I gave fly fishing a try this Feb during a snowboarding trip in Utah and am finally getting around to purchasing some tackle. I just picked up a G Loomis GLX 9' 8 weight rod and now need a reel to match. I will admit I am somewhat of a poser and probably a manufacturer's dream consumer. I always try and purchase the high dollar stuff as I believe it equates to higher quality, will make me better at what I do and looks the coolest, lol. I just upgraded all my conventional bass tackle to Loomis GLX and Kistler Helium rods, as for the reels I have 4 Shimano Calcutta TEGTs, 2 DCs a Stella and 2 Stradics. My largest bass so far? A meager 7.5 lber. Oh well, I LOVE to fish! Anyway, I am looking for a nice reel that looks good also, lol. I know fly tackle can get VERY expensive so I would like to start within the 2-300.00 range. I have 2 ponds in my neighborhood that I think are perfect for a fly outfit. I fish them daily and pull anything from 12-16" bass all the way up to 5 lbers. Any input would be greatly appreciated, thanks!

airfob,
DUDE, you got fish like THAT and I'll give you my reels! Just let me go with ya!
Seriously, some folks will tell you that a fly reel is just a place to store line. I beg to differ with that reasoning. You'll appreciate a good smooooooth drag when you hit Mr. Big and he gets you on the reel in less than 2 seconds.

Also, some folks like a loud clicker. I would respectfully ask them, "why have something that sounds like a stepped on cat when in the great outdoors?"
Be sure to take your flyrod with you when looking for your reel. Some just feel more right than others.
Be sure to consider what type of fish you're after. Do you plan on saltwater or fresh? Be sure the reels components will take the water.
Do your target fish tend to run great distances? Do you need to get line on the reel quickly? This could help you decide on the large or standard arbor...check for spare spool availability. Is it left hand retrieve or right or switchable?
Yeah...right...just a place to store line...
And when all else fails...ask someone you trust.

I purchased this rod to mainly learn how to cast and fish my neighborhood ponds. These ponds are stacked with bass and I pull out 4 or 5 on a daily basis. Neighbor says he's caught and released a 7 lber last year. Here are a few pics of the fish from these ponds...

This is the average size fish


My daughter's biggest fish from the pond so far


Lots of good size perch too


And one more


Do you think an 8 weight is a bit much? I would like to eventually take this rig out to Lake Austin and tool around with some poppers around the boat docks and grass beds.

Eight weight is about right in my opinion. You'll need a little "backbone" around docks and other cover. Judging from the size of the fish in your photos you may need one "just because"

Fly is right, an 8 weight will do you right. If you ever feel the need to experience a little more fight, moving to a four or five weight, or even a three, would make it a wilder ride.

On the reels, if you are looking to spend a couple hundred bucks, I'd head on over to Cabelas, they have a sweet selection right there that you can lay hands on.

The Ross Evolution you'll find at Cabela's would be a great one, although it will be a little over $300. It is one of the prettiest out there. I'd also recommend the Lamson Litespeed or Velocity. The Litespeed is one of the toughest reels out there. There's lots of others out there, but I would go ahead and get one that's saltwater safe, since you've got a great redfish rod and a fairly short drive to the coast.

Yeah, 8wt is a bit on the heavy side in my opinion. My overall favorite is the 5wt. But for situations where you want to throw big poppers, or if you fish in heavy cover, or even if you fish in the coast, that 8wt should be perfect.

I've owned a lot of different reels. The Ross Evolution is nice. I own two in smaller sizes since they are lightweight. The only thing I don't like about the Evolution is the sound when you are winding it. Don't know why, but it bothers me.

In bigger sizes, my favorite reels are Bauers. If I were you I would get a Bauer MSL-4. (That stands for Mackenzie Superlight) It will run you $325. They meet your criteria of being great reels and looking cool.

People will always argue about tackle but one thing about 95% of fly fishers will agree on is that the best made saltwater reels (that are commercially available) are the Abel reels and the Tibor reels.

Now both of those reels run in the $600 range.

What many people don't know is there is a company called Old Florida that makes reels on the exact same design principles as the Tibor/Abel. The have a website http://www.oldfloridareels.com

Now the Old Florida reels (standard, large arbor, super arbor) are less than $300. They do make a more expensive Nautilus now that is built on different design principles.

A 55 reel (a good match to an 8 weight) costs $250. Their Super Arbor 5SA runs about $290.

Is the Old Florida better than the Bauer or Lamson or Ross reels? You'll never get a unified opinion on that. I can tell you that the cork and bar drag on an Abel, Tibor, and Old Florida has withstood the test of fish and time much better than some of the newer conical drag systems in some of the above mentioned reels.

Cork versus new-tech is one of the ongoing debates amongst fly fisher folk that may never be fully decided.

Cork fans will tell you that cork drag reels have landed more and bigger fish than anything else, and they're absolutely right, by a long shot.

New-tech fans will tell you that cork requires too much maintenance and that "surely cork isn't the best, its cork!" or something like that. In this case "too much maintenance" means more than none. The cork disc on a cork drag reel should be kept moist with linseed oil, but when stored indoors, this is only necessary about once or twice a year. The drag also needs to be fully backed off to prevent permanent compression of the cork after fishing. These two minor things are the only maintenance required of a cork drag.

At this point, I think cork truly is the more proven drag material. A lot of big fish will have to be landed on new-tech reels before the balance will tip the other way.

I think Bauers all have cork drags, most of them do anyway.

Cliff: Although I don't know for sure about all Bauers, the MSL reels do have cork.