Category Archives: Fly Fishing

Glampers and the 201K, reborn as Crampers

Leave it to some canny fellow from California to come up with a solution for the entire housing crisis using just “budget dust” from the TARP funds.

On the road again

This ushers in the age of “Jingle Mail“, sending the keys of your massively leveraged home to the mortgage company – along with some carefully chosen prose describing what they can do with it.

The Big Three automakers specialize in large, roomy SUV’s with indoor television and all the comforts of home. Your credit rating remains intact while the letter’s enroute, score a couple and make for the open highway.

Become an economic patriot…

“Glamping” died with Bernie Madoff, welcome to “Cramping” and the airy lifestyle of the modern American nomad.

The schools in Idaho and Montana are pretty good …

It’s best from a boat, but a big rock would be a close second

iMu iPoD speaker, any flat surface transformed into an ImpalaI figure stream etiquette rightfully belongs to the Country and Western crowd, only because the million lines of anguished prose generated each season could be crooned into a double-platinum album for somebody, there’s more suffering, unrequited love, and boorish behavior than romance and breakup ever had…

It’s the only subject capable of turning fly fishermen into women, whose forums and magazines are replete with sobbing tales about, “I was low holed and wasn’t even kissed”, “he pretended I wasn’t even there” or “I called him a sumbitch and he never called back.”

Brownliners don’t have this problem because we expect the worst from our fellow man;  while other anglers are still a rarity, people aren’t  and etiquette is when the interloper relieves himself downstream of us, rather than above.

We’re “angling primitives” – quick to anger and react with handguns, clubbing weapons, or simple hand to hand, we don’t moan or leave in frustration, we just calculate how many rocks it’ll take to keep the corpse on the bottom..

One of our most productive tools for minor infractions is the iMu Vibrating speaker for the iPod:

The iMu vibrating speaker will transform any flat, hard surface into a top notch audio speaker.

Any hard surface is transformed into a vibration transmission device that’ll rival the sound of a chopped and lowered 1965 Impala.

Don’t get mad, get even.

Perch yourself on a rock shelf or large boulder that extends into the water, savor the selection of the appropriate Snoop Dog MP3, and crank the bass – watch aggressively feeding trout vanish, the waterline rise two inches, and the mannerless intruder leave in a huff.

[youtube width=”400″ height=”335″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gz3Cc7wlfkI[/youtube]

Prolonged exposure will deafen smaller fish – which isn’t as bad as would seem, when they get bigger you can wade close without scaring many.

I’ve used Wagner’s “Flight of the Valkyrie’s” on my pram for some time, we call it “announcing our presence with authority…”

They can’t be that smart, they eat sticks and leaves

I’ve always struggled with fish vision and how it fits with my imitation of prey. Like most anglers I’m probably too quick to declare fly tying “success” and my brief victory may be for all the wrong reasons.

It’s hard enough to get into a fish’s head, but to look out their eye compounds the issue a hundredfold. The only adequate simulation is to chug a fifth in a single draught, erasing 160 IQ and yielding “fish eye” vision – but doesn’t give adequate time to tie enough flies before the remedy is expelled violently.

We’re left to guess at what fish see and think.

Prevailing theory has all manner of interesting wrinkles that most fishermen should be aware of:

An AP Black seen via binocular vision

Development of receptors for “blue” are among the last grown in human children, and it’s suspected that more primitive eyeballs (fish) lack these receptors – and view the color differently.

Fish eyes are tuned to their prey, and the movement of a fleeing baitfish is seen better by a Striped Bass, than a smelt.

The same fly via Fish Eye lens Fish vision is not binocular, they must integrate two separate images of the same scene when looking to the front. There is a gap of missing information between the two images – as fish have eyes mounted on their sides and cannot see what’s in front of their nose.

APBlack as two discrete images with gap Fish eyes have evolved over many millions of years in a pristine environment, now the Man has “muddied the waters” vision is limited by turbidity, and fish diets are changing – from what they’re attuned for, to what they can see.

