Home Forums Fishing Flyfishing What happened to fly fishing?

I bowed out of it for about 15 years but have decided to dust off some rods and start fishing again. There must be 10 million different fly lines now, some costing close to $150 dollars. Has catching a fish 40 feet away really become that expensive and specific?

I can't believe the Cortland 444 is $60 now either. I know things have increase with time, but it's daunting these days. You also can hardly find a reel that doesn't look like a set of rims on the southside of Chicago. Very weird times.

LSH, you took the words right out of my mouth exactly! I've gotten back into it in last 3 years, and it about made my head spin considering which? I did go for a Orvis Hydros Superfi e 4wt, because I thought it would be perfect for my need, and it has been. But for the most, I still have used a new SA Air Cel 6wt on my Smallue rod about 3 years ago, $29, it's everything I needed for that! The Internet has sold stuff beyond compare, so they just keepexpanding. Used to it was by word of mouth or fly-fishing magazines, people didn't bite just anything!
And I said same thing about the reels, perfect description. I still use my old Plueger Medalist on my smallmouth rod. The new Orvis Battenkill Click & Pawl I got last year, is the ultimate small stream trout reel, I'm loving mine!

Fly fishing, post "the movie" took on this mythical concept vice simply being the way many of us have fished for years. It then became another sport that the rich and famous decided they had to participate in and companies saw all that potential income and suddenly everything went up.

Despite Medalist, Lampson, or even Orvis single action reels being fine for what 90+ % of us fish suddenly the complexity and cost of the "must have" gear began to go up. I have nice stuff but for the most part it was all bought 30+ years ago. At the same time, I'm really thankful for breathable waders and better wading boots. The tippet material of today is a far cry better than back in the day and more expensive! Fly lines today are unbelievably expensive but they are so much better than what we had before as well and they last much longer. I think all of mine are at least a decade old.

I was up in NH in July fishing and I realized that much of my stuff is Orvis and it made me think "have I become that which I mock" but then I looked at the stains and nicks and repairs on my rod, reel and my faded vest and figured I had the mileage on it to still look bemused at the streamside fashion plates.

You're right Pugs. I've been in and out of it since 1969. A River Ran Through It and has washed it away! I'm not against new that's for sure, but I like making my decisions about my equipment, then stick with it when I find what works. Hard to decide nowadays tho. I'll sure agree about leader materials, man they're great! I use glass rods still occasionally but these new rods are outstanding! But I still got a couple that I scrub the cork with toothpaste and brush, hard to beat. I. Just getting to old & tired to fish em all!

I decided to compensate by purchasing a old Martin 63 tuna can reel

Truly old school. The only shortfall IIRC was they were so small they couldn't take a full length line but maybe they came in different sizes than the one I had.

Just the opposite really. They will easily handle a WF6 line with 50 yards or so of 20 pound backing.

cool - the one I had would only take a short line and no backing.

I think all of the tuna can Martins take the same amount of line. Perhaps you are thinking of something else.

Likely

I too re-dipped my toe in the fly fishing water this year after a long hiatus. Similarly to other's observations I was mildly shocked at how much has changed and gotten more expensive.

I feared for my fly lines, some of which are now 30 years old. It turns out they're still good, which is a relief because I would need to rob a bank to replace the dozen or so lines I have. I did splurge for a new triangle taper to go onto a new to me Ballan reel and a new bamboo rod. (Yeah the old "gotta have it" attitude reawakened along with a renewed interest in fly fishing. Thanks, Pugs....)

Advances in rod technology? I suppose, but my bamboo stuff is the equal of any new bamboo stuff being made today. There's other rod making materials?

I will acquiesce to improvements in leader/tippet material. I just wish this new stuff didn't require living on pork&beans for a month to allow building all new leaders.

Was recently cleaning out my Mom's house... found the receipt for my Pflueger Medalist reel from 1974... though not $300, it'll still catch fish.

Neat! Still have a couple of those and have them lined up for steelhead fishing. Not the best implement for the job, but they're like old friends one simply cannot dispose off. Still feels like an accomplishment when they're successful and remind me as well of days where I had to get by as inexpensively as possible.

I'd probably get laughed at if I put that on one of my $800 Spey rods and hauled it to a clave.

