Spey Line Evaluation

Many of the rod and line combinations have been fished and as I spend more time with them, I fine tune my original comments that date back to my initial evaluation sessions.

I've adjusted my casting stroke to suit the situation. So a light line, heavy rod is cast with a tight Underhand stroke while a heavy line, light rod gets a long, top hand stroke.

My recommendations are based on my preferences, which lean toward light to medium weight rod loadings. As they say in the the old Usenet world, YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary).

Spey Lines	DTX 12' - 27-30g Shooting Head (7 wt.)	DTX 13' - 8 wt. Original	DTX 14' - 9 wt. Original	DTX 15' - 10 wt. Original
DTX 50' - 8/9	On the heavy side, but would fish OK.	Casts like a big shooting head. Great for distance and easily turns T-8 - 10' tips.	Works decently well if the black sleeve is about half way up the guides.	not yet tested
DTX 58' - 10/11	NR	not yet tested	Bends the rod well, but doesn't come across as being too heavy. Quite fishable and a good windy day / big fly choice.	A deep load and a very definite and authoritative cast. Good tips and big fly choice.
DTX 68' - 10/11	NR	NR	Very heavy, but fishable. I'd only use this if I brought the 10/11 by mistake.	Good general purpose line with good turnover. Just relax and the line goes and goes.
DTX G2 64' - 10/11	NR	NR	not yet tested	Superb fit for the rod featuring a deep load, stable loop shape and power even into the teeth of strong winds. Plenty Of power to turn over the biggest of flies or polyleaders.
Airflo Delta 7/8	The load is adequate and the distance achieved is fine for typical fishing distances. A good fishing choice	A bit light, but quite usable. Casts with authority and produces an adequate load. A good finesse option.	Light, but surprisingly a very fishable option. The load was adequate and it really sailed without needing to be pushed.	Really surprising result when this line sailed for 100'+ without any flogging. All it needed was a tight, crisp, Underhand stroke and out it sailed. Just consider it a shooting head and away it went.
Airflo Delta 8/9	Feels heavier than the 7/8 but goes farther. Good distance and wind choice.	Excellent fit, very good distance, nice light, but positive load feel.	The 8/9 went as well as the 9/10, powering for distance with a loaded feel. A good finesse option	The line flew with authority when cast with an Underhand stroke. Crisp, light, yet went for distance. It was like casting a big shooting head.
Airflo Delta 9/10	Very clumsy when cast with overhang, but nice when the rear taper was brought into the guides. That shortens the lift and lightens the load into the happy spot for the rod.	Hard to tell the difference between the 9/10 and the 8/9 on this rod. Like the 14 footer, this seems to be the distance choice as well, since it also puts the backing knot at risk.	This is the best option if distance is the name of the game or wind is the problem. The rod will easily put this line out to the backing knot.	I really liked this combination. Easy distance with no flogging even with a big top hand push. A toss-up between this line and the 10/11.
Airflo Delta 10/11	NR	Don't laugh, but this rod can actually cast the 10/11 to about a 100' without a whole lot of fuss. Would this be my first choice? No, but it can work.	This was a surprise as I expected the rod to be unhappy with the heavy line, but with a slightly slower stroke, it went exceptionally well. Good big fly, big wind option.	Fairly light and pleasant casting. Has a light load feel yet rod bends deeply and the line sings.
Airflo Delta Long 9/10	NR, too much line for a little rod. Pull the belly in and it was OK. Fish this combo if you had to, otherwise avoid.	Worked best with the rear taper in the upper guides. It was fussy when cast with overhang. The Delta 9/10 is a better choice.	Just like in the 13 footer, the load was a bit mushy -- not sure why. Cast OK with overhang but the Delta was better.	Nicest casting of the four rods. Better distance with less effort and a decent load. The Delta Long was always a favourite of mine, but this time it didn't turn my crank.
Airflo Quick Spey 8/9	On the heavy side, but would fish OK	Casts like a big shooting head. Great for distance and easily turns T-8 - 10' tips.	Works well if the black sleeve is about half way up the guides. Good tips choice for this rod.	not yet tested
Airflo Emerald World Masters 10 wt.	NR	not yet tested	Deeply loaded and a lot of line to handle on a 14' rod, yet it still went with authority	Despite the 95' head length, the line felt light, but did not show any sign of needing to be pushed
Beulah Elixir 8/9	Very heavy load yet really flies when cast with a relaxed stroke. I was surprised as I like this rod with really light heads.	OK cast with the colour change out of the guides and it produced effortless casting.	Ditto the 13 footer. BOOM - gone.	Well loaded and went with authority. A bit short for a 15' rod if used with a long power stroke. Be good with a polyleader. Surprisingly deep load for what should be a light line on this rod (Underhand).