While it’s a struggle to resolve the scientific detail, and our laymen’s understanding of vision, this has to be one of the reasons why a #16 Royal Wulff catches fish during a Pale Olive hatch.

While the Royal Wulff doesn’t resemble a Pale Morning Dun, if it enters the right focal plane it might be missing the entire red floss center section, or the skewed visual of hackles obscure enough to make it resemble what’s hatching.

It’s food for thought certainly, and when you stop to consider some of these theories, how many well known mayflies and caddis are blue?

Flowers are color coded so that the best pollinator responds to its bloom, I’m sure similar holds for the balance of nature – it’s why we gaze in rapture at the pictures on the restaurant menu, then gaze in wonderment at the lifeless turd that arrives on our plate.

I’d describe myself as an impressionistic fly tier, I rarely use exacting imitations with knotted legs and painstaking detail, those flies work best on fishermen. I like simulation and movement rather than detail, and the precise proportions we’re taught to use are skewed by water quality and the perceptive limitations of our quarry.

It’s akin to reincarnation, everyone is someone famous in a past life, and we accredit fish with all the “smart” traits because they outwit us. If that holds water, it’s likely they’re victimized by flatulence and bad breath as well.

I’d guess that trout eat as many twigs and stems as mayflies, like humans they can’t all have perfect vision, and the older the fish gets the bigger its prey. Not because it’s “big fish big meal” – rather it can see the big meal clearly, and little stuff could be food, but often as not it’s debris.

Could be I’ve stumbled upon the reason why there’s so many discrete streams of air bubbles in the Little Stinking, and how the residents earned the  “coarse fish” label.  We’re so concerned about the methane released by cows – and we’ve overlooked the real culprit.

Part 1: Spey Kung Fu : Because regular fly fishing just isn’t mysterious enough

A Two Hander in the Pooty Water My New Year’s resolution was to learn how to Spey cast. Sure, I’m carrying too many pounds of flab, and drink far too much, but this resolution has a better’n average chance of me following through.

I thought it might be fun to return to those hideous days of clueless “Noob” – experiencing a mixture of fear and trepidation as you walk hesitantly to the counter hoping no one laughs outright at your halting, semi-understandable question.

Instinctively you look for the oldest guy there, figuring he’ll just sigh loudly and hand you what you need, versus the “young guns” who are enamored of technical detail and entirely oblivious of your struggle to follow their sermon.

I can pick up fragments of commentary; my tackle is “ghey” – ditto for the line I was thinking of buying and the antiquated click-pawl reel I was thinking of putting it on … I feel like someone’s wife hoping to score a Christmas present that hubby can actually use, and not knowing whether I’m being steered in the right direction, or how many hundreds of dollars is overkill.

Why is it that Spey casting has to set fly fishing back a hundred years?

All that pain and suffering to adopt a standard nomenclature, and based on someone’s whim – it’s thrown out the window.

My ambition was to start the long slow process of learning the physics and timing, just as we did years ago with a single hand rod. You get a  nice serviceable outfit and beat the water to a frothy lather, in doing so, you learn a little about what feels good and what doesn’t.

Being methodical I started with the Internet – watching countless YouTube videos and gleaning what I could from web pages and their commentary.

Things started to sour when I discovered rod vendors make two handed spey rods for #7/8 or #5/6 – and line merchants make spey fly lines in #6/7/8 or #7/8/9. As the rod merchants are in the same boat – they can’t recommend a line for the rod they’re selling – do you want a “light” #8 (6/7/8) or a “heavy” #8 (7/8/9) ?

Most rod makers list a grain range for the line best suited, and many line vendors don’t list grain weights on their packaging or website.

Traditional fly lines are weighed by the sum of the first 30 feet, and Spey lines can be sold by the first 50 of belly, or first 70 feet. Add Skagit, Scandinavian, and regular spey into long belly, short head, and multiple tips – and you can’t help winding up with a short fuse.

