hello all. this is a neat site!
with regard to the SA lines, i thought i'd see if i can (perhaps) clear up some potential confusion regarding aspects of the line design, it's orgins, and it's intended purpose and audience...
as andre and fisshman26 accurately point out, the concept of a long continuous forward taper line is not new. it seems like the first gentleman to get the continuous taper epiphany for spey casting was alexander grant, who had the luxury of having square pleated braided slik lines made to his specifications (according to Mr G. Donald Rudd, aka "jock scott"). the lack of stretch in these lines, coupled with their density, apparently allowed grant to cast phenomenal distances without shooting any line; this was done so that grant could fish a slow swing on his home rivers of the ness and spey.
i think many have experimented with splicing their own lines to to improve performance beyond what factory lines offer "out of the box". my friends who fish single handed rods have done this for years. i have been heavily influenced by what has been written about grant, as have others like the great spey caster, derek brown. when i was initially fiddling around with splicing lines, it was derek who turned me on to grant's work, and a good friend, charles st. pierre, helped me find a copy of "fine and far off", which i have since read many, many times.
much seems to have been made of what constitutes a "continuous taper"; the masterline banker, for instance, has been made for many years, and preceeded the wulff triangle taper series of lines manufactured by SA. even these "continuous taper" lines, if one takes a micrometer to them throughout their length, have flat sections; the rate of taper (ddiameter/dlength) varies with each formulation. technically, any of the current spey lines are "continuous tapers" over their entire length, at the same time that their tapers are not TRULY continuous.
from a design and performance standpoint, a true continuous taper of equal slope turns out to be extremely inefficient unless the length of the casts are quite short. throughout the process of piecing many bits of line together to try to develop a gross understanding of the physics affecting a spey cast adn line, i have come to a few realizations that have guided the design of the SA lines. the tapers are designed to maximize turnover and efficiency of energy transfer, all to decrease or eliminate the necessity to strip and shoot, thus improving efficiency and fly control through the swing. interestingly i have observed two distinct second order regression curves which have been consistently present in the best of the lines we have put together. the taper throughout the front becomes extremely critical (and varies according to line weight and overal belly length), as does the taper in the back of the line, towards the reel. many lines cast 75 feet from the reel well, a very few cast 100 feet well.
i have never had the pleasure of casting or examining one of derek's spey drivers, although i have heard much about them. derek had stopped selling them several years ago. i have cast one other of dereks lines, the formula of which he was quite open in discussing. he basically used several sections of level line, creating a stepped taper design, with a section of masterline baker at the front, a more or less continuous taper. i tried this design, but found it didn't have the "punch" i was looking for, and didn't cast a sink tip well enough for my use in winter fishing. derek certainly cast it well, and the difference was, i am sure, simply due to the fact that he is one of the world's best casters, and i am not.
my designs have followed more of a continuous taper concept throughout the whole of the line, although after countless hours of digital video analysis of line turnover, there is definitely some areas of the line which may be flat because the energy transfer and momentum of the wave is extremely efficient (little degredation due to drag). the trick in design has been the balance of where one needs taper, and where one can do without. this becomes critical as the cast line length exceeds 90 feet, and at 105-110 feet of line, the differences are dramatic.
the fundamental goal of the lines was to provide the advanced beginner and intermediate caster with more consistent distance for the same effort; i.e. a more efficient line design. i also wanted to provide the advanced to expert the ability to cast and control the fly in a variety of very technical situations where a shorter bellied line will simply not cut the mustard. the distance potential of the lines cannot be ignored; however, i think that in fishing (not casting), fly control is more important than distance anyday.
i have been fortunate in having steve choate volunteering to be a ready sounding board for the lines as they have progressed through the prototype stages. steve is a fantastic caster, and according to derek brown, "the finest spey caster he (derek) has ever seen." high praise indeed. bruce richards of SA has been amazing at bringing countless diagrams, mass profiles and spreadsheets to something upon which one can tie a fish.
we have been fortunate in having a number of fishermen cast the lines, of all skill levels. although i had anticipated that the lines would be most appreciated by intermediate and advanced casters, beginners seem to cast the line well (usually "upsizing", as with other lines), although the knowledge that they are casting a prototype may have positively biased their experience.
the lines are tentatively due for international release in late january or february, and will initially be avialiable in a floating configuration only. we are working on a number of intersting tip configurations, but the R&D process is extremely time consuming. these lines are not designed to replace any existing line, and certainly won't be for everybody. lines and rods are as varied as personalities of those that fish them... i do hope that they will, however, add to the enjoyment of the sport and perhpas open new opportunities to those that fish them.
a happy holiday season to all, and best wishes for a wonderful new year!