# choosing a fly reel



## tailwalk (Nov 20, 2016)

didnt want to derail Wh77's thread on choosing a reel for the 8wt meridian but reading through it had me asking myself what moves people to choose one reel vs another. thought it might help those in the same boat or those new to fly fishing to have some discussion on the topic. I'm also debating on a new reel for my 9 weight, so this is not without selfish motivation! So let's hear about how you chose your current reel(s)!


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## Jfack (Nov 2, 2014)

I chose a kraken on my 9wt nrx. IMO it's a great reel. I'd rather the xla but I got a sweet deal on the kraken. The fish you are going for on 8/9wts, you will rarely see backing. I've seen backing very few times using the cheap reel that comes on the redington path combo... you don't NEED a $600+ reel for up to 9wt rods. Yeah I'd like to have a tibor to drool over though no doubt! Sure it is a proven reel that'll last forever apparently, but if the day ever comes that my kraken breaks down I'm sure their customer service will take care of me. It has already been dropped from I guess 3-4ft onto rocks. Little mark on the paint and she's fine. 

My bvk has a behemoth on it. Again this reel has been beat to crap, dunked multiple times, etc. works flawlessly. That reel has never seen backing and I've caught some sweet overslots on her. Very impressed with the reel for sure. I can buy 6 of these for the price of an Abel.. 

don't get me wrong I'd love to own a tibor, Abel, or hatch. Not worth it to me though at this point in my life. It's kind of a bummer seeing dudes on here and other sites put down these lower priced reels for like an 8wt. Yea for the bigger 10/11/12s sure it's worth saving for a proven reel to not lose that tarpon or whatever if you don't get many shots at em. But there are plenty of great reels in the lower price range that never get mentioned even to people new to fly. 

idk your budget, that's my opinion on the "budget reels". If you have the funds I'd go tibor though. Used one once and couldn't stop staring at it... can't lie lol.


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## jamie (Jan 22, 2016)

Started my fly fishing with the pfleuger medalist hunting high altitude and small stream trout... gravitated towards the craftsmanship of hardy and lamson reels as I started pursuing bigger game. Now frequently in the salt flats and off shore and chasing drag testing steelhead and salmon I want a beautiful crafted reel with a bomb proof drag. Having lost fish to drag failures I'm happy to pay a premium to minimize the likelihood of a recurrence. Mostly Hatch currently - they are beautifully crafted with fantastic customer support - and nicely balance the rods I have them matched with. Got to admit that I smile when I pull them out of the case. In the end I'm sure that there are less expensive reels that work "just as well" - but i'm a gear junkie and for some things I just want what I want.


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## commtrd (Aug 1, 2015)

3 Tand makes a great reel but it really is the rod that counts. Looking at another rod from new Zealand a glass rod in 9 wt. A Tibor would be sweet but its the rod that really counts anyway. Lusting after a Norvise setup for fly tying also. It never ends?


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## ifsteve (Jul 1, 2010)

Buy what you want and feel that meets your needs. And everybody defines needs differently...from the actual fish you plan to catch, whether longevity is a factor, your enjoyment of the equipment.

Years ago when I started down the saltwater fly fishing path I made a personal decision.....my equipment would never be at fault for losing a quality fish.


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## mwong61 (Jul 28, 2013)

True story....

Earlier this year I was on a business trip in New Orleans and my colleague and I booked a guide to fish while we were there. I had brought my Meridian 8wt/Nautilus set up but the conditions were poor, very windy and rainy and we were chucking super heavy weighted flies so we wound up using his 9 and 10wt rigs. He was using a reel that I would probably never consider quality wise although its a big name in the industry and well known for their excellent rods.

Long story short, despite the conditions he put us on some huge black drum and gave us at least a dozen good shots. Between the lock jawed fish and poor performance of the guy on the bow I finally got a fish to eat. It was our ONE hookup of the day. As I was trying to get the line back on the reel the spool popped off, bounced on the deck and plopped into the water. So as I was trying to fight a 35lb drum off the line, the guide was furiously trying to position the boat so we wouldn't get wrapped on the lower unit, my buddy was half hanging off the bow trying to retrieve the spool from the mud. Talk about a fire drill worthy of Larry, Curly and Moe! 

