing we could answer a few questions about constant acceleration!

Oh and thanks. I’ll definitely let them warm up from now on!

Cheers, Paul

[Fozz]

Hey all,

I started fly fishing in 96 in Aberdeenshire, where I had recently been transferred to with work. I hammered away on mostly stocked ponds/lochs when time permitted. In Jan 01 we moved to my wife’s homeland, Tasmania. We fished sone of the highland lakes and the Tyenna river as often as we could for a year. We then went on a tour thru SE Asia with my work in the oil patch. Fishing, unfortunately got placed on the back burner until vacation times.

I have recently started getting back fishing again and loving it. It’s a bit like riding a bike, I was a maybe mediocre caster at my peak and that is still where I am at. Everyday is a school day for me when fly fishing and I’m very glad I got back into it.

Cheers,
Ian

[Graeme H]

G'day Ian,

Welcome to the board. I'm glad you're finding time to fish again.

Cheers,
Graeme

[Paul Arden]

Hi Ian, welcome to the Board. Are you back in Tassie now? That’s a wonderful fishery.

Cheers, Paul