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Our Favorite Outfits
Over the years we've seen a lot of products, some worth their weight in gold, others a waste of your money. One of the most important things to consider when purchasing an outfit is the synergy between each item- that is to say, how well each individual product works together as a whole. As new rods hit the market, we test them with a variety of different lines to find out the ultimate combination. Some combinations bring out the best of the products involved, others do them a disservice. For example, if you use a Trout taper line (which is a top shelf product on its own) with a Z-axis, you're not loading the tip enough to get the best performance out of the rod. If you throw on a GPX taper, the extra weight towards the tip of the line accents the Z-axis in perfect harmony. After 30 years of being in business, we've learned exactly how to balance these various combinations of rods, reels and lines to give you the untimate in performance. The trade rules of the industry do not allow us to discount their products. While we can't give you 10% off a new outfit, on any of these outift over $500.00 we'll sweeten the deal by throwing in a free line valued at $69.95. On our Best Buy 5-weight, we'll give you the GPX line, a $69.65 value, for only $30.00! Regardless of what outfit you choose, we always recommend getting the best quality line possible. In you do the math you will be saving as much as 12% on our Best Buy outfits. Plus, they will be rigged up perfectly with our special knots and on the saltwater outfits, loop to loop connecttions from the fly line to backing. Please call or e-mail us to order any of these special Best Buy outfits as these don't appear in our on-line catalog. 406-222-7130 Best 4-Weight Outfit
The Loomis Whisper Creek 8'6" #4 is a rod I helped Steve Rajeff design for our spring creek fishing in Montana, where accuracy and a delicate presentation are a must. This is a sweet rod to cast and has a nice light tip to handle 6X and 7X tippets. The Ross Evolution 1.5 is a perfect match for this lightweight rod. The copper colored Evolution compliments the Olive color of the rod and its brown reel seat. This is the best light outfit I've found for the Paradise Valley Spring Creeks, tailwater rivers, or Western streams and rivers, especially if you love to fishing small dry flies where accuracy is so important. This rod has good power though and will handle plenty of wind. It’s also a pleasant rod for fishing nymphs with only a medium amount of weight. -George Anderson
1. G.Loomis Whisper Creek 8'6" #4 (4 pc).........$645.00 (specify left hand or right hand wind)
Best 5-weight outfit
The Sage Z-Axis 9 foot #5 is the rod that won our 5-Weight Shootout, and despite other new 5-weight rods that have appeared on the market since our shootout, the Z-Axis is still the obvious pick for our best 5 weight outfit. This is the best all around trout rod your can lay your hands on, at any price. Short distance accuracy, or long bombs - this rod does it all. I was using this rod with a Ross Evolution #2 but when we got in this Abel Super 4 large arbor in Army Camo color for a customer and noticed that it’s a dynamite looking combination, I switched. The Abel Super 4 is slightly heavier but has a much better drag and detent system. A standard black Super 4 large arbor is $500, so if you want to go this way, you can knock $125 off the price of this outfit. My favorite line on this rod is still the SA GPX in WF-5-F. You can upgrade to the SA Sharkskin line for an extra $30. I love this outfit and you will too. -George Anderson
1. Sage Z-Axis 9' #5 (4 pc).................................$695.00 <Free Line of your choice> <$69.95> (specify left hand or right hand wind) Shipping: $15.00 _____________ You Pay: $1,347.70
Best 5-Weight Outfit abovewith Ross Evolution
The same wonderful Z-Axis 9 foot #5 rod as above but with a -George Anderson
1. Sage Z-Axis 9' #5 (4 pc).................................$695.00 <Free Line of your choice> <$69.95> (specify left hand or right hand wind)
Best Buy 5-Weight Outfit
When we saw St. Croix’s Imperial 9 foot #5 rod this year we were all impressed. It looks and casts like a $400 rod but it’s only $180.00! And it’s made North America! The craftsmanship is excellent but it’s performance is what blew us away. It is a 4-piece rod making it easy to pack and carry on your trips. Then we added the best inexpensive reel we’ve found yet, the Lamson Konic 2. Then we’ll add SA’s GPX line. Since the price is so low on this outfit already, we can’t give you a free GPX line but we’ll throw this in for $30, less than half price. This is not only a wonderful starter outfit but also one you’ll use for years to come! -George Anderson
1. St. Croix Imperial (4pc).................................$190.00 (specify left hand or right hand wind) Now that's a smart buy!
