Hardy Reels

[JFinrey]

I am in the market for a new 5wt reel and am debating between the Galvan Torque and the Hardy Ultralite DD. I have friends who enjoy the Torque, but have heard little first hand about the Hardy. Anyone own and fish the Ultralite or had to deal with Hardy for warranty type issues?

[Ned Morris]

Do yourself a favor and go with Galvan. They are made right here in CA. Anything Hardy I would buy early 1960's or pre-war

[Mark Kranhold]

Have had both. The torque does not like cold wet conditions, the drag will free spool ,catch and free spool! Not sure if this will matter on a 5 wt for trout or fishing from a boat but it practically ruined my B.C. trip one year with some loss of the steel! I have heard this from other steelheaders, not trying to bad mouth Galvan just my experience. I know the bluewater folks like em. Not much can go wrong with a Hardy click & pawl.

[mems]

Aloha, I have friends who love their galvans, but those are for bonefish. I have a hardy featherweight for my trout rod. It is really just for holding line as most reels are for trout. The click and pawl sounds great when a big fish makes a run and the reel protects light tippets from breaking. Plus it looks good on my bamboo rod. I like the classic look of those reels, you would probably get the lightweight for a 5wt rod. I think you would be fine fishing with either reel. Mems.

[Railking]

You can get a Hatch 3+ that will suit your needs. No issues what so ever with drag, build, customer service. I have the 3+ and 5+ both are bullet proof. the 3+ cpvers line wt 3-5 and the 4+ covers 4-6wt. I use the 3+ with 5 & 6 wt

[James W]

Had an Ultralite DD 4000 that I sold to simplify life with all Lamson Speedsters. The Hardy was a damn fine reel. Never had any cause to deal with warranty, does that say something?
Now that I own a Hardy rod I wish I had the DD 4000 again . . . sigh . . . it would look great and just be 'right'.

[hwchubb]

I can't speak to the Galvans, but I've owned almost nothing but hardys for almost 40 years. I have replaced one spring, on a Marquis 5, in that time, and they have seen everything from small streams to salmon and strikers in the Pacific. All mine are click and pawl (marquis and sage 50X series), and I love em. They are all vintage '70's and newer, so no concerns on newer reels.

[JayDubP]

I'd go for Galvan or Lamson because Hardy has changed:

In 2013 Hardy was acquired by Pure Fishing, Inc, a subsidiary of Jarden Inc (www.jarden.com) Jarden is a large public company that has acquired a lot of outdoor brands (from Coleman to Stren) ,,,, and which has a reputation for "cheap-a-fying" brands after it acquires them, dropping warranties to 1 year or so, and providing horrible customer service.

I have 2 Hardy click-n-pawl reels circa 1978 that I still fish with on 3wt and 5wt small rivers... Love the duck quack sound of the drag.
Plus I do have a DD from around 2008 and I love it.

But, reality rules and I cannot recommend buying a Hardy today.

[lando]

I have a few Torques and several Hardy DDs. Both are great, but I think the Torque is a bit heavy/overkill for a 5 weight. I prefer the 4000 DD to the 5000 on a 5 weight--the ultra large arbor on the 5000 is just too big in my opinion for a 5 weight.

[njbeast]

Try a Waterworks Lamson. I have three; one for a 3wt, one for a 5wt( with an extra spool for a sink tip line) and one for a 7wt (again with an extra spool for sink tip) They all have sealed conical drags...bulletproof...and smooth as silk. I caught a 13 pound steelie last year on the American with the 5wt. The reel needs no maintenance and performs flawlessly.

[Terry Thomas]

Check out the Hardy Lightweight series.

[Bob G]

A second vote for the Hardy Lightweights.

Good Luck,

Bob