Searching for someone that seems to have sorted it all out leads you through a miasma of forums and bulletin boards on the subject. Within the first half dozen posts someone is calling someone else “ghey” – and you’re not sure whether the guy called “BashMomsHead” or the other fellow, “MyDickInTrout” is correct.

I think neither, which really adds to the quandary.

Multiple sinktip configurations abound; some require the purchase of running line, and some have it integrated, many of the online fly shop descriptions are unclear as to which you’re buying, and all have multiple 15′ or 20′ tips to add varying sink rates. At $150 per multi-tip line, you’re still wondering whether the light #8 or the heavy flavor is best – and throwing a lot of money at a hunch.

… and whose bright idea was it to call a sinktip a “polyleader?”

The AFTMA standards were developed so we wouldn’t have to play this silly “vendor specific” game, and we could buy any line labeled an “8” and feel confident we got something that works.

If you’re like me – with no casting club available or fishing buddy that is practiced – you’ve got a better than average chance of putting the wrong line on a rod and wondering why everyone else likes the style – when your rod feels slow and impotent when cast.

The whole “fit and feel” issue dominates the forums, with every third question being “what should I use with my ..” – so I’m in good company. I’m just disappointed that every other response involves someone’s mother – making the learning process painstaking slow as chaff is sorted from wheat, and opinions are isolated from ego.

I’m sure most of the issue lies in the original lines being hand crafted, assembled in garages out of chunks of other lines and leadcore, but it’s odd the mainstream rod and line vendors haven’t taken the initiative and evolved something resembling a standard.

I tried my first cast in anger last week, and it was a total disaster. I’d managed to find a brand new Echo Classic #6/7 on eBay for $130, and paired it with an Orvis Spey Wonderline that was on sale for $25. Orvis makes Spey lines in single sizes, the rod is listed for multiple sizes, and the answers on their customer service forum makes me feel somewhat vindicated.

Q: Please inform on the length end weight of the body (incl. tips) of your multitip speyline # 6/7, and #7/8?

A: Hi there. I’m Crystal from Orvis Customer Service. Since no one has answered your question yet, I did a little research for you, and here’s what I found out:
For the #6/7 weight the total length is going to be 110′ and for the #7/8 weight the total length is going to be 120′.

Naturally Crystal failed to answer the weight question, after searching their site and the Internet, it appears no one knows.

After my first outing I figured the Orvis line was woefully underweight, as even roll casting wouldn’t work. The beauty of having an abundance of old sinking lines means I can cut a chunk out of one and add it – clipping additional off until I have something that “feels” like it is the proper weight.

Spey lines with their multi-tip configuration run $150 each, and if you squawked at the Scientific Angler Sharkskin price, you can see why I’m being tentative, with the hideous price of the equipment and the lack of standards, I’d rather make a $30 mistake.

There’s little question that mastery of this style will allow any angler to add a couple tricks to his repertoire, especially if the space behind him is limited.

I’ll know how much help it’ll be once I can get a cast further than 20′ – which is my current personal best.

Then we can enforce a two year ban if they’re caught sober

M If an ancient and venerable sport like Chess makes guys pee in a cup, why aren’t we following the trend?

… because we know the plastic would melt?

Call it a byproduct of the entire sordid Political Correctness movement, but since most of our heroes have fallen in disrepute, and only absolute fairness is acceptable, I wonder if it’s time to make the fly fishing elite submit to the catheter.

The World Games is but a short step from the Olympics, and now that the Fips-Mouche contest garners participants from every corner of the globe, shouldn’t we legitimize the sport further with scandal?

Alcohol and fly fishing are joined forever in angling lore, what with Izaak Walton the son of a bartender, and Dame Juliana Berners known for tapping the sacrament wine closet – slurring her speech even on her trademark tome, “Fysshing with an Angle.”

