Our series of articles on Freshwater Fishing Tackle continues as we attempt to slay the fright of purchasing fishing tackle from the novice fisherman.

We will cover a lot of fishing gear including reels, graphite and fiberglass rods, fish hooks, lines, and accessories. It is hoped by the end of the series your can go online and purchase the right tackle and within budget.

The first topic covered has been the fishing reel, including the spincast, spinning and baitcast reels. Although these reels have many differences they basically work the same, you cannot say that about the final reel in our series. The Fly Casting Reel is not meant to cast line or land fish, its unique function is to help you manage the fly line.

A fly casting reel helps prevent you from tripping over your line and to retrieve and rewind it and not much else. The fly casting reel has through the years has been very elementary in terms of mechanical construction, little has changed from the original design.

To use a fly reel you spool off line manually, cast forward, and then release as the rod flies forward. Modern models do incorporate a drag mechanism to stop the fish from dragging out more line that is wanted.

Contemporary fly reels can have high tech disc-type drag systems made of composite materials that feature wider adjustment range, consistency, and resistance to high temperatures caused by line drag. Another nice feature in recent year is an automatic fly reel mechanism for retrieving line back onto the reel with the press of a button.

Fly reels typically have bigger line spools built to cut line memory, maintain consistent drag and aid the quick recovery of slack line in case a hooked fish makes a quick turn back to the angler.

Drawbacks of the fly reel are limited use, since it is primarily used for fly fishing and a much higher price point, especially at the high end.

An affordable fly cast reel is the “Sage 1800 Series Fly Reel,” priced at only $55.00. It is an all-around reliable performer and features a lightweight, yet durable aluminum construction with a non-glare titanium finish. Built with a large arbor, this reel is equipped with a quick-release spool change, premium sealed graphite drag system and a comfortable machined handle.

Look for our review of the Fly Fishing Reel in the next article in the continuing series “Freshwater Fishing Gear Beginners Guide.

Welcome back to our continuing series of articles on Freshwater Fishing Gear, we will cover the Spinning reel today. With this series we are hoping to take out the fright of purchasing fishing gear from the novice angler.

We will cover a wide range of fishing gear from reels, rods, lures, baits, jigs, lines, and knives. It is hoped by the end of the series your can go online and buy the right tackle and within budget.

We began our review on freshwater fishing reels with the spincast reel, the best reel for beginners and the infrequent fishermen. This review will cover the spinning reel, and will continue with the baitcast reel and lastly an article on the fly fishing reel.

Spinning reels come in numerous forms and are utilized by kids, casual hobbyist and enthusiastic sportsman alike. When it comes to fishing reels, the spinning reel is the most well-known and popular. It is chiefly used for light weight fishing and dominates in terms of performance and simplicity of use.

The spinning reel is perfect for landing just about any fish out there; whether it is racing rivers, local creeks, mountain lakes or your favorite hidden pond. You can catch small pond fish such as bluegills, catfish, trout and bass; it doesn’t matter, if you have strong enough line your spinning reel will land the fish.

The spinning reel has a very recognizable look with the large wire bale around the open-faced line spool and a line roller to help control the line as you retrieve it. The reel handle or “crank” can have either one or two knobs, both work equally well at preventing line friction as you retrieve it, with little or no snarling. This type of reel is mounted on the underside of the rod.

There are few negatives to the spinning reel. It is only limited by the thickness of your fishing line, when compared to the baitcast reel it holds less line. This means you will need to use a smaller, lighter line to guarantee you have enough line to get to the point you want. The lighter the line the smaller fish you can land. The spinning reel is also not as accurate at casting as the baitcast reel

A good example of this type of reel is the Daiwa Opus Spinning Reel. Priced at under $38 it is an affordable choice for general-duty fishing, well-equipped and geared for extra power.

The next article in our series “Freshwater Fishing Gear Beginners Guide” will feature the baitcast reel, an outstanding reel for master anglers.