The only ones who will laugh will be the uninformed ones.

I still use occasionally a Medalist Rim Control I bought new in aprox 1990. It still in 98% condition, I don't know why? I have a Scientific Anglers Mastery Series made by Hardy I got also in the 90's, still works fine but has been through it. I had to straighten the spool 2 years ago I bent from a bad fall, would hardly even turn. I sure wish I had any of a number of my old Garcia Conlon's rods, 3* and 5* from the 70's. Great flyrods! 5, 6, n 7wts.

I started fly fishing, tying my own flies, and building and re-building rods back in the early '60s when I was in high school. That was my big thing to do outdoors back then. Through the years other things became a higher priority to the point that I'd only go fishing once or twice in a year. In the last 20 years I've somewhat rekindled my interest in fly fishing. My GF's family lived near the St Croix rod factory in Park Falls, WI, so several times when we went back there to visit I'd stop by the factory and usually come out with one of their factory 2nd or cheaper fly rods. I'd then match those rods with a Cabela's Prestige fly reel and line. But I'd still only go fly fishing a couple of times a year.

Then last month I went on a Brown Bear hunt in Alaska. It was a two week hunt and I shot my bear on the first day, so my guide suggested that we go spend a week at his cabin about 200 miles north of Anchorage. We stopped in the Cabela's in Anchorage to get my fishing license, and looking around the store I saw a brown bear mount that I liked. That mount happened to be by the fishing department, so as we wandered through there we saw some 3 wt 7 1/2' fly rods with reels, line and backing for $79. We both left the store with one.

There was a creek that ran by my guide's cabin that was full of grayling up to about 13". I "borrowed" a about size 12 black dry fly from Bob and immediately started catching those little graylings. I remembered from my high school days that my record for the most fish caught on the same fly was 36. My first day fishing in that Alaskan creek I surpassed my 36 fish on the same fly record and when I was trying to unhook fish number 52 it flopped out of my hand and broke the fly off. I then got another fly from Bob and caught another 20 or so fish that day and another 50 or so fish on it the next day.

Bob also told me that the river by where we were bear hunting had salmon in it before I got there, and had a good resident population of 5# plus Arctic Char and Grayling up to 2# or more. I have rekindled my desire to go fishing. I just might have to go back to Alaska for a moose and some of those large Char and Graylings.

When I got home I dug out all of my old fly tying "stuff" and I went to two local sporting goods stores and bought about $40 worth of new fly tying stuff. My 11' reloading bench is now covered from one side to the other with all kinds of fly tying materials and I have filled one box with #12 dry flies and nymphs and another half box with larger streamers and woolly buggers.

Fall is a great time to fly fish in Montana, but in the last 2 days Mother Nature has covered SW Montana with a foot or more white stuff.

Things got out of hand shortly after I developed my own technique I called “shadow casting”. I showed it to Redford and BAM, everyone wanted to fly fish.

In all seriousness, things can be as complicated/expensive or simple/affordable as you make them. I was never very good at fly fishing but I had a lot of fun trying. If you think fly fishing has gotten expensive, take up largemouth bass fishing. If you think that’s bad, try offshore fishing…

My first good rod was a Fenwick Fenglass 7.5' rod with #6 line.. I still have it and a host of other Fenglass rods.. They are still my first choice for fly fishing.. I have had Fenwick, Scott, Orvis, & a host of other rods made from newer materials.. I have stored them in my attic, for what I do those old rods work fine.. My biggest expense there days is buying flies.. But I have more than enough for my life time and then some. Like Buffy, I seldom fish much these days.. The local lake has a problem with a plants that can bloom and kill me and my dogs.. I don't go near it.. I stream fish a couple days in the mountains.. That used to be peaceful and pretty much deserted.. Since the greenies have found it, I fish a couple times in June and pretty my forget it.. Shooting is easier and more enjoyable..

Nothing wrong with old school rods. Bamboo and fiberglass worked three generations ago and still works today - you're forced to slow down your casting rhythm vs. with graphite, maybe, but that's about it. I have them all, and more often than not will reach for bamboo. But then, a good friend/rod builder is gifting me a four piece graphite travel rod, a 2 weight for small creeks, which might sway my opinions!