Whatever they missed Charles Ritz and Ernest Schweibert drank, their combined works containing more toasts than a Wonderbread bakery.

The hard part is figuring out what to ban … and if that proves overly complicated should we medicate them all to the same level?

” Potayivich, Gregor, team Serbia, weight 110 kilos, that’ll be three stiff shots of Bourbon, two Quaaludes, and a stick of Thai. Gregor, make sure you blow the Doob outside of the spectator area, understand?

… Next contestant…”

I’d consider coffee as a temporary performance enhancing drug. A couple stiff cups with breakfast enhances the first five minutes of my outing – then I’m headed for the bank to enhance bushes.

Extra padding might prevent that near fatal case of Tennis elbow

I've never fished with an angler that even resembled the model I’d never seen a book on angling injuries, and after reading how some fellow imbedded a sinker in his skull breaking loose a snag, I made the mistake of pausing.

Fit to Fish: How to Tackle Angling Injuries, sounded like it might be a quick read, possibly containing some sage advice about posture and negotiating slippery boulders; how to fall while protecting your rod, yet not breaking anything more precious.

One glimpse at the model was enough, my funny bone was piqued, and I asked myself who fishes with guys like that?

Perhaps the most famous of all Fishing is a sandwich that was stepped on earlier, and beer the temperature of the water, fishing is large breakfasts and the entire day spent fighting white water and scrambling up cliffs – with a damp cigar and creek water chaser, fishing is not rock hard muscles and taut physique.

If it was – there wouldn’t be injuries.

Certainly the most prolific angler of our day

Pictured are some of the famous anglers of our day. Known world wide for innovation, authorship, skill in casting or simulation, and have dominated the fly fishing landscape for decades.

… and there ain’t a skinny SOB amongst them.

I wouldn’t buy a car from some brawny introvert who paused to admire himself in the overhead mirror – give me some sweating fat guy that’ll lower his price just to get me to stop running all over his sales lot.

Casting Phenom

Hard core angling doesn’t fit the gym crowd, we’re not out there for the “burn” – we get burned, and as fast as our exertions melt unwanted flab, we’re quick to refill once the sun sets.

Fat guys are lippy, insouciant, and well rounded  – the kind of fellow that’s takes adverse conditions in stride, knows all the best holding water, the cleanest sheets, and which greasy spoon has homemade muffins, and can recite them even when drunk.

Fat guys know they can’t make it on looks alone – only skill will merit them a kiss from the Prom Queen.

A Brownliner’s Christmas is like yours only there’s less people

Brownliner’s traditionally avoid holidays and the mistletoe scene despite our relish for eggnog. The wrinkled noses, pointed fingers, and whispered conversations usually results in us guzzling it out of a brown paper bag whilst perched on a tail gate – eyeballing  some unknown (and possibly) septic holding water.

Like you, Ma insists we send an Xmas list each year.

Med-E-Jet Inoculating kit

Tops on our list is the Med-E-Jet inoculation kit. Abrupt shifts in water color usually bespeak of fresh toxin and the indiscrete angler can be the unwitting host to a variety of plagues and pandemics.

With this little darling we can scrounge ammo from bankside vegetation, as medical waste and quality fishing are often hand in hand.

Most brownliner’s prefer hip waders  because it leaves both arse cheeks exposed – an ample target for the quick delivery of the appropriate antitoxin.

I’ve always preferred the ambidextrous model, allowing the use of either hand … comes with a fetching naugahyde shoulder holster.

AcuPed 50 Home Chelating Kit The AcuPed 50 Chelating kit for Health Professionals is a unanimous second choice. Few brownliner’s are squeamish – but most have stepped on enough hypodermic needles to prefer oral delivery of heavy metal detoxification remedies.

I’ve suffered through accidental bouts of heavy metal poisoning, always remember to keep your mouth closed when submerged, it’s the first and best line of defense.

