Somebody take me under your wing so I can learn to fly too😂

The line looks dirty but if it’s not cracked you can use it to learn on. Pull it all out, not on the ground, but tie gently to something and walk away pulling out the line as you go. Use several damp paper towels and pull the line through it to clean the crud off as you reel it back in. The cleaning will clean the line but also you’ll feel if it has damage. The sticker on the rod says line wt 6 so it’s set up for one weight under the rod markings which is pretty standard for older glass rods. Clean it and fish it. Learn with the old line and then decide how you are going to spend your money. $50 or more for line can be put toward leader, flies etc. it’s a great pastime but don’t get sucked into the gotta haves until you know what you want/need. PS the reel looks to be set up for right hand retrieve it should be able to be switched. If so the line needs to go on opposite of the way it is now. Use the same method to put all the line off just like the cleaning step. Reattach to the inner diameter of the spool and wind it all back in. This is all long winded but easy to do.

>Perusing through a thrift store today I found this. eBay valued the rod anywhere from $80-150 so I figured for $15 why not? The reel even works.

>I’m not new to fishing by any means, but I’ve fly fished twice on guided tours where all I did was cast what they handed me. I don’t live anywhere near a trout population. I’m primarily a bass guy, but I dabble with crappie and bream are everywhere here to the point of being a nuisance in many cases.

Congrats. Worst case scenario, this can be used as a jigging rod for crappie.

>I have SO many questions. I’m planning on just going to the Bass Pro at the Pyramid tomorrow and hoping someone can tell me everything they know but I feel like I don’t even know what questions I need to be asking.

>I have SO many questions.

>I think Wt is how you guys define reel size?

Wt is the weight of the line. The reel size is really meant to give an idea of what weight line it can hold, with backing. Heavier line is thicker and takes more space.

>A medium light spinning rod and a 4000 size freshwater reel can tackle everything except catfish here. Is this similar to that or do I have limitations?

The weight/air resistance of the fly determines the size of line you use. The size of line you use determines what size rod you use. A 7wt is traditionally used for bigger fish. Using a VERY rudimentary scale, 7wt rods are used to target fish in the 3-8 pound range.

>I’m right-handed, but I use left-handed reels. Is this the same? Do they even make left-handed fly reels?

Fly reels are set up to be Left hand or Right hand retrieve. In the days of yore, right handed people used a RH retrieve. That changed around the 1950s and now a right handed person will typically use a LH retrieve. Quite a few people use dominant hand retrieve, but that is not the norm. Many reels are reversible. Yours may or may not be. Look for a label or marking on the reel and you can google to see if you can or not.

>Im assuming the rod is nice and the reel is random garbage, can I get by for bass and panfish with like a $40 bass pro fly reel?

This reel will *probably* work as well as a brand new $40 fly reel.

>Can I somehow flip this reel to make it LH retrieve?

Maybe. Check the markings and google it to see if you can.

>I fish 30lb braid to 12lb fluoro leaders for bass in most cases. or straight 12lb fluoro for panfish on like cheapo spincast reels. We have a ton of snags around here so it sounds heavy but realistically I’ve caught a lot of bass on straight 30lb braid around here. Water clarity is generally terrible so the heaviness doesn’t matter much. That said, I know for clear water trout trips we’d never throw more than 6lb line. Do I need to stick to that for a fly reel? Like is that how they’re intended to be used?

Trout can be very snotty and are leader sensitive. Bass are not leader shy. If you’re swinging streamers, you can probably get away with using very thick leaders, but if you’re drifting small flies, the drag from the thicker line will be your worst enemy.

>I have no idea what I’m doing with this combo other than oh it’s cool and it was $15 and if I need to I can just replace the reel but I am a complete novice to all this.

Probably. AFFTA standardized reels seat sizes in the 1980s. But most rods fit the standard reel size long before then.

>TLDR; I have a lot of questions. If you didn’t read it you’re gonna be annoyed with me, my bad. Somebody help me figure out what I need please.

This can be a good group. Ask away, many people like helping. However, my best advice is, when you catch a trout, don’t post a picture of it laying on the dirt. You’ll get roasted.