I can find the original line chart for these but is there a new line chart showing smaller wt. lines and backing. I’m trying to find out which medalist would hold my 3wt line and about 100yds. of backing. 1494 maybe? Don’t want to go too small in diameter since the line will coil worse and my hands are too big for some of the smaller reels. Thanks!
Just curious. Why do you need 100 yards of backing with a 3 weight?
fishbum
Mainly to keep the diameter of the line coils larger. Also, I’m not crazy about the smaller reels because of my large hands. I suppose a 1492 would be ok but would still like to see a chart if there is one available.
…1492 are not easily converted to left hand retrieve…not sure if that is a problem. I don’t think the charts or sizes have changed much over the years…My 1494’s hold dt4 and wf5 with more than enough backing, but might be on the heavy side for a 3wt.
Janus
I have two 1494s
One with a 6WF, one with a 6DT.
Both have backing up to the top of the first set of perforations on the spool
I’d think a 1494 would be too heavy to balance a modern 3wt rod correctly
100 yards of backing is always a good thing to have!
First it keeps the coils larger.
Second , you never know what you could hook into; a couple weeks back I was fishing my new 3 wt. for panfish in a large resevoir, and hooked into a huge carp, he almost took me into the end of my backing.
Lost him to a poorly tied , or tired knot, but it was one heck of an experience!!!
Haven’t been that excited since the birth of my kids!
Have a great weekend,
chris
I have never been successful in winding the proposed quantity of backing based upon the charts. I usually end up doing it twice, the first time winding what I think will be sufficient backing followed up with the fly line on top. Then making the adjustment, either adding or subtracting backing for adequate coiling. The difficulty for me is winding the spools at home and then having to re-wind on the river with the current dragging the taut line. The other variable is the line diameter, whether you’re winding a DT or WF line. I own several Medalist reels purchased in the ’ 60-70’s with line weights from 4-7 and continue to use them exclusively today here in the northeast.
I use a 1494 on my 9ft 3wt and find it more than satisfactory. Perhaps if I was using a shorter rod I would want a smaller reel.
I would recommend that you try several different sizes of Pflueger reels and find one that you like on your rod and then adjust the size of the backing to achieve you desired results.
Good Luck.
Tim
PS I couldn’t find the chart either.