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Your Favorite Gear Of All Time

10K views 91 replies 72 participants last post by  BC33 
#1 · (Edited)
I feel like we need a positive version of the worst rod of 2020 thread! What's your favorite fishing related items, of all time? It can be anything; rods, reels, gadgets, doodads, etc.

8ft 4wt Redington Classic Trout Rod
I sold this rod a while back, because I no longer had a use for it. However, this was by far the best rod I've ever had and also one of the cheapest. I don't know why, but it just felt good to fish with.

Redington Clark Fork Mesh Vest
I started out with a hand-me-down vest, when I was about 10. It took 20 years of playing around with every "best" new pack system, to realize that there's nothing better than a vest. This is a simple, cheap, vest that has everything I need and nothing I don't.

Renzetti Traveler Vise
I've had this vise for about a decade now and I'm still impressed with it. It will probably be my last vise.

Tacky Fly Boxes
These fly boxes are inexpensive, but make every other fly box I've used seem like garbage.
 
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#66 · (Edited)
I have never really felt that a certain rod model fit me like no other; it seems like I can make most work for my needs, so long as I'm in the same ball park (right length and weight for the water conditions needed). That said, I do have favorites for specific waters. Small creeks, I like the Scott Fibertouch in a 6' 1 weight matched with a Ross Colorado 0 reel. For larger creeks and smaller rivers, a Sage LL 379 or 389 with a Ross Gunnison or Colorado reel is hard to beat.

However I am a boat guy and have found over the years that for me, the right boat for the conditions is way more important than rods or reels. Some of you feel the same since a lot have posted boat pictures.

My favorite boat for lake fishing, from which I have caught more fish from than all other boats combined, is a 10' Clacka Coastal Drifter. Double anchored on a shoal drop off has accounted for more fish than the average person needs to catch. And I have incorporated that fishing method for over the past 20 years from this little trailered pram.

Pram.jpg


While I have used the pram above it on the Yakima, Ronde, and a few other rivers, it really is a lake boat. For moving water and fishing solo, I have not found an equal to this boat (when launching within 100 yards of the rig) when gear fishing or fly-fishing with a single hand rod. Too bad it got stolen but I'm hoping for a replacement this year. I have had a couple replacements since this was taken, but we wind up selling them faster than we can make them. The next one I plan on keeping.

Freestone with oar holder.jpg


When fishing multiple people, fly or gear fishing on calm lakes or in rivers, this boat has been great. Just watch the weather and hope for light winds as even a little chop on the water can make for a bumpy ride.

Uncrowded Parking Lot.jpg


When lake fishing further than about a 1/2 mile from the road, I love my Xstream pontoon boat that fits nicely in its own backpack with shoulder straps.

As said many times, there is no one perfect boat. I have a few more that get limited use but the only one I really "need" that is missing is a 2 and 3 person river boat.

Xstream.jpg
 
#69 ·
I have never really felt that a certain rod model fit me like no other; it seems like I can make most work for my needs, so long as I'm in the same ball park (right length and weight for the water conditions needed). That said, I do have favorites for specific waters. Small creeks, I like the Scott Fibertouch in a 6' 1 weight matched with a Ross Colorado 0 reel. For larger creeks and smaller rivers, a Sage LL 379 or 389 with a Ross Gunnison or Colorado reel is hard to beat.

However I am a boat guy and have found over the years that for me, the right boat for the conditions is way more important than rods or reels. Some of you feel the same since a lot have posted boat pictures.

My favorite boat for lake fishing, from which I have caught more fish from than all other boats combined, is a 10' Clacka Coastal Drifter. Double anchored on a shoal drop off has accounted for more fish than the average person needs to catch. And I have incorporated that fishing method for over the past 20 years from this little trailered pram.

View attachment 265431

While I have used the pram above it on the Yakima, Ronde, and a few other rivers, it really is a lake boat. For moving water and fishing solo, I have not found an equal to this boat (when launching within 100 yards of the rig) when gear fishing or fly-fishing with a single hand rod. Too bad it got stolen but I'm hoping for a replacement this year. I have had a couple replacements since this was taken, but we wind up selling them faster than we can make them. The next one I plan on keeping.

