North 40 Fly Shop eMagazine December 2015 | Page 28

I will admit that I love new gear

and I often get excited about new innovations. Some
innovations are simply tweaks and others significantly
change how I approach fly fishing. The OPST heads
will significantly change fly fishing for those anglers
who are willing to give them a try. If you already utilize
Skagit casting with switch and spey rods, then they
will diversify your arsenal. If you have never tried Skagit casting because
you’ve been limited by your equipment, then that barrier is gone.
I’ve used a 250 grain OPST Commando head in conjunction with the 25#
Lazar Line during my last 4 jaunts on the water. I’ve run the head with
a 10’ Type 3 tip and with an 11’ custom tapered Maxima Leader. I’ve
tried it on 9’, 10’ 6” and 11’ 6” rods. It’s workable on all of them, though I
honestly think the 9’ single hand application is the most unique and fun.
Commando heads are a joy to cast and so far, I’ve experienced successful
outings with them. In the past, I’ve used a variety of lines for single
hand spey applications with varying success. Commando heads are
“Pure Skagit”. They will load your rod with very little effort for maximum
output.
On my trout spey set ups, I prefer using #25 mono running line. The
thinner mono is easily carried by the shorter lighter heads. It seemed
only natural to fish the Commando Head with a new Lazar Line. My initial
take is that the Lazar line is excellent stuff. It slides though the guides
like oil and remains tangle free. We’ll see how it holds up after a year,
but with its 50 meter length, I will likely cut it back a bit and be casting on
fresh running line.