For those who haven't followed along with this blog since summer (so probably all of you) might not be aware of the fact that I have, at times been critical of of Rio's newly released MOW tips. In my last post on the topic I suggested they were a rip off, gimmick that was a classic example of needless overmarketing in the flyfishing industry. That suggestion raised the slightly amused ire of one well known steelhead guide who was in part responsible for the inception of the MOW tip concept. What followed was a length description of the benefits of their tip system which can now be read on a number of popular spey fishing forums.
In reading these I came to the startling conclusion that Dr. Ward and I actually agree on basically every aspect of the sink tip fishing game. And that he has thought long and hard about the technical challenges presented by winter steelhead fishing and how to best address them with the equipment. He pioneered the use of shorter, heavier tips in winter steelhead fishing and I scarcely use anything but short pieces of t14 for my own winter fishing any more, mostly because I like how it turns over slug sized pieces of rabbit. So I owe you an apology, I'm certain that MOW tips are an effective tool for sinktip fishing as I've used them myself. Not the rio brand, but tips in many of the same lengths and weights as those available in the factory tip set. And for some anglers making your own sink tips probably isn't worth the time when you can just buy it prepackaged at the flyshop. Call it a stylistic difference.
No comments:
Post a Comment