This week it was the TFO (Temple Fork Outfitters) NXT Black Label 690-4. (6wt 9 ft, 4 section). As with the Redington Wrangler that I posted a review previously I selected the 6wt to test based on it's all around usefulness locally for fresh and saltwater and for some Sierra lake and river fishing.
The TFO NXT Black Label series retails for $169.95 and comes with a rod sock but no tube. The NXT Black Label Combo Kits comes with a rod, TFO NXT Black Lable red (cast aluminum), a weight forward floating fly line of unknown source, leader, backing, and a covered rod/reel case for $229.95 for the 4, 5, and 6 wt rod kits and $239.95 for the 8wt rod kit (saves about $100 over purchasing those separately).
The rod is a semi gloss black color with black wraps and has a anodized aluminum reel seat. Reel seats with wood inserts are pretty but anodized aluminum will last longer and hold up to salty environments. TFO calls the action on these rods as "moderate", although in my experience they are a bit closer to some moderate fast rods I have used. Like the Redington Wrangler this is a good action for newbies to learn casting and it is a good action for an all purpose fly rods. The rod isn't as light as some other 6wt rods with fighting butts that I have, but those rods cost more than twice as much 15 years ago. The rod doesn't feel particularly heavy either. TFO lists the weight as 4 ounces on their website. I didn't bother to put it on a scale to verify. This is heavier by 1/2 to 3/4 ounce compared to higher end rods but I don't really feel this is much of an issue.
I tried about 10 different lines on the rod and spent some time fishing the bay with it. For me I found that it was plenty accurate at close distances with a floating line. By close I'm talking 15 to 30 feet where most trout fishing in streams occurs. One thing I noticed with this rod compared to the Redington Wrangler is that it does have a slightly more moderate action and it is easier to feel the road load on short casts. Many newbies might not even notice the difference. It is enough that if I were to choose between the TFO NXT Black Label and the Redington Wrangler solely for close range fishing for trout and panfish I would pick the TFO; however, for an all around choice that wouldn't factor into my decision.
The rod seems to have a bit more swing weight (feeling a bit tip heavy) compared to rods that cost 2X or more, but is inline with similar priced sticks. It's not a deal breaker and I didn't notice it much when casting heavy sinking lines.
For most floating line work the rod performs well with a WF-6-F line. I tried the Cortland 444 Peach, Rio Mainstream, Rio Gold, and Rio Grand. The rod has enough reserve power that you could go up to an 8wt line and cast bass bugs short to medium distances out to about 50 feet with no problems, just like with the Redington Wrangler.
With intermediate (slow) sinking lines I found a WF-7-I line to be better than a WF-6-I, but I have found this to be the case with most graphite rods that I have used for the last 30 years.
For 10 or 12 foot sink tip lines a WF-6-F/S or WF-7-F/S were fine ("F/S" stands for floating/sinking).
With full length sinking lines a WF-8-S seemed optimal, a WF-7-F ok, and a WF-6-I harder to cast. Again this matches my experience with other rods in the past. The first 30 ft of a WF-8-S line weighs about the same as the first 30 feet of many integrated shooting taper lines so this is not really out of line.
The rod handles heavy integrated shooting tapers just fine. The rod really responded well with a 24 or 30 foot 200 or 250 grain head line. (Teeny T-200, Rio Avid 24 foot sink tip (older 200 grain or current 6/7 wt version). I also tested with Rio Outbound Short 6wt lines with different sink rates. These are also integrated shooting taper lines. The Outbound Short 30 foot head weight is actually about 3 line weights above the AFFTA so you don't want to upline these. I had no problem launching 75 ft casts with these lines, but in my hands the rod does better in the shorter distances. I wasn't trying to cast any farther. Even casters with new to the sport can make longer casts with integrated shooting tapers than they usually can with standard weight forward lines.
A couple of nits to pick. (none of which would keep me from recommending the rod):
There is only one stripping guide. I believe this can cut a few feet off distance can be achieved. The single stripping guide is also typical for rods in the lower price ranges so this is not a big grip.
Like the Redington Wrangler, he rod tip has a bit of bounce on recovery at the completion of the cast. It is more noticeable when making long distance casts. This can cause some slack and loss of distance as the line shoots out. Still, it is less prone to this than most lower priced rods in the past. You might not even notice unless you compare against some rods that cost 2x to 3x as much or more.
No rod tube included when purchase the rod alone.
No section alignment dots. I can align the guides. So can you. I have seen plenty of rods with misaligned alignment dots too ( does that make them misalignment dots?)
The rod has a half wells grip. I prefer full wells grips on 6wt rods, especially rods that I will be doing a lot of long range casting with. Still, I was ok with this for long fishing sessions.
The 6wt rod is not available with a fighting butt. I fitted an aftermarket fighting butt to the rod I was testing. Unfortunately the product I used is no longer available.
Some nice things:
The reel seat has two locking rings which secured tightly with finger tips though they did not turn as smooth as some other reel seats. But they didnt bind up either. Not quite as solid as the seat on the Redington Wrangler but still decent for this price range. No complaints here.
During a 4 hour session on San Diego Bay casting heavy lines none of the ferrules loosened up. I'm used to this occurring with less expensive rods. Loose ferrules can lead to poor casts or broken rods.
Rod finish is nice with clean wraps and finish. The semi gloss black with white label and writing looks nice but the fish won't care.
The grip is made from reconstituted cork - thing hundreds or thousands of small pieces of cork glued together with a high quality adhesive and then shaped into a handle. This type of grip isn't the prettiest any many people think of them as being cheap. They may be less expensive, but they have a slightly rough feel that is easy to maintain a grip on with wet and or slimy hands. Also, compared to standard cork we have these days, you don't have all these filled in pits and gaps where the filler works its way out over time. I actually prefer this type of grip to the old standard cork for its durability and grippyness (is that a word?) and am not bound by tradition. I have had custom rods made for myself with this type of handle.
The rod works for me really well out to about 60 feet, though I can get more out of it. That is plenty for most fly fishing. I can cast farther with it but that required a bit more work compared to my more expensive rods. If you are going to be primarily fishing in the 70-100 foot range then other rods are a better option.
The rod is a nice performing rod for its intended target purchasers of new fly anglers and folks that need a backup rod and I can recommend it.
So why is this rod $10 more costly than the Redington Wrangler which has a slightly nicer cosmetics and finish, reel seat, and comes with a rod tube. Mostly likely because it comes from TFO's factory in South Korea where the Redington is made under their supervision in China. Overall performance is similar with the edge, in my opinion, to the TFO NXT Black Label for short distances and the Redington Wrangler for longer distances. In the 25-50 foot range very similar.
If trying to make a decision between the two it may come down to whether you like the grip and if having the rod tube is important. Also the fighting but option the the Redington Wrangler 6wt may be important for some folks. If purchase an rod/reel combo the Redington comes with a better fly line and and the TFO NXT combo has a better reel, though the difference is not as much as the difference in cost between the Redington Crosswater reel and the TFO NXT Black Label reel might imply.
My personal preference is for the Redington Wrangler 690-4S over the TFO NXT because of the full wells grip and the fighting butt. Otherwise I consider them equals.
TFO is often quicker to send out replacement sections for a rod (for a fee of course) - if they have them in stock. If they don't have them in stock - well you just have to wait. This isn't limited to TFO though.
- TFO NXT Black Label 690-4 -fitted with an aftermarket fighting butt.