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View Full Version : reel startup inertia and drag stopping power?



steve sullivan
03-27-2005, 09:18 AM
A certain magazine had a online article about startup inertia, and gave the figures for a ton of reels. The article also gave the dead weight stopping power of the drag. A startup inertia of under %2 was very good, and a dead weight stopping power of the drag of over 10 pounds was good. I remember the ross canyon had a drag weight of like 13 pounds, and a hardy had a drag of about 2. Anyone have startup inertia's and dead weight drag for reels? I am especially interested in that of the old florida super arbor, the ross big game, the loop evotec lw as well as loop original 3 wide, and lastly the orvis battenkill barstock.

These reels will have a cortland tri spey 6/7 with 200 yards gelspun put on them

David Lee
03-27-2005, 09:31 AM
Hi Steve - I don't think any of that stuff matters . You can have the top of the line gear .... but it isn't really needed in most freshwater situations . If one was to chase fish that went a LONG way after being hooked (Marlin , Tuna , Wahoo ....) , then a "bomb-proof" reel would make a big difference . For the stuff we have here in the valley , just about ANY reel should work .

Of course .... I didn't answer anything you asked with this post :mrgreen:

How's your Spring Steelheading going on the Feather ?? Hope you're into 'em good !! Take care , David

Hairstacker
03-27-2005, 12:42 PM
Hi Steve! I read that article you're talking about, but I don't remember where, sorry. I just wanted to chime in and give you my two cents regarding my perception of the validity of these criterion in freshwater.

When I read that article, I too started wondering about various reels. But then it occurred to me that, as line is peeled from the reel, the effective diameter of the arbor gets smaller and smaller, requiring significantly more and more force to continue pulling line from the reel. (Try this, you'll see what I mean.) So, if you intend to set your drag and not worry about it during the fight, then it must be set sufficiently light to account for this "diminishing effective size of the arbor" effect. That required, light initial drag setting renders the "startup inertia" criterion moot, in my opinion.

I've also never test-driven a reel that didn't have sufficient "dead weight stopping power" to make that initial, sufficiently light drag setting. Thus, I think that criterion is moot as well.

So, given the quality of just about ANY reel you're likely to encounter in a fly shop, I have since concluded the article has no real-world validity and is probably just more industry hype.

steve sullivan
03-28-2005, 12:08 PM
[quote="Hairstacker"]Hi Steve! I read that article you're talking about, but I don't remember where, sorry.

Fly fish america online

I just wanted to chime in and give you my two cents regarding my perception of the validity of these criterion in freshwater.

When I read that article, I too started wondering about various reels. But then it occurred to me that, as line is peeled from the reel, the effective diameter of the arbor gets smaller and smaller, requiring significantly more and more force to continue pulling line from the reel. (Try this, you'll see what I mean.) So, if you intend to set your drag and not worry about it during the fight, then it must be set sufficiently light to account for this "diminishing effective size of the arbor" effect. That required, light initial drag setting renders the "startup inertia" criterion moot, in my opinion.


If the 10 pound steelhead makes a initial run at 30 mph, I am lead to believe that the chances of it not breaking off are significantly improved with a low startup inertia reel. If the reel does not have a low startup intertia, from my limited understanding of SI, your reel will "hickup" for a instant, and that will result in a break, but with a very low SI, it will be perfectly smooth and wont breakoff..


I've also never test-driven a reel that didn't have sufficient "dead weight stopping power" to make that initial, sufficiently light drag setting. Thus, I think that criterion is moot as well.



Yes, but the dead weight drag is a concern for big fish, not for the SI, but just because I want to make a dent in their run. A 2 pound drag is going to have little effect on a king, and then you have to palm your reel.

Hairstacker
03-28-2005, 08:01 PM
Steve,

Let's say I've just arrived at the river to fish for steelhead, I've decided to use a 3X tippet, and I'm getting ready to set my drag. I know that, if I get lucky enough to hook into a 10lb steelhead that's going to take me into my backing, then I've got to set my initial drag setting light enough to compensate for the fact that the drag pressure will increase on its own by virtue of the spool arbor getting smaller and smaller as line is peeled off the reel. In the article chart that showed startup inertias for various reels expressed as percentages, the vast majority were less than 10% if I recall correctly. In other words, the initial "hickup" due to startup inertia effectively increases drag resistance at startup as much as a 10% increase to the drag setting. Well, I know my initial drag setting is going to be MUCH less than 90% of the test rating of my 3X tippet in order to account for the "diminishing arbor size effect." So, even if a steelhead hits my fly while doing 30 mph, my initial drag setting will be light enough to absorb that hit, even if it has to overcome a startup inertia percentage approaching 10%. That is what I meant by this criterion being moot. If you still disagree, that's ok, we can't all agree on everything. :D

As far as "dead weight stopping power," I recall they tested this by adding weights on the end of lines (like an 8 lb weight) and then seeing if they could crank the drag down far enough so that the line wouldn't slip off the reel. Well, my point is, I've yet to encounter a disk drag reel in a fly shop that couldn't be cranked down far enough to be sufficient for a 3X tippet. I could see this perhaps being relevant if I were fishing with a 30 lb test or heavier tippet. But in freshwater, the heaviest I'm EVER likely to go is 15, maybe 20 lbs at most. -- even my "cheap" disk drag reels provide sufficient "dead weight stopping power" for this weight of line. I still remain unconvinced that either of these criteria are really that relevant for freshwater fishing unless you're in the habit of setting your initial drag setting at near the maximum breaking point of your tippet and you plan to continually adjust your drag setting while you're fighting fish. Personally, I believe you're better off setting your drag by erring on the light side, then palming if you feel additional pressure is warranted. Just my opinion, of course.