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Post 15 Oct 2017, 09:30 • #1 
Guide
Joined: 10/01/17
Posts: 230
Location: Vermont
I've always been of the opinion that a nice old, vintage rod "should have" a vintage reel of close to the same age, or at least something that at least looks appropriate. What do you think?


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Post 15 Oct 2017, 10:35 • #2 
Guide
Joined: 02/12/12
Posts: 147
Location: Woodbridge, VA
I tend to agree. It's all part of the aesthetics when one enjoys fishing classic rods.


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Post 15 Oct 2017, 10:41 • #3 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/22/11
Posts: 1720
Location: US-TX
If vintage on vintage floats your boat then sure but not gonna fault a person for putting a sealed drag reel that can stop a train on a Howard purist rod either. Just being on the water fishing is good enough in my book.

Otherwise we should all be saltwater fishing since vintage looking reels are pretty much hardy like or lead based reels with click pawl drags...

Plus not sure if I want to start wearing tweed and knickers, puffing a pipe, growing a mustache, and other fanciful fly fishing images from days of old....

All of these got me to the dance and plenty of willing participants...

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Post 15 Oct 2017, 11:04 • #4 
Guide
Joined: 10/01/17
Posts: 230
Location: Vermont
Very Nice!
But I'm not sure if I'm ready to put a brand new large arbor, Rulon disk drag reel on one of these yet.
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Post 15 Oct 2017, 11:36 • #5 
Master Guide
Joined: 07/05/05
Posts: 742
Location: US-VA
I use reels of similar age on my older rods, mainly because all my stuff is old to begin with. I do use a CFO IV on several newer light weight graphite rods.

(BTW: AR...good job keeping that bass alive as you were switching out the rods and reels for the pics.)


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Post 15 Oct 2017, 11:49 • #6 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/06/15
Posts: 1249
Location: Central Oregon
I have been running Medalists on all my Fenwicks, not just because it seems right, but also because they are cheap and reliable. I like them out in the float tube or pontoon where I can swap out line types with a click, and I don't worry about dropping them in, or dunking them while I untangle something.

Lately, I've found I really like reels with an open spool and free running retrieve which let you pick up excess line fast by just spinning the spool. I've found some cheap reels with amazing quality---- the Fiblink reel can be found as cheap as a Medalist, has good seals (claims to be salt water sealed), and a really nice smooth spin and drag. I think these reels are going to displace the Medalists.

I've picked these up for as low as $36. They have been really smooth working reels. Call me crazy.

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Post 15 Oct 2017, 21:33 • #7 
Sport
Joined: 07/22/16
Posts: 46
Location: US-TX
I prefer modern rods with vintage reels. Unless you're fishing for really hardcore saltwater species the vintage reels and a bit of palming will be fine. I've caught pretty decent sized salmon on click pawls or just classics like disc drag '80s reels. They add some soul to the new rods and don't look like giant neon skeletons.


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Post 16 Oct 2017, 06:44 • #8 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/20/07
Posts: 8920
Location: US-ME
I don't have many contemporary reels, but I don't hesitate to use one if it is fitted with the line type I want for that day. The usefulness of the combination is my only concern. I have looked at the rod before and I have looked at the reel before and I don't plan on doing either while fishing with them.


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Post 16 Oct 2017, 09:43 • #9 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/25/16
Posts: 1069
Location: Rocky Mountains - Colorado
The newest reels I own are SA System 2, the rest are older Medalists and they are as old as the rods...my newest rod is a Fenwick FF805. The rest are older...scratch that...they are "Classic/Vintage" :)


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Post 16 Oct 2017, 13:49 • #10 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/11/06
Posts: 2516
Location: Nature Coast Florida
Hope those bass tasted as good as they looked.

Barry


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Post 16 Oct 2017, 17:26 • #11 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/22/11
Posts: 1720
Location: US-TX
Pretty much C&R for bass but the abundance would probably benefit from harvesting. Plus they crowd out my favorite warm water fish, the bluegill. More shoulders than all of these large mouth bass.


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Post 17 Oct 2017, 09:10 • #12 
Master Guide
Joined: 12/27/08
Posts: 936
Location: Columbia, Mo. USA
I may be sentimental, but I like vintage reels on vintage rods----they just go together. In some cases, you need the weight of a vintage reel to balance a vintage rod.
Gary


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Post 17 Oct 2017, 14:46 • #13 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/22/11
Posts: 1720
Location: US-TX
midmofly wrote:
you need the weight of a vintage reel to balance a vintage rod.
Gary


That


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Post 17 Oct 2017, 18:41 • #14 
Guide
Joined: 10/01/17
Posts: 230
Location: Vermont
I've actually had trouble finding enough vintage reels to balance out my older rods. When it comes to my bamboo rods especially I gave up entirely and just switched over to Berkley 510's and Walker 77's right across the board. When I'm casting, I want my rod to have it's balance point on my middle finger. That's easy on a modern rod, but almost impossible on a hundred year old cane rod, it can still be tough, even on an early glass rod. All of my glass rods were made between 1950 and 1970 (except my Eagle Claw teaching rod), I would just feel weird hanging a brand new reel on a nice old vintage rod and heading to the river with it.
When I find a rod and reel combination that works for me, and looks ascetically pleasing and correct.....it stays together for decades.


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Post 18 Oct 2017, 13:24 • #15 
Sport
Joined: 12/07/11
Posts: 78
Location: US-GA
ARReflections wrote:
If vintage on vintage floats your boat then sure but not gonna fault a person for putting a sealed drag reel that can stop a train on a Howard purist rod either. Just being on the water fishing is good enough in my book.

Otherwise we should all be saltwater fishing since vintage looking reels are pretty much hardy like or lead based reels with click pawl drags...

