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[paulj]

can someone recommend which brand of rod and reel i should get for coho-pink setup.  im fairly new to fly fishing and will be doing both fresh and salt water fishing.  willing to spend around 700 for both .  its hard to choose which ones to get with so many choices.

should i get 7 or 8 weight?

thanks in advance. 

[RalphH]

Off hand and knowing you'll get other recommendations I'd say a #7 rod, perhaps a 10ft look at Echo Ion and Lamson Guru 3 HD2 with a spare spool - which should leave you $ for a line or 2 and leaders.

http://echoflyfishing.com/project/echoionxl/


http://www.waterworks-lamson.com/fly-reels/guru-hd-series-ii/

[clarkii]

I'd get a 9'8#.  Allows you the opportunity to fish single hand steelhead and large streamers for bulls outside of the sparse flies coho hit, also gives you the ability to fish bonefish if you ever go to belize/hawaii/Florida etc
... In general it's a good all round stick for salt and freshwater.  Might be a tad heavy for pinks.

For rod brand you have several options,  an echo boost would do well with a lamson liquid 3 pack to complement.  (The size 3 I believe) Leaves some room for fly lines.

[RalphH]

A #8 may work fine for pinks, depending on the rod. I have used an older Sage #8 SP for pinks though I prefer to use a #6 SH rod. Neither is a #7 too light for any of the other things clarkii has mentioned. So you can go with either. Most people prefer a lighter rod for coho and pinks but an 8 will help you cope with bigger rugged fish like chum.

FWIW I have caught a number of coho and steelhead on 6wt and even 5wt rods. Rod weight selection is less about species and fish size as about tackle, conditions, size of the flies, tippet size etc.

If you are fairly new to FF you might want to avoid very stiff, fast rods designed to cast a considerable distance in adverse (ie windy) conditions since you won't likely be casting that far for a little while. Rods that are a bit slower are generally easier for beginners and many experienced fly anglers prefer rods that flex into the mid and even butt sections of the rod.

There a lots of good rods now for under $200. The Echo line seems to be admired by many but there are others.

Since that is the case and you want to do some beach fishing and have $700 to spend, my thinking was put some money into a quality reel that is designed with saltwater in mind. Good reels are pricey, rods less so. Upgrades to a better rod can be done in the future and for not a whole lot of cash.

However clarkii's suggestions make just as much sense.