Best Fly Reels (A Top 10 Buyer's Guide for 2023)

Best Fly Reels: A 2022 Buyer's Guide

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In this video, we’ll be covering the top 10 best fly reels on the market in 2022.
Choosing the best fly reel may not be quite as important as choosing some of the other gear in your kit, like rods and flies, but it's still important that you know exactly what you're looking for when shopping for reels.
With that, let’s get started.

Here are our top 10 best fly reels that you can purchase today.

1. Redington Behemoth - Best Value Fly Reel (0:45)
Cost: $90
Pros: Quick Retrieve, Good Value, Good Sound, Great Drag
Cons: Die Cast Aluminum, slightly loose drag knob
Arbor: Large (Enormous Actually)
Available Weights: 4-12

2. Maxcatch ECO - Best Budget Fly Reel (1:14)
Cost: $35
Pros: Med-Arbor, Good Sound, Amazing Price
Cons: Sub-par Drag Adjustment, Cast Aluminum Design
Arbor: Large
Available Weights: 3-8

3. Piscifun Platte - Best Midrange Reel (1:42)
Cost: $150
Pros: Large Arbor, Machined Aluminum, Fully Sealed for Saltwater
Cons: Sub-par Drag Adjustment
Arbor: Large
Available Weights: 5-10

4. Lamson Force SL Series II - Best Pro-Level Reel (2:02)
Cost: $550
Pros: Hyper-light, Beautiful Design, Durable, Machined
Cons: High Price
Arbor: Super-Large
Available Weights: 2-8

5. Sage Spectrum Max - Best Saltwater Fly Reel (2:29)
Cost: $450
Pros: Best Sound, Best Quality Machined ultra-high quality Aluminum, Carbon Sealed Drag System, Fast-Action Drag
Cons: High Price, Light on Drag
Arbor: Large
Available Weights: 5-12

6. Lamson Light Speed G5 - Best Trout Reel (3:02)
Cost: $390
Pros: Great drag system, good for salt and freshwater
Cons: High Price, Not The Best-looking Design
Arbor: Large
Available Weights: 3-12

7. Orvis Hydros SL - Best Reel For Bass (3:24)
Cost: $260
Pros: Best drag in class, large arbor good for bass
Cons: Not the best sound, annoying drag knob.
Arbor: Large
Available Weights: 3-11

8. Piscifun Sword - Best 3-weight Fly Reel (3:50)
Cost: $55
Pros: Med-Arbor, Good Sound, Good Price, Machined Aluminum Design
Cons: Sub-par Drag Adjustment
Arbor: Mid
Available Weights: 3-10

9. Galvan Torque T-5 - Best 5-Weight Fly Reel (4:08)
Cost: $360
Pros: Good Drag, Low Startup Inertia
Cons: Drag Design unsealed (not good for saltwater), Tiny Reel Knob
Arbor: Large
Available Weights: 2-12

10. Nautilus CCF X2 - Best 8-Weight Fly Reel (4:38)
Cost: $525
Pros: Great ergonomics, quick line retrieve
Cons: A bit too heavy
Arbor: Large
Available Weights: 8-12

BEST FULL OUTFITS:
Fully built-out fly kits are a great way for beginners to get started. If you're kitting out your fly fishing gear from scratch, then it's usually worth it to get the full outfit - including the reel, rod, line, and protective cases.

Below I've listed the best full kits based on price and quality.

Orvis Encounter 908-4 Fly Kit - Best Budget Outfit
Cost: $169.99
Included: Fly Reel, Fly Rod & Case, Fly Line, Leader
Pros: Decent rod, includes leader, line & tippet
Cons: Plastic reel design, quiet reel
Available Weights: 4, 5 & 6-weight

Lamson Center Axis - Best Mid-Range Outfit
Cost: $749.99
Included: Fly Reel, Fly Rod & Case
Pros: Center aligned for great balance, High-quality design, great case
Cons: Rod isn't as good as some other Lamson rods
Available Weights: 4, 5 & 6-weight

Sage Trout LL - Best Top-End Outfit
Cost: $1,275
Included: Fly Reel, Fly Line, Fly Rod & Case
Pros: One of the best classic sage reels included, excellent rod
Cons: Doesn't include leader and tippet, expensive
Available Weights: 3, 4, 5 & 6-weight

In Conclusion (5:07)

Whether you purchase your rod and reel separately, or you go for a full fly fishing outfit, you will need to consider many different factors when shopping for the best fly reel.