Guideline Bill Drury Impact 62' - 8/9	Heavy, but usable. Wouldn't be my first choice though.	Excellent match. Good turnover and distance when cast with the black sleeve at the top hand	Just a hair light with the black sleeve at the top hand, but very fishable nevertheless. Better casting and load with the black sleeve part way up the guides. Really fires for distance.	not yet tested
Guideline Bill Drury Impact 62' - 9/10	not tested	A bit heavy but no problem to cast. Black sleeve should be held at the top hand	Excellent match. Good turnover and distance when cast with the black sleeve at the top hand	Well loaded with a brisk, compact stroke. A competent line for the rod.
Ian Gordon Partridge 65' - 8/9 floater	not yet tested	Well matched. A nice finesse line. Cast with colour change at the top hand.	Just a tad light but still very fishable. Usually cast with the colour change well up the guides.	not yet tested
Ian Gordon Partridge 65' - 8/9 intermediate	not yet tested	Well matched. A nice finesse line. Cast with colour change at the top hand.	Just a tad light but still very fishable. Usually cast with the colour change well up the guides.	not yet tested
Ian Gordon Partridge 75' - 9/10 floater	not tested	not tested	Good long belly choice for this rod. Casts well for distance. Nice light feel. While rated a 9/10, it really has the weight of a 75' - 8/9.	NR - Unlike the compact mass of the Deltas, this long, skinny line never develops enough load for a consistent turnover except in ideal conditions.
Ian Gordon Partridge 75' - 9/10 intermediate	NR - too much intermediate line for a little rod.	Too much sinking line for a 13' rod. The load is OK and the rod handles it no problem once the line is rolled up.	Good long belly choice for this rod. Casts well for distance. Nice light feel. However, 75' of intermediate is a lot for a 14' rod.	not tested
Ian Gordon Partridge 65' - 11/12 intermediate	NR, too much line for the rod	NR, too much line for the rod	not yet tested	Nice fit, with a firm load and a good shoot. A heavy load that'll make the 'bend to the cork' crowd happy.
Ian Gordon Partridge 65' - 9/10 floater	not yet tested	not yet tested	A better choice for this rod than the 75' 9/10. Load is light yet definite. It feels much like casting a DT line. A good finesse choice for smaller flies.	not yet tested
Rio MidSpey 8/9	A heavy load and the rod is too short to get a consistent cast with the colour change out of the guides, but bring the belly into the guides and relax the stroke, then it went OK.	Went OK with the colour change out of the guides, but it was fussy. Much better results with the colour change at the top hand.	The light front end of the line needed some pushing at short ranges, but with the colour change out of the guides, it really flew. Easy 110'.	Light yet well loaded when cast with overhang, This was a really nice combo and I'd happily fish these two together.
Hardy Mach Spey 55 8 wt.	Cast quite nice with the rear taper in the guides. Decent distance and enough authority to handle some wind.	Nice, light finesse choice, best cast with an Underhand delivery and overhang. Enough authority to handle some wind.	Quite light feel, yet when cast with an Underhand stroke and overhang, it still went well. Distance was excellent. Consider it a big shooting head.	Just like the Delta 7/8, this big rod continues to surprise me in the range of lines it will handle. I just treated the line like a long shooting head and away it went.
Hardy Mach Spey 55 9 wt.	Felt the weight but the rod sent it on its way. Best cast with the rear taper in the guides. Decent distance and good authority to handle wind.	Good all-round choice with excellent distance and power. Could handle wind and bigger flies without difficulty.	Very nice fit on this rod for anyone liking a light line load. Distance and short range casting was excellent.	Light, yet quite usable. Wouldn't be my first choice for the rod, but would certainly be fishable if this was all you had. Cast with an Underhand delivery and treated like a long shooting head.
Hardy Mach Spey 55 10 wt.	Heavy but the rod still handled it. Best cast with the rear taper in the guides using a broad stroke. Decent distance and plenty of authority to handle wind.	Worked fine on the rod with no sense that it was heavy. Good distance and wind penetration. Since I tend to like my rod loadings on the light side, I'd opt for the 9 but many would like the 10.	Best fit out of the Mach 55 lines for this rod, a very fishable combination. Handled wind and distance with ease.	Best fit of the three Mach 55s for this rod. Went for distance easily. That said, if I were to buy one of these lines, I'd opt for the 11 wt. for this rod to get maximum bang for the buck.
Carron 75' - 9/10 floater	NR, too much line for the rod	NR, too much line for the rod	Excellent fit with superb distance and turnover. A great long belly choice for this rod	not yet tested
Carron 85' - 10/11 floater	NR, too much line for the rod	NR, too much line for the rod	not yet tested	Amazing distance so easily achieved. Definitely the "next area code" choice for this rod. Light, low effort casting. The rod picked up the line effortlessly.
Diawa Lochmor 65' - 9 wt. intermediate	NR, too much line for the rod	NR, too much line for the rod	not yet tested	While rated a 9 wt., this line is about 800 gr. over 65' putting it at the same weight as my I.G. 11/12. Not a sterling casting line, loaded the rod OK, fished very well.