Casting mechanics, cont'd 1

Information which bears repeating, from Al Buhr (taken out of context from a personal message.) G. :

Your group often discuses line diameter in relation to air drag, yet diameter is secondary to mass profile. Line profiles that perform well in windy conditions, utilize the mass to best counter opposing forces. A little field work is good, fishing in an afternoon blow will sort this out..

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Bruce Richards responds to Walter Simbirski's message yielding this brief "string" :

Gordy, I've heard for years about this "kick back" phenomena, but don't think I've ever seen it. It certainly isn't a good argument against constant acceleration, and Walter seems to now agree...

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I have also heard this phenomenon discussed and have read of it. Despite that, I have not ever had it demonstrated in a way that convinced me. Sort of an elusive phantom . G.

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I agree, and don't quite understand why some people key in on such things when they have no impact on 99.99% of casts, or anything related to instruction. Maybe I should care more about these odd artifacts, but I don't....

Bruce

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As we study the mechanics of fly casting, we must remember that almost all textbooks contain some out dated information either later modified or disproved by subsequent studies. We cannot take everything in each text as either current or "gospel". The farther back we go into the fly casting literature of the past the more we come to respect that our knowledge has advanced. Future informed teachers will point out the fallacies of some of our present concepts and teachings.

EXAMPLE : Don Phillips has written a fine text which has contributed greatly to our knowledge of the properties and performance of fly rods. The information presented 10 years ago when the book was written conformed with what was generally known. Consider, however, a statememt made on the mechanics of fly casting. -

"Once the angler stops the rod butt sharply at the apparently 1 o'clock position, the rod tip continues in the rearward direction until it has straightened and lost its potential energy. Once the tip is straight and relatively motionless, the line continues to move rearward and a line loop begins to form." *

(We now have clear video studies which show that this is not the case. The rod tip does not stop and become motionless at the rod straight position (RSP) nor until all vibration has ceased including that which follows counterflex and rebound long after the loop has formed and is on its way.)

Lefty Kreh has been forthright in making that clear. Consider his student, Mrs. Moberly, challenging him because his teaching had changed from that of the prior year and Lefty's response :-

"Mrs. Moberly, if your instructor didn't learn anything between last year and this year, there's something wrong with your instructor, I replied " **

Having said all this, I do greatly respect the teachings of the past. They form the very basis of what we now know and will continue to build upon in the future.

Gordy

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