View attachment 265432

When fishing multiple people, fly or gear fishing on calm lakes or in rivers, this boat has been great. Just watch the weather and hope for light winds as even a little chop on the water can make for a bumpy ride.

View attachment 265433

When lake fishing further than about a 1/2 mile from the road, I love my Xstream pontoon boat that fits nicely in its own backpack with shoulder straps.

As said many times, there is no one perfect boat. I have a few more that get limited use but the only one I really "need" that is missing is a 2 and 3 person river boat.

View attachment 265434
A power stroke and an Element, I like your choice of vehicles.
 
#87 · (Edited)
Funny, sort of. I've got an 896 RPL, with a 9wt SA ST floater (cut with loops at 15' for tips), my first SH rod. It rarely sees daylight anymore, but makes me smile when it does. One of the finest casting rods ever, IMO.
I too have that rod. It is one of the finest rods made, in my opinion. I have it loaded with a 9 wt shooting head. Great rod for steelhead.
 
#71 ·
G Loomis IMX 9' 5wt that I built back in the early 90s. It's still the fastest rod I own and when I want to fish bushy dries on long lines (just for the fun of it) it can't be beat.

Sage Guide Line wader bag purchased, on sale from Creekside, in the early 90s that is still my everyday wader bag. The thing has outlasted all the waders and boots (including a pair of Freestones that lasted 20 years!) it has ever carried. I keep waiting for a zipper to fail, but it just keeps going.
Brown Luggage and bags Bag Tints and shades Gas


William Joseph chest pack from the early 2000s that is also my wader belt and net hauler. It's just big enough for 3 or 4 trout boxes, or more likely, a steelhead box, tip wallet and 12, 10 & 8 lb Maxima, hook hone, Swiss Army knife, punchcard & pen and a pair of needle nose pliers. It's even had to do GoPro mount duty.

Luggage and bags Textile Sleeve Beige Grey


2014 Outcast Commander that I bought used for $600 in the spring of 2017. It has been a game changer for local lakes, basin lakes and is my go to for Yakima solo trips. It's a weapon.

Water Boat Water resources Watercraft Vehicle
 
#73 ·
Newish to fly fishing, I’ve built my collection at budget (lots of estate sale buys for gear, some big auction site for tying materials) which has led to an eclectic mix of cool stuff. A couple highlights included in here:

Favorite rod is probably the Redington Classic 4wt - emergency purchase when 20 minutes into my 3-day trip on the Naches I snapped the top off my 5wt cheap rod. While I had with me my Montague Holloglass rod (~$30 on big auction site, sort of by accident when I forgot I had bid on it) with a Montague Rapidan reel (bottom of a $10 tackle box at an estate sale) with a 3wt line which is plenty for the Naches, I wanted versatility. Or whatever. Ran back to Red’s and liked the feel and price of the Classic. Instead of getting up-sold to a much more expensive rod was somewhat quietly told by the staff member that the Classic was a favorite they use a lot when guiding. However, I recently got a W.W. Grigg IM-900 5wt for about $18 at an estate auction that, while I haven’t been able to fish it yet, feels dang good and will probably take top spot soon.

Love my Creek Company U-Boat 2000 Super Combo that I got unused, new-in-box, for $25 off big internet classifieds website. Tough to beat that deal.

My wife got me a Simms G3 Guide Tactical Wading Jacket for Christmas which is incredible, an instant favorite, and means she either loves me very much, needs me out of the house more, or both. (It’s both, I’m lucky)
 
#74 ·
Our family didn't have a lot of money for discretionary purchases growing up, with very young parents and 3 kids. Same deal extended well into my twenties as I worked to pay off student loan debt and save money for things like a house. Since then though, I have been fortunate enough to pretty much buy what I want gear wise, the benefit of stable, well paying jobs and a dual income, no kids household. I have some high end rods which are great, and some rods I purchased when I was younger, I will never get rid of. I have a 4 weight TFO professional, I have probably caught more fish on than any rod I have ever owned that is special to me. Even though I never fish it now, I'll never sell it. Some day I'll be an old man and will want to fish it for nostalgic purposes. A way to remember all those beautiful Montana trout I caught on dry flies when I was in college and treated that $150 rod like it was a priceless. It's also just a great rod for that purpose btw. To this day, I still have trouble buying expensive gear for light trout work. So much reasonably priced gear is great for that purpose.

