COMPARING RIO & AIRFLO SKAGIT LINES
There is understandable confusion among us when comparing the new Airflo Skagit heads to Rio’s Skagit Spey lines because
Airflo has a different design philosophy and uses somewhat abstract terminology. However each product has advantages and
disadvantages, so I offer this comparison to present and prospective Skagiteers.
Following Rio Products’ successful series of Skagit Spey lines in early 2005, Airflo introduced a competing product. That’s
good news; competition will keep us Speyaholics supplied with high quality products that make our weapons delivery systems ever
easier to manage.
So how do we evaluate and compare Airflo’s 9/10 offering to Rio’s? Easy, right? Well, as Hertz says, “Not exactly.�
To compare these two companies’ 9/10 lines, let’s start with Rio, it being the first to market. Pick up the box and it says â
€œ650 gr 9/10 Chartreuse/green Skagit Spey, Looped, 120 ft.â€� Pull out the spool and it is labeled “Skagit Spey 650 gr 9/10. The
120-foot line consists of a chartreuse colored head with green running line. The head length is not stated but measures 26-feet. The
head weight is close to 650 grains. No tips are included in the package.
On the side of Rio’s box is a “Skagit Cheater Recommendation� suggesting no cheater for rods 13-feet and under, a 5-foot
cheater for rods 13-feet to 14.5-feet, and a 10-foot cheater for rods above 14.5-feet.
Now pick up Airflo’s box. It says “Skagit North West Shooting Head, Complete with CCT tip, RS-NW-ST9/10F/S-PE.�
Inside is a spool labeled “Skagit North West Shooting Head, Floating with interchangeable tip. HEAD 35 ft. LENGTH 45 ft.
ST9/10F/S.� On the spool is a floating Skagit head, looped at each end. Also included is a tip wallet with one 20-foot long level tip,
looped at each end. Running line is not included. There is no grain weight information on the box or spool.
The head measures 34-feet and weighs close to 650 grains.
Examining the Airflo lines, the high quality is obvious. There is an instruction sheet that directs the user to cut the sink tip into two
parts, a long one for deeper/faster water, a shorter one for low water. There is a table of data for the four lines in the series. For this
line, the table states:
-Line size: 9/10
-Total head weight in grains: 750 [This confused me until I understood it included an assumed 10-foot tip of T-10 attached.]
-Tip Model #: CCT200 [CCT stands for custom cut tip.]
-Tip weight: 100 [the assumed 10-foot tip @ 10 grains/foot.]
-Tip length: 10 [feet]
-Total head length including sink tip: 45 [feet]
-Belly weight w/o tip: 650 [At last, the head weight, information that should be on the box and the spool]
-Average rod length: 14 [feet] [An assumption]
-Rod/head length ratio: 3.2 [This is good information, as one wants to be in the 3.0 to 3.5 range for Skagit casting. However the 3.2
ratio if incorrect if the user’s rod is other than 14-feet long.]
Bottom line: The head is 34-feet long and weighs 650 grains. The tip is 20-feet [actually 19.5-feet] long and weighs 200 grains.
Cutting the tip in half gives a 45-foot total head with a 100-grain sink tip.
Items to compare:
-Cost
-Physical properties
-Casting capability and characteristics
COST COMPARISON
The Rio product is complete except for tips and tip wallet. The Airflo product is complete except for running line. A prospective
purchaser may already own running line, tips and/or wallets, so economics vary by individual.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF SINK TIPS
Sink tip material has two properties that affect the depth of fly presentation: density and mass. The density of Rio’s T-14 and
Airflo’s T-10 is about equal, giving similar sink rates. T-14’s higher mass per unit of length will sink a fly more deeply than
will T-10, because it pulls the floating head further beneath the surface. For example, a 10-foot sink tip weighing 140 grains will
present a fly deeper than one weighing 100 grains, although both tips have similar sink rates.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF SKAGIT HEAD
Rio’s head is 26-feet vs. Airflo’s 34-feet. Rio’s head has very short front and back tapers, while Airflo’s has a short
back taper and a long front taper. Both weigh 650 grains, meaning Rio’s weighs 25 grains/foot and Airflo’s 19 grains/foot.
CASTING CHARACTERISTICS
Rio’s design is optimized for heavy tips and large flies. Airflo’s doesn’t do this job as well, but its generous taper makes a
more gentle presentation with lighter tips and smaller flies. Remembering that Skagit casting is best accomplished when total head
length is 3.0 to 3.5 times rod length, the shorter Rio head accommodates longer tips within this formula. However Airflo’s longer
length means that cheaters are not needed with most shorter sink tips.
I hope this helps folks who are understandably confused by the different standards and terminology of the two Skagit Spey line
offerings presently on the market.
copyright 2006 Bob Pauli