Bonefish Rods Reviewed - 8wts in the Spotlight

This started off as a review and comparison between the Sage R8 Salt and the Orvis Helios D.  I fished those two rods extensively for bonefish and triggerfish on a recent trip to Christmas Island.  They were both so nice, I needed to write a review or two.

Back at the shop, I decided that I really need to cast the 8wt R8 Salt and the 8wt Helios D to refresh my memory.  So that naturally leads to busting out a G. Loomis, a Douglas, then a few others.  This quickly turned into a bonefish rod shootout with three of us casting rods in the parking lot.

The 8wt Rods

• Sage R8 Salt
• Orvis Helios D
  
• G. Loomis NRX+ 
  
• Douglas Sky G
  
• Beulah Opal
  
• Echo Prime
  
• TFO Blitz
  
• Big Y Boss

We don't have a chance to cast them all.  I mean, we do have to pack some orders on occasion.  We also love these rods and have had a chance to cast them before, just not this week:

• G. Looms IMX V2S
• G. Loomis Asquith
• Sage Maverick
• Sage R8 Core
• Sage Igniter
• TFO Axiom II-X
• Echo EPR
• probably a few more I am missing.

We will start by saying that these are all nice rods.   We are at the point in this industry that none of the big brands are going to put something out on the market that is inferior.  Fly rods reflect their price by the quality and design that you are getting.   There are some rods that cast better than they cost, but there are not too many clunkers that make it onto the shelves of a fly shop.

Top Shelf Rods

There are three rods that really stand out to us.  These are all as good as it gets.  No losers here.  All winners, all graduating at the top of their class.  All of these rods have a different action, feel and design, but they don't get any better about it. 

Sage R8 Salt:  This is the stiffest, fastest rod in the bunch.  It likes a heavier line.  You can push this as hard as you can push any rod.  It is very powerful and quite fast throughout.  It is everything you want in a saltwater bonefish rod.  I can say that it plays fish well too.   The aesthetics are thoughtful, the rod looks modern and clean.  It has oversized chrome snake guides, ceramic, angled stripping guides and a really nice reel seat with the rod weight printed on it.  This rod is responsive and has a lot of feel down into the handle, which is not easy to accomplish with such a stiff blank.  We have a Mastery MPX on our parking lot reel.  It is not quite heavy enough to load this rod up right.  I have a Sci Anglers Grand Slam on my flats reel, and it likes that line much better.  Overall the most powerful, pushiest, fastest rod we cast by quite a bit.

• Sage R8 Salt:  4.1oz on our postal scale.  

G. Loomis NRX+:  This is the mama-bear rod of the bunch.  Its not as stiff as the Sage R8 Salt, but it was faster and stiffer than the Orvis Helios D.  It has a nice and easy casting stroke and it can push line far and fast.  This has thinner stripping guides, a nice paint job and an overall lightweight feel to it.  It casts like a dream.  We had no problems unloading an entire MPX off the reel.  Very accurate, very powerful, plenty stiff for a windy bonefish flat.

• G. Loomis NRX+:  4.0oz on our postal scale

Orvis Helios D:  This is the slowest of all the rods we cast.  It is still plenty fast for bonefish, but it lacks the stiffness in the middle of the rod that many saltwater-specific rods have.  It has an incredibly easy cast with very tight loops and loads of power that transfers easily up the rod without bogging it down.  It has quite a bit of flex at the bottom of the tip section with a ton of power in the bottom end.  It has a sleek, elegant design with a nice composite cork top and titanium guides.  This is the rod that I can cast the furthest with the most accuracy in the parking lot.  This is also my preferred rod for parking lot casting of the bunch.  It has a super sweet spot, can cast fast or slow, can take a variety of lines, and is always buttery smooth.  I have caught a ton of fish with this rod.  It is very impressive.  I was blown away by how accurate it is.  

• Orvis Helios D:  4.3oz on our postal scale

The Next Three

The top end rods from Sage, Orvis and G. Loomis really stand out.  That is no coincidence.  These rods often win 8wt shootouts wherever they go.  These rods are all built with the newest technology, premium components, thoughtful design and decades of rod-building experience.  They all cast like they are over $1000 (they are). 