Best 8-Weight Outfit
This is an easy choice. The Loomis CrossCurrent GLX has blown everyone else away in our 8-weight rod comparisons and shootouts for several years now and after casting all the new 8-weights, we think that the Loomis CC GLX is the is still the best casting 8-line rod out there, especially for saltwater anglers. Combine this with the standard Tibor Everglades, which we feel is the finest saltwater reel on the market today and this package is a true winner. The anodized moss green color is a little more money than black or Satin Gold ($70 more) but is a beautiful match with the olive rod and reel seat of the GLX. You also have the option to pick the Everglades Quick Change model that runs $746 in standard black or gold or $828 for Moss green. If you need to have two different lines on hand for the fishing you are doing, go for the Quick Change model. If you need only a floating line as we use for bonefish, just get the standard Tibor and save some money. I’ve used this exact outfit for several years now and love it. -George Anderson
1. G. Loomis Cross Current GLX 9'#8 (4pc).........$680.00 2. Tibor Everglades (Moss Green)........................$710.00 3. 200 yards of saltwater 30lb. micron..................$19.95 4. Scientific Angler's Bonefish WF-8-F...................$69.95 5. George Anderson's Bonefish Leader....................$6.95 __________ Total: 1,486.85 Tax: 0.00 <Free Line of your choice> <$69.95> (specify left hand or right hand wind) Shipping: $15.00 __________ You Pay: $1,431.90 With a Std. Black or Gold Tibor Everglades reel: $1361.90
Best Buy 8-Weight Outfit
Like in our 5-weight Best Buy outfit, It looks to us like the St. Croix Imperial 9 foot #8 rules. This rod has good butt and mid section power but a nice soft tip so it loads easily and casts in close very nicely. The St. Croix Legend Elite placed third in our 8-weight shootout and this Imperial feels a lot like it! We can’t believe this rod casts so well for the price. You have to go up to the $400 rods to find anything that compares to this rod! For inexpensive 8/9 line reels it is tough to beat the TFO 375. This reel should sell for $500 but it is only $289.95! This is a terrific bonefish reel and runs on three ball bearings, just like a Tibor – smooth and good looking to boot. It’s just the right size and looks great too in it’s titanium colored finish. This reel also has easily interchangeable spools and the extra spools are only $129.95. This is an impressive outfit at an insanely low price. -George Anderson
1. St. Croix Imperial 9'#8 (4pc).........................$200.00 <Free Line of your choice> <$69.95> (specify left hand or right hand wind) Shipping: $15.00 Now that's a smart buy!
Best Big Tarpon Outfit
Another easy choice for me, since tarpon fishing is my passion and if there were anything else this good, I’d be using it! The Loomis CrossCurrent GLX in 9 foot #11 is light and easy to cast, but powerful. It is a lot more fun than the heavier 12-weights, but it has the beans to handle any tarpon that swims! This is a stiff rod so I step it up to a #12 line to get it to load quickly at short distance yet casting 100 feet all day long is no problem. For a reel, the Tibor Gulfstream is my favorite. This reel has lots of room for a #12 line and nearly 300 yd. of 30 lb. backing. The moss green model is a beautiful compliment with the olive colors on the rod and reel seat. If you would rather have standard colors - black or gold, you an knock $81.00 off the price below. We’ll fine tune this outfit by rigging the #12 line with a spliced loop at the back end so you can change lines quickly, and our TTTK (totally tricked out tarpon knot) gives you the ultimate 100% reliable line to butt section connection. -George Anderson
1. G. Loomis Cross Current GLX 9'#11 (4pc)...............$760.00 Spliced backing loop, whipped loop, TTTK butt section: 0.00 (specify left hand or right hand wind) With a Std. Black or Gold Tibor Gulfstream reel: $1550.80 A nice touch - Note Tibor does a wonderful job of engraving a tarpon on the backside of your reel for an extra $55.00
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