[work2fish]

I would recommend that you take a look at some of the Cabela's flyrods & reels. A 5 weight 2 piece is a good place to start. I don't have any experience with the quick connects used for tying line to leader, but I'd have to say they are really unnecessary and learning to tie that knot comes in handy.

Here are some other threads on a similar subject:

http://www.coloradofisherman.com/forum/index.php?topic=1473.0

http://www.coloradofisherman.com/forum/index.php?topic=1083.0

Hope this helps.

 

[work2fish]

Here are a couple of sites for fishing knots:

http://www.fish4fun.com/knots.htm

http://www.marinews.com/fishing/fk_main.htm

(just from a google of "fishing knots")...

wrt fast or slow rods, it is my opinion that a person should use whatever works best. Fast rods are generally better in windy conditions, but I truly like the feel of a slower rod most of the time. So, I'm obviously no Lefty Kreh or anything, but I do know what helps me cast better. I still need lots and lots of practice, so you can take this for what it's worth.

 

[work2fish]

Is there really any good way to tell the stiffness of a rod besides going to a store and feeling it? I've noticed very few sites online tell you what the action of the rod is and it seems the less expensive I go the faster the action is and just doesn't seem to be what I'm looking for.

I think your best bet is to try it out. Just like any other thing in advertising, one company's size 10 shoe is like another's 9 1/2 You'll get to know a lot more than just the fast/slow response of the rod, such as how well it is balanced, etc. When I was looking at fly rods a while back (3 yrs ago?), I'm pretty sure that the faster rods were more expensive, so that's interesting if things have flip flopped.