(click on any photo for magnification)
In July of 2025, I talked a little bit about the special kind of cadence between a bamboo rod and its reel. I got hundreds of comments on Part 1 of this entry, so I figured I would do a Part 2 on the design and function of reels and what I personally like in a reel for a cane rod or any rod for that matter.
“Clint, what do you like to use on your own rods as an everyday favorite reel?” (Morgan D. from Estes Park, Colorado)
A great question that I honestly get asked quite frequently. I thought I would divulge a bunch of insights as a rod maker, and let the Jeanie out of the bottle sorta speak. One thing you will notice when picking up a few old reels, which I have dozens of, is that many of them are hefty but not heavy! The old Meisselbach Gogebic Trout Reel from 1886 is a wonderfully simple, relatively lightweight reel with a spindle shaft supported by a simple single armature. Years later, in 1910, the Featherlight No. 260 Meisselbach & Bro. A Nickel-plated reel, still relatively lightweight and modestly simple in design and mechanics, debuted and proved quite popular for many years.
Above photo: Some old Meisselbach reels are still very fishable.
These reels all had simple click-and-pawl mechanisms and stamped and riveted parts, making them relatively cost-effective to manufacture. The beautiful thing about these reels is that they were accessible to many people of many economic backgrounds. This is precisely why I started collecting them at swap meets in my 20's. At the time, I was a designer for an industrial design and communications company, Fitch in Columbus, Ohio, and in the pre-eBay era, these little reels could be purchased for under $30, well within my budget constraints. One reason I started making bamboo rods was that I could not afford them. I often dreamed of owning an Edward Vom Hoffe-style reel from the 1920's. Then I held one at a church swap meet in Maine, and it felt heavy and somewhat clunky. After all, I wanted to use my old reels, not just collect them! And this reel was a barbell. Many of these old reels influenced many modern classic reel designs to this day. During this turn-of-the-century period, many machinists were borrowing designs from one another and employing similar skills, which were outstanding for the technology of the time. I'd go out on a limb and say many were ripping each other off, but let's face it, they were. Often shamelessly so.
Needless to say, from a 500-foot view, after about 1930, many reels were getting more expensive, more complex, and heavier! However, there were companies like Pflueger that kept production full steam ahead and did very well thanks to their durability, affordability, and simple reel designs. To this day, one of the most timeless and iconic fly reel companies, makers of the old Pflueger Medalist, holds a special place in all our hearts for good reasons. You could go into many 5-and-dime and hardware stores alike and pick up one of these little gems. It was accessible to all fly fishers. They were all about pure functionality and extreme durability, and they would not put a hole in your pocketbook.
Most of my favorite reels are the simple classics: Meisselbach, Pfleuger, South Bend, Martin, and Shakespeare, to name a few, a simple lot for a simple person like myself. Which leads us back to our original question: what do I like as an everyday reel? The answer is the Hardy Bros Lightweight fly reels. These reels have been around for longer than eighty years. The series includes The Flyweight, The Featherweight, LRH, Princess, St. Aiden, and St. Andrew.
Above photo: A very well-used and well-loved Hardy Featherweight.
In the background, a full lineup of Flyweights and Featherweights
with both silk and plastic demo lines.
These reels are easily purchased used for under 300.00, and most of mine are from estate sales, eBay, and private collectors. Many of my reels are demo reels from old fly shops that have gone out of business. A few of my reels have the engraved inscription under the foot marked “Demo.” I service these myself, anneal new springs for them, and give them the proper TLC they deserve. Changing lines back and forth is simple since they make replacement spools for them. So, for example, if you have both a Featherweight and a Flyweight, you can use them on a multitude of different weight and length rods with limitless line types. Which is a great way to economize: you can purchase used spare spools for less than 80.00 dollars. So if you want to bump up line weights for a single rod, let's say between a 3wt. and a 3.5 wt., as I do often with silks, you can easily do this using the Lightweight series. It is an extremely sensible approach to line flexibility throughout the season. A lot of spare reel spools on the market, including Ross, Bauer, Abel, Lamson, and even many Hardy reels, cost hundreds of dollars. The last spare Flyweight spool I purchased at an estate sale in central PA. cost me 30 US dollars. Compare this to a spool for an Abel SDF for $375.00!, which, in my mind, is total madness. Anyway, enough said, just be mindful of economizing so you can make adjustments as the season changes and weather conditions call for more delicate, precise lines or vice versa. These tuna cans with a handle shouldn't break the bank. Remember, fly reels just hold line. I really don't consider them ultra-expensive necessities at all. I spend more time thinking about my leaders and fly patterns as a first-order priority.
