4weight wrote:

St. Croix makes an excellent starter rod (the St. Croix Reign series),
a 5-weight shouldn't set you back more than $130. Orvis makes an
excellent starter reel, the Clearwater series - about $30 (no drag
mechanism, just click & pawl).

I don't disagree with the Clearwater as a starter reel (it's what I
bought when I got my first trout rig), but mine has a drag, not a click
and pawl. Did they change somewhere along the way?

If I had to do it all over again, I'd probably just buy a Redington
CT (click & pawl) to start with. They are more expensive, but they are
sweet reels.

Too bad they stopped making them.


Chuck Vance (but I got some good deals on spare spools when they
were discontinued)