The G.Loomis PRO4x Saltwater builds on Loomis’ outstanding PRO4x line-up. This series offers great prices and premium-quality rods, made in the company’s Woodland, Washington factory.  The Saltwater tackled everything from shy bonefish off the shores of Kauaii to hard-hitting sea-run cutthroat in Puget Sound. I cast surface poppers to silver salmon and jigged crabs in front of reef fish in Hawaii, and the Loomis rod handled all I asked of it.

Fit and feel
The Saltwater continues the PRO4x style of an olive green finish on the road, with deep full-wells cork grips. The reel seat on the Saltwater is a matt-black anodized aluminum with deeply gnarled lock nut. The fighting butt is a bit short at just ¾-inch to provide leverage when fighting big, powerful fish like salmon or carp. But it works well when just a little extra ‘umph’ is needed to wrestle small silvers or reef fish.

Distance and Accuracy
The PRO4x Saltwater shines when casting under 60-70 feet and working those closer-in fish. When trying to reach greater distances, or push line through strong winds, the G.Loomis doesn’t match up to the performance of other rods in the class, but it doesn’t do too bad—longer casts just require significantly more skill and effort. Of course, accuracy falls off with that great distance, too, but for those mid-range casts, the G.Loomis can toss a fly exactly where you want it.

General performance
When most of my casts were targeting fish in short in medium ranges, I found the G.Loomis PRO4x Saltwater to be everything I wanted in a salt rod. Easy to cast, accuracy and able to reach where I wanted. But when successful fishing required repeated long casts over expansive stretches of open water, I found myself reaching for a more powerful option (such as the Sage SALT). Keeping it to its sweetspot, though, and I happily fished the G.Loomis PRO4x Saltwater all day long while wading the sandy strands of Kauaii’s northeastern shore.