Source
r/flyfishing•
Halefor

Advice on re-lining old reels for a 3/4# rod.

Discussion

https://imgur.com/a/JbsmMp9

I've pulled out a pair of fly reels that have been sitting in the back of a closet for 20ish years now and am looking to bring them back into use with the #3/4 rod that was stored with them. The braid backing on both seems to be in excellent condition, but the yellow line is fairly loose even after I stretched it out and reeled back under tension. There weren't any obvious weaknesses in the line, but a couple of spots seemed to have something melted to the outside of the line.

Unfortunately there isn't a local fly shop to help, nearest one I know about is 2 hours away in the opposite direction from my fishing hole. Target species are white bass, bluegill, and stocked rainbows during the winter in a different pond/lake. I'm mostly looking at this as a way to dip my toe into fly fishing, as a side to my normal conventional fishing to see how it goes. Right now I need advice on what I should look for to set at least one reel up for basic fishing, maybe both with separate line types I don't know.

The story behind these reels is they came from a friend of the family who took me out fishing several times when I was young. When he died none of his children claimed this part of his gear, so it got passed to me however we were moving at the time so they got forgotten about. There was a box full of mostly un-opened flies as well, so I've got options assuming they aren't too degraded.

Posted May 8, 2023, 6:16 PM UTC · edited

15
Darksept•

The yellow flyline might be usable. I'd strip it out and clean it. Then take it out and see if it floats well.

Some of the more experienced gentlemen on here can tell you if it's a lost cause. I've never used line longer than a few years.

You could throw some cheaper flyline on the reel with white backing. Should be good to go. I go with Scientific Anglers AirCel for cheap line.

1
[deleted]•

[removed]

1
L-W-J•

Cortland 444 double taper in peach is a very standard line. Cheap too.

You might do a weight forward to help toss the fly/popper a little more.

Have fun!

1
cmonster556•

I would replace the backing as well. It’s cheap, and it can weaken over time. On that weight of a rod it’s more to increase the effective arbor (diameter of the spool) than in case a fish runs, but you don’t want to have it fail if you DO hook, say, a 20# catfish.

You can find fly lines for sale at Sierra on occasion if you don’t want to invest in a new retail priced line. I prefer DT lines for lighter rods.

1
DigiComics•

I agree. Replace everything. Backing is very inexpensive and a decent weight forward or double taper line won’t set you back much. Start from scratch, you will have a better understanding of what you are doing with the equipment you are using. Good luck!

1