Well at the beginning of this year due to a good friend and some great people I've met since then on the water I have been converted from conventional fishing to fly fishing. I have fished for years with conventional gear and thought I would never fall out of love with it and therefore spent every bit of Christmas money, Birthday money, or whatever money I could talk my better half into letting me drop on fishing equipment (you young married men know what I'm talking about, oh and we have our first child on the way to make the situation even more tough haha!!!) Well now I have a garage full of conventional gear that will most likely just be collecting dust in light of my newfound passion for fly fishing. I would love to get rid of most of it and be able to have some cash to drop on some fly gear. I was hoping someone on here might have some advice or ideas on how I may be able to successfully go about this. I realize I won't even get back close to what I've paid for everything but I have enough of it that I figure I could at least get enough back to buy a new rod and reel or two and maybe some better tying equipment. One of the things I love about fly fishing is that it is fairly simplistic and I don't need ten different rod and reel setups to clutter up the boat floor. Anyways, I'm open to any advice or suggestions anyone might have.

If simplicity is your goal, don't get involved with fly fishing unless you have super human powers to control your fishing compulsions. For me it has become the most addictive passion I have ever been infected with. I too have over 30 Bass/Catfish set up collecting dust in my storage shed, thinking I may need them someday. Now I also have Eight Fly Rod setups hanging from the wall in my fly fishing room. Rod weight varying from 2 Weight to 8 Weight to cover every situation and fish species I may encounter. And, of course to save money I had to start tying my own flies some 25 years ago. Saving money by tying your own flies is another misconception that I fell for. To make matters worse, my quest for finding the perfect rod to handle Bream and Bass led me to enter the realm of Glass Fly rods and bought my first one last week. Mercy I hope not to get started with Bamboo rods. This Fly fish addiction cost me much. Sold my Bass Boat for cheap, bought me a Kayak, and now I just wade the Creeks in my hip boots mostly fishing for just about anything that bites. I just love fishing simple like, with my fly fishing vest stuffed full of rolls of tippet line and over 500 flies to make sure I have the one fly they are biting on that day.

Your about a year behind me and it only gets worse. I would recommend selling the gear on this forum or on Texas kayak fisherman forum. I have sold and bought gear this way and its nice. If your trying to go about getting into fly fishing cheaply, after a year in I can tell you don't buy the cheapest line of any model you get what you pay for.

Wait till you can find the next model up on sale or buy quality used stuff. Their are a lot of people who need to justify buying new better rods & reels by selling their used quality rods & reels.

Also if you don't have a float tube, get one.

Craigslist and the classified adds on this forum are you best friends. You have already accepted you won't get what you have in it, but should be able to get enough for few rods, reels, tying equipment etc....

Welcome to my club! I was just like you. I got a garage and room full of conventional bass gear and a yard full of boats. Since having a baby last year my time on the water is cut down. I now find fly fishing more fun and relaxing. Tying flies for the last year while the little girl grew up has filled my void of fishing all the time. First 4-6 months I tied a lot of flies and learned a lot. Now she is walking and talking and my fly tying time has been cut back, but I am not getting on the water more since she has gotten bigger.

I still find myself using the conventional gear, one reason being, I only fish about one day a week (of lucky) and it's always blowing 20mph....conventional gear has saved my trip a time or 2 this spring.

Best of luck with the baby, life will change, but it's for the best!! Enjoy it!!

Thanks for all the advice and knowledge guys...I guess I should watch my tongue when I say simple haha...Ive already dished out quite a bit on tying materials and spent a little more for a nicer rod with my birthday money. Got a TFO Healing Waters 9' 5 wt. Ill get some pics of the stuff I am looking to sell and put it up on the forum and craigslist. I am planning on keeping one or two of my conventional rod and reel combos but don't need all of them just sitting there taking up space. They might get in the way of my "simple" fly rod collection as it grows haha!!!

On another note what are some gear that you guys recommend. Looking for a good balance between quality and price. My 5 wt. is good for targeting the fish I have been catching but I am using a pretty cheap reel that was given to me. Might look into getting a nice reel for my 5 wt. and possibly get another combo in a little heavier wt.

Heck, last June I told my wife I was going to sell the bass boat. She talked me out of it saying in a few years I will want to take my daughter (little did she know I had a Skiff in mind.).

I won't sell mine....I learned fast.....gather your toys before you have a baby, and never sell your toys!! Hoard them!!! I have stuff that is non replaceable. Custom rods made by guys who have passed away, baits that are near a $100 (custom swimbaits that could fetch over $100 on ebay), and more Old Green Curados than you can shake a stick at. Priceless IMO. Stuff won't go bad...ever.

I love my Allen Trout II reel, and next week my Kraken should be in.

Best looking reel out there for the price!!

Great company too....Dallas based.

http://www.allenflyfishing.com/reels/

Sign up for email and save 10% off.

Thanks Bass Bustin those are some fine looking reels. I may have to snag one. Good thing is even if I don't sell any of my conventional stuff I at least have the basics to fish with until I can buy some new stuff next Christmas. Only thing I really would classify as a need is a pair of breathable waders but its fixing to be warm enough for wet wading so that's not a must have at the moment.

Don't forget Father's Day is coming!

It's the new gift day for you!!!

Oh, and BTW you better get your wife a Mother Day gift for Sunday.....she's a Momma now, even if the baby is in the oven. (Lay that foundation for you a gift on Father's Day, make Momma feel special! I'm passing along my tips, so that you can still buy supplies along the way. )

And if you ever need to vent, shoot me a PM, we can bad mouth our wife's in private! LOL!

Bass Bustin Trust me...I know how to work the system and have already done it on several occasions. Our three year anniversary is coming up and I bought her an extra nice gift because I figured it would be my last chance to drop a little extra cash before my son arrives. I told her not to get me anything but I'm hoping she insists I get something for myself haha. Truly I have an awesome wife who doesn't give me much grief about my fishing addiction. The Lord really blessed me there. But if you could only have two rod and reel combos what would they be? And which Allen reel do you think I should pair with my TFO 5 wt? I mainly fish for crappie, bass and sunfish.

I still fish both modes, spinning and fly. Sometimes one method works more effectively than the other and I enjoy catching fish. Not a thing wrong being a purist. It's just not for me.

The grief comes after the baby is born....trust me! 6 months later you will wonder if you slept, ate, or what you did! Sleep now!!!

I like the Silver/Gunmetal Trout II on my TFO 5 weight. Balances nicely.

I got the Kraken for a 7 weight TFO Switch Rod I bought this spring. It was the best reel I could find for the money and line capacity to match the heavier longer rod(loading it up with 200 yards of backing, shooting line, and Skagit Head). Plus, I just like that company. I buy all my hooks there too.

The Dorado Color Kraken was my BDay gift for June. I got it on sale 20% off....they ran a sale one day this spring.

BTW if you aren't un a hurry, you might wait to see if they put the Trout II on sale. They mentioned they might not do another reel sale this year after the Kraken. You just have to check back weekly or sign up for email alerts.

Purist would frown on the flies I tie!!

BUT a Streamer Addict would get the shakes!!