The four-weight line is the workhorse of river fishing for trout. A true all-rounder, it can provide delicacy and distance, propelling flies small and large with accuracy — as long as the angler has sufficient skill and has chosen a line with the right taper and weight for the job.
Identifying each line’s weight, taper and best application is the purpose of this test. Find out how weight forward lines work here.
How Don tested the fly-lines
I ran the rule over 15 weight-forward floating lines on a 9ft four-weight Orvis Helios 3F rod. The Helios has a moderately fast action with plenty of reserve power that doesn’t require over-lining to make it work.
On a scale where 1 is a very slow rod, and 10 is a super-fast rod, the Helios 3F would rate a 7. An Orvis Mirage LT reel and a 9ft tapered leader completed the outfit.
Lines that overloaded the Helios may work well on stronger, faster rods, and those that didn’t load well may suit gentler, softer rods.
Thanks to Snowbee for providing a Prestige G-XS Graphene 9ft four-weight rod for comparison. This is a faster, more powerful rod than the Helios 3F. Gentle, slower rods were represented by a venerable Winston IM6 8ft four-weight.
I weighed the entire head of each line, and at 10ft, 20ft and 30ft from the tip. It is difficult to weigh fly-lines accurately without cutting them up, which makes them rather hard to cast. The results are probably accurate to ± 5 grains (gr).
The AFTMA standard for four-weight lines, measured at 30ft and excluding any level tip, is 120gr ± 6gr. I’m not sure why the level tip is excluded. No one cuts it off before fishing. I included the tip in my measurements.
I’ve given an AFTMA rating for the first 30ft and for the entire head. A rating of mid 4 is approximately 120gr; low 4 is approximately 114gr; high 4 is approximately 126gr.
The line outside the tip ring does not provide the entire load on a rod during casting. The line within the rod rings will also contribute to the weight of the whole system and is one reason lines with tip sections of similar weight will cast differently if the weight of the line in the rod rings varies significantly.
All the lines are available in a range of weights.
The length of the sections may remain the same or may increase as line weight increases, but the proportions will remain constant, and we can expect that lines of different weights will perform similarly.
The lines varied widely in every parameter: weight, diameter, section length, taper, texture, and colour, which simply goes to show that there is no “right” design for a fly-line. Attempting to rank such a diverse collection would be meaningless. Instead, I’ve tried to point out what each line is good for.
Airflo Superflo Tactical taper, £69.99
Spec: Loops front and rear. Line ID. Low-stretch core. Colour: Light grey head, olive running line. Available sizes: 2-6.
Traditional line with a long front taper. Good stability in the air. Excellent roll cast with up to 30ft of line, but the full head overloaded the rod. Hard to feel overhead cast at 10ft, much better at 20ft, and excellent load and feel at 30ft, but again the full head slightly overloaded the rod – it cast farthest with 3ft of the tan head in the rod rings. Shoots brilliantly, making hauls easy to perform. Good for medium/long distance delicate presentations. Might struggle to turn over long leaders and/or heavy flies at close range.
Weight of first 10ft: 36gr Weight of first 20ft: 72gr Weight of first 30ft: 121gr (AFTMA mid 4)
Weight of entire head: @44ft 178gr (AFTMA low 7)
Contact: Airflo Tel: 01874 618 510 Web: airflofishing.com
Barrio GT125, £39 (inc. postage)
Spec: Front loop (choice of welded or braided). No rear loop. No line ID. Smooth surface.
Colour: Orange head, orange running line. Available sizes: 4-8.
Short front taper, medium belly and very long rear taper combine to make a 70ft head. Amazingly stable in the air. Works well at close range with plenty of feel and rolls casts easily with 30ft of line. Comes into its own when casting for distance, the long rear taper allows you to aerialise exactly the right length to load your rod optimally and produce stable, tight loops. Shoots easily, perfect for covering fish at distance, although you might need to shorten the running line to fit it on your reel.
