To get a good, clear review of something I am always keen to let as many anglers get their hands on a product and to give it some feedback.
When Mike Barrio's new SLX line turned up the timing could not have been better as I was meeting a bunch of anglers where I work to mark the start of the river season down here in Devon.
After a great day on the river 6 of us met up and had a cast of the 4wt line. We decided to try it on 3 rods that the guys had been fishing with during the day which were a Sage 8 1/2ft XP, a Sage 8 1/2ft SLT and a Bannister 7ft 4wt Superfast. The more eagle eyed readers will have noticed the Bannister is a bamboo rod.
I’d also had 10 minutes with the line on an Orvis Helios 8 1/2ft 4wt Mid Flex the day before but kept my feelings to myself.
First up the suppleness and lack of memory were noted by all. This has always been a strength of Barrio lines and no exception here.
We took it in turns with one of the rods making a basic overhead cast, a few false casts and then a shoot of line. The line worked well with all of them and evident how well the line turned over.
Mike has clearly worked hard on the taper which, although weighing in at what sounds like a hefty 10 grams for a 4wt, doesn’t feel like it when you are casting. I’d been expecting it to slow down the medium actioned SLT and Helios and we were unsure how the Bannister would take it but it worked well with all of the rods. The stiffer XP just lapped it up and wanted more.
The short 33ft head is perfect for the close up casts we make on the river and loads the rod quickly and efficiently, enabling minimal false casting. Winding the rods up a bit we all got a bit macho and were happy to let the line fly and fly it did. The line shoots with ease and when I carried a large amount of line whilst hauling the line was really stable. One of the guys (you know who you are Mark!), jumped the queue to try and get an extra go with the XP.
The taper and turnover got me thinking about a line that loads quickly and turns over well and I thought about the applications for migratory fish too and have little doubt that in heavier line weights it will turn over poly tips with ease. Lake and reservoir anglers will enjoy casting and fishing with the line and suspect it will stand up well in saltwater fishing too.
Next we roll cast the line and I have to admit it was done on grass. I am not a huge fan of finding out how a line roll casts on grass but we were all really impressed and the line again turned over beautifully. You can really get a feel of how the head is tapered giving you nice weight in your D loop. I think there will be a thumbs up from those who fish in tight conditions where roll and spey casts are the only options. Again, this made me think of the night time sea trouter making the more efficient, fly saving spey casts.
Now, it was opening day of the season and we were in good spirits but I asked everyone to give me a vote out of the 10 for the line and the line received three 9s and two 8s. This is from guys, like you and I, who are fishermen and want something at a fair price that does the job well.
It probably sounds like a "love in" for the Barrio line but none of us had an axe to grind either way. The only negative we could find is that the line has an orange head and cream running line and the feeling was that for some fishing situations something more subtle would be preferable, which I belive is already being workedon. A lever line on a number of levels.
I also left the line with Duncan for a morning to try it out and his thoughts are below.
"At first glance I am not sure about the colour, certainly for the application I was using it anyway! However on a heavier line weight, say a 6, using the line on still waters the colour may be fine, the demarcation between head and running line would be handy.
The line feels and looks very smooth and supple, it cast very well too, both on the shorter more accurate casts I tried and the slightly longer ones too. The rod I was using was an Orvis Superfine, 7ft 6 for a 4 weight (tip actioned) and the line felt a little heavy on it. This may be because of the heavier "compounded" taper. I would have thought on a slightly faster, stiffer rod, a Sage XP or one of the newer ones, this line would fly out! Which sort of brings me back to the line's intended use. Although I liked it, I am not sure that it is the line to use for the short, delicate, accurate casting I would be doing on some of the smaller streams in Cornwall."
The Barrio is available in line weights 4 to 8 and costs you £35. To buy one please visit Mike's Website.
