Fly Fishing Guide to Reels
This Fly Fishing guide is for every beginner fly fishing angler on the road to becoming a pro. Every angler has to purchase fly fishing reels ( it pays to have spare kit when your out on an excursion). Well if you don’t you’re going to have one horrible messy hand full of line. As a beginner fly fishing can be an expensive exercise, if you let it, but luckily here is where you can save a few bucks.
In comparison, between a fly fishing reel and say a bait casting reel used for salmon fishing. The bait caster has heaps of small moving parts that has to constantly cleaned and oiled but the fly reel has only really got two. There is the drag mechanism and the spool, because of this they are fairly easy to maintain and lasts a long time.
You can actually get a good quality real for a very low price due to the fact that they are of such simple design and construction.
Fly Reel Functionality and Design
Fly reels are small and round with a small handle attached directly to the spool. The spool is turned at a 1:1 ratio, meaning that there are no gears. Unlike spinning reels that can ratios up to and beyond 5:1 which means for every one turn of the handle, the spool actually spins around full circle five times. There is no requirement to retrieve your fly with such speed, and actually when you do want to get the slack in, in a hurry, you just pull directly on the line itself.
Don’t get me wrong the fly reel has one really important job. It’s the storage space for your line. It is a needed device but doesn’t really play much part in presenting your fly to the fish. You strip the line of the reel for that job.
Buying Tips
Get a reel that is strong and light weight, preferably if has the drag mechanism in its own sealed area so dust and grit can’t get in. You want it to be able to hold your fly line with plenty of backing for when you have that big fish on. You don’t need spent $400 on a fly reel, you can actually get some pretty descent reels for around $50, it won’t come with a life time guarantee but should last you for the years to come if you take care of it. One important note though. Make sure it’s not too heavy. You want it to be well balanced with your fly rod.
So when you are purchasing all your gear as a beginner, you can get some good fly fishing kits that have everything you need. Otherwise save the dollars on your reel and spend it on getting a real quality fly line or rod. It’s these pieces of your fly fishing outfit that do all the important work. Have a chat with your local fly fishing shop; they will know exactly what’s best for the fly fishing conditions in your area.