Weight of first 10ft: 38gr Weight of first 20ft: 84gr Weight of first 30ft: 130gr (AFTMA 4.5)
Weight of entire head: @73ft 272gr (AFTMA low 10)
Contact: Barrio Fly Lines Email: mike@barrioflylines.com Web: flylineshop.com
Barrio Small Stream, £39 (inc. postage)
Spec: Front loop (choice of welded or braided). No rear loop. No line ID. Smooth surface.
Colour: Light olive head, ivory running line. Available sizes: 1-4.
Very short head. Great stability in the air. Powerful roll cast at all distances including full head. Brilliant feel using 5ft-10ft of line. Full head loaded the rod to perfection with lots of feel and very accurate, tight loops. Perfect for close-range casting and will turn over a long leader with very little line out. Slick line, shoots well for distance with minimal back-cast space. Gives plenty of feedback. An ideal line for beginners.
Weight of first 10ft: 37gr Weight of first 20ft: 100gr Weight of first 30ft: 142gr (AFTMA mid 5)
Weight of entire head: @24ft 123gr (AFTMA mid 4)
Contact: Barrio Fly Lines Email: mike@barrioflylines.com Web: flylineshop.com
Cortland 444 Peach, £60.99
Spec: Front loop. No rear loop. No line ID. Smooth surface. Colour: Peach head, peach running line. Also available in olive. Available sizes: 3-9.
Traditional line with short front and rear tapers. Good stability with full head in the air. Excellent feel and load with both roll and overhead casts using all lengths of line. Very good at close/medium range, but the short head and very supple running line makes distance a little harder to achieve. Great line at all practical river fishing distances, but not my choice for long-distance casts. Perfect line for beginners, offering good feedback.
Weight of first 10ft: 47gr Weight of first 20ft: 97gr Weight of first 30ft: 121gr (AFTMA mid 4)
Weight of entire head: @34ft 159gr (AFTMA mid 6)
Contact: Fliesonline Tel: 01805 804352 Web: fliesonline.co.uk
Cortland Ultralight Trout, £86.99
Spec: Front and rear loops. No line ID. Smooth surface. Colour: Light green/dark green head. Light yellow running line. Available sizes: 3-9.
Long head with a long front taper. Good stability with the full head in the air. Loaded well at short distance and provided lots of feel with up to 30ft of line. Full head really loads the rod and shoots well for distance, but the full head slightly overloaded the rod when roll casting. Roll casts are good with up to 35ft of line.
A good all-round line, it achieves an excellent balance between short and long-range casting.
Weight of first 10ft: 36gr Weight of first 20ft: 72gr Weight of first 30ft: 121gr (AFTMA mid 4)
Weight of entire head: @45ft 178gr (AFTMA low 7)
Contact: Fliesonline Tel: 01805 804352 Web: fliesonline.co.uk
Guideline Fario CDC, £74.99
Spec: Front and rear loops. Line ID. Smooth surface. Colour: Light green head, Light grey running line. Available sizes: 2-6
A low-diameter line constructed on a 12lb core. Long head with short front taper. Excellent stability, unaffected by wind. Roll-casts well to 20ft-25ft, full-head roll casts possible with a jump roll. This slim, dense line provides very good load and feel at short and medium ranges. The full head loaded the rod perfectly, producing tight, high-speed loops. It shoots like an intermediate line and casting the full line is easy. Using a thin core has produced a thin line that works well at all distances and with long leaders to deliver flies delicately.
Weight of first 10ft: 36gr Weight of first 20ft: 78gr Weight of first 30ft: 122 (AFTMA mid 4)
Weight of entire head: @39ft 161gr (AFTMA mid 6)
Contact: Guideline Tel: 07973 291 367 Web: guidelineflyfish.com
Guideline Presentation+, £84.99
Spec: Front and rear loops. Line ID. Smooth surface. Colour: Light gold head. Light grey running line. Available sizes: 2-6.
