2 3/4 oz. 9', 4-piece, Tip SW 9.5 fly rod for 6-wt. line. We set out on an adventure to make the world's lightest fly fishing rod. Along the way, we also made the world's best.The new patent pending Helios saltwater fly rod is so far ahead of all others it skips generations in how a fly rod should feel, cast, and fish. It is so sublimely light, incredibly responsive, deadly accurate, and just plain easy and enjoyable to cast that to compare it to other graphite rods is like comparing graphite to bamboo. There is no comparison. The Helios is that good. And everyone is noticing. Designed specifically for the salt, this Helios fly rod is great for steelhead water as well. Quick-loading rod feels like a 4-weight. Light duty bonefish, warmwater bass, schoolie stripers and small steelhead. Ice cleans out of Recoil guides quickly and easily. A real plus when steelheading or trout fishing in cold conditions.
Average Customer Rating:
5 out of 5
Rating Snapshot
(9 reviews)
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9 of 9 (100%) customers would recommend this product to a friend.
Customer Reviews for ZG Helios™ 906-4 Fly Rod
Review 1 for ZG Helios™ 906-4 Fly Rod
Overall Rating:
5
/ 5
Jack of all trades!,
September 2, 2009
By:
indiantroutfrom Cornwall Bridge, CT
"I purchased this rod just a few weeks ago and I am already in love with it. Since picking up the rod, I have fished the white fly hatch on the Housatonic in Connecticut, caught smallmouth bass on clear lakes in Maine, and even caught 8 inch brookies on small streams. The rod handled each task with grace. Small dries hit the water as nicely as big double bunny streamers with this amazing tool. Conventional wisdom might make people hesitate about fishing a 6 weight for trout but, as I have found, this rod refutes such wisdom and can tackle a wide variety of fishing adventures. Small fish are easy to feel and the rod doesn't force you to overpower them. At the same time, big fish are easier to land with the rod's impressive backbone and fighting power. Overall, this is the best rod I have ever casted or fished."
Review 2 for ZG Helios™ 906-4 Fly Rod
Overall Rating:
5
/ 5
Helios keeps the disabled fishing,
July 9, 2009
By:
kayakfishva
"I was introduced to the new Helios by my husband whom had a new 6wt SW, as we were out fishing in the Reservoir near our home, and I was trying unsuccesfully to push my heavy deer hair frogs with my ZG 5 Wt tip flex, and having a horible time, he brought the Helios over and told me to try it. I tried it and it was like the difference between night and day, not only could I cast those flies, I could cast them where I wanted, and had a great success in catching fish that day. You see I have had 2 failed shoulder surgeries which left me with a neuroma in my right shoulder and that in part left me unable to cast the fly rod the way most people do, I was tuaght to use the lower forearm method as where you loose some of the speed from the loading of the rod. With the Helios I have been able to cast large flies with a wonderful presentation, and fly fish as long into the day as I used to without any exertion. In short the Helios has put me back into the fly fishing holly grail of fisherman, those of us whom love the simple joy of catching a fish seeing its beauty and releasing it back into the wild.
Thank you Helios, and thank you Orvis for developing this wonderful rod. I will be sure to buy another 6wt Sw for our rod collection as well as 2 more lighter weight rods for small streams and pan fish."
Review 3 for ZG Helios™ 906-4 Fly Rod
Overall Rating:
5
/ 5
My 3rd Helios,
June 19, 2009
By:
Qualey99from Shreveport, LA
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"I was introduced to the Helios series rods by guide Rob Woodruff while fishing for largemouth bass on Lake Fork. I was using my 8 wt Sage, which is a great rod. Rob asked if I wanted to try the Helios 8 wt, so I tried it and was very impressed with the ability it had to push the large epoxy head bunny flies into the wind with minimal effort. Then he said "Try the 6 wt Helios". That rod was even lighter, and I could cast just as well with it as the 8 wt, even with the large bass bugs we were using. I subsequently bought a 4 wt and 8 wt Helios and have loved them. I have recently purchased the 6 wt salt water Helios and found that for speckled trout and redfish in the marsh in south Louisiana, this rod is absolutely great, with enough backbone to handle reds up to 27 inches, and all the speckled trout I have caught. The weight difference between the 6 and 8 wt is not huge, but after 7 or 8 hours of casting, the difference shows up. The 6 wt Helios is the rod I would now buy if I could only have one rod for panfish, trout, speckled trout, redfish, and large and smallmouth bass. It truly can handle all of these jobs. I am fortunate to not have to settle for just one Helios, and look forward to many years of service from these great rods."
