Product Review Abel Spey Reel

I've got most of a Fall season chasing chrome on my Abel Spey reel, so I thought a review was warranted.

This reel was added to my quiver out of a desire to go a little retro with a classic click-and-pawl reel. While I've had some great reels with traditional drag, I just like the direct connection to the fish you're fighting with a clicker. Plus, there's just a look and feel of these old school line winders that's unique and super-cool.

What I like best about the Abel offering is how they've managed to elegantly update the classic reel with modern materials and machining methods. Anywhere you look this thing is built like a tank - from the burly reel foot to the industrial-strength clickers. They've clearly advanced the state of the click-pawl art to the level of Abel's traditional reels. This thing's a brute.

My two-handed swinging rods are a classic Scott ARC1287/3 spey and a Scott L2h 1168/4 switch. Both have a very traditional look that melds very well with the Abel Spey, in particular the unsanded blank of the L2h. Naturally my reel is classsic black and unported. I suppose if I had one of the "spaceship" sticks like a Sage TCX "death star" or  an ECHO TR I might feel the need to explore Abel's myriad of custom colors and finishes. But on my sticks, I think they'd just look completely ridiculous.

Even the mechanics of the drag (such as it may be) system have evolved. The Abel feature two clickers that can be configured for left- or right-hand retrieve, as well as a "maximum drag" setting. Switching is as simple as rotating one or both of the burly clickers. I've been running mine on maximum drag with no complaints.

Abel offers spey reels in three sizes - Spey, Switch, and the new smaller Classic configuration. One of these should easily balance almost any two-handed rod less than 14'. If you're in the market for a well-built, stylish click-pawl spey reel, I strongly recommend giving Abel a look!

-Sean-

Product Review - Scott L2h 1158/4

Now that I've got a couple of outings under my belt with the new Scott L2h switch rod, I thought a quick review to be in order.

Regular readers may recall I picked up this rod to be part of a dedicated swung fly rig. I love swinging and found that breaking down and switching over from an indy rig was just too much of a pain. This enables me to roll up to a good swing spot and go!

The rod has Scott's new unsanded blank approach. I like the retro look and feel of it, but never understood that there were performance reasons behind this decision. Evidently traditional sanded/finished blanks are first sanded, then painted and sealed. This adds a cosmetic layer than can actually negatively impact performance. Interesting -- I had no idea, but it makes perfect sense. For more, read the full article on the Scott web site here.

In addition to the aesthetically appealing finish, this rod has some of the nicer cork I've seen from Scott. My other Scott sticks are fine cork-wise, but this one has a nice, dense, smooth surface. And it feels great in-hand. I know this doesn't really affect the functionality, but it certainly does improve your overall impression of the rod when you first pick one up.

Great, fine -- it's a sweet-looking stick. But how does it FISH? Well, here's the disclaimer. I haven't actually caught anything with it. YET. But I've got some casts in with it and have formed enough of an opinion that I'm very happy with its performance.

The L2h is clearly in the "baby spey" category of switch rods. Unlike the softer float rods (like my A3 1108/4), this one has some more serious backbone. That backbone translates into some serious power. It would be interesting to compare this to the Sage TCX "Death Star" switch. I've thrown a TCX spey rod and the L2h clearly holds its own comparatively.

One interesting issue is selecting the correct line weight. I found a plethora of wildly differing opinions in online resources. In Skagit, Scott calls for 440 grains, whereas Rio suggests 525-575 grains. And Scientific Anglers says 480 grains. Confusing, at-best.Since I was running an SA Skagit Extreme intermediate, I went with their recommendation initially. Casting felt pretty good on the first outing. No blown anchor points and decent "go".

But as the constant tweaker I am, I wondered if a slightly heavier head would benefit me. So, I picked up a 520 grain head and on my second trip to the river - MONEY! With this heavier head, I could feel the rod load much better, manage my application of power, and put the fly right where I wanted it! On my second outing I gained tremendous accuracy, distance, and confidence. I really like this set-up and I'm quite certain it will help me up my two-handed casting skills.

So, if you're looking for an all-around switch rod for mid-sized rivers, I highly recommend the Scott L2h series!

First Impressions - Abel Spey Fly Reel

I've been lucky enough to add a sweet reel to the collection for the upcoming Fall steelhead season. For a while I'd been thinking about a traditional click-and-pawl reel. I love the old school look and feel, plus the idea of a screaming reel with a bit of hot chrome on the other end of the line is pretty appealing!