The next three rods in the list are fantastic.  These rods pretty much have it all, but maybe they are just a little less peppy, maybe have a little less feel to them.  These are still scoring an A+, but maybe not a perfect score.

Douglas Sky G:  This rod is very nice.  It casts well, has a nice fast action and flexes in the right spots.  We have no problem unloading a fly line with it.  It is not quite as responsive as the rod mentioned above.  Those rods have all the feels.  The Sky G is still a solid 9/10 in feel or responsiveness.  I like casting it, and more importantly, most of the folks we have sold one too are very happy with theirs.  I have the 10wt Sky G and I love it.  I love how well it plays fish.  Like I said, it bends in the right spots.  The Sky G is $300 cheaper than the rods above, which makes sense.  It fishes like a $850 rod, but maybe not like a $1100 rod.  It is the lightest in the bunch though, and is one of the nicest rods you can buy.  

• Douglas Sky G:  3.9oz on our postal scale

TFO Blitz:  TFO's newest saltwater rod, it is surprisingly lively.  This rod is stiff through the bottom 3/4 with a softer tip.  It likes the MPX we were casting on it.  It also lacks some of that top-end responsive feeling, but this rod is really growing on me.  I was able to fish an 11wt Blitz a few years ago and had mixed feelings about it.  This 8wt is nicer than I thought it would be.  The green and blue coloring is not for everyone, but it has a nice feeling handle, nice guides, and a simple reel seat.  I think this rod punches above it's weight class and fishes really, really well.

• TFO Blitz:  4.5oz on our postal scale

Beulah Opal:  This rod is stiffer in the butt section than any of the others so far.  It has a fat, thick butt that transfers a lot of power up the rod.  It throws nice loops easily.  The tip is a little wobbly to me, but once it is loaded with a line, it really sings.  This has a great action where you can cast it slow or fast, it will let you push it really hard.  It really throws nice loops with ease.  The downsides of this rod are that the butt section is thicker than all the others, and it has a bit of what we described as a "hollow" feeling.  It's also the heaviest in the bunch. 

• Beulah Opal:  4.8oz on our postal scale

Honorable Mentions

Big Y Boss: I do not like to toot our own horn much, but the Boss rod is the boss.  I have caught dozens upon dozens of bonefish, permit and more on our Big Y Boss rod.  It has a fairly stiff bottom section with good flex in the top end.  It fires nice loops and has great accuracy.  I will say that this rod does lack some power in the butt section.  It prefers a line that is not super-heavy.  With a saltwater line like the RIO Bonefish taper or S/A Infinity Salt, this rod is easy casting, and is well worth the price.  Several folks on our last Christmas Island trip brought them and fished them hard with nothing but smiles.  

• Big Y Boss:  4.1oz on our postal scale

Echo Prime:  The one rod that we tested that is under 9'0" in length.  This rod has a lot of power in the bottom section, and can really cast a mile.  The oversized guides give it a look like you are really serious about this fishing trip.  This rod has a lot of power, but it does not do well when you push it.  The top sections are too soft to keep up with the power in the bottom half.  That matters very little for most situations.  In "real-world" casting situations, its nice and easy, accurate and a joy to cast. This is the only rod we cast that I do not like casting in the parking lot.  However, I own two of these and use them as often as I can for everything from Tarpon to Muskie to GTs.  This rod is very powerful when playing a fish, which is the main factor for most folks that buy it.  They understand that other rods will cast longer distances better, but this rod will help you land a GT or a big Tarpon quicker than other rods.  

• Echo Prime:  4.3oz on our postal scale

Other rods

There are a ton of great rods for your next bonefish trip.  In general, you do get what you pay for.  Nice rods cost more and they tend to cast better.  Cheaper rods don't cast as well, are heavier and not as responsive.  Just because it was not in this review list doesn't mean its not a nice rod.  There are several fantastic rods that would fit nicely in this list, but we do not always have enough time to cast them all in a day. 

If you ask me which rod I would choose if given one new bonefish rod, I would be torn.  Today, after casting all of them in the parking lot, I would choose the NRX+.  However, when I am on the flats and the wind is howling, I consistently grab the Sage R8 Salt.  The Orvis Helios D is a special rod and I love that one too. I thoroughly enjoy my fishing sessions with the Helios D.  It's really hard to say one is better than the other, but that is a good problem to have.