Orvis T3 Rod Review

[Joshua Field]

Joe and I went to the Bill Cairns casting lecture on Saturday which was very good and has Joe "overthinking" his cast. After the talk, we went out and did some test casting of a couple of rods. I checked out the superfine and the T3. I'll write more about the superfine later but here is my impression of the T3:

Firstly, I fish with Bamboo and learned on fiberglass... so I'm used to slooow action. The first rod I checked out was the superfine fullflex and it was definitely in the slow category. It felt like it should've been paired up with a 5wt line even though it was a 4wt... which is what the sales fellow handed me when he gave the T3 (Mid-Flex 6.0 4wt 7'6"- Price: $625.00)



It was light and well balanced and certainly much faster than what I'm used to. I don't really like the way they are doing ferrules now - they look like they aren't properly fit together but all the rods were like that so it wasn't a fluke. There was a big gap that just looked like it was begging for grit. The reel seat was nice enough and I like the design they've started using for the hardware (bottom is a cap that screws over the whole threaded area - instead of a ring, which gives it a nice clean look). Joe pointed out that it seemed to be slipping for him after a few casts.

First impression casting the rod - powerful. Took me a while to realize I needed to close my stance and really let the rod do the work. It was a challenge to get a delicate presentation out of it... but that might just take some getting used to. I could certainly put out a lot of line for a 7'6" 4wt.

All in all, I'd give the rod a thumbs up, but I'll be sticking with my bamboo rod for now and shopping elsewhere when I'm looking for a graphite and will likely be building my own from a blank. I'm sure Joe will have plenty to add to these thoughts... he hated the superfine and wasn't a fan of my bamboo rod either - too slooow.

I've been reading great reviews of these guys: www.route37flyfishing.com/fly_rods ($220 for the winesap 7'6" which people are praising)

[JoeOverlock]

That Bill Cairns lecture was awsome. I can't wait untll part two when we get to see him cast.

As for the rods, I liked the T3 rods, hated the Superfine rods. Josh mentioned the reel seat on the T3 rod loosening on me. This could of been a rod defect. But I think it was because the reel seat had large threads on it and the lock nut (aka the fancy thing with the orvis logo on it) felt rather thin. If they used a finer thread on the reel seat or a dual lock nut setup this would remedy the loose reel problem. Either way a loose reel is a big annoyance to me. I can't stand casting a rod with a loose reel.

Those Superfine rods used over glorified rubber bands to hold the reels to the rod. Plus with a cork reel seat I felt that the reel was improperly supported. But they do build these rods with weight in mind. They were a much slower rod then I was used to. But not as slooooooow as Josh's Banty Bamboo with the triangle taper line.

If you are a Bamboo fan then you'll love the slow action of the Superfine rods. But if you're like me and need a faster rod then go with the T3 or Trident rods.

I own a Trident 4wt and love it. I have had some problems with the reel seat coming un-glued twice from the rod though. I think it might be because of the epoxy Orvis uses for the rods. The last time it came unglued I used some epoxy from the hobbie shop and it seems to have worked better, but only time will tell.

[Uplander]

Ahh Joe, I must respectfully disagree with ya’.

I have an older model Superfine (Far and Fine), and it’s one sweet stick….

‘Course, I like to fish the ‘boo as well.

Dear Ol’ Dad has a couple of the Trident rods, and he really enjoys them. Nary a problem with the reel seat either….

I think when it comes to rods, much of it is personal preference relative to action.

Oh, and uh…Joe…no offense, but it sounds like you have a personal problem when it comes to reel seats….

[Joshua Field]

re: the superfine reel seat (cork and plastic ring) - it also didn't help that they'd covered the foot of the demo reel in scotch tape to protect it from damage... made it hard to get the rings on properly.

uplander: I noticed in your pics that you have a reel seat with just rings. I've always had screw locks... do the rings work out well? Kim (agMD) who moderates the rod building thread was advocating them as a possible solution for reel seats and I'm open to something more substantial than the plastic ones on the superfine:


Something more along these lines (but cork):

[Uplander]

I think it should be made clear that not all the Superfine have the cork seats – only the very light wt rods. My Far and Fine has a nice maple reel seat, and it doesn’t have those little rubber bands you show in your photo. This is the new Far and Fine reel seat from the Orvis site. On my older model it's a spinning lock-ring....

.

My bamboo rod does have just a nickel ring to hold the reel; exactly like your photo Joshua….. It has never been a problem. I’ve had screw locks come loose on the stream in the past, but the ring has never budged once I slide it tightly on the reel foot….

[JoeOverlock]

Uplander said:

Oh, and uh…Joe…no offense, but it sounds like you have a personal problem when it comes to reel seats….

Must be all those monster browns I catch