loomis 13 foot rod

Loomis Sucks

Don't deal with Loomis, your best bet with a 7wt 13 foot rod is Sage.

I know they're pricey but the competitors have not come up with anything worthy or comparable.

Loomis 13 foot rods are too stiff and cast horribly.

Just my opinion though, they make a great gear rod and they should stick to that.

I have to respectfully disagree about the 13ft Loomis Trilogy. I cast one of these in March and it had a medium progressive action, more akin to the Sage 7136 than the overhead rods. I found it to be a very sweet casting rod in the short to medium-long ranges out to about 80 or 90ft. We liked the MidSpey 7/8 on it. The owner loved it for dry line summer run fishing on the Stilly and recommended the Sci-Ang 8/9 Spey where distance is a concern.

Have you guys/gals cast the new 7136? I've been fishing one all this month, and I have to say it's a really beautiful piece of graphite. They've beefed it up a bit from the old taper, and are using a slightly more advanced material (graphite IIIe). The result is lighter, more powerful, and a joy to fish--even with my ugly 15' sinktips. It also seems to be plenty of rod for some of these bigger 3-salts that are lurking around this year. Anyway, I'm probably biased due to my employment situation (I want to be honest in my evaluations), but this is by far my favorite summer rod, and the new version is quite a step up from the previous one. If you get your hands on one, try it out and let me know what you think.

Is there really that much difference between the old and new 7136? I traded my old one, bought the year Sage introduced the rod for another 8124 last winter.

Jetsled--

I think there is quite a significant difference in all the upgraded Sage two-handers, at least in the "traditional" action rods, which are now a teal green. I haven't fished the "European" or 3-piece rods, so can't comment on them. In any event, I now have the newer versions of my two favorites, the aforementioned 7136 and the 9140, and I greatly prefer the upgrades. In general, they are lighter and a bit faster, but still progressive enough for easy spey casting. I actually think I'm going to fish the 7 weight as my primary rod, sinktips and all this winter and in BC, which I never would have done with the old version. How do you like the new 8126? I haven't fished it yet, but maybe I better get my hands on one to try. Let me know what you think.

Skookum

Skookum if you feel confident to fish the new 7136 for extended season I definitely gotta try one. That's the rod I always wanted to fish all season but winter fish always taught me a lesson when I did.

I think part of the reason is hvy wire hooks I use in winter. I don't feel like I get a good hookset with the old 7136 in winter flows. They tend to come unbuttoned. In summer I seem to stick em much better, so I am guessing the hooks.

If the new one has a bit more backbone without losing the sweet spot I would be in hog heaven.

The lack of being able to set the hook with either the 7136 or 9140 was the reason I went to the 8124 in the first place. I haven't tried the new 8126, but I don't like the way they have shortened the handle.

Just remember the magic "crappie hooks" and you'll be fine, even with the old 7136. But the new one is lighter, has the guts to throw tips and yes, the sweetspot is still there. Now, when I pick up the 9140, it feels like a club. Of course, I'm not casting or fishing 100+ feet out like some of the guys on the other thread, but for my purposes, it's an awesome rod. Juro, you gotta get your hands on one and let me know what you think. Also, did you say you were fishing in North Carolina later this year? I'm going to be at Harker's Island in November for the albies, and man, am I looking forward to some of that East Coast Saltwater Mojo.

Peace,

Skookum

Yes, I'll have to talk to our local Sage rep about getting my hands on one. I hope to have it in time to bring out with me this fall.

NC Albies... hoooyeah! We are definitely interested and the logistics are good. Some have relatives, many have good info, and we all got backing. Planning for that should begin in July so we don't miss the boat.

I might have to make a choice between PNW and fat alberts since I have not accumulated a lot of vacation this first year at work. I'm sure to pull out a lot of hair over this one.

We'll see, in any case the planning needs to get started for SC. Which dates are you there Dylan?

Whew, tough choices there, Juro. The only thing I know is that we're probably going to have extremely low water here in the Pacific Northwest this autumn season. It's already looking pretty low now (for this time of year), but who knows, maybe the rains will start early this year and the fish will get fired up. I'm not sure of dates yet--I will be staying and fishing with some good friends down there, and am looking forward to the Southern hospitality as well as the fishing. It'll probably be either late October or sometime in November, but if you're down in that area, we should hook up and say hello in person. Or for that matter, when you get out here. Give me a ring or an e-mail sometime soon, we have lots to talk about.

Peace,

D.