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Favorite Fly reel and Fly Rod

MACFLY

MACFLY

Too many streams too little time
I am admittedly a gear junkie and while going through all my stuff last week i was thinking about what my favorite Rod and Reel are.

For a fly reel it doesn't get any better than the Ross San Miguel. It's just a very well made fly reel and the aesthetics are great as well. I love the drag on this reel. Very smooth and easy to adjust. It's a bit heavier then other reels on the market today. Ross recently introduced a heritage line of reels with the Gunnison being the firsit to be re-launched. I Hope they bring the San miguel back. A second place reel that I love and use a good deal is the Galvin torgque. Lighter but nicely made and great aesthetics as well.

For fly rod the Hardy Zenith was my favorite up until recently but I have to go with the Scott Radian fly rod. It's an awesome Rod with a great feel and I love the unsanded blank.

What are some of your favorites?
 
I had a Loomis IMX, that I had bought 2nd hand with an unsanded blank. It had great action until I snapped the upper
section in my trunk. I still try and get any new brand rod unsanded today.
For reels I like old school CFO's or Hardy's FW/LW, I grew up always wanting one but could never afford them.
 
My custom made Winston classic trout with a Winston Perfect(made in England by Hardy).....

second is my Wagner 7' 3wt...boo, it has a Hardy St. George on it...love the click!!!

Both are awesome, classic, timeless,and perfect....:)
 
thrashers.wheat said:
Can you honestly narrow it down to just one!?
Click to expand...

i cant.

i really think the h2 is the best all around fishing tool, and i dont own one. 5 wt or 8 wt.

but my boo rods always fish better for situations like small streams and tight quarters.

larry donahe 6'3" midge is awesome.
 
Last edited:
lightenup said:
Agreed, ugly reel...........ugly, ugly...
Click to expand...

What do you boobs know about aesthetics. It's a classic design like a Mercedes or a Beemer. It can go with newer rods but looks great on bamboo. As why bother trying to bring some sophistication to you mooks
 
Favotite rod Sage One 8.5 5wt

Favorite reel Ross Gunnison G2, i love the sound it make as the fish take line.
 
I don't have a favorite rod. I fish with all my fly rods. Each has it own personality. I still fish on occasion and blow the dust off the tube of my Browning Silaflex and that rod sucked from the moment I received it. Let me tell you something if you can lay the line between two overhang tree with that thing. you can cast anything.

I can't say that the bamboo rod that I resurrected from the dead is my favorite but I am very fond of. I think anyone who built a rod can agree, I can not explain it, you get attached to it. There is something different about a rod that you put time and effort into. It gives you a felling that no fly rod that is bought can give you.

As reels go I love my Hardy LRH, but my original 25 year old Orvis CFO III. made by Hardy is my pride and joy. There is not a scratch or mark on it. It is pristine with the box. I have had guys wanting to buy that reel from me on the stream with cash in hand. Pretty good offers for it. I will never sell it.
 
tomfly said:
I don't have a favorite rod. I fish with all my fly rods. Each has it own personality. I still fish on occasion and blow the dust off the tube of my Browning Silaflex and that rod sucked from the moment I received it. Let me tell you something if you can lay the line between two overhang tree with that thing. you can cast anything.

I can't say that the bamboo rod that I resurrected from the dead is my favorite but I am very fond of. I think anyone who built a rod can agree, I can not explain it, you get attached to it. There is something different about a rod that you put time and effort into. It gives you a felling that no fly rod that is bought can give you.

As reels go I love my Hardy LRH, but my original 25 year old Orvis CFO III. made by Hardy is my pride and joy. There is not a scratch or mark on it. It is pristine with the box. I have had guys wanting to buy that reel from me on the stream with cash in hand. Pretty good offers for it. I will never sell it.
Click to expand...

Admit it the far and fine is your favorite:)
 
Reel: Hardy LRH Lightweight that I have had for decades
Rod: Orvis Superfine "Brook Trout" 4 wt

I use the above combination for 90% of my fishing which is on small - medium streams.
 
I think there are a few different ways to consider a rod your favorite rod. To the content fisherman, the answer is simply the one I have in hand. To a gear junkie, it is the rod I buy next. To another, it is the one most suitable for the job, perhaps the one for the most frequent type of fishing.

Personally speaking, I do not believe there is the one rod for all applications. Even if just a trout fisherman, I want a different rod to throw streamers on big water than I do for presenting dries on a small creek. However, the best fisherman I know usually fishes 1 rod (an entry level rod) and has even landed salmon (pacific chinooks) on it.
 
tomfly said:
I still fish on occasion and blow the dust off the tube of my Browning Silaflex and that rod sucked from the moment I received it
Click to expand...

Funny you should mention this Tom. 10 days ago I fished my old Silaflex rod for the first time in over 25 years. The rod cost me $20 in 1984. It was just hanging on the wall in my basement and looking a little sad since nobody was taking it out anymore. Did some lawn casting to see which line I like on it these days, and thought that it was a decent caster --- on the lawn --- but fishing on the stream was a different matter. Still caught a few trout with it, and it was fun to get back to the first fly rod I ever owned.

I also agree that there is something about a rod you put effort into yourself. Years ago, I made a rod from an 8' 4wt Loomis blank, and that was my favorite for a long time. I recently finished a bamboo rod from a blank made by Dennis Stone in the 8' 5wt "Cascade" taper. Although I've wrapped rods before, this was the first time that I made the grip and did the varnishing on bamboo, so I was ready to like it, even if it fell into the "sweet lemons" category. The rod has proven to be a wonderful fishing tool (credit goes to Dennis Stone and his taper) and is currently my clear favorite.

Browning Silaflex.jpg The old Browning Silaflex with a black foam grip that you could probably use to insulate basement pipes.

New bamboo.jpg The new favorite bamboo.
 

Attachments

  • Newly finished 8ft.jpg
    Newly finished 8ft.jpg
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Favorite single hand: Sage ONE 9' 4wt
Favorite reel for same: Sage 4540

Favorite two-handed rod: Sage TCX 7126
Favorite reel for same: Orvis Mirage V
 
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