Ken-Tool Brownline Preist The Ken-Tool 34645 Tire Iron is the “wading staff” of the brown water angler. It’s the most efficient way of dismounting a bothersome ATV rider regardless of their forward speed or approach angle. 

Religion is an important part of Brownlining, and in “Preist” mode, its 37″ length can be swung 30 or 40 times without pause, important when attempting to retrieve your fly from the lip of an unknown yet energetic Brownline fish.

If you encounter “crossed KT’s” imbedded in a streambed, give them a wide berth. It’s likely marking the final resting place of a fellow Brownliner – and there’s no telling whether the area has been sanitized or remains contagious..

Brownliner’s respect the beauty of their surroundings despite little respect shown us by our environment. We’re thankful for small things; an energetic and invigorating day afield, our successful return to the car, and the retrieval of all flies in between…

Tanaka Power Tree Trimmer The Tanaka Power Tree Pruner ensures that an errant cast allows us to terraform bankside vegetation in any manner we see fit, as we all have a bit of “Edward Scissorhands” – and Brownline watersheds are frequently choked with invasive flora, like barbed wire and “No Trespassing” signs. Often it’s “three with a single stone” – fly recovered, invasive species thwarted, and new holding water constructed – all with a single yank of its sturdy nylon cord.

 

Romance Doggy - Size Small Big slathering dogs are a constant source of angst among Brownliners. Farm owners delight in supplementing their diet with trespassing anglers, and traditional defensive tactics like flight or pepper spray are completely ineffective.

Usually the snarls and barking alert us to the approaching ravenous canine – buying us precious moments to inflate the Hawt Doggy.

Both time and size matters, so it’s best to keep a pocket full of “extra-large” and “monstrous” close at hand. There’s no time to be short of breath, or squeamish about the ensuing festivities – merely back away slowly once you’re no longer the object of their affection.

Kevlar, it's the choice of the Prudent angler The Brownline is the home of ersatz gunmen and aspiring gang bangers, and the safest place to be is in their sights – as most can’t hit the broad side of a barn, and indirect fire is a constant worry in every riffle and shaded pool.

Landowners and their offspring are a humorless lot and take great glee in making it difficult for the adventurous. Most use the “multiple hit theory” and spray bullets rather than aim. On the outside chance you’re hit by a grazing round, or wish to wrap your rod for protection, the camoflage Kevlar flak vest is the perfect mixture of Brown water fashion and functionality.

Without the benefit of steady traffic, most brownline watersheds are a jungle of castoff furniture bound together with blackberry vines and stinging nettles. Bait fishermen and indigents frequent the bridges and easy access points – causing tensions to flare and making unsavory conditions worse.

Beulah 11' 30 - SwitchBlade

Brambles and drunken toffs are handled easily with the Beulah Switch-Blade, an 11 foot masterwork of IM8 graphite, coupled with 30″ of hidden finely honed German steel.

A simple twist lock frees the switch handle from its reinforced IM8 sheath, giving the owner 30″ of razor sharp surgical steel to negotiate disputes over cold beer and prime water – and nullifying watershed-limiting obstacles like interlocked blackberry vines or barbed wire.

===

Brownliner’s on your shopping list, and you’re looking for childlike squeals of glee once the paper’s torn? Most states outlaw fully automatic weapons – but the above should bring Christmas spirit to the most jaded angler, and ensure you’re paramount in his thoughts and the beneficiary of all his dead fish for seasons to come.

Could Abel reels be a victim of Bernie Madoff

wallstreet The Drake has uncovered a link between one of the Madoff sons and the investment group that recently purchased Abel reels.

If the “Madoff” name is familiar it’s due to Bernie Madoff slurping 50 Billion dollars in what’s considered to be the largest Ponzi scheme ever uncovered.

Most of the details of the Madoff scam have yet to be unearthed, but some accounts have the Madoff sons as being swindled along with the rest of the crowd. Investigators are tight lipped – and the fear is Poppa Madoff had to have accomplices to pull the wool over so many for so long.

