| If you are getting into fly fishing, it is | | | | meant you could do some serious damage to |
| easy to lose yourself in the great debate on | | | | your hands if you snagged a larger fish. A |
| rods and flies. Not so fast. The reel is just | | | | drag mechanism is used to slow or stop the |
| as important, so here is a primer. | | | | line from feeding out when a fish takes the |
| | | | bait or, in this case, the fly. |
| The fly fishing reel is a work of art. In | | | | |
| fact, the first one was patented in 1874 by | | | | As fly fishing has become more popular, |
| the epic master of fly fishing - Charles | | | | people have started looking for bigger game. |
| Orvis. His family has been making fly fishing | | | | This created a problem since most fly reels |
| equipment in one form or another since them. | | | | were not really tailored to taking in a |
| As technology has improved dramatically, | | | | beast. If a large fish struck the fly, the |
| reels have also become more sophisticated. | | | | line would real out without any way to stop |
| That being said, they still are comprised of | | | | it other than to hold the line or wear |
| some fairly basic components. | | | | gloves. The new reels now incorporate |
| | | | breaking mechanisms that solve this problem. |
| There is a major difference between fly reels | | | | The mechanism create friction on the line to |
| and bait reels. Fly reels require more of a | | | | either slow down the line feed or stop it |
| touch on your part. Casting is undertaken by | | | | completely. These reels have to be used with |
| laying the line out while controlling the | | | | specified rods. If you try to bolt one onto a |
| line with your non-casting hand. It can take | | | | traditional rod, they tend to snap since they |
| a while to get the hang of it, but the | | | | are not really designed to carry such loads. |
| important thing to understand is the reel is | | | | At least mine have! |
| not really a device that just lets you swing | | | | |
| away like you would with a non-fly rod. | | | | So, what type of reel should you use. It |
| | | | depends. Many feel the new reels with |
| The original fly reels were really simple. | | | | breaking mechanisms are a break from |
| They served only one real purpose - to bring | | | | tradition. The answer really lies with you. |
| the line in. They offered no drag, which | | | | Give both a try and make your own choice. |