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Hatchet Jack

Fly reel capacity & fly lines

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If I had the correct fly lines, I could measure this myself but alas, I don't.

 

Given a WF6F and a DT6F line of same manufacturer

 

& model, which would fill a fly reel the most?

 

Or would they turn out the same, or too close to call?

 

Thanks,

 

HJ

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The same weight double taper will take up more space than a weight forward.

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What he said!

 

To figure out how much backing you need, load your spool in reverse order.

 

Load the reel by putting the fly line tip on the spool first. Then reel up the fly line in reverse order. Then tie the backing to the back end of the fly line and reel the backing over the fly line until the backing is 1/4 inch from the lip of the spool. Cut off the rest of the backing.

 

Remove the backing and fly line. Then load the spool by tying on the back end of the backing first and wind up the backing and fly line. After the fly line is loaded, you should have the same 1/4 inch of "head space" from the spool edge. This allows you to wind the fly line on less carefully without overloading the spool.

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The other way to "measure" how much backing to put on a fly reel is to guess at the amount of backing (without cutting the backing off of the spool) and then remove the fly line from it's spool (keep the line secured with the twist ties to avoid a mess). Gauge the amount of backing on the reel by determining if the fly line (when pressed out) will fit in the remaining cavity of the reel. It is better to leave more space than you think you need since spooling the fly line back on the reel is variable - leave enough room to get the whole line on.

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Put it on in reverse order, fly line, then backing, as Silver suggested. There's an easy way to do the flip, if you've got the room.

 

Loop the line around a smooth post or stake. Walk back, with the line in one hand and the fly rod in the other.

 

line swap.jpg

 

When the line runs out, just tie the backing into place and reel it all in. No fuss, no tangling.

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The same weight double taper will take up more space than a weight forward.

Sort of what I was thinking, just wasn't sure.

 

What he said!...To figure out how much backing you need,

load your spool in reverse order...This allows you to wind

the fly line on less carefully without overloading the spool.

Been doing that for years, and a while back I found some large line-spools

the sportings goods store was going to bin. Their arbours are ~ 5" diameter

and I use them to quickly wind & unwind line. A length of rod blank is an axle,

another is a 'crank', works great, cheap too wink.png

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