In either case, if you’re a big fan of Abel – you may want to keep a close eye on developments, as they might vanish overnight. You may want to get a couple spools beforehand.

Too damn much to read and DayQuil ain’t helping

While not yet recovered from a bout of the flu, I am catching up on some reading – both print and online.

Great posts abound; Daytripper returns with Black Friday fly fishing, Roughfisher chews a little industry arse, Fishing Jones ponders dress code, but the best may be from Turning Over Small Stones – who’s tackling the smart trout myth …

We’re all familiar with the Theory, we’ve debated it over campfires, well drinks, and dimly lit motel rooms – is it the all-pervasive destiny of a decade of Catch and Release regulations, are fish really smarter?

We tend to grant intelligence and savvy only when bested, but is it “streem smart” fish or merely a combination of skills, limited fly selection and failing eyesight that confounds us?

The print media is clearly on the ropes – what with the Tribune bankruptcy as posterchild for declining dead-tree readership. So many great topics steadfastly avoided by our angling media – it’s not surprising to see why the eyeballs are flocking to the Internet.

The first decision is whether you’re a collector or a fisherman

I started with the best of intentions; first the news of the Hardy manufacturing exodus to Korea, and me suffering that odd moment of clarity, where I’m wondering about all those extra spools I promised myself I’d eventually get – and never did.

Anglers are a superstitious and fastidious lot – willing to put an asterisk next to any item that isn’t precisely the way it’s always been. We label items with pre- and post- to rarify them far in excess of their true value.

The best Hardy’s were always pre-War, polar bear was pre-ban, the biggest fish were post-extinction, and you fished twice as much pre-marriage, somehow we’re all inexorably tied to one or the other prefix.

Anyone that’s fished for a couple decades has a sizable inventory of hardware with years of service left, unchanged by treaty, economic uncertainty, or Act of Congress. Our reaction to change is predictable; we scramble around moaning, and score what we can before someone cleans out the spare parts.

It’s a pilgrimage to the vendor’s back room or an overlooked dusty shelf somewhere behind the register, or its eBay, that bastion of castoff’s, semi-sales, and shade-tree dealers that delight in our lust for the dubious all-star equipment of yesteryear.

Fishermen are patient, and study their prey

I was a huge fan of the old Scientific Angler System series of fly reels, made by Hardy under the Scientific Angler, and L.L. Bean labels – and sold in England (by Hardy) as the Marquis. A solid reel, not overly ornate, with a heavy exposed rim allowing you to drape a thumb on it for increased control.

I needed a reel for an Scientific Anglers System 8 (SA 8), and a extra spool for an SA 9. I still haven’t figured how I had the spool but no reel, I figure a buddy or older brother was involved.

Like a small minnow in a pond of bigger fish I darted out and slammed the first spool that showed, in hindsight paying double what it was worth.

Lesson Learned: One of them will show every week, due to the US, Canada, and most of the UK emptying their garage. Before buying, watch a few auctions to see the range in price for the item.

After my initial taste of being a “food group” – I settled in and watched a half dozen spool auctions complete – without me. Like the eBay rods, trout sizes command a higher price than Steelhead and Saltwater tackle, and an extra premium is put on pristine condition, and unique history of the reel.

As a fisherman – not a reel collector, all I’m going to do with a pristine reel is use it. I’ll swear mightily when I scratch it, get misty eyed when it’s dented, and bounce it off of every boulder and stream bank I stumble over. When I’m done, it’ll be recognizable by the patina – the record of every fish caught, every misstep taken, and every pratfall endured.

Pristine is nice, but I’ve got no business paying that extra premium.

Lesson Learned: Decide whether you’re a fisherman or a reel collector, stay out of the auctions that you don’t belong in – you’ll save a lot of money.

