Redington Women’s Wader Review

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Redington Sonic Pro women’s waders

Winner of multiple awards, including the Best Women Specific product at the International Fly Tackle Dealer show and Fly Fisherman Magazines 2012 Gear Guide “New and Notable” in the Wader category

The first thought when pulling them out of the box, was they looked cool. It is what it is: these waders looked stylish and were immediately appealing to look at.

Now to try them on…

Lisa Schweitzer Redington Sonic-Pro

I am 5’9″ and weigh 135-140 lbs (It fluctuates depending on how much pizza and fast food I consumed during my last fishing trip, and then how much hiking around I did to burn some of it off). I am open about my weight for two reasons: One– I don’t care. And two– How are women looking for waders supposed to get an idea of how they will fit, if they don’t get an honest body type from the person reviewing them?

With that said, I have the Sonic-Pro’s in a size Medium Long, and they fit great. What I like about the sizing for these, is the wide variety of size options. Not every female angler is the same size. Who knew?

Lisa Schweitzer Redington Sonic-Pro waders

Low-down on the features:

  • They are a “flattering fit”, as they say on the actual product description, and the Long’s give me plenty of room to bend and kneel down to tail a fish or lace up my boots.
  • I have not had a reason to use the front zipper. I can see why men would find it useful, but for women, we still need to pull the waders down to do our business anyway, so it’s more of an aesthetic appeal to me.
  • The low waist-band style is unique. The wading belt sits on your lower waist/hips, versus around your waist at the belly button. It’s a personal preference to how you like to wear your wading belt, but I have found that I end up taking the belt out of the loops and synching it on my natural waist, because it is simply more comfortable for me that way. Again, the look of it is appealing, and if that is what Redington was going for, it works. I have yet to see another pair of women’s waders out there that have the same low-waist feature.
  • The color is a good all-around tan with black and teal accents. No complaints there. Plain enough to blend in with the rest, but subtle feminine details to add a nice touch.
  • There are two water-proof zipper pockets on the exterior of the wader for storing fly boxes and whatever else you need. The downside for me is: There is not an interior pocket, which for me is crucial for storing items you don’t want the chance of slipping out and keeping a little more secure by being inside of the waders.
  • The zipper pockets for the hands is a nice feature, because you can zip them up if you aren’t using them to prevent water from getting in.
  • The booties are nice and warm and are big enough for my size 9.5 feet (the Medium regular has smaller booties- FYI)

DURABILITY: (I highlight this one, because I think this is by far the most important feature in waders) As someone who has yet to even “float” a river for steelhead, I have had to bushwhack my way through just about everything to find a place to fish. I have slid down muddy embankments, hiked up rocks, used my legs and arms to push my way through unforgiving shrubs/trees/branches– you name it, I have probably tried to rip my gear on it. These waders have surprisingly stood up to all of those trials so far. That’s impressive.

I have had these waders for almost a year now, and I have yet to find a major issue with them.

At a retail price of $379.95, I feel they are comparable– if not less expensive– than most of the other women’s waders on the market today, and they are by far the best wader Redington has made for women so far.

Check out Redingon’s website for more details.

 

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A METHOD To The Steelhead Madness

I had the chance to try out the new Sage METHOD 7126-4 spey rod during my last steelhead trip to Idaho.

The color catches your eye immediately  when you first pull the rod out of the bold red and black case. Most fly rods I have seen are a black, brown, green or blue color… The red was a bit of a shock. Pretty bad ass looking, in my opinion.

I had read other fly-fishers reviews of this rod– most of which came to the similar conclusion that the METHOD was “very fast-action”.

 I own the Sage TCX “Deathstar” in the same line and weight of 7126-4, which is a fast-action rod in itself, and is what we both describe as a stout rod that is light-weight and when timed correctly, a skagit or scandi line launches with ease.
I started out by putting a 525 gr skagit line on, with a T-11 sink tip, and I was able to throw out some nice casts even with the wind blowing in my face. The key with these fast-action rods, is timing. If you’re used to a slower or wider stroke, you want to feel like you are tightening everything up with the METHOD, otherwise it will feel like you are trying to cast yarn into a wind gust, or you at least won’t get a precise turnover with your fly. Once you have that sharp, tight casting stroke with the timing right, you’ll notice the METHOD feels like you could launch 150 ft of line no problem. (Not that I was doing that, but the way the line casts out with ease, it makes it feel easy.)
I also cast it with a 550 gr Scandi line with a floating line, and that setup worked even better than the skagit set up for casting dry flies or standard fall flies.I used my favorite Ross CLA-6 reel with it, and that size was perfect for the rod. I also use the same reel on my TCX, as well as my 8wt. DEcho spey rod. (See my other review on the CLA Here.)

