Fly reel/line help

Dave RG

Well-Known Member
Afternoon all,

During lockdown(s) I couldnt get out stalking so began to learn a bit of fly fishing (trout on still water lakes). I was lucky enough to have some kit on loan but have returned that and been given some odds and sods of my own. I have a 2.85m rod that is 7/8 weight, I get on very well with the rod and have been given a reel to go with it (pictures hopefully attached). Now its an old reel but will do the job for me. I want to fish a #7 WF floating line, its all i have used.

Is this reel suitabe for that kind of line? How much line and backing line should I put on?

My internet searches have only been able to inform me that the reel is a Pridex lightweigh fly reel.

Any help appreciated
 

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That reel should do the job. Backing amount is really trial and error so you get enough so.with the fly line spooled, the fly.line is just underneath the lip.on reel. If you have a local.fishing shop might be easiest to get them to supply the line and backing plus fit for you. If not its.pretty easy to do especially with a vice or assistant to hold the backing and then line on a pencil whilst you.wind it on. Tight lines!
 
You don’t say what size the reel is but I would suggest putting it on the rod, do some casting in the garden and if the balance and size seems ok just give it a go. As for backing maybe put 50 yards on it and then your fly line, if the reel is not over loaded happy days, if its too much on the reel reduce the amount of backing line until it looks ok. If it still seems overloaded then the reel is too small for the size of fly line. You can put almost any type of fly line on a reel. The differences between reels apart from price, quality and design are the diameter, width and weight, the larger and wider diameters allow more backing and heavier fly lines to be fitted and reel sizes are matched to rods on the basis that the reel will accommodate the desired weight of fly line with an acceptable amount of backing whilst giving a nice balance to allow effortless casting. You have a cheap and cheerful reel there but nothing wrong with that, too many buy mega expensive reels more out of vanity than necessity. Have fun!
 
Put the line on back to front, tip first (Just use a bit of masking tape to hold it in place) then wind on fly line attach backing wind that on until you have the right amount, lay it out back and forth across the lawn, attach the backing to the reel and wind it on. Job done and it will all fit.

David.
 
Before entertaining @Kalahari's excellent suggestion be aware of the following.

A Pridex Lightweight will either be 3-1/4" or 3-1/2" diameter.


Google suggests the following capacities for Beaudex/Pridex:

3-1/2" - WF7 or DT4 with 50 yds backing
3-1/4" - WF6 or DT4 with 30 yds backing

So if yours is a 3-1/2" diameter model you should be fine, but if it's a 3-1/4" model your probably going to have limited (or nil!) backing capacity. If that turns out to be the case I'd suggest looking for another reel.

Like @Warren79 I view the reel simply as somewhere to store line, and so as long as it does that without fault then I don't really care what the name on it is. I have reels from a whole bunch of makers, including Hardy, Orvis, Greys, Scientific Anglers, etc. but in all honesty I can't tell one from another.......unless it's the sound of a Hardy Marquis with a salmon running ;)
 
Before entertaining @Kalahari's excellent suggestion be aware of the following.

A Pridex Lightweight will either be 3-1/4" or 3-1/2" diameter.


Google suggests the following capacities for Beaudex/Pridex:

3-1/2" - WF7 or DT4 with 50 yds backing
3-1/4" - WF6 or DT4 with 30 yds backing

So if yours is a 3-1/2" diameter model you should be fine, but if it's a 3-1/4" model your probably going to have limited (or nil!) backing capacity. If that turns out to be the case I'd suggest looking for another reel.

Like @Warren79 I view the reel simply as somewhere to store line, and so as long as it does that without fault then I don't really care what the name on it is. I have reels from a whole bunch of makers, including Hardy, Orvis, Greys, Scientific Anglers, etc. but in all honesty I can't tell one from another.......unless it's the sound of a Hardy Marquis with a salmon running ;)
Looks like I will need to source another reel. Just found an old knackered #7 line : the reel took about 15m of it! Even at my novice stage I will need more of that for casting and a fish running. Really appreciate all the input, great SD community!
 
If you hook a salmon or a big sea trout you will need at least 100y of backing and be able to walk on water quickly.
 
There's backing and backing. The old green and white backing was very very thin. You could get a lot of yardage of that on most reels. I think the name was dacron backing? Some modern backing (the sort I actually prefer) is braided. Like a hollow tube. So it can be used for making braided loops for the line tip. That won't give you as much yardage.
 
I once had a young nephew who hooked a 10lb salmon on a Toby and he just reeled it in till the Toby was at the top eye with the fish too. He asked what he should do and I told him to climb up the rod and chap it on the head.
 
During lockdown(s) I couldnt get out stalking so began to learn a bit of fly fishing (trout on still water lakes). I was lucky enough to have some kit on loan but have returned that and been given some odds and sods of my own. I have a 2.85m rod that is 7/8 weight, I get on very well with the rod and have been given a reel to go with it (pictures hopefully attached). Now its an old reel but will do the job for me. I want to fish a #7 WF floating line, its all i have used.