Shocking how the prices have risen for custom bamboo rods, both old and new, but deals can be found with a little diligence.

I'm glad I don't have to buy any new reels to manage my renewed interest. The sack full of old Hardy's should still do the job, and with class! (I have a 3" Hardy Perfect an old GF gave me for Christmas in 1987. I about had a heart attack when I recently saw what current retail is for them.)

I just received a spool of 406 4wt DT for a bamboo rod. I'll get it spooled up and try it this weekend.

Over the early years I've owned pfluegers, Martins, South Bends, and Wright & McGill fly reels. Somewhere around here I still have a few of them. In the mid 1970s a local sporting goods distributor filed for bankruptcy. My friend (who owns a small fishing shop) and I ended up purchasing all the Hardy reels they had in their inventory for pennies on the dollar. I kept a few for myself and he kept the rest.

Nice MC! I'm fixing to go hit the local creek for just a while before all the good football games. I've got a good selection of graphite rods, but today I'm using my Eagle Claw 8.5' 5wt with the Hardy made SA Reel. You got some jewels there!

A lot of the nicer old-school stuff can still be had on eBay for fairly reasonable prices by today’s standards. I picked up a couple Lamson LP-1 and LP-1.5 reels recently. They are tremendously nice reels(like new condition!) …that actually balance out a rod the way they’re supposed to. Many of the new large arbor reels are just silly looking and too heavy to properly balance out a rod in my opinion. They look like a big tinker toy when mounted on a rod!😁

Also, there are still some very nice rods to be had for $100-$150 dollars….no need to buy a Sage($450+) rod. St Croix, TFO still make great rods that won’t break the bank and come with great warranties if you should ever need them.

Reel fly rod.com is a great company to buy from and they often have sales and closeouts on really nice stuff! And their customer service is excellent!

I too was dumbfounded by line selections when shopping recently. I just wanted a decent DT floater to throw a few small dries and an occasional nymph or two with a strike indicator.🙂

There are still a couple companies that make great lines like those of yesteryear. Barrio Fly Lines(UK) comes to mind. Their Mallard DT lines are straight forward and simple, float high and easily cast a fly a good long ways….simple is good.😁
Even with shipping from across the pond Barrio lines are a bargain, IMO, compared to some of the newfangled lines of today that seem to require an advanced degree to decipher if they’ll work for you or not.

Leftybolt

Nice bunch of reels, Mick! My newest Hardy is now 30 years old, the oldest is a St. George from circa 1910 (talk about buttery smooth).

My last couple lines I bought were Wulff Triangle Tapers (which admittedly weren't very many). Anybody else here liking them? They suit my techniques nicely.

I worked for Wright & McGill Co. for almost 45 years. I wore many hats for them over those years. About 30 years ago (been retired for 5 years now) I had the pleasure of digging out all the historical archived rods they and Grainger made over the years, long before I hired on. My job was to inspect them, made sure they were in fact what was written on the tube cap, inventory them and seal them in new boxes. 95% (over 100) where bambo rods taken from the assembly line and placed in the safe. The others were the founders personal rods. Opening the tubes and looking at those beauties and smelling the tung oil that was as strong as the day it was made, was a joy.

gnoahhh,

Yes, Wulff triangle taper…great lines!

Unfortunately, prices are getting steep on those too.🥴

Leftybolt

I was never a fan, especially for short work as I much prefer a DT.

For small flies no doubt but a Wulff Taper does a great job with bulky flies even at short distances. A 3 weight tossing hoppers really works better with it.

Not in my experience

And thusly we have now answered the question of why there are so many types of lines these days.

You got me there!

I think if I overlined by one weight the TT would have been better. To be fair, it's been 15 years since I fished one of those so things may well be different today. Both line and me.

I just spooled up 2 reels with double taper line and fished one over the weekend. You couldn't have given me a double taper line 15 years ago.

That's some interesting history, my first fly rod (1965) was an old Wirght & McGill glass rod, The only one in town had been sitting in the store for who knows how many years. Took me some time to find a correct line and a Medalist reel but I caught my first rainbow on a steelhead fly I tied using chenille (I think it was an Atomic Bomb).

