Fishing Gear Tips

Buying A Fishing Reel

One important piece of fishing gear is the fishing reel and like anything else, there are many different manufacturers and brands. Also like all other fishing tackle, reels have a wide range of available prices.

A good fishing reel is critical for fishing; however, there are a couple of types of reels available in the market and choosing one can be a problem. First off, you need to know what type of fishing you will be doing. If you are fly fishing you must buy a reel specifically suited for that style of fishing, if you will be casting a line then a spinning reel is what you want to go for.

Fly Casting Reels

Fly casting reels cost more than other types of fishing reels. Fly fishing itself involves a specialized set of skills and therefore, a specialized reel. These reels must be light weight in order for you to cast smoothly. Fly reels typically do not have any gears, so turning the handle once means the spool also turns once. Fly fishing reels are narrow and disc shaped and also require a special touch.

Spinning Reels

Spinning reels come in many varieties and are used by children, hobbyist and avid sportsmen alike. They are easy to operate and ideal for beginners. You can buy closed faced reels which have a button that releases the line and come in an enclosed case. These are particularly easy for beginners but can be harder to clean as any debris returned with the line can get into the case and cause problems with the drag.

The open faced fishing reels are harder to use as they have a bail that you must slide over and hold down then release at just the right moment during your cast. They come in a variety of sizes and are what most experienced anglers prefer.

Mounting your fishing reel depends also on the type of fishing. A fly fishing reel is mounted below the handle because it acts as a counter weight and helps the angler to balance the fishing rod. The spinning reel is mounted on the top of the rod and has a drag system that helps to prevent breakage of the line due to the tension of having a fish on.

There are many fishing reel models to choose from and once you decide on the particular type, you’ll need to narrow yourself down to a price range. You probably don’t want to buy the cheapest reel, but you also might want to wait until you are experienced before you buy an expensive one as by that time you’ll probably know exactly the model you are looking for.

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 4th, 2008 at 8:26 pm and is filed under Fishing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.