Steelhead Fly Setups

9' 8wt lefty kreh and a caddis creek reel

what ever you get , I would make sure its a 10 footer. Just my opinion. I got a new 10ft 7wt this spring. Maybe I wont break as many off this year with that extra foot of "shock absorber".

I have a 10' 7 wt Orvis Clearwater, and it's heavy as heck.  I don't like it.

ORIGINAL: D-nymph

I have a 10' 7 wt Orvis Clearwater, and it's heavy as heck.  I don't like it.

I just sold mine. Decent rod for the scratch, but you are right that it is a heavy rod. I would be willing to bet that rod weighed about the same as my 11' 7wt switch.

To answer the question, I use a Batson custom 11' 7wt for high flows or bigger water and I have a 9'7wt cheap Redington or 9'9" 5wt Cabelas LST that I use for the skinny water.

Keep an eye out for discontinued rods, you can get some quality rods for dirt cheap that will still carry a warranty.

10'6" Beulah 4/5 switch rod with a lamson konic. Looking into getting a Winston B2X  9'6" 6 weight with the sage carbon fiber reel.

Im not looking for anything too high end, but on the other hand if I go too cheap I will just find myself using my nicer spinning setups instead.

Let's face it.  Steelhead fishing in Erie is NOT the most technical fishing in the world.  Expensive equipment is not needed.  Now if you were planning to also go to Maine for atlantics, or alaska, or up to the Maritimes in Canada then expensive equipment (and the ability to make the long graceful casts) would be an advantage.  But here in Erie my opinion is it's almost a waste of money.  I have some good stuff, and I have some really good stuff but I really think you could catch a steelhead with an 8' 2x2 stick and a  10 foot length of 20# mono.  I might even try that some time. But I will concede that better equipment does sometimes make it easier.

Too cheap of a reel though without a good drag will get you more break offs when they try and take you into the backing.....

I agree. I'm sold on Lamson reels, the drag is flawless.

I have not fished much for Steelhead but I use a Reddington 9ft 8wt. Enjoyed cathcing them on it. My son uses a 9ft 7wt LL Bean combo, it was around $80.00. It works great when he puts the reel on currectly.

ORIGINAL: BehrendFisher

Im leaning towards this TFO/RLS combo in either the 9 or 10 foot 7wt. As much as I would like to pick the rod and reel seperately, I can't really beat the savings with buying a combo.

That combo comes with the SA mastery series line. I use the clear tip.

Dave, you should spend a day with that 7 wt I made in bamboo.  If the fish were close to the surface I could use it as a harpoon.  Boo is nice but never as light as other materials.

Now if I could just get someone to show me how to use it before the one fly... ;-)

Seriously though, let me know with a PM when you get your rig. I have a big back yard and I am close to the creek. I am by no means the best caster on the board, but I have been doing it for a while.

BFisher
 
........when I started for steel I was using my trout rod--  St. Croix Imperial 5/6 wt with an Orvis reel.....then I moved to a St. Croix Avid 9.5 feet 7 wt ( great Erie Trib Rod) with a Fly Logic FLP 567 reel---fished this rig for many years (and purchased 2 other exact rods because one was stolen and was lost--fell out of the back of my truck)  ----  then I fished a 9 foot 8 wt GL3 rod with FLP 567 reel  ---  then a winston 11 foot 7 wt switch rod (got it used on Ebay) matched with a FLO 789 reel  ---   now, I got hurt at work and sold most of my gear......I will be fishing with a beautiful rod --  Scierra CTC 9 foot 3 inch 7/8 wt---matched with an Okuma Airstream reel----my other option is my St. Croix 5/6 imperial that I still own and fish (12 years old) and that has a Okuma Airstream reel reel on it-----now, will I catch less fish......probably not.........I don't have as much confidence in the Okuma reel as I do the Fly Logic reel, but I know that the Okuma Airstream reel (35 bucks) has handled salmon up to 30 pounds without issue and will handle anythig the steel can throw at it !!!!    I also have a brand new OLD STOCK Scientific Anglers 9 foot  6 wt rod that is awesome (2nd one I've owned)---it is older with a metal reel seat......the blank is blue with silver trim.....beautiful rod--and perfect for throwing poppers or fishing for the steel........
 
as most here have said.........don't get caught up in the COST of your gear..........get the best you can afford and you will be happy.........just because some Duud is sporting an 800 dollar fly rod with an 800 dollar reel does not instantly make him a fishing legend.......and it certainly does not mean he is a good fisherman, just means he has some extra cash or found a great deal..............
 
just make sure you get a quality reel.......but on Erie tribs, the fish isn't going to run that far...... you just want him to run as SMOOTHLY as he can away from you