Review 4 for ZG Helios™ 906-4 Fly Rod
Overall Rating:
5
/ 5
The Best,
February 23, 2009
By:
soth
"This rod is simply one of the best there is. I have had a lot of rods in various line weights and made by different companies, but I always find myself returing to Orvis. This rod, now my fifth Orvis rod, is in my opinion the pinnacle of rod building and design. The castin stroke is crisp, clean and very responsive, as if the rod reads your mind and then begins executing the task with very little direction. The light weight and overal "feel" ensure that you can use it all day without undo fatigue, and begin the next day as if it was your first. It's also forgiving, which is very important to most casters I'm sure. If you are looking for an excelent over all heaavy trou, light bass, and light saltwater rod. This is it! I highly recomend the zg Helios 906-4(s) tip flex 9.5!"
Review 5 for ZG Helios™ 906-4 Fly Rod
Top 250 Contributor
Overall Rating:
5
/ 5
February 17, 2009
By:
BKillfrom Upstate NY
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"This is the only rod manufactured by any company, which is coveted by anglers and crab people alike (see pic)."
Review 6 for ZG Helios™ 906-4 Fly Rod
Overall Rating:
5
/ 5
Dream Rod,
February 17, 2009
By:
kayakanglerfrom Central VA
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The Wife Works the South River, Waynesboro, VA
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Winter Trout, Great Smokey Mountains, Gatlinburg, TN 08
"The wife and I fish from our sit on top kayaks and I often take a lot of guff for buying quality gear from the gang in our fishing circle. Imagine the stir when they found I had upgraded from my high end Orvis Zero G to the new Zero G Helios. I thought I would never hear the end of it, but then they started to see my casts with the new Helios. To snap a cast that sucks up all the line stripped back in your lap from the last cast is a sweet feeling.
Casting from a sitting postiion into low cover, especially against the wind is challenge enough, but placing those flies just where you want them cast after cast is work. With the new Orvis Helios Rod it's made so much easier. The rod is an extention of my arm, I feel the rod load on the backcast and the transfer of power is nearly automatic. Cast after cast with so much less effort involved means that at the end of the day I am less fatigued from the casting and instead I am pleasantly tired from the fish I have brought to the boat.
This past May the wife and I spent an afternoon working a dam in a local reservoir, throwing poppers along the rip rap, and suddenly it looked as though Jaws himself was coming up from the deep. He broke the water next to the fly and missed... just plain missed, rolled sideways and was gone. My jaw dropped to my chest and I nearly fell out the other side of my yak in shock. Not to be defeated, I performed a modified roll cast to break the adhesion of the line on the water, and then neatly flicked the popper in the last direction I saw him roll and laid the fly perfectly in front of his path. This was probably the best cast of my short flyfishing experience. On the second pop, the water exploded and it was fish on! The rod bent double and the fight was on, and back and forth we went. The drag sang and the rod bent double... my heart rate was up and the rod tip was nearly in the water, it was a perfect cap to a long day. A bass like this is a nice fish for anyone, but in a kayak, they pull the boat around. It is a rush you really want to try at least once.
Last but not least, my wife has a shoulder injury and I have taught her to cast with a unique motion protecting the shoulder by tucking the elbow... She has been tying our flies since I started flyfishing and I thought it was time for her to reap the benefits. I am sure the light weight of the Helios will benefit her as well.
I have never regretted my decisions to buy quality, be it Orvis rods, reels or quality clothing and tying materials. The upgrade to the Helios was another smart move on my part, and this is my favorite rod for large bodies of fresh water and Salt water alike. You can't go wrong."
Review 7 for ZG Helios™ 906-4 Fly Rod
Overall Rating:
5
/ 5
I can't believe the weight,
February 14, 2009
By:
ScenicRick
"When I first picked up the 9 foot six weight Heios, I could not believe the weight or the lack of weight. Swishing a rod back and forth in a fly shop doesn't really tell you much about how it casts so when I took it outside and cast a line with the rod I was amazed. Tight loops, great line speed and distance with ease, all on a 9 foot 6 weight that feels like a 4 weight when you first pick it up."
Review 8 for ZG Helios™ 906-4 Fly Rod
STAFF REVIEW
Overall Rating:
5
/ 5
guts,
April 18, 2008
By:
JATSTANICfrom Derbyshire, England
"Well to say i was amazed just how good this #6 was would be an understatement. Loads of feel, lovely control of loops and bag loads of guts makes it great for light line bonefish or even mullet fishing in the UK. Great fun and can certainly throw a line!"
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