Is this reel suitabe for that kind of line? How much line and backing line should I put on?

My internet searches have only been able to inform me that the reel is a Pridex lightweigh fly reel.

Any help appreciated

Fishing goes well in combination with stalking and always opens up the possibility of combining the two on a trip away or holiday.

Don't get too caught up on gear - I love my fishing and will go fishing with whatever you give me as the choice is fish, or don't fish, and I'm always going to fish when I can.

If your fishing is just for "stocked" trout in stillwaters then I'd be sure that reel will do your job. People will get caught up about backing and how much you need and what it says in a book or on the internet but in the end humans are fairly flexible and adaptable creatures. I sometimes fish for grilse (smaller salmon in the 4 - 6lb sort of size range) and I've only once been into the backing with one of them and it was because I made a mistake and let it get well downstream of me in heavy water so I can't blame the reel for me not thinking things out. That I can see many people on the internet, and perhaps in the magazines, like their fish to run a long distance so they can be seen to have the fish take them into the backing, it all looks so dramatic. My experience is that if you use your brain and do it right then there is almost never any need for such dramatic displays. Even Spring salmon can be stopped and "encouraged" not to go too far and I fish for Spring salmon with an 11 foot 7 weight, so basically the same setup as you will be using for trout. It is also the case that from the info it looks like you will get some backing on that reel and even 30 yards of backing is a lot, you will be on some seriously big rivers with seriously big fish before you will see 30 yards of backing go out the rod tip.

So get a line on that reel and get out and enjoy yourself, learn how to fish with what you've got rather than with what other people think they'd like you to have.

You might enjoy watching this little video of some salmon fishing from last season, there are 4 salmon of varying sizes caught in this (plus a foul hooked one that doesn't count, but that did take some line off me as he was hooked in the tail which makes for a very strange fight indeed) and you will see that even in quite strong currents if you bully them a bit and don't encourage them to run then the backing never even leaves the reel. I could, of course, have played them a lot easier and set my check lighter and allowed the internet to see that the fish were fighting me into the backing but that wouldn't have done me or the fish any favours:

 
Fishing goes well in combination with stalking and always opens up the possibility of combining the two on a trip away or holiday.

Don't get too caught up on gear - I love my fishing and will go fishing with whatever you give me as the choice is fish, or don't fish, and I'm always going to fish when I can.

If your fishing is just for "stocked" trout in stillwaters then I'd be sure that reel will do your job. People will get caught up about backing and how much you need and what it says in a book or on the internet but in the end humans are fairly flexible and adaptable creatures. I sometimes fish for grilse (smaller salmon in the 4 - 6lb sort of size range) and I've only once been into the backing with one of them and it was because I made a mistake and let it get well downstream of me in heavy water so I can't blame the reel for me not thinking things out. That I can see many people on the internet, and perhaps in the magazines, like their fish to run a long distance so they can be seen to have the fish take them into the backing, it all looks so dramatic. My experience is that if you use your brain and do it right then there is almost never any need for such dramatic displays. Even Spring salmon can be stopped and "encouraged" not to go too far and I fish for Spring salmon with an 11 foot 7 weight, so basically the same setup as you will be using for trout. It is also the case that from the info it looks like you will get some backing on that reel and even 30 yards of backing is a lot, you will be on some seriously big rivers with seriously big fish before you will see 30 yards of backing go out the rod tip.

So get a line on that reel and get out and enjoy yourself, learn how to fish with what you've got rather than with what other people think they'd like you to have.

You might enjoy watching this little video of some salmon fishing from last season, there are 4 salmon of varying sizes caught in this (plus a foul hooked one that doesn't count, but that did take some line off me as he was hooked in the tail which makes for a very strange fight indeed) and you will see that even in quite strong currents if you bully them a bit and don't encourage them to run then the backing never even leaves the reel. I could, of course, have played them a lot easier and set my check lighter and allowed the internet to see that the fish were fighting me into the backing but that wouldn't have done me or the fish any favours:


I agree totally about not getting caught up on gear, but if he can only get 15m of a #7 line on the reel then personally I think that’s a problem in waiting.

I don’t get too het up about the amount of backing - indeed I have some reels that feature hardly any - but I don’t think I’ve ever fished a reel with no backing at all, nor where I’ve had to cut off 12m of the actual fly line. I’d be thinking that would start to affect the cast.

For the cost of a cheap reel, it’s a problem easily avoided.
 
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Fishing goes well in combination with stalking and always opens up the possibility of combining the two on a trip away or holiday.

Don't get too caught up on gear - I love my fishing and will go fishing with whatever you give me as the choice is fish, or don't fish, and I'm always going to fish when I can.

