Review: River Beast Fly Rod

Model: Stalker 5wt. 4 pc.

When I received this rod, the first thing I noticed was that the rod tube is square. What a great idea, this rod tube is not going to roll away on you when you set it down, and it's not going to roll around the back of your truck and get lost.

The rod is a fine piece of work, the reel seat has a beautiful burl wood center and handsome looking hardware.  The cork handle is just the right size and is capped off with a metal winding check and hook keep.  The blank is blue in color and has a nice finish, with white dots on each section to help you line up each section of the rod.  Also each section of the rod has the length and weight marked, which could come in handy.  The stripping guides are anodize in a cool blue color that matches the blank. The other guides are double foot chrome and are sized right for a shooting line.

Fishing with this rod is a pleasure, it's light weight and nicely balanced.  The rod cast like a dream.  It's a fast action rod that can present a dry fly on target with a delicate touch,  but the rod is also at home casting bigger flies that demand more power.

Pros: Light, responsive, balanced blank. Topnotch manufacturing, materials and hardware. Rates high on the quality/price scale. Excellent for trout and light smallmouth.

Con: Cosmetic defect on the label.  (The manufacture said this will be fixed on all new rods.)

Steve Heuser
Administrator
FlyFishingWis.com