Fly Reels?

[Dylan33]

Anyone using fly reels thru the ice?

I saw a ice fishing combo at the big C in Rogers that had a fly reel. I haven't seen anyone use one in the winter before. It looks pretty sweet and I can see the advantage of not having your line twist. Any disadvantage to using a fly reel on hard water?

[mainbutter]

The only 'disadvantage' I can think of is a lack of a gear system, since multiplier fly reels are so rare these days.

Drag systems on fly reels aren't as sophisticated usually, but unless you're fishing for BIG fish, it's not a problem to use light drag.

I never understood why spinning reels are used for ice fishing at all, it seems like a lot of hassle in construction and overall reel complexity for one of the simplest of fishing methods (vertical fishing). Wouldn't you want a reel with as few parts as possible? The more parts, the more likely you'd have a reel freeze up I'd assume.

Baitcaster/conventional reels are another option that are underused in ice fishing and would eliminate line twist. That would be my personal choice.

[ameyers41]

Depends on what kind of fly reel. I would put my Ross fly reels' drags up against most spinning reel drags. I might not with a $20 fly reel. As mainbutter said though, with most fly reels, line pickup rate may or may not be the bigger issue for you.

[Grainbelter]

I saw the idea here a year or two ago and tried it last year. I gotta say it works great especially with really light line and those stupid bobber stop knots that always seem to catch on the reel!! This doesn't happen with the fly reel. I have 2 cheaper ones and haven't had an issue with the drag yet, just use my hand to control it is all.

I should add that I only use it for panfish though.

[OnAFly]

I converted an old fly reel last year to a 'new' ice reel. Works great, though I had to put a ton of extra backing on it to get the spool diameter large enough so that I could pick up my jigs fast enough.

Overall it was a lot of fun. Takes a little getting used to if you've never used a fly reel before since they are direct drive reels. If you have your hand on the reel knob, there's no drag between you and the fish. So, you have to know if they are going to make a run or large head shakes if you have a larger fish on. I caught one pike last year on my fly reel set up and that was a blast.

If you are going to go for it, I would suggest the Okuma Sierra. At ~$30, it's comparable to a nice ice reel. Paired up with a short rod, you will have an optimized sight fishing set up.

[cps420us]

I think Thorne Bros. has a new panfish setup out that has a flyreel. Saw it in the ice fishing guide magazine.

[Dark Cloud]

Fly reels have really taken off in popularity the past few seasons. And for good reasons...

The biggest reason being, they virtually eliminate line twist. With direct drive on and off the spool there is no way for twist to be created besides your lure spinning while reeling up.

They are lightweight. Sure some are heavy clunkers but most of the modern ones are super light and can really balance out a rod to dramatically increase sensitivity.

Most have super smooth drags. Sure some have none and others dont last but most of todays reels in the 30-75 dollar range have great drags.

Some drawbacks include when fishing in deep water it can become time consuming to strip the line off the reel for dropping the jig down. Its actually not that bad and I actually think you can feed light jigs down faster. Though I dont care to use fly reels much deepr than 15-20 ft.

Depending on the diameter of the spool and how full it is your line retrieval can be slow compaired to a spinning reel. But if you run a reel that has a spool diameter around 3 inches or so, your retrieval rate will be real close to on par with a spinning reel.

The past two winters I used them quite a bit and really enjoyed it. Its just fun plus there are some solid benifits.

Two reasonable(60$ish) reels that alot of folks are useing are the Cortland procast and the Okuma SLV. Both are light and have great drags plus your able to silence the clickers while keeping the drag.

The guys at Thorne Bros have really spearheaded the movement of useing fly reels. Stop in or give them a call to check things out.

[Dylan33]

So I have to take all of my fly line off of my current reel, and load a lot of 4# test on it to make it work well? If there isn't a lot of backing, then performance will suffer?

and lastly- in the spring, would I be able to put that fly line back on and use it with the fly pole again? or is that too much of a hassle----just spend 30 bucks on a new reel for the ice. Thanks again.

[Dark Cloud]

So I have to take all of my fly line off of my current reel, and load a lot of 4# test on it to make it work well? If there isn't a lot of backing, then performance will suffer?

and lastly- in the spring, would I be able to put that fly line back on and use it with the fly pole again? or is that too much of a hassle----just spend 30 bucks on a new reel for the ice. Thanks again.

