"Mike Connor" wrote in message
Fly-shops are there to sell you things. Some will give you first class
advice, and yet others will merely try to sell you something. The only
way
to make sure you get what you really need, is to inform yourself as well
as
you possibly can.

I certainly agree, but I'll add that some shop owners take a short term
outlook while some (the smarter ones, I think) take the long view. As a
newbie, I put myself at the mercy of a fly shop owner for advice. I went
in, with a limited budget and asked what I needed. Joe could not have been
more helpful or more honest. Now, more than a decade later, I still do not
doubt or disagree with the advice he gave me or the products he sold me that
day. Consequently, I remain a loyal customer; and he has more than recouped
what he could have taken from me that first day.

Joe F.

p.s. He recommended a DT line.