Which Reel?

[Conductor Fish]

Well,I'm half way there to being a Flyfisherman.Just bought a rod(Redington Crosswater 2pc.5/6 rod 9ft.) and would like to know what kind of reel would be good for this budget rod? If anyone has a reel for sale please leave me a line. I"m a newby to flyrods and am looking forward to trying this new sport. Thanks very much for all imputs, David

[ohiotuber]

David,
I don't want to get your hopes up, but SOMEWHERE around here I have a lightly used Martin 5 wt reel...ran 50 bucks or so & I broke the rod in my van door. If I can find it, I'll give it to you! Your job is to pray I can find it. I'll post if & when I do & all I will need is your "snail-mail" address. I just love to see new folks getting involved in this GREATEST of sports!
BTW, Welcome to the best board on the net. These folks have helped me more than they will ever know.
Mike

[dudley]

If the Tuber doesn't find his Martin, I suggest a Pflueger Medalist. 24 bucks from Cabelas, Wallyworld,or many other places.
They're the most popular fly reel ever.
One will last a lifetime.

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"Nick's heart tightened as the trout moved. He felt all the old feeling" ...Ernest Hemingway

David;
Ditto to dudley! I put a Pfluger Medalist on my 2 wgt. I fact ohio tuber was with me when I bought it at Cabela's
My second choice would be an Okuma for under 40 bucks. Sweet reel for the money!! Got one on my 9' 3 wgt.
Knowing 'tuber you better pray very hard!!

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I feel more like I do now than I did when I got here!

Cactus AKA "Lucky Dog (Pirate Name)"

[Jeremy]

David,
I have an as new (unused) Orvis Rocky Mt 2 that I bought as a spare and have not found a need for.

It's a cassette reel, meaning you don't need extra spools, just buy the cassettes (around $1 for the extra lines.

I'd let it go for $45 shipped to you. I have a couple of these reels and they're almost bullet proof.

Jeremy.


[This message has been edited by Jeremy (edited 09 September 2005).]

[Wrangler]

Another reel to consider in the $40 range is the Orvis Clearwater. I use them on my 1 weight, 3 weight and 5 weight and like them because I can disable the click.

[Plain Old Jim]

To Jack, Dudley, Jeremy.. and Conductor Fish. Hey, is the Medalist really that good? I wonder what to put on my 9' 4wt I am building. Do you consider weight of a reel to balance the rod or do you just pick a reel?

Condocteer Fish.....if u send me your snail mail address I'll send you a Shakespeare Alpha reel free. They are far from top line but they work and I caught a lot of fish on one last fall. (don't even know how I came by them, think my son gave them to me (2). I think they were reels he bought in a feeble effort to fly fish....while I was 2,000 miles away for 5 years. He still doesn't fly fish.....but they decent enough to fish with for awhile. It would/will be a good reel for you to get going on. You can buy a better reel later on.

Jim

[dudley]

Jim,
I have 5 or 6 medalists, one of which I've had for close to 40 years. The older ones were U.S. made and are of a better quility than the newer imports but they're still a great reel for the money.
The two smaller sizes are right hand retrieve only. Because I like a left hand retrieve the lightest line I have on one of mine is a 5. The weight at that point makes little difference. In fact in the intructions they tell you how to add more weight with BBs


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"Nick's heart tightened as the trout moved. He felt all the old feeling" ...Ernest Hemingway

[brhokla]

I purchased a nice little 3-4 weight reel from Bass Pro as a back up and it works perfect. It's small, light and holds plenty of line. Also available in a 5-6 weight for like $39.

[Conductor Fish]

Thanks to everyone who replied to my need!!! I have a direction to start with now. Sorry about my tardiness but as my name implies,I work on the Railroad and was out on a trip. Thanks again and I'm ready to get started!

David