The discovery that professionals are involved in many trades was a bit of heartbreak, but not unexpected. I was looking to fill a simple need and some sharp fellow is in there throwing elbows to turn a profit. Feedback from past sales showed me who were players and who were the amateurs, and knowing what company I was in suggested when to bid and when to play it cagey.

They love tinhorns, we’re emotionally involved and even if it’s a couple extra spools or a Ross reel we’ve always wanted to own, they’ll descend in the last 3 seconds of the auction and snatch it away for a great price – with us fumbling to respond.

Then they put the reel up again under their name (or another account) and force the price higher.

They use bid sniping software that guarantees the bid will land in the last 10 seconds of the auction. We’re watching the clock tick thinking it’s ours – and a bargain, and they snatch it right out from under while we struggle with the keyboard.

The software is automated and requires no human interaction other than max bid, and while we’re shaking fists at the screen, they’re at work oblivious to our hatred.

The unscrupulous professional will auction the reel he’s just won a week later at a starting bid of .99 cents, and when you put down your max bid of $145, you’ve just played into their hands. Often a third account (usually with “0” feedback) is used to bump the price until they’ve recouped their costs – then they’ll allow the tinhorn’s to fight over table scraps, guaranteeing they’ll sell it for more than they paid.

Lesson Learned: Look at the feedback of the person selling the reel. Look at what they’ve bought and what they’ve sold. If it’s all fly fishing gear, you’re dealing with a professional. That’s good and sometimes bad; good because they’re describing the item accurately and fairly, and they’ll be practiced at prompt delivery. There’s the occasional “player” – who’s just trying to turn a buck, that’s not so good. Look for accounts with low (or no) feedback that come in and bump the price $5 a crack … and then mysteriously stop near some preset value.

Lesson Learned: Never bid what you’ll pay, only bid $1.00 over the current price. If there’s a shady dealer he’ll stop bumping it once he’s the high bidder. Use automated software to bid your maximum in the last 10 seconds of the auction.

On eBay a “CFO” isn’t a “C.F.O.” – and the best deals come on a misspelling or an incomplete description. Professional resellers always use the “Hardy” word in the title, “.. a Scientific Anglers reel made by Hardy Brothers,” that’s because “fly reel” is too vague, and you’re likely to use the vendor name to search for specific models. Their goal is to put the merchandise in front of the folks looking for it, so they’ll use all the keywords possible, it’s good marketing.

Someone selling a reel or spool from a deceased relative doesn’t know Hardy Bros. from Laurel and Hardy, so they’ll advertise the reel as a “Scientific Anglers System 7”  – precisely what the back of the reel says; they don’t know what it’s worth and they’re hoping you do. Absent the “Hardy” label in the text description, their auction will only see half the eyes that are looking, virtually guaranteeing the reel sells for at least $20 less than one using all the right words.

Lesson Learned: Misspellings and the text used in the advert determine how many do ( or don’t ) see the auction, if you’re after a particular model, always search for it by what it says on the back of the reel. A non-fisherperson will invariably use that as their auction description.

The Beauty of Fingerprints

Fine reels are like any finely crafted item, the marks of Time gives each a unique tale and also speaks eloquently of it’s past life and owner.

Well fished reels look the part – and while a lot of the finish may be missing around the rim – and it hasn’t been oiled recently, it still has another hundred years of service left. Reel collectors avoid the worn reels – as if a damp reel put away prematurely has lost all luster. It’ll certainly destroy the finish, and it won’t be terribly pretty, but mechanically the reel is sound.

Bent spools can be “unbent” with finger pressure, and worn latches that cause the spool to slop off can be fixed with an “elbow” from a hairpin. These are simple mechanical devices that can be restored easily. Bent rims and frames are entirely different – and typically snap if you attempt to straighten them.

I gravitate to a lot of well worn and damaged reels. I can repair many ailments myself, and a lot of parts can be salvaged to keep your current stable of functional reels tuned and precise.

