There are way too many people with more money than skill or brains. I've seen some great fisherman over the years and trust me there is no correlation to the price of the angler's equipment. Basically, every CEO and Wall Street wanabee has $2000 worth of fly fishing gear sitting in his basement- and I blame "A River Runs Through It".

Call me cheap, but I haven't spent any more than $60 on any single fishing item, rod or reel. And likewise, there isn't a fish that knows the difference before he's hooked. I'm with Andrew on this one, too many people with more money than sense. I think rod prices are outrageous, almost untouchable for someone in my shoes, working husband, wife in college and a two year old at home. I've walked into a flyshop in Colorado Springs and got told that I was wasting my money if I wasn't spending $200 on a rod, I will never step foot in that place again.

yes, everything costs a lot. i don't have much money and must buy cheap eqpment

Deeter, years before I got the Loomis, I would look at a 300 dollar fly rod and say "I bet I can out cast some guy with that rod, using my 40 dollar Pfluger," and I could, as a matter of fact I did it about 10 times. When I put that Loomis in my hand though, the first cast I put through the guides, I went "Cool!" stripped out more line, and shot it all the way past the spot I wanted by 40 or so feet, on one false cast, and went "WOW!" so, if you had the same experience I did, you would know about what I'm saying. It isn't always the rod though, the first one I used was cheap, Chinese "Junk" but it worked, so I wasn't gonna fix it. There are some good rods for 90 or so bucks (Albright) and I own one.

Alex do you think an Albright is good for a beginner and several years after?
PS, go to answers

Rod companies need to raise prices somewhat to cover all the r&d costs that go into eveloping new rods. However, the price seems to be rising much faster than r&d costs.
Demand for flyfishing tackle has increased over the last 20 years, and that has driven up the cost. Hopefully, price will soon outstrip demand, and we will see the prices level off.

I do enjoy high end rods and believe they are better quality and perform better. Some of the qualities I look for are sensitivity, strength, quaility of guides, quality of cork, reel seat, wrappings, location of spine and blank finish. A good warranty also helps.

One thing I do not understand is why my Loomis GLX is over $600 and my Loomis Bronzeback spinning rod was around $250? I think there is more mark up on fly rods than spinning rods.

Gritz,
If your just starting out fly fishing, you DON'T need the top of the line equipment! It's like Bass pros or golf pros, they use the high end stuff because they can tell the difference, use it every day, have the money for it, and probably get it for free anyway. You can get a great set up from Cabela's or even Orvis for under 200 bucks and it will last you a long time. Start cheap, that's how most of us did it.
When I guide, I take different rods with me. It's amazing (to me) how few people notice any difference in rods until I start talking about them. They have no idea unless I tell them. When you think about it, rods are like wine. You could go for years ordering the same old house wines and be perfectly happy. Then some one takes the time to explain the different tastes, blends, aromas, and flavors to look for in a wine and suddenly your on the hunt for great wines. Keep it simple and you'll be just happy.

Red,
I am going to take your advice. I went to Cabelas' web site and put the money down for a new "outfit" deal. It was a fly rod, reel, flies, line, backing, leaders, a few other goodies, and a pouch for under 200 dollars. The reason I was so harsh is because even that is a lot of money and when I look at reviews for guidance you get a lot of people that are really happy about the deal and then you get four or five guys who say that the stuff is so cheap that it doesn't even pay to buy it and that they are going to throw the thing in the trash after the first use. For someone on a budget that really wants to get into the sport, that is scary. Scary because if I find out that this thing is junk I am not going to convince my wife that it was a good 200 dollar lesson and that I should now go out and spend another 300 dollars on a "good" rod. The whole thing stresses me out a little. I have been burned before but I have also had really good experience in other fields. I still use some of the "deals" that I got 10 years ago and wouldn't replace them for anything. So thank you Red for your encouragement and advice. I am planning on having a friend of mine spend a week at my house this spring and I will lift all of his fly fishing knowledge, techniques, and wisdom from him while I can.

I have expensive equipment for my bass and catfish setups, but I have not invested in expensive fly equipment yet, As mentioned above I purchased a basic setup from walmart and as I learn the ropes I will step up the quality of the equipment.

I don't want to make the major investment before I really get the hang of it. I have found a few friends and relatives who know the art of casting and are teaching my little by little.

I work at a local fly shop and while I could get excellent discounts on rods and reels in any price range, many rods and reels are still out of my reach. I do have nice rod or two but own 4 or 5 Ross flycast reels which are about $70 apiece and am getting ready to buy another st. croix rod because it is reasonable and will do everything I need it to do. I sell many of my budget conscious customers the same setup. With that said there is a huge difference between a T&T and a St. Croix but I have to face that I am only a college student working at a flyshop. I do try to increase my odds though by buying the top of the line rod from St. Croix than the bottom of the line from Sage even though Sage is seen as a slightly better rod company. Many fishermen need to realize that technology has allowed us to buy rods that are of great quality for a decent price. I can buy a rod, reel, and line that is better than the high stuff was 10 years ago. Do the best you can and have fun but do not make the mistake of buying a cheap rod and finding out a few years later your skill has outgrown the rod forcing you to buy another, do it right the first time.