The Single Life

[NJTroutbum]

TSL title pic.jpg



After years of pursuing those things in which I "thought" I needed, I finally got rid of all of my unnecessary drag.......Disk Drag.


For the full Blog article click on the link below:

http://ralphsflybox.blogspot.com/201...ngle-life.html

[Rick Z]

Agree with you on this.
Get a few fish on the reel but usually hit as I am reeling in the line.

Rick

[jszymczyk]

HERESY!!! HERETIC!!! You risk being burned at the stake unless you recant!

Every fly fisher KNOWS that in the pursuit of 12 inch trout, one MUST have a reel with a drag system capable of stopping an aircraft carrier, with zero startup inertia, and micrometer-click adjustments calibrated to the milligram.

What are you trying to do, take down an entire marketing industry?

[Chuck441]

Ralph, before a recent trip to Michigan's AuSable, I looked at the reels I might take with me. I realized that my Orvis Battenkill, with a couple of extra spools, had always done right by me. And it sure looks better on a cane rod than a whiz-bang, ultra-large arbor disco dancer. The latter often in highly polished gold finish, too. I'm no luddite. I just enjoy the more traditional, and thus proven, equipment. Cane rod, click pawl reel, recurve bow. Nice.

Chuck

[Byron haugh]

I have both click pawl (Hardy Princess) reels and disc drag systems. When fishing where I might hook an 18 to 20 in her, I go to a disc drag. I have lost some big fish trying to slow down a big one on pawl reels without the ability to Palm. Palming even has proven to not be smooth enough in some cases. For me, anyway.

[NJTroutbum]

I have a Heddon 540 Princess clone. Love it, but it sits on a smaller glass rod and never see’s big water. Great reel, but I always wondered why it was that Hardy didn’t incorporate a palming rim on the Princess, being it’s the largest of their lightweights and really meant for heavier lines?

I agree, you will lose the occasional fish managing line by hand or palming vs an advanced drag system. I just prefer the connection with the fish a bit more. Even with big bass in cover, setting the hook with a popper and playing the fish by hand makes it feel like you’re connected directly to the lip of that bucket-mouth. Especially when they leave the water.

I have one rod, my light salt and steelhead rod, that has a disc drag reel on it. But I’m already eyeing up a suitable replacement. It will probably be replaced by a 6wt glass rod and an Orvis Battenkill IV.

[Byron haugh]

The Hardy Princess is a pretty light reel. I believe Hardy "caged" it (thus, not allowing true palming) in order to protect the reel from destruction should it be dropped.
As I said, I use my Princess, and love the "ziiiinnng" when hooking up even with a small fish. But, when fishing to big fish, I go to the security of the disc drag. the "occasional" fish lost would tend to be the best fish of the trip, I think.

[NJTroutbum]

I gotcha. Have to use what you're most comfortable with. Gear certainly doesn't define the journey.