Sometimes you can get the spool for half the normal price, as the reel surrounding it is damaged beyond repair. Your fellow anglers will ignore auctions with obvious damage, often allowing you to swoop in and recover the spool for half it’s normal value. Parts are in short supply, sometimes two cheap damaged reels equals a single functional reel and a reservoir of extra parts.

Lesson Learned: You don’t compete with collectors on worn or blemished reels, they want pristine condition, and a little rust or wear keeps the casual types at arm’s length.

Lesson Learned: On a damaged reel ask the seller enough questions to satisfy your diagnosis. Many will take additional pictures for you and will describe whether the spool turns smoothly or not. Be patient and thorough in your questioning – the owner may not be a fly fisherman.

Know History, or pay the price

Certain reels are worth more due to vintage, history, or some pre- or post- issue you aren’t aware of – it’s important to understand why a CFO IV sell for $320, and another just like it sells for $150.

The most highly sought after reels have always been the Hardy Perfect series. There are numerous books on the subject outlining their lineage and value, and many other makes and models have a similar legacy and a rabid following, like the Orvis CFO series.

The first CFO models were traditional click-pawl drag, and had four visible aluminum rivets visible on the rear of the frame. These are prized much more than any other variations – largely because they’re lighter than subsequent CFO designs. These rivets vanished when Hardy changed the drag design, and are absent in the current “disc” models as well.

Orvis still sells the CFO III and some of the smaller models, (made in China) but the CFO IV and CFO V are no longer made.

A similar regard holds for the Hardy Princess family; the LRH Lightweight, Featherweight, Flyweight, and Princess. If the line guard features a “two screw” attachment to the frame – it’s worth quite a bit more than the single screw model.

Lesson Learned: Due to issues of vintage and legacy some reels are worth more than others, even if they look identical. Know the differences in what makes them so – to save yourself both a lot competitors, and paying a much higher price.

Postage and Payment

It costs about $3.00 to mail a spool or a reel anywhere in the continental US – assuming adequate wrapping, some foam to disperse shock, and some tape to seal it tightly.

Always check the postage costs before you start bidding. It’s one of those really clever ways to get another $10 out of you, and is pretty common on eBay. The better vendors (those with storefronts, or are doing this professionally) will refund the difference between the stated postage and what it really costs – back to you.

The unscrupulous merchant won’t, that $12.00 shipping charge nets him another ten dollars profit over what you paid, and is part of his overall plan for world domination.

I prefer PayPal payments and don’t bid on auctions requiring a money order or bank draft. (Get your sorry, lowtech ass off my pristine electronic marketplace, Grandpappy.)

Avoiding eBay addiction

All the stories you’ve heard about eBay addiction are very real, especially when it comes to collecting sacred angling artifacts.

You have to keep iron control over what you’re bidding on – especially in the face of the increasing number of reels and spools on the market. A lot of the brotherhood are in mortgages they can’t afford, about 1 in 10 have too much house, so there’s an increasing amount of fly tackle on the auction block.

The last six months the number of reels listed has jumped from 75 Hardy’s per week to nearly 125 today, ditto for almost every other contemporary maker – regardless of arbor type. In the face of this unprecedented glut of fine tackle – you’ll need to make sure you don’t go off the deep end and use the “milk and egg” money.

I managed to get what I needed without going overboard, but the lure of quality tackle and real possibility of a bargain is so very compelling. I was innocently filling in some missing items (and lusting over almost everything) and it almost got me…

I’ll wait awhile and let my ardor cool off before I go back for that last missing 3 3/8″ Perfect spool.

Those of you with a couple decades of tackle that are interested in doing likewise, I’ll leave the field to you. Remember, you cannot possibly keep pace with the flood of goodies; be precise, be surgical, and bid only up to your preset “bargain” price. There will be an identical spool next week, so let the other fellow win some. Be patient and you’ll acquire everything you think you need at prices that’ll surprise you.