Gear Reports - Scott S4 904-4 Fly Rod
Manufacturer: Scott Fly Rods
Product: Scott S4 904-4 Fly Rod
Retail Price: $695
Tester: Tucker Ladd
Rating: 4 / 5 - A Solid Piece of Gear
Date Tested: May. 01, 2008 - May. 13, 2009
Test Area: Rocky Mountain West
What they say:
"Your buddy pulls on the oars to line up for the drop and you make a rapid fire cast into a small eddy as the boat spills through the narrow drop.
You high stick over the froth to get a few precious seconds of dead drift on your dry fly. That’s all it takes to bring the big brown to the surface.
Now you’ve got to land him and there’s no back rowing to slow you down. With knees jammed in the lean bar, the boat bucks through the rapid, while you put the heat on and reach for the long handled net.
S4 rods handle the big tough stuff. High line speed, tight loops and power. Bring it on.
We use three different high performance carbon fibers in S4 rods and each is laid up at a different angle. This means your S4 rods track true for greater accuracy, and smoothly transfer power from your cast to the line."
What we say:
As a long time Scott fan, I was disappointed to see the old S3 get the boot. But after a year of fishing the NEW S4, I can say that Scott has created a truly versitile, do-it-all fly rod that can handle any sitation you throw at it. With Boron fibers in the butt section, titanium rebounding eyelits, and a beautiful buckeye burl reel seat, this rod not only looks beautiful, but casts a fly with precision and power unlike other rods on the market. One of the best features of this rod is it's supple tip, which allows the rod to make short, accurate casts, and well as enabling the rod to roll cast and mend with ease. In a 9' length, I found that this rod could handle any situation.
Last minute thoughts:
This rod casts great with the Scientific Angler Sharking Magnum Taper fly line!