This video was meant to answer all of your questions about fly reels and which ones are best for each situation. I hope you found it useful! If you did, please feel free to share it and comment below and don’t forget to subscribe if you have any questions.

Until next time...
Happy casting!

[kentowakai]

Mine - 1955 fleuger medalist. Three of them. Thanks dad.

[sxhunlt]

For the past 18 years I've been using Bauer Rogue Reels on my R.L. Winson Boron III flyrods. I used them heavily on many fish Bass, Trout, with Alaskan Salmon weighing in at 63 pounds. Never had any issues with these Bauer reels. The drag is extremely strong, smooth, and fully water proof. Bauer Reels are being sold now by R.L Winston Rod Company who purchased the reel company started by John Bauer in Oregon. These are now made at the R.L. Winston factory in Montana. I was very surprised that Bauer Reels and Able Reels were not included in your review. Why not?

[Raevenswood]

I used Waterworks lamson lite speed reels for about 8 years and in that time there wasn't one of them that didn't need at least 2 or 3 drag clutch replacements. I fish saltwater and the fact that they are sealed was attractive but in practice saltwater gets inside and they disintegrate from the inside out. I switched to unsealed Galvan Rush light and Torque reels and have had zero issues with saltwater in the last 6 years of use. I've never had to have them serviced once and they still work as good as the day I bought them. I just rinse them after use and repeat. Absolutely bulletproof in my opinion. FYI The Galvan website clearly claims that both the Rush and the Torque are saltwater safe. The torque drag components are stainless.

[OldVetUSN]

I have 3 Tibors -2 Everglades and a Riptide that are going on 20yr old and still going strong ! Not a bit of trouble with any! That being said, I will use a sealed drag reel like the Nautilius or Galvan Grip for surf fishing over the Tibors.

[ProChaos]

Ight man, im gonna subscribe, i wish you luck with your YouTube channel, keep it up!

[joycehubka]

My favorite reels are the SAGE Spectrum and Spectrum LT. I have them on all my SAGE fly rods and in weights from 3 to 8 and on my Switch and Spey rods, also. Love these reels! Jerry Hubka

[gilleslafreniere]

I recently bought a Maxcatch Avid Reel with their V Gold rod for a Christmas present for my son. I am very pleased with their qualities and will get myself one next spring in preparation for the next's season's fishing.

[LNKOutdoors]

best fly reels.... you missing out on a few reels thats way better than the ones on the list... like Vosseler, Hatch, ALFA, Einarsson, LOOP etc etc etc... i can go on for quite some time :P

[redred]

Hell yeah i love maxcatch i bought one of their $80 combos mainly for panfish but I will take it over my $200 TFO any day if you are wondering what model I went with it's a 8'4 foot 3 weight 4 piece it has 9 guides so casting will be perfect the full name is Max catch extreme and I have caught up to a to 2 pound rainbow trout on it handled it perfectly

[TheSavagederek]

The Hardy Ultralight ASR cassette reels are amazing. Cheap spools so you can carry lots of different lines ans sizes and comes already with 3 spools in a Neoprene case. It looks stunning and is super easy to use and the drag is both sealed, and super smooth. I've started playing all my fish off the reel now. I love it.

[BrookieCooki]

My favorite reel is the one I’m reeling a fish in with.

[peterdzavoronok]

What do you think about the Sage ESN 2/5 wt ?

[izzy]

I plan to get into fly fishing and I think my combo would be the piscifun sword reel with the redington crosswater rod as it'll be a nice starting point from what I've read whilst still being dependable.
I appreciate the lists and keep it up.

[esn]

Platay is almost certainly named of the Platte river pronounced "Plat" rhyming with "matt", "cat", or "bat.

[nicoschepers]

What constitutes the best reel? Is it quality, cost, amount sold globally, and who is your target market for the video? I'm missing Shilton, Wade, Tibor, Mako and hardy in your review.

[danreid]

Ross Gunnison for 5 or 6 wt.
Okuma SLV 7/8 for 8wt freshwater.
Orvis Battenkill for 3 or 4wt
Loop-Q for 7wt
Hardy Princess onto a light Bamboo Rod.
Abel or Tibor for saltwater.

[Kyle-srjm]

List without Danielsson, isn't a list

[tylermassie]

This channel is severely underrated, subbed!

[liammartin]

Is the Orvis Clearwater a good reel in your experience? I love the rod

[sergtang]

Hydros SL has been replace by Hydros I, II and III. Drag system, sound and even design have been redesigned.