If your fishing is just for "stocked" trout in stillwaters then I'd be sure that reel will do your job. People will get caught up about backing and how much you need and what it says in a book or on the internet but in the end humans are fairly flexible and adaptable creatures. I sometimes fish for grilse (smaller salmon in the 4 - 6lb sort of size range) and I've only once been into the backing with one of them and it was because I made a mistake and let it get well downstream of me in heavy water so I can't blame the reel for me not thinking things out. That I can see many people on the internet, and perhaps in the magazines, like their fish to run a long distance so they can be seen to have the fish take them into the backing, it all looks so dramatic. My experience is that if you use your brain and do it right then there is almost never any need for such dramatic displays. Even Spring salmon can be stopped and "encouraged" not to go too far and I fish for Spring salmon with an 11 foot 7 weight, so basically the same setup as you will be using for trout. It is also the case that from the info it looks like you will get some backing on that reel and even 30 yards of backing is a lot, you will be on some seriously big rivers with seriously big fish before you will see 30 yards of backing go out the rod tip.

So get a line on that reel and get out and enjoy yourself, learn how to fish with what you've got rather than with what other people think they'd like you to have.

You might enjoy watching this little video of some salmon fishing from last season, there are 4 salmon of varying sizes caught in this (plus a foul hooked one that doesn't count, but that did take some line off me as he was hooked in the tail which makes for a very strange fight indeed) and you will see that even in quite strong currents if you bully them a bit and don't encourage them to run then the backing never even leaves the reel. I could, of course, have played them a lot easier and set my check lighter and allowed the internet to see that the fish were fighting me into the backing but that wouldn't have done me or the fish any favours:


BTW - that was a cracking fish at the end. What did it weigh in at?
 
I agree totally about not getting caught up on gear, but if he can only get 15m of a #7 line on the reel then personally I think that’s a problem in waiting.

I don’t get too het up about the amount of backing - indeed I have some reels that feature hardly any - but I don’t think I’ve ever fished a reel with no backing at all, nor where I’ve had to cut off 12m of the actual fly line. I’d be thinking that would start to affect the cast.

For the cost of a cheap reel, it’s a problem easily avoided.

Yes, I was kind of hopeful that he had the reel that would give him a WF7 and some backing :) However, if you only have half a line on the reel there is no question that life is going to be tricky, I'd still go fishing with it mind you, but maybe that's just me.

In terms of that final fish then I've no idea but think I guessed it at about 7lb. They tend to lose a bit of weight with being in for a few months so that makes it a bit harder to judge as they can be long and have a big tail but maybe not be quite as solid as you'd expect, however I like the fishing at the back end as I enjoy being out in September and October so it tends always to be coloured fish that I'm chasing. We are a grilse fishery and the usual pattern is that we get small numbers of fish off the last big tide in June with the main run on either of the two big tides in July but most likely on the first one. This year, with no water, has been somewhat different as our fish can't get out of the sea and there hasn't been a lift in the rivers since mid-May so most systems have very few fish and many very famous systems have still to catch their first fish for the season. Every year is different, last year we did well early on and were getting fish in June :)
 
The problem with these older reels...and Hardy reels of a certain age are no exception is that old silk fly lines were less dense than, particularly WF, today's "floating" fly lines. Indeed from recollection a silk #6 would have been about the same diameter as today's modern plastic Wet III sinking lines of the same weight. So even with a dacron or similar small diameter backing using a modern plastic line especially a floater doesn't leave much room on the spool for much else of anything. So if the OP is truly bitten by this new pastime I'd look for a good modern reasonable priced reel designed with the capacity for plastic lines.
 
Yes, I was kind of hopeful that he had the reel that would give him a WF7 and some backing :) However, if you only have half a line on the reel there is no question that life is going to be tricky, I'd still go fishing with it mind you, but maybe that's just me.

In terms of that final fish then I've no idea but think I guessed it at about 7lb. They tend to lose a bit of weight with being in for a few months so that makes it a bit harder to judge as they can be long and have a big tail but maybe not be quite as solid as you'd expect, however I like the fishing at the back end as I enjoy being out in September and October so it tends always to be coloured fish that I'm chasing. We are a grilse fishery and the usual pattern is that we get small numbers of fish off the last big tide in June with the main run on either of the two big tides in July but most likely on the first one. This year, with no water, has been somewhat different as our fish can't get out of the sea and there hasn't been a lift in the rivers since mid-May so most systems have very few fish and many very famous systems have still to catch their first fish for the season. Every year is different, last year we did well early on and were getting fish in June :)
Yep - half a line is certainly better than no line. :D

Our last salmon fishing trip is at the end of next month. Both trips earlier this year have been ruined through a complete lack of water, but it’s still better than being in the office!

We always used to fish in September, and correspondingly it’s a time of year that I love. If there’s water in the river it can be a wonderful time to cast a fly.
 
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