As far as what I have now. I agree 100% with @Nick Clayton on the Linkurv stripping basket and the Orvis Hydros reels. PS game changers. I also love Orvis Battenkill reels for trout. Love My Winston Radian 6 weight, Sage One Seven weight and Winston BIIIX 4 weight. Love my Rio OBS lines even with the durability and running line tangle issues (pricks need to fix those issues;)). However, this year, my favorite piece of gear is below. Due delayed deliver due to covid, a dying dog going through chemo, two new dogs, and a wife who injured herself badly chasing one of said new dogs around the yard during the heart of coho season, I did not use her as much as I would have liked. That WILL change in 2021 though!

3E493BCF-3ED1-4840-B4C3-4DF393B31052.jpeg
 
#75 ·
Our family didn't have a lot of money for discretionary purchases growing up, with very young parents and 3 kids. Same deal extended well into my twenties as I worked to pay off student loan debt and save money for things like a house. Since then though, I have been fortunate enough to pretty much buy what I want gear wise, the benefit of stable, well paying jobs and a dual income, no kids household. I have some high end rods which are great, and some rods I purchased when I was younger, I will never get rid of. I have a 4 weight TFO professional, I have probably caught more fish on than any rod I have ever owned that is special to me. Even though I never fish it now, I'll never sell it. Some day I'll be an old man and will want to fish it for nostalgic purposes. A way to remember all those beautiful Montana trout I caught on dry flies when I was in college and treated that $150 rod like it was a priceless. It's also just a great rod for that purpose btw. To this day, I still have trouble buying expensive gear for light trout work. So much reasonably priced gear is great for that purpose.

As far as what I have now. I agree 100% with @Nick Clayton on the Linkurv stripping basket and the Orvis Hydros reels. PS game changers. I also love Orvis Battenkill reels for trout. Love My Winston Radian 6 weight, Sage One Seven weight and Winston BIIIX 4 weight. Love my Rio OBS lines even with the durability and running line tangle issues (pricks need to fix those issues;)). However, this year, my favorite piece of gear is below. Due delayed deliver due to covid, a dying dog going through chemo, two new dogs, and a wife who injured herself badly chasing one of said new dogs around the yard during the heart of coho season, I did not use her as much as I would have liked. That WILL change in 2021 though!

View attachment 265565
Sweet boat man! I really like the color of that hull.
Mine is a deeper "Bahamian blue"
 
#78 ·
Top of my list would be my Ross Cimmaron and Gunnison reels. I’ve had them for decades and they never fail to deliver.

A 9’ 5wt Reddington CT has become my go to rod for most of my fishing.

My only complaint about my Watermaster is that it’s slow rowing, but it holds better in the wind than a pontoon.

On another subject, my Dad’s Kimber 45...and my CSMC RBL 20 bore SXS.
 
#79 ·
1- ( Steelhead gear )Clackacraft 16ft, low side fly fisher model circa 1981, I caught thousands of steelhead in that boat.
2. ( Salmon fishing gear )1979 9.9 evinrude, most reliable motor I have ever owned.
3. ( Trout fishing gear ) Lowrance hook 7 chartplotter/fishfinder, my most valuable trout fishing gear by a long shot.
 
#80 · (Edited)
I guess "Favorite" for me means versatility so trip prep can be "grab it and go" and I don't have to carry so much specialty stuff with me. Looking at what I've been using over the last several years one item that works well for me for any type of stream and even salt beaches is my Hazard 4 PlanB-17 tactical ambidextrous sling pack.

Vests are great at keeping nearly everything needed to land fish and re-rig at my fingertips. A vest with a backpack will comfortably carry everything I need over a long day with several miles of hiking-wading (potable water, food, jacket + some essential emergency gear) but backpacks can be uncomfortable in hot weather and I have to take the pack off to get something out of it.