Unfortunately, I didn’t get to actually fight a fish on the METHOD during this trip, as the fishing was pretty slow and the rivers not in ideal shape. I would have loved to feel that rod with a bend in if, but hey, it wouldn’t be true steelhead fishing without some torture thrown in there.
In summary, I feel the METHOD Spey rod is one that’s best suited for the intermediate to experienced caster, but if you are able to learn how to spey cast initially with this type of rod, you’ll be able to cast just about anything. It is also a versatile rod that will have you covered for all seasons of steelhead and salmon fishing.
For more info and where to purchase:

Ross CLA Reel Review

I have owned my Ross CLA #6 reel for 3 years now and have thrown it on a few different spey rods (7 or 8 wt), and I love it.

Bottom line is: An excellent reel for your buck.

As described by the company itself:
“This is why the CLA series is the most popular reel for outfitters and guides who demand unwavering performance in an affordable package. This is the same reason the CLA is also our dealers’ favorite for anglers that are looking for an American made, high quality, reasonably priced fly reel”. See Full Description Here

For someone who was just getting into spey casting for big steelhead and salmon and on a budget, this reel was the perfect one for me when shopping for reels over three years ago. The size 6 is specifically designed for 9/10/11 wt. spey rods or 10-12 wt. single hand rods, but I have used it on my DH8133 “Decho” rod year-round, and I recently and put it on the Sage ONE 7126, and it does the job on both.

Fighting a steelhead on the “Decho”
CLA 6 on the ONE and a friend’s CLA 5 on his Scott

Low down on why I would recommend the Ross CLA 6 reel:

  • It’s affordable (Suggested Retail: $295.00)
  • Strong drag system for “the big ones”
  • Sharp looking (I get a lot of compliments on mine)
  • Good for anglers just getting into the sport (for all the reasons above), and also because it is easy to use and adjust.
  • Great for year-round steelhead/salmon (It can handle summer/fall/winter lines rigged up with different sizes and weight of lines.)
  • Did I mention, it’s affordable?

For more info and places to purchase a Ross CLA, CLICK HERE

~Lisa

“Swing Flies, Be Happy”

"Sage ONE" Spey Rod Review

I had the pleasure of casting the Sage ONE 7126-4 spey rod for a week while I was fishing the Olympic Peninsula.

Luckily, I got more than just a few casts in with it:

spey casting/woman fly-fishing/steelhead/swinging flies
steelhead/flyfishing/women fly-fishing

Needless to say, I was able to give it the best gear test imaginable. 

The Sage ONE Series is excellent for long days of casting heavy lines and weighted flies for winter steelhead.

As described by the company itself: 

Our lightest, most responsive two-handed rods yet.

The new Two-Handed ONE spey rods place all the remarkable benefits of Konnetic technology in both of your hands. Its lighter weight and decidedly thinner profile are welcome assets over a long day of fishing, reducing casting fatigue and minimizing wind resistance for tireless casts. Thanks to the shaft’s significantly enhanced torsional stability, the rod recovers extremely quickly as it moves through the cast, optimizing load carry and line speed for long, smooth, flawless casts every time. The shaft’s decreased lateral movement and vibrations keep you more connected to your line, cast, mends and swing. 

Check it out 

With the 7126-4, I was able to cast tight loops with a Skagit Flight 500 gr. line, 12 ft. of T-14, and large weighted flies, without the normal fatigue that occurs after a full day of “a thousand casts” for these tough winter fish.

Making “off-shoulder”, double-spey, snap-t, under tree limbs or around-a-rock casts– it easily loaded line and when the timing was right, the cast launched superbly. 

The low down on why I would buy this rod in a heart-beat:

  • The sleek design (gotta love that Black Ice color)
  • The capability to easily cast long, heavy lines/winter gear
  • Its light-weight feel and tough handling when fighting a big fish
  • Solid rod tube that isn’t bad to look at in your living room
  • The lifetime warranty Info Here  

Ultimately, would I recommend this rod series to anyone? YES. No question about it. 

See for yourself:

Sage ONE Series

~Lisa

 

FTC Disclosure

In order to comply with the Federal Trade Commission’s policy for writing “gear reviews” on personal blogs or websites, I will include mine here in detail, and for every post that is written for gear that I didn’t purchase myself, there will be a link to this page.

FTC Disclosure for PNW Gal On The Fly:

All products reviewed on my “PNW Gal On The Fly” website, were given to me to review based on the terms as follows:

  • Product was gifted to me by a company to review and allowed to keep
  • Product was given to me by a company to borrow, review and return
  • Product was gifted to me by a person not affiliated with the company
  • Product was lent to me for the sole purpose of reviewing

Product Review Policy:

  • Reviews will only be posted if I have permission to do so by the company 
  • Reviews on products/gear that I own, purchased myself, or were gifted to me, will be posted purely for writing pleasure and as review samples for personal benefit

If there are any additional circumstances that come up, they will be added to the list above.

Thank you for reading.

-Lisa