On Tue, 8 Mar 2005 21:01:02 +0100, "riverman" wrote:

From some HongKong forums, I have learned that there is some freshwater
fishing there on the dams, but a LOT of sal****er fishing around the islands
and bays. So I need to add some more gear to my haul. Can anyone recommend a
brand and some models of sal****er flyfishing gear that is not too pricey? I
seem to remember that, usually, sal****er reels tend to be at the high end
of the price range, is this correct? And is there anything different or
special about a rod that will be used for swff?

I could just use my freshwater gear and rinse it regularly, but I think I'd
rather have sal****er gear, flies and equipment and keep them separate. But
I don't want to spend another fortune on gear. I guess another option would
be to go bottom-end on some more freshwater gear, and if it corrodes then
its no great shakes. But that just feels wrong.

What do folks recommend?

--riverman


You don't indicate what you'll be going after, and salt varies in "strength"
requirements for reels even more than fresh. Generally, the advice given thus
far seems to miss or at least gloss over the two distinct requirements of
sal****er gear: corrosion resistance and "strength" of the gear. You seemingly
correctly realize corrosion resistance is always a factor. But as to
"strength," bones can make reel-smoking runs that could (and likely would) be an
instant problem with, say, a "whatever-Mart" reel and make it an obviously
inappropriate choice. But if even if the reel had been fished for weeks in
salt, but maintained appropriately, the corrosion factor would have been all but
eliminated. OTOH, the construction of an old Pflueger Medalist 1496 1/2 _can_
be used for bones and easily handle things like smaller tarpon (yes, it can, but
obviously, not a "go-to" choice"), but if not maintained, the corrosion factor
could ruin it. What does this mean to you? Well, you're going to have to make
some decisions. Salt FFing _can_ get expensive if you want "designed and made
for salt" gear and you're going to have to decide just how much you wish to
spend for what will become a diminishing rate of return, "strength"-wise, versus
how much you are willing to spend, time-wise, to maintain your tackle and how
much you're willing to risk that gear.

As to rods, it is just like fresh - whatdaya after and whatdaya like? Unlike
much of freshwater fishing, the reel can be more important than the rod, but
either way, it's pretty much a YMMV thing.

If it were me, and I were after truly reel-stressing quarry, I'd try to find
used the smallest Billy Pate reasonable to the quarry (a pair of them and two
rods if it's "once-in-a-lifetime" fishing, or, if going for bones or similar,
two that size-overlapped - a Salmon and a Tarpon) and whatever rod that you
like, appropriately-sized, and maintain my tackle daily.

HTH (Ha-gow Tzatziki...HUZZAH!, or, in the alternative, Hope This Helps),
R