Echo Trout X Fly Fishing Rod

Line Weight

Collections: Single-hand Fly Rods

Category: General Purpose Fly Rods

Type: Unknown Type


Rods are typically designed around casting at 30′-50′ distances – It was time to think outside of that box.  Using our Variable Sweet Spot technology, we developed a line of five unique rods that load and cast at any distance. A rod designed from scratch with the advanced caster in mind – to maximise the rod’s wide range of optimal casting distance.

#3 7'6"

“When making shorter casts it is best to use a rod that is not overly stiff so it can load or flex with a small amount of line out the rod tip.” – Tim Rajeff

Tim’s thoughts:

To have more fun when chasing small to medium sized fish in small water, a #3 line is perfect. When making shorter casts, it is best to use a rod that is not overly stiff so it can load or flex with a small amount of line out of the rod tip. The trick is to make a rod soft enough to load with little line out and still have enough power to handle a gust of wind and turn over bushy dry flies. To help a rod “cycle” through a cast and hit a close target as quickly as possible, it is best to use a shorter rod. Trout anglers who fish freestone mountain streams have known this for years. To optimize the TROUT X three weight rod for small rivers, we choose to make them 7’6” long.

 It is common that a steep gradient river has fast water with pockets that hold fish. Fish that must make a quick decision whether to take a fly are typically not leader shy. For this reason, many anglers who fish pocket water, with big bushy flies, use heavier tippet than those fishing spring creeks. Many great pocket water rods have a little more stiffness than one would expect for a three weight. Instead of a soft / low powered three weight we wanted to make sure ours wasn’t too soft. After much debate, we decided to give the 376 TROUT X seven-foot three weight rod a line stiffness rating (LSR) of 3.3.

 The three weight TROUT X needs to load quickly but have reasonable power in the bottom half of the rod. Especially for this reason, the 376 TROUT X rod has our VSS (Variable Sweet Spot) action. Rods with this action get progressively stiffer as you move from the tip to the butt. This action has no large, sweet spot optimized for a cast of a specific distance. We think the VSS action offers good to expert casters the ability to use every inch of the rod by adjusting their stroke to the line speed and loop size they need. It is an action entry level anglers and beginner casters will grow into but is optimized for more advanced casters.

 If you have an aggressive casting stroke, you can use a lighter line on this rod – if you are a smooth, long stroke caster, or if you plan to only throw short casts all day you will like this rod with a heavier line with a thicker tip diameter.

 While light weight isn’t as critical on a shorter rod, it does help with hook setting and helps when making shorter, more precise casts. Rods that are lighter transfer more energy to the line than heavy rods. These rods are produced in a factory that has access to the latest and best carbon fiber material. We used lightweight guides and have done everything we can to shave weight from the rod to improve performance.

 The rods are all four piece and a coated with mist green gloss finish. The matching thread color helps the rod blend into the environment and all the snake guides are chrome-plated for less friction. SIC stripper guides help improve line shooting and the slim half wells grip and burl wood real seat are beautiful, light, and low maintenance.

#4, 8'4"

“Our “shorter” 4 weight rod has been designed to protect light tippet and function in all but the largest rivers. ” – Tim Rajeff

Tim’s Thoughts:

Shorter #4-line rods are important for those who need pinpoint casts in tight quarters. Our “shorter” 4 weight rod has been designed to protect light tippet and function in all but the largest rivers. This is the rod that will pick casts up quickly allowing the angler to drop their fly back into a likely pocket or allow a more “wristy” cast to flick a cast to the grass of an undercut bank looking for larger fish. Casting control is what you will feel when you get one in your hands. Dropping a dry fly into a coffee cup at 35 feet just got easier. The 484 TROUT X eight-foot four weight rod is the rod we expect you will want for mountain streams, technical pocket water, or super finicky trout on small to medium rivers.

 484 TROUT X has a line stiffness rating (LSR) of 4.3 and has our VSS action (Variable Sweet Spot). What you ask is our VSS action????  It is a rod action where every inch of the rod gets progressively stiffer as you move from the tip to the butt. This action has no large, sweet spot optimized for a cast of a specific distance. We think the VSS action offers good to expert casters the ability to adjust their stroke to the line speed they need for success. It is an action entry level anglers and beginner casters will grow into but is optimized for better casters.

 If you have an aggressive casting stroke, you can use a lighter line on this rod and if you are a smooth long stroke caster you will like this rod with a heavier line.

 To help the rod’s casting efficiency we did what we could to make the TROUT X rods light to help casting efficiency and to help protect light tippet. These rods are produced in a factory that has access to the latest and best carbon fiber material. We used lightweight guides and have done everything we can to shave weight from the rod to improve performance.

 The rods are all four piece and a coated with mist green gloss finish. The matching thread color helps the rod blend into the environment and all the snake guides are chrome plated for less friction. SIC stripper guides help improve double haul efficiency and the extended half wells grip with a burl wood real seat so they are beautiful, light, and low maintenance.

#4, 9'0"

“The 490 TROUT X rod is the rod we expect you will want to fish spring creeks or super finicky trout on medium to larger rivers.” – Tim Rajeff

Tim’s Thoughts:

A 9 foot #4-line rod is a rod designed to chase large fish on light tippet. In technical trout waters, accuracy is critical but as important is the ability to keep the line out of the grass behind you and to mend and control your line after you have made the cast. If we lived in a world of magic fly rods, we would make a shorter rod maybe 8’4” to 8’6” to optimize accuracy that as soon as the fly lands on the water would extent to 10 feet. This magic “extend-O rod” would allow for more accurate casts (10’ rods tent to be less accurate than shorter rods) and then allow you to mend or lift  line away from water currents that would affect the drift of the fly. Most fly fishing competitors use long rods in all their competition specifically for line control. We chose to make our technical trout rod nine feet because it is the sweet spot between accuracy and line control. The 490 TROUT X nine-foot four weight rod is the rod we expect you will want to fish spring creeks or super finicky trout on medium to larger rivers.