I think sometimes we get hung up on the gear and lose track of the fish. I know I've been guilty of that. The best dammed fly rod man I knew could suck trout out of water that was confirmed to be barren by the rest of us, and he did it with a nondescript old fiberglass rod with half the line guides missing and the rest held on with electricians tape. His reel was a shot to schit old Pflueger Medalist and most of his flies were rusty ones he pried out of streamside foliage. RIP Barry Tosten, I hope they outfitted you with some good tackle in Valhalla.

Yes I believe most people are hooked on the gear and not the fish or fishing. I have three boys that have all learned to fly fish on second hand gear from yard sales and they don't even know they make reels and rods that cost more then some rifles. Spend what you want on gear but remember there is more important reasons for fly fishing. Sights sounds and usually the piece and quiet.

Youre right! My take on it is that flyfishing gear has gone the way of hunting gear where camo is now more like "designer" clothes and if you dont wear the latest and greatest high priced youre outdated.

If you really want to find out what has changed in fly fishing, you need to see what hasn’t changed. Marketing is as big in fly fishing gear as it is with firearms.

With the effort to make something look innovative and new, all you need to do is look for a Sage LL (light line) or a Winston TMF (Tom Morgan Favorite) rod and you will see these rods selling for way more than they did when they were new.

Finding improvement in the casting quality of these rods isn’t going to happen. Putting a fly in front of a fish with a Sage LL and a double taper line can’t be improved upon with new gear.

You can buy the new stuff, but it’s like buying a 6.5 Creedmoor, totally unnecessary with no improvement, yet people still buy it, proving that is made to sell not to fish.

It's an interesting thread. I suspect that most of us don't get to spend as much time as we'd like outside fishing and hunting and it results in a lot more reading, discussing and dreaming than doing. I hope to change that next year with retirement.

Before the CF I had just a couple centerfire rifles (A P64 M70 fwt in 243 and a M70 in .338 WM) and I had shot every deer I'd killed with it for 20+ years using it and hunted elk with the other (but never killed one with it) with no issues. Somehow I now have a bunch of rifles that don't do that any better than the M70 but they bring me enjoyment.

Sort of the same with fly rods. I have good coverage from 3 weight to 10 weight but mostly fish the 3-6 weights for trout and smallmouth these days. In fact, I fish the 9' 4 weight helios more than any others. But, if it's dry flies I do enjoy the one bamboo I have and if the stream and fish are small the 3 weight gets the nod. The 9 and 10 weights has not been out of their tubes in 20 years except for a trip fishing for Stripers on the Chesapeake quite a while ago.

There have been innovations over the years that have made fishing better or more fun.

Flies - CDC and Synthetic materials delivered much more successful flies especially in nitch situations like emergers and streamers, much stronger hooks, and barbless from the start.

Lines - Remember the "memory" of the 333/666 lines and how, especially in cold water, they just stayed in coils and you enjoyed that abrupt halt as the knot you missed hit the guide. New lines don't do that.

Leaders/tippets- Sure I still tie up my own leaders, or more often take a knotless and rebuild them when they get broken but the materials, mono is so much better these days - thinner, stronger, more flexible. We also have fluorocarbon that in the right time and place is really amazing stuff.

Waders - heavy rubber waders and neoprene that were either cold or hot and it didn't matter in either case because you'd be sweating inside them? Give me modern breathables.

Rods - Here, I have to admit, I got nothing. Rods are such a personal thing and used for such a wide variety of places and styles. I used to Salmon and Steelhead a lot in the Pac NW and my Powell North Umpqua was perfect then. I suspect if I was fishing there now I'd be all over the new longer spey rods.

So while a lot of outdoors stuff is designed to separate us from our money, reality is there have been improvements and sometimes we bite and get fooled and sometimes it really is better. If you haven't bought anything in 20 years you may be missing out.

And in reality, I'd trade ALL of this new developments in gear for the shoulders I had as a teenager!

Guys:

Just loving this thread and agreeing with everyone.

I always thought as a hobbyist rodbuilder I was ahead of, maybe even WAY ahead of, the technology of the day, but rod technology is getting so much better that I am just in the pack now..... Well mebbe just a little ahead.

As to fly reels, yeah I actually use the old martin tuna can reels, and the Medalists, and Hardy's as well as the newer CNC machined aluminum reels.

