"BobS" wrote in message
...

Got my brother a 9', 9wt, 5pc rod for his birthday this past week but
didn't get him a reel to go with it since I'm at a loss as to what would
be a good match - for him.

He will use that rod for steelhead and salmon and some big LM bass on
large lakes and rivers in upstate NY or Maine. Should I get him a
mid-arbor type reel or a large arbor reel? My thinking is that he
probably would get better mileage out of a mid-arbor reel since he would
have more backing than on "most" large arbor reels I've looked at. The
local shop is doing their best to hook me into an Abel... Nice but I just
want a decent gift for my bro - not a second mortgage.

I'm looking at the Orvis line since all but two of my reels are by Orvis
(BRF) and the fact that I know a shop that still has a few "Made in
England" reels available which I'm partial to.
I know there are lot's of manufacturers of reels and everyone has
favorites (like I do) and I would like to get him another Hardy

My understanding is that it's been several years since Orvis's BFR
subsidiary made a reel in England and they now are made in Malaysia, it
that's not important to you then fine. Personally, I just had one of their
new model CFO reels' drag fail on a foot long smallmouth bass.

My two cents worth is to get a reel with a sealed drag system or one of the
delrin drags or old fashioned click and pawl drag system . Avoid Cork for NY
winter steelheading. You're bypassing the Abels for the wrong reason. Abel
makes one of the finest reels on the market and that comes at a price. But
unless something has changed, and it's possible, the drags weren't sealed
and winter steelhead fishing and wet reels sometimes means a small film of
ice can settle between the drag, making all that money wasted until it
thaws.

There was a reel line made just for great lake steelheading, It's the Harris
Reel. The original company went under but now someone in Washington is
making them. That's where I would start and I would also consider one of the
Ross series of reels.