Short head, rear-loaded line with a long front taper. Perfect for roll casting. Full head shoots well on roll cast. Reasonable feel at 10ft, much better load at 20ft. Full head loads the rod well — very slightly underloaded compared to some heads in this test, but this produces high speed, tight, stable loops. The line shoots well but doesn’t carry as far as some of the heavier heads. Not my first choice for very close range casting, but it roll casts beautifully, and comes alive with overhead casts using 20ft-30ft of line.
Weight of first 10ft: 40gr Weight of first 20ft: 94gr Weight of first 30ft: 141 (AFTMA mid 5)
Weight of entire head: @28ft 134gr (AFTMA low 5)
Contact: Guideline Tel: 07973 291 367 Web: guidelineflyfish.com
Mackenzie NX Trout, £49.99
Spec: Front and rear loops. No Line ID. Smooth surface. Colour: Moss green head. Ivory running line. Available sizes: 3-7.
A slim line that roll cast well with up to 30ft of line — the full head overloaded the rod a little. Stable in the air. Overhead cast well with 10ft-20ft of line, but a slight lack of feel due to the light weight of first 30ft of line. Full head cast well, even better with 6ft of running line shot into the back cast. On the H3, this line felt slightly underloaded, casting it on a Winston rod with a slower, gentler action resulted in excellent loading with plenty of feel. For a fast four-weight rod, I’d recommend the WF5.
Weight of first 10ft: 35gr Weight of first 20ft: 74gr Weight of first 30ft: 107gr (AFTMA high 3)
Weight of entire head: @43ft 154gr (AFTMA low 6)
Contact: Mackenzie Fly Fishing Tel: 07771 330 729 Web: mackenzieflyfishing.com
Orvis Hydros Trout, £85
Spec: Front and rear loops. Line ID. Smooth surface. Colour: Light olive head. Peach running line. Available sizes: 3-8.
Traditional line, long head and short front taper. Very stable in the air. Roll cast well up to 35ft of line, but full head overloaded the rod. Overhead, it cast well at short to medium range with 10ft-20ft of line, with a slight lack of feel very close in. Full head overloaded the rod — worked better with 40ft out of the tip. Loaded like this, the whole line could be cast. It sounds slightly noisy in the rod rings and may have some texture that would help the line to shoot well. A good all-round line if you like a long head.
Weight of first 10ft: 42gr Weight of first 20ft: 83gr Weight of first 30ft: 122 (AFTMA mid 4)
Weight of entire head: @47.5ft 186gr (AFTMA mid 7)
Contact: Orvis UK Tel: 03334 004 188 Web: orvis.co.uk
Orvis Pro Trout Smooth, £105
Spec: Front and rear loops. Line ID. Smooth surface. Colour: Light grey tip. Light olive head. Peach running line. Available sizes: 3-8
Rear-loaded line, long head and very long compound front taper. Very stable in the air. Roll cast well with 35ft of line, but full head overloaded the rod. Overhead, it felt underloaded and lacked feel until 20ft of line out. Casting with the 30ft colour change at the rod tip loaded the rod well but further extension of the heavy belly produced overload. Shoots well and casts a long way using a length of line that loads your rod — for the H3 this was about 40ft. A good line for fishing at distance, but not enough feel close in. Best suited to strong, fast-action rods.
Weight of first 10ft: 42gr Weight of first 20ft: 83gr Weight of first 30ft: 122gr (AFTMA mid 4)
Weight of entire head: @47.5ft 186gr (AFTMA mid 7)
Contact: Orvis UK Tel: 03334 004 188 Web: orvis.co.uk
Rio Premier Technical Trout, £99.99
Spec: Front and rear loops. Line ID. Smooth surface. Colour: Light blue head. Tan running line. Available sizes: 3-8.
Front-loaded line, long head and long back taper. Very stable in the air. Good roll cast, a little inhibited by the forward weighting, but fine up to 40ft of line. Overhead, 10ft of line loaded the rod very well, excellent load at 20ft. 30ft of line was the H3’s sweet spot, delivering very accurate, fast, tight loops. The full head overloaded the rod and caused loops to open. Using 40ft of line gave the best distance and the very slick line shot well. Works very well at all practical fishing distances up to 50ft.
