Almost Complete Guide to Setting Up Your Bass Rod

Co-founder Carrie Balkman out fishing for bass on a small stream in Arkansas.

Bass Fishing Guide

Why Fly Fish for Bass? 

Because it's fun… it doesn't need more explanation. If you live in North America, you probably have bass closer than you think.

Choosing the right gear will help improve your odds. Whether you're in your local pond, or river, this beginner guide will provide some insight. Want to know what setups we fish like for Bass? Read to the end.

Choosing The Right Whippy Stick

• #5-#9 weight 

• 8’ to 9’6” length

• Medium to extra fast action

Sizing your fly rod to the fish you plan to catch is important. A heavier weight rod is great for heavier weight fish, turning over bigger flies, punching through wind, and making you tired after a weekend of fishing. 

Many anglers prefer a 9’, 6-7 weight rod with a fast action as an all around tool to chase bass on the fly. If your local water is full of juvenile 8” largemouth, you probably want to leave the 10 weight at home. 

The shorter the rod, the easier it is to control and be a little more accurate with your cast placement. The longer the rod the easier it is to generate line speed and cast further. Mileage will vary of course based on abilities. Yes you can cast a 7’6” 3 weight rod 70 feet, and you can cast a fly into a soup can at 30’ with a 10’ 6 weight. Party tricks are fun, but we're focused on the general overview.

The action of your fly rod will help you with line speed. Faster action rods are more rigid and will respond to your input quicker. Moderate fly rods (sometimes called medium) are… you guessed it, slower than fast. These rods flex more allowing more of the rod to bend.

Reel Deal

• Reel size 

• Large arbor

• Sealed Drag

  
  

Reels are paired to the rod by size. That 9’, 6 weight rod I mentioned earlier, more than likely has a 6 or 7 weight, large arbor reel on it. 

Large arbors will reel up your line faster as well as reduce fly line memory. 

A sealed Drag helps keep out all of dirt, debris, and water from getting into the important, stoppie stoppie bits, of the reel. This ensures when you lose your personal best smallmouth, you can't blame it on the gravel in your drag from when you fell in the river.

Your reel will also act as a counter weight for the rest of the rod. Too heavy, you won't want to fish it all day, too light and you'll feel as if you're swinging a stick. Finding the balance is completely up to personal preference.

Line… Holy Cow, Line.

Confused by fly rods? Lines are just as bad.

• Floating 

• Sink tip

• Full sink

• Sink rates

• Grain weight

• Line size

• Taper 

• Backing

• Credit score

• Blood type 

• Email address

  
  

When picking your next fly line, you'll be greeted by walls and pages of boxes. Let's break this down Barney style.

Floating line… floats.

Sinking line… all of the line sink.

Sink tip line… the first 30’ of line sinks, the rest floats.

That 9’, 6 weight with a 6 or 7 weight large arbor reel? Probably has a 6 or 7 weight floating line, or a 6 weight sink tip.

Sink tips and full sinks are geared to get your big unweighted streamer underwater, and in the zone where the fish are, or your weighted fly down more efficiently.

Taper is where the bulk of the fly lines’ mass is located. Weight forward means the bulk of the mass is at the “front” of the line near the leader, making your cast easier.

Line size and grain are similar, and should be paired accordingly. 

 6 weight rod, 6 weight line. 

Over lining (casting a heavier line) will bend the rod more, causing longer pauses in your cast as the rod loads. Underlining, you guessed it has the opposite effect… you're picking up on this quick.

Backing is the bridge between your fly line and reel. It provides extra mass to reel up quicker as well as a safety net in case a fish runs your fly line all the way out of the rod. 

Leader Me To Water

• Leader Length (4’ to 12’)

• Strength (6lb to 12lb)

• Material (monofilament, fluorocarbon)

• Add ons (swivels, fly clips, putty, split shot)

  
  

General rules state, your leader should be about as long as your rod, that still holds true. Kind of.

Sink tips and sinking lines are usually fished with shorter leaders, even as short as 4 foot. Normally I'd like a leader on a sinking line to be around 6’ long. 

Floating lines, at least the length of the rod. This gives you standoff distance between the fly line and and the fly. Whether your fly is a Boogle bug, Dahlberg diver, or a Clouser minnow, give it some space from the main line. This also helps let weighted flies sink faster and deeper. 

Tippet can be connected to the leader by knots or a swivel. Tungsten putty can be moulded around the swivel to add extra weight, and fly clips can be added to the end of your tippet to quickly change flies without cutting back your tippet.

Tapered bass leaders can be used for a smoother transition from fly line to fly, or you can build your own from different sizes and lengths of fishing line. 

As far as material for your leader, monofilament floats better and is slightly stretchier than fluorocarbon. Fluorocarbon is “concealed” in the water and is more abrasion resistant than monofilament.

Without Going Further Into the Weeds.

All of these things can be a bit overwhelming. At the end of the day the “wrong way” to fly fish is to not go at all. Find a setup that works well for your style of fishing and do just that. Go fishing. 

Our personal bass setups

TFO Pro III 9’ 7wt, Lamson Konic, SA Amplitude 7wt floating/Orvis Clearwater reel, 7wt Orvis bankshot sinktip.

TFO NXT 9’ 8wt, TFO NTR III, 8wt Orvis Clearwater floating line

8’ 6wt. Custom fiberglass rod, Orvis Clearwater reel, 7wt Orvis Clearwater floating line 

9’3” 6wt custom IM6 rod, RLS II, 6wt SA Amplitude floating

G.Loomis GLX2 9’ 8wt rod, Redington Crosswater, 8wt SA Titan Sonar sinking line.

TFO LK Professional 8wt rod, Echo ION, RIO gold 8wt