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The Gear Bag / Product Review
Fly Logic Reels
by Chuck Stranahan
Proprietor, Riverbend Flyfishing Fly Shop
Hamilton, MT
Email: chuck.s@riverbendflyfishing.com
I am a machinery nut. I like stuff that is precision-built, well finished, and above all, functional -- whether I use it in the kitchen, the woodshop, under the hood of a car, at the fly tying bench, or on the stream. Tools that don't do the job are an annoyance to me.
As a result, I have collected and used a wide variety of fly reels over the years. Some are war horses, like my old (1960's) Pflueger, some are classics, like my old Hardys, but the majority of them are modern, and expensive.
There are a lot of expensive reels out there. Some of them are quite good. There are others, though, that are well machined, beautifully polished and anodized, and, like the beautiful daughter from a dysfunctional family, possess inner flaws that betray their appearance. In time, they get wobbly as their center posts get loose. (I'm talking about reels now -- not the girl.)
The slightest bend in the spool (which, with proper metallurgy wouldn't happen to begin with) causes scraping. It is profoundly annoying at the least, and at worst, can ruin your fishing. The drag ceases to function as itsy-bitsy parts, too small for the job at hand, fail.
I retired all of mine, some costing well over $300, to fish a Fly Logic Premium 345 two years ago. I own a fly shop, and within reason, can fish anything I please. That's the reason I fish the Fly Logic. I like it. Here's why:
This little reel, well designed and rugged, yet with a drag adjustment that will protect 7x, continues to make me grin every time I fish it. It has a big, comfortable handle. The drag adjustment is gradual. The knob is big and easy to turn (think about it on a cold morning when fingers refuse to do their duty). The drag itself is a big spring-loaded clutch. Nothing delicate here (and it shouldn't be!) yet real smooth. There are built-in adjustments that you can make every five years or so to compensate for the inevitable wear that a hard-fished reel will come by.
And, to say that you don't have to baby this reel is an understatement. One day when I was fishing behind Smut Warren's place on the East Fork, I lost my footing in the gravel that covered a steep pile of jagged riprap. I didn't have time to drop my rod. The reel took the full impact of the fall. I regained my balance only to lose it again. This time I dropped the rod. The spool took the brunt of it.
I picked it up, inspected the bright new scars on the frame and spool, and turned the crank -- with a wince. I expected the worst: a terminal case of bent spool or warped frame. I heard no scrape, then turned the handle some more, then spun it. Hmm...still no scrape. Then I went on fishing. Through the course of the day I hit a couple of fish that put the reel to the test, and everything still worked. To this day, my beat-up little Fly Logic is still doing just fine.
That's why I like it. It fishes real well.
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