I was first looking at reels from the Spey Company, in Wisconsin. Fully machined, made in the USA, and readily customized to be cool and unique. But, I hadn't found $450 lying around to dedicate to a "nice to have" reel that I didn't truly NEED (but seriously, is any of this about need anyway?).

Out of nowhere, along comes a deal on an Abel Spey reel. If you're unfamiliar with Abel, these folks make top-notch products. But they're not cheap. My Abel nippers are about the sweetest fly fishing accessory you'll ever find.

Though I have done little other than practice cast with it on my Scott ARC 1287-3, I've been mighty impressed. One area that really stands out is the fit of the spool to the frame. This is an area where exceptional workmanship really shines. My mass-produced Ross and Orvis reels are just fine, but the can't hold a candle to the tight-as-a-drum Abel. It sounds like closing the door on a really high-end European performance car.

My reel is the retro non-ported design, in classic black. I'm not really sure I could even own any color combination other than this. The finish on this reel is perfect - not too matte, not too shiny.

Once inside you realize the simplicity of this sort of reel. All you find is a spring and two clickers. By simply rotating them you can select from right-hand or left-hand retrieve. Simple as that! By engaging both clickers, you get the maximum drag setting (which is where I've set mine). One cool feature is the externally adjustable drag. A nice surprise on this sort of reel. At minimum, this will be a nice way to take the tension off the spring when I'm not fishing.

Can't wait to get this one on the swing this Fall! Only a few weeks away!

-Sean-

Schwingin'

Mad props to Mike Schultz for introducing me to swinging flies for smallmouth bass! I love swinging with a two-handed rod and this really extends my season. I find spey casting really relaxing and it's a pleasant way to enjoy time on the river when they're not biting. I've now had a chance to get out a few times - even hooked my first carp on the fly!

So for you gear geeks, here's the final rig:

• TFO Deer Creek 11' 6-wt. switch rod
• Ross Evolution LT 4 reel
• Scientific Anglers Skagit Extreme Intermediate head (400 gr.)
• Scientific Anglers Shooting Line (floating with dragon tail)
• Rio Freshwater VersiLeader (3.6 ips sink rate)

The 400 grain Skagit head may be a little heavy for a 6 weight, but it casts like a ROCKET! Point and shoot! Only problem is that it goes where you cast it; so get it right. I've got Skagit cheaters on order. As with my other Skagit-lined rods that little bit extra helps me not blow my anchor point as often.

For now, I've been swinging with a sink tip. But with the increased flexibility of a running line/head system, I'll also be adding a Scandi head. My plan is to use this to skate dries as the season progresses.

Too much fun! If you've never swung for smallies, give it a try! Lots of fun.

-Sean-

First Time + Lesson Learned

Latest addition to the fishing arsenal is a 6 weight swing rig. I've learned more lately about swinging for smallmouth bass from Mike Schultz - and this coincided with finding a great deal on a TFO Deer Creek 11' switch rod in 6 weight. I really enjoy swinging, so learning that I could extend my swing season on smallies was a very pleasant surprise! And, right in my backyard!

Added a Ross Evolution LT 4 (the Evo is quickly becoming my go-to reel) and lined it up with Scientific Anglers Skagit Extreme Intermediate head and a Floating Shooting Line with Dragon Tail. The guys at Schultz are big on the new Intermediate Skagit Extreme's. Although they only start at 400 grain weight, Mike threw one of the shop's on my Deer Creek, cast it briefly and proclaimed it a rocket ship.

Friday evening I had some time on my hands and beautiful weather, so it was off to the river. Sorry, can't divulge my spot. It's nearly in walking distance to my home and not very heavily fished just now. I'd like to keep it that way. Rumor was its been holding a lot of smallies this time of year.

After a few warm-up casts downstream to get my timing back and get a feel for the new rig, its time to move up into the prime slot. The 400 grain head is a little heavy, but this gives me a huge advantage as it's less impacted by wind, and forces me to slow down my timing. When you hit it even halfway right, KABOOM -- huge distance, little effort. A simple egg-sucking leech is the perfect fly option, I think.

Shortly, my line stops and thumps at the hang down. Hey -- the fish are where they're supposed to be! But something's not right. Smallmouth thump and headshake like my dog when you're playing tug-o-war. This is just THERE and big. It's peeling off line like crazy. I up the drag, get my wits about me and start to put the boots to this fish. Got a NICE bend in the rod and starting gaining inches, and then fee. As the fish comes into sight I realize -- that's no smallie, it's a CARP! And a big one at that. Just as I realize this, WOOSH! Off he goes across the river. I've lost 40 feet in the blink of an eye. Eventually, he tires and I start to gain some advantage.Shortly I have him back in close, when once again he finds another gear and races away from me.

