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Post by lurker1818 on Jun 24, 2011 10:14:04 GMT -6
They are having another massive sale, and I am looking at upgrading my upper weight rod, and maybe throw in a backup while at it. Looking at a 6wt 10ft A-5 NS ($188) for the lighter rod, and 10/11 wt 9ft GPX ($114) for the bigger rod. Anyone used either of these, good or bad. Both of these are on sale, 70% off, both $600 plus rods.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 24, 2011 12:44:28 GMT -6
I bought my A-5(pre-NS series) back when the company first started. I paid $112 USD for it. It was worth every penny. It's the nicest rod I have, the blank is nothing short of spectacular. I love casting it, and I love fishing it. I've paired it with a Cabela's Prestige Plus floating line(SA Trout Taper) and it casts great. Getting one at 190 it still a good price for the rod you get. The only trouble I'm having is my cork handle started giving way last year, and now 2 rings near the top are rotating free. I might have to inject some epoxy in there to repair it because it happened just after the 1 year warantee expired. Boo-urns! Anyways, it's still worth buying. I'd get one again. Their reels are good too. Their GP reel is bullet proof. Check out Allen Fly fishing. I've heard really good things about their reels too. The guys on FlyBC where raving about it. That A-5 though...what a nice rod!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2011 11:57:00 GMT -6
Who is having the sale Lurker1818? I still need to get an 8wt Rod
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2011 21:03:33 GMT -6
Albright fly rods has been having a 50-70% off sale for the last few years. I bought one of their rods for 40$ and I like it. It came with a rod tube as well. The A5 is their highest rated rod. www.albrightflyfish.com/index.html
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Post by Dale Martens on Aug 6, 2011 11:25:36 GMT -6
I have a 4 weight A5. (Not the current A5 series.) It is a VERY nice rod for the money. I also have an 8/9 GP which I got for something like $40. I use it as my lawn rod for practice. Again, I think it is VERY nice for the money.
(On second thought, I'd say both rods are VERY nice and drop the "for the money" part of it!)
I think the A5 series are exxellent rods but they are NOT $600 rods by any stretch of the imagination - just your typical high quality import - like say Redington or TFO. (Most $600 rods are made in the US.) The $600 MSRP and the deep discount is just Albright's typical way of selling them. I think they only do direct marketing and don't go through any retailers.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 7, 2011 12:51:12 GMT -6
I agree with you, they seem to carry a line of products that are of fairly good to very good quality, then put an outrageous price tag on them and "Discount" them deeply to trigger an immediate response from buyers. Sounds a little like triggering a strike from a fish on a fast river?
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Post by lurker1818 on Aug 8, 2011 6:35:15 GMT -6
So far I have only been able to use it one time, and not very well at that. It is definately a soft rod, my 5wt Wright and McGill is MUCH stiffer than this 6wt. After a few trips where I can really get a good use on it, I will post back.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 8, 2011 14:41:47 GMT -6
Did you get an A-5?
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Post by Dale Martens on Aug 9, 2011 14:47:52 GMT -6
The older A-5 got a pretty good rating in a "5 weight shootout" done by the Yellowstone Angler (a Montana flyshop) a few years ago...
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Post by Deleted on Aug 9, 2011 20:48:07 GMT -6
The GP I bought for $40 is now my favourite Pike rod. It's a 91/2'- 7/8 so it can toss some large flies into the wind and I like the way it sets the hook on larger pike. I think it has a moderate action, but not too soft. The rod tube they sent me could fit two rods. All in all, I have no regrets....If I wasn't saving up for an Echo rod, I might try the A-5.
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Post by lurker1818 on Aug 10, 2011 8:18:52 GMT -6
Yes, got the A5-NS (Not sure what the NS is for). 10 footer, so I plan on that being the tube rod, as I normally use a 5wt or 7wt from the tube anyway. Just got my sharkskin line in the mail yesterday, haven't loaeded it up yet. Hopefully in the next couple of weeks I will be able to hit one of our trout lakes for some early fall action to give it a try.
Also, found that I have the GP 7/8 as well. We moved houses a few years back and some of the rods got stored in the back corner of the basement. Amazing what you find when you are not looking. Found the GP and a Lefty Kreh rod that I forgot I even had!! Is 9 fly rods too much?
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2011 19:09:00 GMT -6
I use a Cabelas Prestige Plus aka SA Trout Taper with my A-5 5wt. and it's awesome! I found the sharkskin a bit on the light side and it didn't want to load all that well with my A-5.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 11, 2011 18:42:18 GMT -6
Nine rods that you've told the wife about? Or do you have a few more squirrelled away somewhere?
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Post by lurker1818 on Aug 12, 2011 7:32:33 GMT -6
I'm pretty sure she knows about them, I think it was her that hid 2 of them on me.
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Post by lurker1818 on Sept 6, 2011 6:26:17 GMT -6
Finally got out to test the A5. It is a much more flexable (faster?) rod than I am use to, so it took a bit to get the casting down, really had to slow down to let the rod load up. Once I got the timing down, the rod casted very well, and with the high wind on the weekend, it did a good job putting flies into the wind. Only managed two small bows and a medium tiger on it, so the fighting ability was not tested out, but it seemed to handle this pretty good so far. The extra foot on the rod makes a difference in the tube, and that might be what helped in the wind casting.
In my opinion, for what I paid for it, it is a good rod, but it does take some casts to get the action down.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 7, 2011 18:27:35 GMT -6
Was that you on Twins Lake on Saturday?
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Post by lurker1818 on Sept 7, 2011 21:44:08 GMT -6
That was me. Not pretty casting done, but it got me a good idea of what I have.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 8, 2011 20:07:48 GMT -6
Your casting looked okay to me, especially with that kind of wind velocity....
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