Yep, you want the spool full so you have maximum line retieval rate. You could take the flyline off and fill it with mono(it would take alot).

Or if you want to multi-task the reel, you could put on backing and your fly line so the reel is full, use it all openwater then strip off the flyline. Now add more backing with a uni or blood knot to attach the backing to the backing. Fill up the reel, then add your 50-100 ft of line your going to icefish with. Then come spring strip the outer piece of backing and line off and re-attach your flyline.

Or have a good excuse to get a few more reels?

[BuckyBadger]

Agreed, Started fishing with a fly reel combo last season and I love it. Going to get a second setup this winter for sure, It is my favorite combo to fish with. Also agree stop in at Thorne brothers and check a combo out, not cheap, but they took the time to fit the reel on the rod so it fit my hand perfect. It obviously feels a little different, I hold mine like you are making a pistol out of your hand, palm the reel and have your pointer finger straight touching the rod, super sensitive. Hold the reel at an angle and if you are facing a light bite just twist your palm up to hook a fish, I caught so many light biting fish last year that I would have missed.

Don't have single pic but here is my thornbrothers setup sitting in my bucket

[jwmiller33]

im definitely going to give the fly reel a try for ice fishing this year... most of my ice fishing is for panfish, and the line twist drives me nuts with 2-4lb mono on those small ice reels. i almost made the plunge and bought a fly reel last winter, but never found one in a store. its good to hear the big C store has them. its on my list of things to get

[StillwaterAaron]

I bought one this summer on (A place I can't say here) brand new for 12 bucks after shipping. Great size and balances out my rod well.

[slipperybob]

I'm another fly reel user, for a couple of seasons now.

[turbo5oh]

what do u guys think about this reel?

crappie hunter 10

[sunniewally]

are fly reels really better then using a samll bait casting reel? with a bait casting reel you have the advantage of setting the drag so if you do catch a bigger fish you can have better control of it, and you still have all the advantages of a fly reel plus the added gear ratio.

[herefish101]

are fly reels really better then using a samll bait casting reel? with a bait casting reel you have the advantage of setting the drag so if you do catch a bigger fish you can have better control of it, and you still have all the advantages of a fly reel plus the added gear ratio.

I agree, small bait caster reel would still eliminate line twist, plus you get the gearing and a decent drag, all in a small compact reel. Ya'll can have fun with your fly reels, it seems like a fad to me. Do that many of my fellow fisherman have that big a problem with line twist? I fish 2-3 times a week once the ice is walkable, runnin and gunnin, I mainly use spinning reels, why do I not get all the line twist?

[Jim Almquist]

I mainly use spinning reels, why do I not get all the line twist?

It is really dependent on your fishing style. A plain hook under a float will not give as many problems. Put something that moves around a lot like a jigging rap or a wally hogger or even a Darter and the line twist will slowly start. For me when it gets to bad I just get rid of 30'-40' of line and retie.

[Dark Cloud]

The "Fad" if you will, is geared towards panfish with small jigs and light line. This is where twist can become issue.

Weight - Try and find a baitcaster or spinning reel that weighs 4 ounces. And has a better drag than a good fly reel

It is not for everyone or every situation, nothing is. Just another tool in the box that fills a nitch for some...

A few things to look for in a reel unless your just useing it for line storage is the clicker. Some reels click on the retrieve, when the drag goes out, or both. Some dont mind the noise either way. I have a low end Ross that just barely clicks on the retrieve and ain't bad. I prefer the Okuma SLV as it can be silenced. I believe the Cortland procast can do the same and had a nice drag.

The other is weight. A lightweight reel can balance out a rod and really maximize a rods sensitivity. If you just hanging a springbobber rod on a pail, it's not an issue.

[turbo5oh]

jimalm is right, sometimes its the difference of not cathing any fish or pulling up a vex mark on the bottom that everything in the tackle box wouldnt make move, but w/ 1 lb test, a #16 diamond jig & a finesse wedgee and a no-spin presentaion. boom another jumbo on the ice. and ur fishing buddy that was giving u goofy looks pully a fly reel set up out is still staring at motionless yellow foam bobber floating in his hole.

fly reel set up most days wont catch u more fish. it shines for "those" days that nothing is working