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| Red Truck 5110-4 switch with 7/8 Diesel Reel |
Fly rods are like golf clubs
– ideally you need more than one. Also, like golf clubs, some rods are more
versatile than others. Still, there's always one in the bag most appropriate to a
given situation.
In my last post we took a look at the Red Truck Diesel fly reel as a designated beach reel. Red Truck Fly Fishing Company is a small
In my work as a guide I get
to cast a lot of rods, on-stream and in the surf (I’m a saltwater junkie). As more fly fishers discover the California
Devoted beach casters know the
advantages of using switch rods in the surf – rods that may be cast both
two-handed and in the single-hand modes. Light, ‘trout model’ switch rods of 10’
to 12’, throwing the 7 to 9 weight lines popular for the surf, are ideal for
surfperch and corbina. The long rod casts farther and affords commanding line
control in the surf. I’ve cast a spectrum of rods in this class from various
makers, and the problem I have with most of them is they perform best in
two-hand mode, while tending to be awkward and tiring in the single-hand mode.
Which is okay for those who have mastered a couple Spey casts – yet not so good
for those who want the length, but would prefer to cast with one hand.
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| Red Truck 5110-4 ~ two-hand mode |
Enter the Red Truck 5110-4
11’ #5 ‘Trout’ switch rod. This one comes with both a rear grip for Spey, and a
short butt for converting to single-hand. No switch rod I’ve cast performs
Spey casts as well as a full-on Spey rod. And, as I pointed out, they tend to
be clunky cast with one hand. A switch rod is usually a compromise. But I was
pleasantly surprised to find the Red Truck, as a two-hander, good as the best
I’ve fished in its class – and by far the best I’ve used in single-hand mode. Lined
with a 7wt sink tip, I cast the Red Truck as a single-hand through a four-hour
session in the surf, and it is a pleasure.
For its class, the Red Truck
possesses a fairly wide grain window due to its length, coupled with a
semi-parabolic, progressive action. I would call this rod a medium-fast action,
yet it holds its load well, which makes it forgiving and friendly to those with
a slower casting style.
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| Red Truck 5110-4 ~ single-hand mode |
I am very impressed with this
rod and love using it in the surf – though, a nitpick, I think the ambiguous #5 weight designation is confusing, as the rod is neither an AFTMA 5wt or a #5
Spey. (I wish rod manufacturers would make it easier on potential customers and
themselves and simply print the rod’s grain window on the rod). After casting
the Red Truck #5 with a number of lines, I determined its grain window to be
150-280 grains (I emailed the Red Truck rep and he confirmed this). In
single-hand mode it will throw an AFTMA 5wt line in a (hypothetical) pinch. But
it starts to come into its own loaded with a 6wt – making it useful for fishing
big dries, nymphs and bobber set-ups on big water. For me, casting
single-handed in the surf, the Red Truck performs best loaded with a 7wt or
7-1/2wt line – good for swinging streamers on big water – and perfect for
turning over the heavier flies required for surfperch and corbina. In Spey
mode, the Red Truck switch performs like a rocket launcher lined with a 23’ short-head
weighing 260 grains – that’s roughly the equivalent of a 9wt AFTMA rated line.
As a compromise, the rod performs competently in both single-hand and
double-hand modes loaded with an 8wt line.
The Red Truck switch is
elegant, well-appointed with top quality guides and components. The blank is an
understated gray. Guide wraps are claret with blue-ish silver tips to match the
gunmetal blue reel seat. The interchangeable rear grips are mounted on light,
aircraft-grade aluminum thread stock and bolt seamlessly into the aluminum reel seat. Red Truck thought of everything – the
4-piece rod comes in a heavy cloth bag with pockets for the two rear grips, in
an aluminum storage tube with a bottle opener built into the cap.
If you are considering a
designated rod for SoCal surfperch and corbina, or a light switch rod for
trout, I’m fairly confident you’d be more than happy with the Red Truck 5110-4
11’ #5 switch. Frankly, you can spend a lot more money on a light
switch rod, but I would rate the 5110-4 as equal to or better than any I've tried, in any price range. And the
Red Truck Diesel 7/8 reel perfectly matches and balances the 5110-4 switch for a sweet outfit.