Unlike a vest alone this sling pack comfortably carries everything I need on a long day for several miles of hiking & wading. Yet with the padded semi-rigid horizontal dividers when stuff I don't need for a short day is removed the pack itself is not so voluminous or heavy that it makes me want to use something smaller for shorter days-trips. I do have everything I need to land a fish at my fingertips on the shoulder strap but it doesn't interfere with vision of my feet like my chest pack can.

The tactical MOLLE webbing, exterior flat side pockets and compression straps on both sides, and a big velcro loop patch on the back of the pack creates all kinds of versatility for secure permanent and temporary placement of foofaraw on retractors anywhere on the pack's exterior. I can just rotate the pack to the front without having to exit the stream to reach anything I need to re-rig.

I cast right/reel left so the ambidextrous feature of the pack means I can have it over my left shoulder which doesn't interfere with casting arm motion. And the net on a magnetic release hangs down on my left side where I can easily grab it with my left (non-rod) hand. Plus this is the only ambidextrous pack I could find that allows me to secure a water bottle, extra (T-)rod(s), net, and other accessories anywhere on the exterior of the pack that they are the easiest to reach when the pack is rotated to the front.
 
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#82 · (Edited)
Hummindbird Fishin' Buddy 140c for its portability and sidescan.
A2A16B91-E559-4C9E-9A69-D6A7E9C67095.jpeg


Humminbird Helix 7 GPS SI, for the bathymetric mapping and the 50 functions I have no idea how to operate.
E5AE0F32-1AB2-4158-86D7-3D0D6836950C.jpeg


Fishfindermounts.com 10 Ah mount and X power magnetic transducer mount, because they make my Helix portable (made even more portable (i.e. lighter) by replacing the lead acid battery with a Li Ion battery from Aliexpress).
30B92CEB-1B49-45B5-A7A9-6198BC10D412.jpeg


Lamson Velocity reels, for their very smooth operation and great drag.

07F5C893-BC99-421C-84D5-9C67A23DAE47.jpeg


Cabela's Tarpaulin boat bag to carry all my extra gear.

EA108A33-1FAA-4B54-81A7-5A4C5D748E3C.jpeg


Makflies buzzers, because they are deadly.

7493049D-AA2D-4957-ADBA-3A3417C3BEDB.jpeg
 
#89 ·
Hummindbird Fishin' Buddy 140c for its portability and sidescan.
View attachment 265681

Humminbird Helix 7 GPS SI, for the bathymetric mapping and the 50 functions I have no idea how to operate.
View attachment 265682

Fishfindermounts.com 10 Ah mount and X power magnetic transducer mount, because they make my Helix portable (made even more portable (i.e. lighter) by replacing the lead acid battery with a Li Ion battery from Aliexpress).
View attachment 265683

Lamson Velocity reels, for their very smooth operation and great drag.

View attachment 265688

Cabela's Tarpaulin boat bag to carry all my extra gear.

View attachment 265685

Makflies buzzers, because they are deadly.

View attachment 265689
Nice to see another Valco out there. :D
 
#90 ·
I have two rods that get 95% of the use of all my dozen and a half rods. The first is my old Sage LL, 7'10 4 weight, 2-piece, my favorite dry fly rod. The second is my Hardy Zenith, 8'10" 4 weight, 1-piece. Also an excellent dry fly rod, but it seems it has enough oomph to toss Wooly Buggers. That last one is a pain to transport, but I keep it at my brother's place in Wisconsin's Driftless Area, and can be on the water in 10 minutes from his home.

Those and my fingernail clipper some Italian brand whose cutting edges are still sharp and aligned with each other 20 years later. I paid $20 for it then, an exorbitant price, but I can't argue with its performance and longevity. I use them as my nippers, even though I have TWO more attached to my vest!
 
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#91 ·
I have a Hardy Pro Axis 6wt rod with a Lamson Vanquish reel on it, that I’m pretty fond of. Caught lots of largemouth, smallmouth, chums, black rock bass, lingcod, big rainbows, some big browns, a few silvers, and even some carp on that rod. It’s been my “workhorse” rod for several years now. Casts great, tough, and has been on so many adventures with me.
 
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