By now, I'm thinking "Dude, you can't have much left, I got you...". Suddenly, Icarus plummeted back to earth - as trumpeted by the sound of "ping"and a suddenly slack line hurtling toward my head. Twenty minutes in and I've already hooked, fought, and lost my first even carp on the fly. On the swing no less!

But, before I tell you the rest of the story, let's digress for a moment...

Back when I first started fly fishing, I wasn't tying. Anything I fished, I bought. And with an affinity for trees, I lost alot of flies. That starts getting expensive. So online I find ReelFlies out of Canada. Cheap flies and they look nicely tied. It's only later that I learn about the importance of quality hooks. Every guide I know has said, "buy good hooks; a few pennies extra is worth it when you have that awesome fish on...".

Turns out they were right. Guess what came flying back my way? Yup, the eye and shank of the hook, with tied fly still intact, and the hook bend and barb GONE. I'll be chucking these leeches and buggers and re-tying my own on Daiichi hooks.

From Hero to Zero; in one quick ping.

Ah well, on the upside, Mike tells me I'm only the second guy he knows who's gotten a carp on the swung presentation this year. Pretty cool!

-Sean-

FUNdamentals

On Saturday I got to take part in a long-awaited class. Schultz Outfitters hosted a spey clinic with guru Will Turek of the Midwest Spey School. I've been fishing a switch rod for about a year and recently added a dedicated two-handed rod to my arsenal. Thus far I've had a total of roughly 15 minutes of instruction - just enough to be dangerous.

Most of my outings have gone OK, but not great. I really only knew one cast. Wind, orientation, and river dynamics would completely throw my program into disarray. But I think it was good to get out and learn what I didn't know.

Will's program was excellent with a solid progression of knowledge.  We started with some classroom basics that really helped me get a better understanding of my rigs and how you match lines, sink tips, rods, reels, etc. As a bonus, I finally learned how a "cheater" segment fits in. I've been running cheaters on both of my rigs because a more knowledgeable guide told me I needed them. Now I know why, when, and how to figure out what length to use.

After class, we moved to some lawn casting. Again, some really great fundamentals that would come into play later in the day. Focus was on overhead casting and getting comfortable really working BOTH hands in unison. That extra "pop" from the lower hand on the backcast and shooting cast really energizes the whole program. He also made us cast to both sides - as I quickly learned, spey casting is an ambidexterous thing!~

By this point everyone was HOT (high in the low 90's on Saturday) and eager to hit the river. Will started us with the basics of building a double spey cast. Mastering the stop-and-flop of setting up the cast, as well as getting some sense of timing. After that, an exercise in clearing the line that helped with the sweep (to set-up the cast) had us prepped for the real thing.

One key element I learned was the components of the cast. First is the "contrived" cast that sets your anchor point. Next is clearing the line, which creates the D-loop the delivers the power of the cast. Finally is your overhead cast that delivers. What I learned was that the last two steps are universal, no matter the cast. What changes with a Spey, Double Spey, Circle, Snap-T, etc. is the contrived cast. And all of these are based largely on where you need the anchor point. This has been a HUGE source of challenge for me and resulted in some might nice collision casts. But I learned that happens as a result of having the rod tip inside the D-loop. And that's completely driven by wind, and the change of direction needed to hit your target. Wind upstream, D-loop upstream. Wind downstream, D-loop downstream. Basically you never want the D-loop blowing into you/your rod and collapsing into a shit show.

Now we were ready for the big show -- putting all the pieces together. Contrived cast (double spey first, later circle), clearing the line, then BOOM -- delivering the cast. Now it's all clicking and I know why I need each element. Of course my timing could have been better, and timing is critical. But that comes with practice. We also learned Circle Spey, ideal for an upstream cast (and a key for heavy flies and sink tips here in Michigan).

Will closed out the class with some thoughts on presentation. How to slow the fly and get good cross-current action, or speed up the sink rate of the fly for pocket water.

If you're doing ANY two-handed casting, I would strongly recommend a clinic of this sort. I learned a wealth of basics that will really help me build a solid repertoire. I would highly recommend Will Turek, if you have access to one of his classes. Really good guy with a very solid style of instruction that helps you learn and retain technique.

-Sean-