Complete Guide To Fly Rod Weight For Bass!

Bass are always greedy for food and they might even feed themselves with the same food. These fishes reside in similar types of places such as lakes and rivers and usually look for similar flies as other fish like trout. They also live in several aquatic environments all over the region. No matter where you live, you are likely to find bass in the nearby water resources. This is why these fishes, whether smallmouth or largemouth, are usually the target of most fly fishers across the entire globe. While fly fishing for either largemouth or smallmouth bass, you need to know the suitable fly rod weight for bass fishing. We will be providing you complete details on what sort of fly rod you need to use for bass fishing.

Some of The Best Fly Fishing Rods For You

Suitable Fly Rod Weight for Bass

While choosing a suitable weight fly rod for bass, you need to know about different features of bass fishes. Bass has the ability to fight against your fly fishing equipment and they can tackle your techniques and get away. Hence, it is really essential for you to choose the fly rod of a suitable weight for fly fishing for bass.

These fishes always look for the heaviest object inside the water surface to wait until a food organism appears for them to catch. When you are ready for fly fishing with your equipment, it might be tedious work for you to cast your flies in such objects. Bass might even get back out of your artificial flies since they would be able to detect the non-natural specialties of your flies. This is why using a large-sized fly rod for fishing such fish is essential.

So…What Is The Suitable Rod Weight For Bass?

Since most fly fishers are interested in fly fishing for bass, there are several manufacturers who manufacture fly rods compatible for bass fishing. Every fly rods are separated from each other by their line weight and their length. While fly fishing for bass, it is better to consider using a fly rod which is around 6 to 10 inches long and weighs around 6 to 9 kilograms.

Using a fly rod weighing in at around 8-9 kilograms can be better if you are looking to catch largemouth bass in such weedy areas. You also need to look for a fly reel suitable with this weight of the fly rod. Using a fly rod of similar weight can be turn out to be beneficial for you since a lighter fly rod might make the entire casting process difficult in snaggy and weedy areas. On the other hand, you might want to consider using a fly rod weighing in at around 6-7 kilograms while looking to catch smallmouth bass. Using a similar weight of fly rod for smallmouth bass can also be helpful if you are fly fishing in clear and open water.

Well..How About The Fly Rods Length??!!

While looking for the length of fly rods for fly fishing, you need to know that these rods are usually longer than the general fishing rods. If you are planning to go for fly fishing for largemouth bass, it is better to consider a fly rod which is around 8 to 10 feet long. Using a similar length of the fly rod is also beneficial in case of water surfaces where longer casting distance is essential. On the other hand, using fly rods of around 6 to 8 feet long can be the perfect choice when you are thinking about fly fishing for smallmouth bass. Shorter fly rods of similar length can also be helpful when there are many heavier objects inside the water level in smaller creeks where casting can be difficult.

There Are Other Choices Too..But…

You may also want to consider using a 5-weight fly rod designed for trout fish in case of fly fishing for bass. However, this wouldn’t be your perfect choice. Generally, the files required for bass fishing are larger and need to be resistant to wind. This is why using a 6-9 weight of fly rod can be the best choice for bass fishing as mentioned above.

Just looking for a suitable fly rod isn’t enough in case of fly fishing for bass since bass might be staying at any place inside the water level. It is better to use a fly rod suitable for a floating fly line while you are going for fly fishing in low-depth rivers or lakes. However, using a fly rod suitable for attaching several fly lines connected with additional fly reels and spools can be the best choice in any water condition.

Tips for Choosing Fly Rods for Bass

There are several things you need to know about while choosing fly rods for bass. Here are some tips that might help you to choose the best fly rods for bass fishing depending on several criteria.

Fly Line Weight

Artificial flies are usually designed in such a way that they weigh less and they have lower densities which is why most fly rods are manufactured for casting a heavier fly line. In general fishing, the weight of the fly line is usually defined by the lure weight. The case is just the opposite for fly fishing where the weight of a nearly-weightless fly determines the weight of the fly line. While choosing a fly rod, you need to pick up a fly line which is compatible with the rod’s weight. When you have a fly rod weighing in at 8 kilograms, it means the fly rod is compatible with an 8-weight fly line.

While choosing the best fly rod weight, you need to look for several aspects such as the distance between you and the cast, the condition of water and weather, the size of bass and the size of your artificial fly. When the weight of the bass is lower, the fly’s weight needs to be lower. Also, the weight of the fly rod needs to be lower in case the wind is soft and the depth of water is lower.

Length of Fly Rods

As mentioned in our guide to choosing the suitable weight of fly rod above, a fly rod is usually larger than the general fishing rods. If you are thinking about fishing a smallmouth bass, you might want to consider using a fly rod which is short with around 6-8 feet long. In case of largemouth bass, it is better to go for a larger fly rod which is around 8 to 10 feet long. A larger fly rod can also be helpful when you are using nymph flies in the water with complex currents since they can secure a better drift by reaching over opposing flows.

Fly Rod Materials

Different manufacturers design their fly rods with different materials. Here are some of the major materials used in most of the fly rods.

• Graphite: Most of the fly rods that can provide you with an amazing experience while fly fishing for bass is designed with graphite. This material is usually used for manufacturing lightweight, durable, strong and sensitive fly rods.
• Nano-silica Resin: The use of nano-silica resin in fly rods adds some advantages to using graphite in fly rods. In this technology, thousands of nano-silica particles are fixed into the resin which is used to fill up the empty area surrounding the cross-sections of graphite. Due to this, the resin becomes an architectural component in a fly rod and hence the fly rod becomes strong and powerful.
• Boron: The use of boron helps to manufacture a lightweight, strong and sensitive fly rod.
• Fiberglass: Fly rods containing fiberglass are slower than the graphite rods. The use of this material helps to prepare fly rods for slower casting stroke. Fiberglass rods can be used for fly fishing in close quarters since they can be loaded with a much smaller fly line in comparison to graphite rods.
• Bamboo: Bamboo rods might be slower than the graphite rods, but they are faster in comparison to fiberglass rods. Generally, fly rods designed with bamboo are heavier than the other materials. However, this doesn’t affect the enjoyment you can feel while casting with a bamboo fly rod.

Wrapping Up!

With the completion of our guide on choosing a suitable fly rod weight for bass fishing along with the tips that can help you to make the task easier, you can now find out the perfect fly rod weight when you are thinking about fly fishing for bass.

If you have any issues regarding choosing the suitable rod weight for bass fishing, you can write about your issue in the comments so that we would be able to help you with the perfect solution for your issue.