Quote Originally Posted by gadabout
As for looking terrible with scratches - why would there be any scratches? If you're a wading stream fisherman, there's no reason for the rod & reel to leave your hand. No opportunity for scratches unless you take a spill.
Hmm, well, chalk up some of it to being a beginner, some to being tall, thin, arthritic, poor of balance, and unsteady of foot, some to environment: streams with slimed rocks of all sizes & shapes and heavily wooded, sometimes difficult or impossible to hike the banks. In practice, some wet & dry rock scrambling needing 1 hand on the staff, one on the rocks, sometimes at the same time, and sometimes growth overhead disallowing holstering the rod in the vest loops.

Maybe getting a black reel would be a good thing to encourage me to keep it from touching anything, but hopefully not so much as to keep from catching slips and falls - I'd rather break the reel than an elbow.