Above photo: A wonderful Abel TR 1 from circa mid 90's, classic click-and-pawl developed by Steve Abel. One of my favorite simple designs from Abel.
I think that the fly reel brings an obvious function and visual cadence to your fishing experience, as explained in my previous entry on reels. Many reels today are simply overpriced and overdesigned to the point of being visually ridiculous. Aerospace-grade 6061-T6 aluminum is not cheap. It is the same alloy used in the medical and aerospace industries. CNC machines with 4th-axis rotary tables can achieve highly complex cuts and can profile these reels to the point where they literally become cobwebs. The price of a Tormac 1100MX, CNC Mill base machine, as an example, is roughly 38K. The cost to maintain these machines is not cheap either. So you're paying a premium for the manufacturers to purchase and maintain these machines.
Above photo: A lovely little Hardy St. George, which has traveled with me everywhere. This is by no means an inexpensive reel, but I thought its classic design is very notable.
The visual complexity of many reels as of 2026 is coming straight out of your pocketbook. Are they engineers, designers, or Marketing MBA's coming up with these visually cluttered designs? My instincts tell me a boardroom full of people making multiple edits on design decisions that should be made by one small design team. A design team of three people in -house should change these convoluted winds of reel design. We used to call it the “magic three”: one designer, a creative director, and a manager. An engineer who also slaps some heads occasionally to bring production reality into focus as well. That's how you create good design. I can honestly tell you these reels are “designed by committee.” My wife and I, along with many of my friends, have industrial design degrees from Pratt Institute and Art Center College of Design. My professional opinion is that these companies need to step back and adapt their technology intelligently, rather than letting it drive their designs. Just because you can create insane, tight-tolerance 3D contouring doesn't mean you have to create a “webby mess” as one of my industrial design instructors used to call some high-performance CNC automotive rims. How do you take something so simple like a fly reel and make it overly complex, cluttered, and unnecessarily gaudy? I have two degrees in design, and I can tell you that technology and “design committees" are driving design, which is the very problem with the automotive industry currently. Too many cooks in the kitchen, and it shows. Don't get me started on all the hydro-dipping and anodized sublimation graphic barf in the sporting goods category. Enough said about the newest cheese CNC reels of 2026, or I'll have men in black fly fishing vests show up at my door and detain and waterboard me.
Above photo: A spare Flyweight spool purchased for $60.00, lightly used.
The newly tooled models of the Lightweight series bear a revived Hardy logo that I'm not keen on at all, but they still have an air of humility that makes me smile when I pick one up. I typically purchase Featherweight and Flyweight reels circa 1980-2000. There are some minor changes these reels went through, like the spool releases and screws, but I won't bore you with the details. In my mind, they are the consummate fly reel that tug on my heartstrings. Paired with a bamboo rod, you cannot go wrong. There is a visual and mechanical cadence between the cane rod and the reel that just feels right. So when a new client asks me, “What kind of reel do I put on one of your rods?” I immediately say, “Find an old Hardy Flyweight or Featherweight and call it a day, but it's up to you.” These reels are relatively cheap used; they certainly are not $900.00! And you don't have to worry about them rolling around in the back of your pickup truck. Most of mine are already well-loved but certainly not abused.
Above photo: A well-loved Featherweight
Like my favorite reels from yesteryears, Hardy Lightweight Fly Reels have not changed much. Then again, many of my closest friends haven't either. Things that are timeless have a special place in my heart, kind of like cane rods.