While my buddy was trying to mount the spool back on the reel, the fish realized he was hooked and took off like a freight train and popped the leader.

So, moral of the story....heh...don't use questionable gear

I suppose this scenario could have happened with any brand reel, but I've never had it happen to me before with any of my own stuff.

Personally, I have not owned a ton of brands reels, but I've found my Nautilus and Galvan reels to be absolutely bullet proof. I fished both a lot off a kayak for many years and have gotten them very wet regularly. There's also a few of the Allen models I have as well. The Kraken is a nice reel for the money and I have a couple of the smaller ones (Trout II I think) for Shad fishing. Lamson's are also a good value but you do need to take some care with them if you fish salt. The conical drag system needs to be taken apart and cleaned regularly as I've had corrosion from saltwater intrusion.

My .02

M-


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## RobA (Aug 21, 2015)

mwong61 said:


> True story....
> 
> Earlier this year I was on a business trip in New Orleans and my colleague and I booked a guide to fish while we were there. I had brought my Meridian 8wt/Nautilus set up but the conditions were poor, very windy and rainy and we were chucking super heavy weighted flies so we wound up using his 9 and 10wt rigs. He was using a reel that I would probably never consider quality wise although its a big name in the industry and well known for their excellent rods.
> 
> ...


That's funny. Earlier this year I had an idea that a small spot would hold small tarpon. Long story short, it was a pain in the ass to get there and you needed to be in position at first light. Everything goes as planned and we are right were we need to be and, hell yes, a tarpon rolls in front of the boat in casting distance just as the it starts to light up. I make a cast, it feels good, and as the fly is about halfway to the fish, my spool fell of the frame, bounced all over the deck, and then fell over the side. Tons of noise. Tons of me leaning over the side of the boat trying to fish the spool back up. No more tarpon. 

That was an Allen Kraken. I've never had any other problems with the reel, but I've got no explanation for why it would have come loose from the frame. I've never taken the spool off before.


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## mwong61 (Jul 28, 2013)

RobA said:


> That was an Allen Kraken. I've never had any other problems with the reel, but I've got no explanation for why it would have come loose from the frame. I've never taken the spool off before.


Hah, that's classic

Yah, that's a known issue with the first Gen Kraken, I actually emailed them and complained about the design. When you mount the spool and turn the knob the detent to lock is not very positive. Kind of a "mushy" click into place. I had mine fall off the first time I mounted it until I figured out how to do it correctly. I think they fixed that with the newer version. I GREATLY prefer the spring loaded latch design like on the Galvan and Nautilus FWX.

M-


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## bjtripp83 (Aug 10, 2015)

clicking on outgoing line is nice too b/c it tells you how the fish is pulling, ie whether you need to adjust drag or rod angle. models vary a lot w/ clicking, you just gotta find one and play w/ it.


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## Backwater (Dec 14, 2014)

I have to go back to a saying I made a few months ago on a thread that was recommending equipment to a beginner fly fisherman.

and I quote.... (myself )

"Value" to me, is one of the most important thing in determining what gear to get. In other words.... *Value* = what will meet the demands of your needs in equipment and can have the confidence in, with the broad range of fishing you are doing (based on a combination of experience, research and trusted recommendations) *vs* the cost of doing that for you, at that particular stage of the game, that fits within your budget or willingness to invest that much into it (financially and/or time). If, you are satisfied with the "value" of the equipment you use to accomplish the task, then that's all that counts! 

Ted Haas


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## labman1 (Dec 27, 2015)

Ted, excellent post!! 

To the OP, depends on your goals, fishing time, budget, etc. I started saltwater fly fishing with a STH cassette reel, it worked fine for the Texas coast, had to clean it all the time, but for a couple of trips annually, it worked. Fast forward 20+ years, budget and time to fish the salt has increased. I have Ross reels-Momentum and F1, a TFO large arbor and BVK, Abels and a great chinese reel. My wife is an Orvis fan, so we (she) have a few of those.

I think realistically, most reels compete well with each other on any given day on the water. Ross, Abel, Tibor, Nautilus, etc etc, all manufacture quality stuff. The next couple of reels I purchase will be Tibor, for no other reason than it's a great reel manufactured by a man who is an inspiration to me. Kraken is local to me and I like their stuff, just don't really have a need for another reel in the 6-12wt range.