Weight of first 10ft: 43gr Weight of first 20ft: 90gr Weight of first 30ft: 132gr (AFTMA low 5)
Weight of entire head: @49ft 197gr (AFTMA high 7)
Contact: Guide Flyfishing Tel: 01977 681 300 Web: guideflyfishing.com
Scientific Anglers Amplitude Creek Smooth, £109.90
Spec: Front and rear loops. Line ID. Smooth surface. Colour: Light grey tip. Light brown head. Olive running line. Available sizes: 2-6.
Rear-loaded line. The very short, overweighted head provided lots of load at very short range, but could easily overload a soft rod. Excellent roll casting with a short line and if the whole head is roll cast, then shooting extra line is easy. An exceptionally slick line that can be shot more than 60ft with minimal back-cast space. Not my choice for long range due to the potential for heavy landings, but absolutely perfect for close range where it turns over long leaders with ease.
Weight of first 10ft: 47gr Weight of first 20ft: 121gr Weight of first 30ft: 168gr (AFTMA high 6)
Weight of entire head: @23ft 140gr (AFTMA mid 5)
Contact: Flyfish Europe Email: steve@flyfisheurope.net Web: flyfisheurope.com
Snowbee Classic Floating, £29.99
Spec: No loops. No Line ID. Smooth surface. Colour: Pale yellow head. Pale yellow running line. Available sizes: 4-8.
Traditional line with a short, overweighted head. Very stable in the air. Whole head roll cast well. Has plenty of feel and loads well at all line lengths from 10ft up to the full 30ft head. Shoots well and it’s possible to cast the whole line. A good all-round line that behaves well at all distances and will handle long leaders with ease. The short, overweighted head makes hauling easy, and provides lots of feedback for beginners.
Weight of first 10ft: 40gr Weight of first 20ft: 96gr Weight of first 30ft: 146gr (AFTMA high 5)
Weight of entire head: @30ft 146gr (AFTMA high 5)
Contact: Snowbee Tel: 01752 334 933 Web: snowbee.co.uk
Snowbee XS, £55
Spec: Front and rear loops. Line ID. Smooth surface. Colour: Ivory head. Ivory running line. WF5-WF8 in orange. Available sizes: 3-8
Traditional line with a long, overweighted head. Very stable in the air. Roll cast well with the whole head. Has plenty of feel and loads well at all line lengths from 10ft up to the full 42.5ft head. Slick coating shoots well. This is a great all-round line that behaves predictably at all distances. The overweighted head will handle long leaders with ease and the feel it provides makes this a good line for beginners.
Weight of first 10ft: 39gr Weight of first 20ft: 83gr Weight of first 30ft: 138gr (AFTMA mid 5)
Weight of entire head: @42.5ft 186gr (AFTMA mid 7)
Contact: Snowbee Tel: 01752 334 933 Web: snowbee.co.uk
Vision Feel 115, £89.99
Spec: Front and rear loops. Line ID. Smooth surface. Colour: Dark green tip. Light green head. White running line. Available sizes: 3-7.
Traditional line with a long head. Good stability in the air. Very good roll casting — whole head casts well with a jump roll. Slightly underloaded with 10ft of line, but excellent with 30ft, enabling tight, accurate loops. Shoots very well with 5ft of the head inside the rod tip. A good all-round line with the power to turn over long leaders. Excellent at distance, slightly lacking in feel at close range.
Weight of first 10ft: 36gr Weight of first 20ft: 78gr Weight of first 30ft: 122gr (AFTMA mid 4)
Weight of entire head: @38ft 157gr (AFTMA mid 6)
Contact: Guide Flyfishing Tel: 01977 681 300 Web: guideflyfishing.com
Details correct as at August 24th, 2023
Fly line photography: Peter Gathercole