 TROUT X 490 rod has a line stiffness rating (LSR) of 4.3 and has our VSS (Variable Sweet Spot) action. What you ask is our VSS action….. it is a rod action where every inch of the rod gets progressively stiffer as you move from the tip to the butt. This action has no large, sweet spot optimized for a cast of a specific distance. We think the VSS action offers good to expert casters the ability to adjust their stroke to the line speed they need for success. It is an action entry level anglers and beginner casters will grow into but is optimized for more advanced casters.

 If you have an aggressive casting stroke,you can use a lighter line on this rod and if you are a smooth long stroke caster you will like this rod with a heavier line.

 To help the rod’s casting efficiency we did what we could to make the TROUT X rods light to help casting efficiency and to help protect light tippet. These rods are produced in a factory that has access to the latest and best carbon fiber material. We used lightweight guides and have done everything we can to shave weight from the rod to improve performance.

 The rods are all four piece and a coated with mist green gloss finish. The matching thread color helps the rod blend into the environment and all the snake guides are chrome plated for less friction. SIC stripper guides help improve double haul efficiency and the extended half wells grip with a burl wood real seat so they are beautiful, light, and low maintenance.

#5, 9'0"

“….stiff enough to fish streamers, hopper dropper rigs, and indicators in all but the windiest conditions. It is the ½ ton pickup truck of fly rods.” – Tim Rajeff

Tim’s Thoughts:

A 9 foot #5-line rod is currently the best-selling size trout fly rod sold in the USA. It is the best seller because it is soft enough to be able to fish 5X and 6X tippet without breaking off every nice fish you set the hook on. It is also stiff enough to fish streamers, hopper dropper rigs, and indicators in all but the windiest conditions. It is the ½ ton pickup truck of fly rods.

 If you want to do everything with a five-weight rod, it needs to have enough flex in the tip and enough stiffness in the butt. Not too much or too little. When designing a rod, we rate stiffness by what fictional line size “most” anglers would use on the rod. We call this the rods line stiffness rating (LSR).  For example, a standard five weight rod would have a LSR rating of 5.0. A soft five weight rod might balance well with a 4.7 weight line. A stiff five weight rod might need a 5.5 weight line to load it and cast well. That extra stiff / distance casting five weight rod you use to show off to your friends might need a 5.9 weight line to balance with it. The new TROUT X rod has a LSR of 5.4 which can put a trout fly anywhere you want over the largest range of fishing conditions.

 TROUT X 590 rod has a line stiffness rating (LSR) of 5.4 and has our VSS (Variable Sweet Spot) action. What you ask is our VSS action….. it is a rod action where every inch of the rod gets progressively stiffer as you move from the tip to the butt. This action has no large, sweet spot optimized for a cast of a specific distance. We think the VSS action offers good to expert casters the ability to adjust their stroke to the line speed they need for success. It is an action entry level anglers and beginner casters will grow into but is optimized for more advanced casters.

If you have an aggressive casting stroke,you can use a lighter line on this rod and if you are a smooth long stroke caster you will like this rod with a heavier line.

 To help the rod’s casting efficiency we did what we could to make the TROUT X rods light to help casting efficiency and to help protect light tippet. These rods are produced in a factory that has access to the latest and best carbon fiber material. We used lightweight guides and have done everything we can to shave weight from the rod to improve performance.

The rods are all four piece and a coated with mist green gloss finish. The matching thread color helps the rod blend into the environment and all the snake guides are chrome plated for less friction. SIC stripper guides help improve double haul efficiency and the extended half wells grip with a burl wood real seat so they are beautiful, light, and low maintenance.

#6, 9'0"

“You grab your six weight when you have wind, need to throw far, are throwing big, heavy flies, or when you are throwing big nymphs + indicator rigs.” – Tim Rajeff

Tim’s Thoughts:

When do you use a six-weight rod for trout? Is it to throw small flies on a calm day? F*** no! You grab your six weight when you have wind, need to throw far, are throwing big, heavy flies, or when you are throwing big nymphs + indicator rigs. In almost every one of these situations, you want a firm six weight but not one that is overly stiff so you can initiate a cast and still feel the rod load. We chose to give the TROUT X 690, nine-foot six weight rod a line stiffness rating (LSR) of 6.5.

 TROUT X 690 rod has a line stiffness rating (LSR) of 6.5 and has our VSS (Variable Sweet Spot) action. What you ask is our VSS action….. it is a rod action where every inch of the rod gets progressively stiffer as you move from the tip to the butt. This action has no large, sweet spot optimized for a cast of a specific distance. We think the VSS action offers good to expert casters the ability to adjust their stroke to the line speed they need for success. It is an action entry level anglers and beginner casters will grow into but is optimized for more advanced casters. If you have an aggressive casting stroke,you can use a lighter line on this rod and if you are a smooth long stroke caster you will like this rod with a heavier line.

 To help the rod’s casting efficiency we did what we could to make the TROUT X rods light to help casting efficiency and to help protect light tippet. These rods are produced in a factory that has access to the latest and best carbon fiber material. We used lightweight guides and have done everything we can to shave weight from the rod to improve performance.

 The rods are all four piece and a coated with mist green gloss finish. The matching thread color helps the rod blend into the environment and all the snake guides are chrome plated for less friction. SIC stripper guides help improve double haul efficiency and the extended half wells grip with a burl wood real seat so they are beautiful, light, and low maintenance.

 

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