If I had to choose for the fish of a lifetime, Abel is on the rod in the boat. Pennies a day when you thinbk about much we spend on daily crap.

Have fun with the journey


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## K3anderson (Jan 23, 2013)

I have Tibor, a bunch of Nautilus, Hatch, Orvis. Why? Because I liked them mostly. The higher end ones are all pretty close I'm guessing. I havent had the spool fall out in any yet.


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## RunningOnEmpty (Jun 20, 2015)

I love a high end reel. I also know that most of my fish never run into my backing. 3-Tand has a reel that's affordable and it performs very good. Mine has been used and abused and it just keeps going. My only complaint is the out going clicker is almost silent. I stay away from anything that is cast aluminum. For $200 I'm really tempted to try a Allen Kraken next.


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## bananabob (Jun 3, 2015)

I had the spool pop off my Kraken early on about three years ago. Fortunately not in the water or on tile floor. Now as a habit when I check the drag setting on ANY reel I check everything else to make sure it's tight and right. #@*%# happens.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

I had a spool pop off a lamson guru. The spool had to be sent back to be fixed. Never had a spool fall off my hatches or Abel. 

I do currently have a spool frozen on a brand new Nautilus nvg that was tightened on by hand. I took pliers and a rubber pad to try and get it off but the rubber fell apart and the pliers chewed up the knob and the finish. That one is headed back to get addressed and a new knob. Not sure what happened there, otherwise it's a nice reel.


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## Cliff (Oct 13, 2016)

I believe that if you are using a 9wt the smoothness of the drag is far more important than the ability to crank it down. Very functional reels are out there at $250.00, but as others have said, the esthetics of some high end reels are really nice.
This article may help


https://www.yellowstoneangler.com/g...ander-abel-cheeky-loop-bauer-sage-lamsonreels


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## Hookthatsnook (Feb 23, 2016)

I have mostly super high end reels but also some Redington's that cost $100 or less and after fishing with Scott Hamilton offshore hooking huge pelagic fish all day seeing his redington reels get smoked on a daily basis made me realize not all cheap gear is bad. I like Galvan and Nautilus with hatch coming in 3rd place for me. For cork drag reels Islander or Tibor both are bulletproof and easily serviceable. Just my opinion after years trying out many different reels.


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## commtrd (Aug 1, 2015)

Thinking about a Hatch Finatic reel for 7 wt line. That's a good quality reel from what I have read.


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## sjrobin (Jul 13, 2015)

If you are over fifty and holding the reel in your hand for four hours a day light weight is a good thing. Reel and rod.


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## tailwalk (Nov 20, 2016)

el9surf said:


> I had a spool pop off a lamson guru. The spool had to be sent back to be fixed. Never had a spool fall off my hatches or Abel.
> 
> I do currently have a spool frozen on a brand new Nautilus nvg that was tightened on by hand. I took pliers and a rubber pad to try and get it off but the rubber fell apart and the pliers chewed up the knob and the finish. That one is headed back to get addressed and a new knob. Not sure what happened there, otherwise it's a nice reel.


Funny you mention the spool cap on the nvg. I've had the same exact problem with my monster. hand tight, spool cap won't come off without a washcloth and locking pliers... frustrating! I called nautilus about it and was told they are aware of the issue and did some tweaking to that part that is supposed to solve the problem. they sent me a supposedly updated spool cap, free. I haven't changed it out yet but it was awful nice to be taken care of like that.

For me, the fish I'm pursuing pretty much dictates the reel. I have some redington reels that act as line holders for freshwater stuff. they do that great! for the inshore stuff I've got a galvan. That has been a solid reel, and I may end up with another. The nv monster is what I chose for tarpon, since it holds a lot of backing, winds line quickly due to its size, is light for that size, and has a sweet drag. Anyway, glad to see the discussion!


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

The hatch is on the heavier side of reels, the 7+ fits well on a 8 and 9 wt rods. Their 9+ is on the large side for a 9wt, it fits better on a 10 wt.

As for reel weight I personally don't do much if any blind casting so I don't care about reel weight all that much. I want a drag and components that I know will be bomb proof for the day I come across the fish I dream about.


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