The Radian has performed very well in our 5-weight Shootouts, and this 6-weight is no exception. Only at long range did we find it lacking in power compared to the Meridian. All the Scott rods rated right at the top for craftsmanship and the Radian is a gorgeous rod. The blank is left un-sanded in the Scott tradition so it is dark gray with gray wraps, trimmed with orange on the butt section, and at the ferrules.
One of the little touches we like are the inch markings at 12 and 20 inches for measuring fish. I wish more manufacturers would give us these.
The grip is unusual in that it has the swell slightly above the middle of the cork grip. Then it is basically a full wells grip but it feels great in your hand and positions your hand closer to the top of the grip, so you feel less swing weight. Thin cork rings are used with top quality cork. The reel seat is striking, with an orange tint to the wood burl enclosed in the black skeleton uplocking seat. A nice big locking ring is used that you can grip firmly to tighten down on the reel foot. Scott uses one SiC stripping guide, with small diameter wire hard chrome snake guides the rest of the way, as well as a hook keeper.
One of the reasons these Scott rods perform so well is their softer, more flexible tips, yet good strong butt sections. This design has been a winner and these tapers are far better than what we have seen from Scott in the past.
The Radian was a difficult choice for me over the Meridian, which has won our 8-weight Shootout. I loved the very light swing weight of the Meridian and its better performance at long range. But the lack of a fighting butt and the smaller guides are probably better for a 6-weight that will be used primarily in fresh water. And the Radian performed much better at short distances than the Meridian – more like conditions you are going to encounter while trout fishing.
George’s casting notes: The perfect line- S.A. MPX in WF-6-F
Performance at 30 feet: 19.5 points out of 20
Great feel and accuracy at short range. As good as the Sky and only the Winston Air was better.
Performance at 50 feet: 19.5 points out of 20
Buttery smooth and able to form very nice loops without much effort on my part. The accuracy was as good as the NRX or Asquith.
Performance at 75 feet: 19 points out of 20
Only out long did the Radian lack a little power, but it was still in the top six rods at long range. Here the Sky and Asquith rule.
James’ Comments:
The Scott Radian is one of those rods that both bobber watchers and DFO (dry fly only) guys can both appreciate. Fast meets feel? Well, in a word, yes. The 9’ 6-weight Radian casts great and feels great, and even mends great due to its softer tip. It is easy to throw huge mends with it, or minute tip mends that mend the line but leave your fly (or indicator) untouched, dead drifting downstream. Truly this is one rod that fishes well and will hook you a lot of fish, especially if you like to nymph.
The Radian looks great, feels great, and does great. In close it is fun to cast as you can actually feel the rod loading and unloading. With more feedback from the rod it feels like you can dial in accuracy even better, and get the fly to land softly to boot. The Radian is a great all around rod and for those who appreciate a little more “fling” in their cast, this rod is going to feel great.
One thing that the Radian does that no other six-weight rod in the test is doing is giving us 12” and 20” measurement marks on the rod blank. This is a nice touch and will help keep the fisherman honest when telling tales back at the local bar. Then again, some may see this as a negative.
The finish work on the Radian is second to none. All of the guides have the appropriate amount of epoxy and are perfect. The occasional orange trim thread wraps look good and match well with the orange tinted wood insert on the reel seat. I like how each reel seat’s wood insert is unique. Speaking of which, the handwriting on the rod is classy and exceptionally well done, including the hand written serial number. Small touches like these give the Radian a strong one of a kind impression.
I have grown to like the look of Scott’s unsanded blanks and have also acquired a taste for the Radian’s unique grip shape. Initially the shape felt odd to me, but over time I got used to it. I appreciate how it makes you choke up a little on the grip, which actually makes the swing weight feel even lighter.
The only beef I have with the Radian is that it is a little too soft in the mid-section for playing fish and driving a hook set.
Performance at 30 feet: 19.5 points out of 20
The Radian’s unique grip makes you “choke up” a bit on the rod, making it feel very light in hand. Incredible feel and accuracy, second only to the Winston Air. I’m feeling the middle of the rod flex as well as the tip, which gives the Radian a smooth “fling” to it, which accurately represents Scott’s advertising slogan: “fast meets feel.”
Performance at 50 feet: 19.5 points out of 20
Remarkably smooth feel. The Radian would score a perfect 20 on feel alone but I wasn’t nearly as accurate with it. I could get tighter loops with other rods, but the Radian sure put a smile on my face.
Performance at 75 feet: 19 points out of 20
Ain’t nothin’ wrong with that! When my timing was perfect this rod performed flawlessly. If I rushed the cast, or tried to punch it too quickly the result was a tailing loop (similar to the NRX or DXF). Let the rod do the work, don’t rush it, and you’ll be impressed by this rod.
Logan’s Comments:
The Scott Radian has been one of my favorite trout rods for the past several years. I love the look and feel of the Radian. The craftsmanship is exactly what you’d expect from Scott, stunning. This was one example of a rod that was very different than its five-weight counterpart. I found that the six lacked the power that is found in the five, which hurt its performance scores at longer distances.
Logan’s Casting Notes:
Performance at 30 feet: 19 points out of 20
This is where the Scott Radian really performed well. The Radian had the perfect amount of feel to hit the plate delicately every time. If you are looking for a smooth performing 6-weight for bigger fish, this is the rod.
Performance at 50 feet: 18 points out of 20
The Radian is still an excellent rod at 50 feet. Here it was not performing as well as it did at 30 feet, and the Meridian was better.
Performance at 75 feet: 17 points out of 20
I could not get the Scott Radian to cast very well at longer distances.
JG’s Comments:
The Radian is a striking rod right off the bat with a distinct color scheme and great looking reel seat. The Scott motto of fast meets feel is pretty accurate here with this great rod from Scott.
30 Feet: 19 points out of 20
I liked the Radian for in close work. I thought that the slightly softer mid section made it easy to load the rod with little line out and the soft enough tip helped to delicately place the fly where I wanted. The grip gives you a great connection to the rod and really steps the accuracy up a notch.
50 Feet: 19 points out of 20
The Radian scored well for me at the mid-range; again I liked the little bit more flex in the mid section of the rod. At 50 feet you don’t need the most power in the world and to me this rod would be perfect for double nymphs or large dries. This is where the fast meets feel really holds true.
75 Feet: 18 points out of 20
I deducted a few points here because the Radian doesn’t have quite the power that some rods do to accurately deliver an 80 foot cast in any condition. If conditions are right accuracy is good but a gust of wind can really affect the cast at this distance.