But my some of my heirloom flies date back over 100 years, and poppers over 70. I still fish them all, with never a thought about old age: just appreciation for those before me, my ancestors.

Anyway glad to see there are a lotta folks out there that love this sport in the way we do.

I picked up a Heddon 320 reel, an Allcock (JW Young) Gilmour 3 1/4" and a 371 Airex in the past 2 weeks, along with 2 fiberglass rods.

Life is good

Oh, that would have been amazing. I don't suppose you remember if any of those bamboo rods were the "Registered" model? Granger's top of the line?

I don't remember any models (I'm lucky if I remember what I did yesterday) there were a lot of very nice rods though. One of Wright & McGill's top shelf lines was the “Presidential”, there were a number of those in the mix.

There was also a few prototype casting rods. They were pretty but God those things were heavy, you would need Popeye arms to cast those things for more then an hour.

Doesn’t have to be expensive.
eBay bamboo rod, $95….My mothers old Medalist, $free…..fly shop bargain bin DD fly line, $25



Tiny trout from tiny streams…….priceless. 😎😁

Absolutely. I have 2 DT lines coming from The Fly Shack, unlabled.

pretty little guys

Those little guys are my favorite to catch and eat..

Gnoahhh and I hit up Big Hunting Creek in the Catoctins Saturday and he found the #3 weight line that felt good yard casting on his new #2 was way overweight once we were on the water so I'm sure he'll be interested in your results.

We got up there and temps were in the mid 50's then it started sprinkling and then is started blowing like stink and then is started raining and then the temps started dropping and the rain started sinking our flies.

We went west sought refuge in http://thebroadaxe.com/the-place/ It was our only good idea for the day.

Looks like a cool place Pugs.. I have only been to Maryland a couple times in my life.. But this place looks cool.. Living in beef country that sea food looks awesome... Hope you had a cool craft brew...

Going to circle back to the o.p.’s points…. Indeed if you’ve been away from the sport a while you might experience sticker shock. But what hasn’t gone up in price over fifteen or twenty years. Nice thing is most manufacturers do offer their products across varied price ranges. If you do your homework you can usually find something that will work for you at a price your comfortable with. As to the comment about fly lines I think the prices reflect the technology changes that have evolved over the last fifteen odd years and a lot of the lines are still made in the U.S.A. Made in the U.S.A. Is going to come at a higher cost.

Big Hunting Creek is a stereotypical mountain freestone creek with greatly varied water: tumbling rapids that end in deep pools interspersed with long stretches of "old guy wadable" slack water. A healthy population of wild browns in the lower stretches and darling brookies up higher. Give it a whirl if you're within striking distance. (Plus it's right down the hill from Camp David. You can stop by and say hi to "Brandon" while you're up there! Haha!)

The Broad Axe was a favorite haunt of mine in my salad years. I was relieved when Pugs approached my shivering drowned-rat self and suggested we decamp to a warm bar. It allowed me to save face and not be the one to cry "Hold, enough!" Sometimes it's as good to talk about fishing as it is to do it.

Yeah, I made the classic mistake of judging a rod/line combo by only lawn casting it - the 3wt triangle taper that worked beautifully for short 20-25 foot casts (which I knew would be the order of the day on Big Hunting Creek) in the backyard became like a ship's hauser on that 1.7 ounce 2wt rod once it got wet. D'oh!! Could've been God getting back at me for not using my usual 4 or 5 weight bamboos! Dunno.

Side note: Big Hunting Creek was Jimmy Carter's favorite local trout stream when he was president.

The Secret Service used him for bait.

Pretty happy to chase those the rest of my life and plan to do that in NH

They are beautiful fish. The only ones that would interest me on the east coast.

Interest being trout, well char. The rest are stocked

Excellent points here. Today there are so many quality gear choices for every budget or style caster. Also the used market is a great place to pick up like new gear higher quality gear shipped right to your door. Many people like to have the latest thing and they trade out of barely used gear to be able afford to do that.

If you need quality used fly fishing gear check out www.Washingtonflyfishing.com I am a Winston rod lover. $1000.00 a rod is a little to much for me, but when it’s now 4-5 hundred much more affordable.