Plus not sure if I want to start wearing tweed and knickers, puffing a pipe, growing a mustache, and other fanciful fly fishing images from days of old....

All of these got me to the dance and plenty of willing participants...

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You need to take your photos without the fish in the pictures, by the time you get your fish in the frame, the reel appears so small I can't hardly tell what it is … !


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Post 18 Oct 2017, 16:00 • #16 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/22/11
Posts: 1720
Location: US-TX
The reel pictures zoom in just fine on my phone.

Would be interested in seeing some of your reel photos....


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Post 18 Oct 2017, 21:23 • #17 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 01/26/07
Posts: 1385
Location: Ada, Oklahoma
If you right click on the small pictures and then click on "open image in new tab", and then click on tab, a much larger picture can be seen.

Larry


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Post 19 Oct 2017, 05:33 • #18 
Piscator
Joined: 08/10/05
Posts: 19078
Location: downtown Bulverde, Texas
Some people have defamed click-pawl reels on various threads recently. I'm not one to call them out, and think calling others out on the internet is a pretty lame activity. Using the word You is usually a bad idea.

I wouldn't be here without having rediscovered click-pawl reels almost 20 years ago. I was jaded catching fish after fish on graphite and disc drag autopilot, and wondering why I was harassing the fish and not enjoying it. When I hooked up my first 20" rainbow in fast water on cane and vintage click-pawl reel and went, oh crap, what am I going to do now - I remembered why we do this to begin with.

Early on this forum I had fun playing with an allusion from Bull Durham - disc drags are fascist, and beside that, they're boring.


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Post 20 Oct 2017, 15:40 • #19 
Master Guide
Joined: 06/07/12
Posts: 865
Location: US-CA
I do run a modern high end reel (Lamson Force SL) on my modern big gun graphite rod (6wt Z-Axis) when I go for California steelhead and big rainbows. For smaller waters and fish, I generally run old-pattern Hardy reels on my rods. Note the wording "old pattern". Some actually are old, some are new, but all are old design.

Interestingly, my favorite combination is Bougle-on-Bamboo, even thoughe the Bougles I own were made in the 2010's. They just feel right...


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Post 20 Oct 2017, 18:22 • #20 
Guide
Joined: 10/01/17
Posts: 230
Location: Vermont
For what its worth, all of my vintage glass and cane rods have vintage reels.
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And a few of my brand new rods have vintage reels as well.
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I guess for me it's all about finding the right tool for the job. I would just feel ridiculous walking out on the river with a 65 year old glass rod, or hundred year old cane with a brand spanking new, super large arbor, carbon disk drag reel on it. But that's just me. :)


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Post 20 Oct 2017, 21:21 • #21 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/08/05
Posts: 3570
Location: Western PA
I won't dismiss aesthetics but I find I'm more focused on having the rig balanced. I like the click/ pawl reels because of the reel but even more because of their reliability. I no longer have any qualms about placing vintage reels on modern rods or modern reels on vintage rods. The new Medalist seem to have enough weight to balance vintage rods. I've also bought some Hardy large arbor reels. Some are click/pawl and some have a clicker that allows the fish to fight (unlike most other disc drags).
I'm happy with my Hardy Ultralight FW DD. Something worth your consideration for your lighter/shorter rods.


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Post 21 Oct 2017, 11:52 • #22 
Sport
Joined: 10/29/13
Posts: 61
Location: Denmark, Scandinavia
I love click/pawl reels - both new and old. But some times I do like do use disc drag reels.
I have experienced failure in both types, and I have handled a lot of old/antique/collectable reels that I would never use. Not all old/click pawl reels are well build or well designed (as most would probably agree), just like some modern disc drag reels are junk - (and sometimes wildly overpriced too).
In any case, I am happy to live in an age where I can mix and match between rod materials, reels, lines ect. And make my choice based on what I like, and what is the best choice for a specific situation - not on what happens to be available.
That being said- yes, I do like vintage reels on vintage rods ;)


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Post 23 Oct 2017, 17:31 • #23 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 07/11/14
Posts: 1784
Location: urban Colorado
Soren wrote:
In any case, I am happy to live in an age where I can mix and match between rod materials, reels, lines ect. And make my choice based on what I like, and what is the best choice for a specific situation - not on what happens to be available.
That being said- yes, I do like vintage reels on vintage rods ;)


me too ;-)

going the other way, here's a LL Bean Angler (Martin) on a graphite Greys, with the smallest carp I ever caught on a fly..

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Post 21 Mar 2018, 14:48 • #24 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 04/25/16
Posts: 1069
Location: Rocky Mountains - Colorado
There is something that just looks right with the world here. Its all part of the total experience for me.
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Post 21 Mar 2018, 18:04 • #25 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/08/05
Posts: 3570
Location: Western PA
I used to think about how gear looks like twenty years ago or more. Now, I use hot pink backing because I don't have any hot pink lines... and backing should contrasts the line. I'm fishing an Abel Xstream (TR2) on a Phillipson Royal Wand. I have Hardy large arbor reels on a CTS, an Epic, two Steffens and a Hardy glass rod. I use JW Young made reels on vintage and modern rods. I also don't care anymore if a reel LOOKS big for the rod as long as it balances and doesn't get in the way of my hand. I don't care about reel color matching with a rig either. I would never pay an extra nickle for a custom color Abel vs a black one (well maybe a nickle but not more...) But as far as color goes, I prefer something muted rather than a reel that's bright and shiny. I prefer click pawl over disc drag but there's a few disc I don't mind...
Here I am slapping reply on reply. I used to care about rig looks and now I could care less. I suppose it's that something that happens as you age. You don't care about the latest look or fad as you grow older. Wear your plaid shirt and floppy hat on the water! Nobody cares how you look fishing asides from the fish.


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