Five Rivers FT 9', 8 wt...a rocket launcher...

Well here's my first 8 weight rod build...this is a big fly-big fish terminator fly rod...











This is amongh the fastest rods out there, if not the fastest and has tons of reserve power for handling big pike or salmon..north american flyfishers apreaciate this rod very much and they throw heavy shooting heads for those deep lying salmons and far away bonefish in saltwater...
I'm allready very happy with my 6 weight FT and I can handle just about anything with it, but this 8 weight is truly a cannon...throws big heavy flies with ease and is a very powerfull stick I can tell ya'...
Allready outperformed the famous TCR from Sage...no kiddin'
Just chuck&duck when throwing big flies with this stick in the wind;))...
Tightloops!!

3 weight in test...

Until the new FTXL are coming check out one of my favorite trout rods...This sweet 3 weight that was posted for sale this winter has now finally found an owner...my buddy Zsolt decided he needs my best build trout rod and I'm pretty happy it remained close to me and I get to cast it once in a while:))
I just glued this amazing upslide reel seat from Bellinger at Zsolt's request instead of the clasic uplocking...I ordered this seat initially for me and I can say this is a fantastic complement to this fine trout rod...It proved to be very light and holds the reel tight with beautiful hardware and stunning black ash burl stabilized wood...a truly piece of jewerly...could you expect anything else from Bellinger?
We test cast this rod after the long winter and has proved again to be one heck of a smooth one with very fast recovery...throws some really nice&tight loops:))This rod reminds me so much of the Sage XP 8' 3 weight..smooth and crisp...
It's great to have smooth loading and speed in the same time...Great job designing this Signature V blank Dan!! Cheers!!

New Five Rivers FTXL blank release!!

Good news from Dan Craft Enterprises for 2009!!
Five Rivers Rod Blanks are allready a well respected brand in the USA and looks like will happen the same in Europe...
Dan Craft has released a new faster line of blanks, the Five Rivers FTXL (Fast Taper Extra Light)...
"EXTRA FAST ACTION BLANK FOR WORKING IN STRONG WINDS AT LONG DISTANCE. THESE NEW BLANKS ARE CONSTRUCTED USING OUR PROPRIETARY TAPERS AND A MIXTURE OF 57 AND 60 + MILLION MODULUS GRAPHITE CREATING A LIGHT WEIGHT BLANK WITH EXTRA FAST ACTION AND GREAT STRENGTH AND LIFTING POWER! CLEAR SEMI-GLOSS FINISH, LIMITED LIFETIME WARRANTY."
According to what Dan sais, they are designed to be slighly faster than the previous FT series of blanks, wich to me were the fastest blanks I thought I will ever see...
The new FTX blanks are even lower diameter than the FT's , and are constructed of high modulus-high strain graphite fibers and scrim, ultralight weight and the semigloss natural finish, wich I love the most actually, because it goes well with a variety of thread colours.
It sounds very good especially for those who look for very fast action fly rods in general, or for casting into strong winds with heavy flies...and all these at a very affordable price, from 150$ to 196$. Available from 5 weight to 10 weight and 9' in lenght. They might be available in a 4 weight 9 foot configuration also.
I'm looking forward to see an FTXL 905-4 for all around lake fishing and those far away casts and an maybe an FTXL 908-4 for pikes...In fact I can't even think on something else until I get one :))..
Until then, tightloops to everyone!!

Five Rivers FT "2 weight" again...but not just another

So I finnaly refinished my very personal fly rod for wich I waited a little while in order to receive some stunning components from Mike McCoy (www.snakeguides.com).
This is my first triple feather inlay and first use of fine silk for wrappings and gotta say I'm pretty happy with these colours. The reel seat is a special Struble U24 with amboyna two tone wood spacer that really adds a nice caracter to the rod.
The rod's finish is not the original finish (satin grey) because this rod had to be sanded unfortunately in order to be refinished...so after a lot of work with the sanding I installed these beautiful guides on my very favorite trout stick from Dan Craft Enterprises.
Allthough it is rated as a very subjective 2 weight, being a very powerfull rod in the lower butt section, this rod requires more weight to be properly loaded.
With flexing in the upper third this rod is a very versatile fly rod, able to cast a variety of lines from 3 up to even 5 weight. It could easily be rated in a more objective way as a 3-5 wt. rod due to the unique taper design...usually fast action rods will cast more line weights (flexing more or less, depending on the line used) than slower action rods.
The important thing about this rod is that the taper is so built that will never run out of power and it's really easy to reach out long distances with it, while the flexible tip offers great tippet protection, fine presentations when needed and easy loading at shorter distances.
This particular rod has given me some great fishing times, with it's very light weight and superb feel when playing a fish. It's actually a rod that fishes well with a 3, 4 or 5 weight line but feels so much lighter than a standard 9 footer that you may have been familiar with.
This is not the "broomstick fast action rod" that some advertise their rods as to be nor the average rod of many big companies (contrary to it's decent price) and will make a difference in your cast and present a dry fly with great accuracy...give it a try!!
Tightloops!!