I got my $80 Albright GP rod wet today for the first time. I’ve come to the conclusion that it casts about like an $80 rod. Probably would be better had I not been throwing a 2/0 popper. Certainly did a better job than my 7 wt. would have done.
The rod is a bit on the slow side of actions, which takes a bit of getting used to. Of course, that’s not Albright’s fault, and for $80, what can you really expect?
Glad I have it along and I hope I can find a fish worthy of the 8/9 wt. rating of the rod. Certainly, the Jack Crevalle I had a couple days ago would have done the trick, but that was on my St. Croix Legand Ultra 7 wt., which seemed too light a stick for that particular fish (that rod was stolen a day or so after writing this, as it turns out).
Albright’s next rod up isn’t THAT much more expensive. This rod was a gift (and an awesome gift), but if I were buying on my own, I might add another $50 to the purchase and move up a rod to see what that one is like. I’m not a fly shop or magazine, so I don’t get to test a bunch of rods and decide which one I like. I have to buy them (or have family members buy them for gift giving events) and then see how they fish.
UPDATE: Well, my St. Croix ended up getting stolen, so I used the Albright the last two days. I needed a sinking line so put my 7 wt. sink tip on the 8/9 rod. Ya know what? It actually worked out pretty well. In the last two days of fishing, using this improvised set-up I probably landed 50-60 fish in about 5 hours of fishing… which should make just about anyone happy unless they are a total SOB. The rod felt great with fish on… of course, having a fish on probably would feel good if I would have been fishing with a broom stick and dental floss. Still, my estimation of the rod has increased. I’m still looking forward to finding the right line(s) for this rod to really see what it can do.
That's the Albright GP
