Mike McKeown
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Very cool podcast.
Great to hear an ex South African on the show, and even better to see him do so well with his products.
So Mr Andersson has done a shoot out on 8 weight reels.
It’s completely laughable that he is giving the sound reel makes and the reel case/pouch so much weight, 10 points each.
And to top that, the handle design is give 20 points.
And, as always, “fun to fish, got to have” has hefty 20 points.So just in these categories, there are 60 points out of the 270.
However, the tolerances are only give 10 points to play with, likewise craftsmanship and maintenance free.
Anywho…
ps. they did a video blog of the “shoot-out” and they state that they couldn’t take all the reels to the field test. Which in my mind just make the entire thing a joke… The Galvan, and I love Galvan reels, was not taken on the field test, yet places 3rd??? Huh, did they not do the points system first, then take the highest scoring reels for testing…
What a load of rubbish, unfortunately, what he publishes determines if I can pay school fees and gas…
I asked around the shop…
We don’t have a vise out in public, nor do we tie flies for our bins, (we just buy the cheep’os, well that’s all the SA market will tolerate, and we have tried top quality flies!) but we do have some vices and equipment we keep for doing group lessons and instruction.
If the case was made, that you were miles away from your vice and really needed to tie a fly or two, we would have no issue in getting one of those vices and tool kits out and letting the client tie away merrily.
Obviously there would have to be some form of payment, and we all decided that six cold ones, share with the tier, and a fly or two, would make a great afternoon…
I think it comes down to the shop… but thinking about it, if we had a vice that was out on the floor, and we were asked in a respectable way, we would have absolutely no problem with anyone, foreign, distant, regular or first-timer, jumping on it and tying a fly or 2… just don’t arrive with a tying kit and take over the shop… also, remember the beers!
Zach, so with you on this one…
There is absolutely no like for like in this test, NONE what-so-ever.
eg 1. The Method is 7w loaded with an 8 weight line???
eg 2. Then they use a Method Elite for the actual 8w, and mark it down because it is so expensive??Swing weight??
This is a completely subjective thing, one persons preferred swing weight is different from another’s…What is the “perfect 8” score?? I do a lot of casting lessons, and after you’ve been casting all day, you can pick up any rod and just chuck it… does that make it the perfect rod? no, it means you have been working on timing and form all day, so you suddenly cast a stick and it is a perfect rod… no man.
And whats this fun to fish/got to have??? its just a point system so you can say that one is better than the other… HUH??
Let alone the brands they stock, recommend and sell and fish…
I have more, but I must rather stop… my 2 cents.
@David Anderson, much win in your article!!
No Zach, you can’t put that pressure on us… 1 piece of gear… no man, I can’t choose just one…
My Simms L2 boots (retired), must have walked 1500km’s, just in the mountains… and another 1000km’s on other trips.
My Prowler, just love it… I know I am going “proper” trout fishing when it is pulled out…
My Galvan Torque 12, just cause its tarpon time…But the one I love the most?
My Renzetti Travler, just cause it starts the fishing trip well before the fishing trip starts…The only negative I can see with the product is the volume necessary to wash more than a few items (3 oz. per load up to 3 items). After washing the coat and waders seperately I’ve essentially used the whole bottle. In the long run however, it is probably worth it as it will save you replacing expensive outdoor gear on a frequent basis.
I thought the same, but then work the cost of the items you are washing, and the price of the washing detergent is easily justified, and it keeps the expensive garments working the way they should…
Thanks Jay, when I am in the states next…
and…
Every time I think my photography is coming along, I see images like these and realize I should keep my shutter closed…
Steve, that’s the stuff, it is a little dear and you burn through it fast, but then you are washing top end stuff, and stuff that needs to perform to its max at all times, so the cast is almost immaterial…
Zack, that “wet out” can be sorted out with a my process… you might need to do 2 Tech Wash, followed by Revivex both times… Simms also say that a hair drier will sort the DWR again, but I have found that the tumble dry does just as good a job… maybe try the hair drier and then the tumble drier…
They also say that the Revivex should be applied while they are damp, I have better results when they are more than damp, I hang them in the shower straight from the machine, after it has finished the wash and rinse on a 400 or low spin cycle. Thus the waders are more wet than damp…
Here’s the Simms revivex vid…
And here are all the Simms wader care vids.
http://www.simmsfishing.com/support/repairs.htmlAnd Zach, on the tape on the seams, SIMMS say that the main reason the seam tape peels is that the waders have not been washed. Your skin has a little bit of oil on it, and as the perspire, it caries some of the oil onto the waders, this goes under the tape and the tape lifts.
Waders that are washed regularly seldom have this issue.Simms website says not to tumble dry your waders as it damages the tape, but the GORE-TEX and Tech Wash sites say it is the best way to revive the garment, so I manually manage that till the waders are just dry and never let them heat up…
Zach, I have been doing my own tests and research into this stuff…
I am blown away by how good the stuff is!!
I never wash a GORE-TEX or fleece product in any other type of detergent. It does not damage the DWR finish, in fact, it enhances it. I find my waders look and feel like they came out of the box yesterday, and trust me, they work hard. I have only revive-ex’ed them when I needed to. My wader wick fleeces are also like they came out the packet yesterday, and they have been wash at least 15 or 20 times. Same with Polar Tech stuff and the likes.
However, other fleeces that I didn’t use to wash with Tech Wash have pilled and no longer have the DWR finish, but I have managed to get some of the finish back by washing them in a very mild liquid soap, then double rinse and allow to air dry. NO FABRIC SOFTNER!!!!!! then a full Tech Wash, followed by some Revive-ex and tumble dry on low heat till the fleeces are just dry. (you need to manage this closely!!)
For GORE-TEX garments flow the same process, but give them a double wash with a small quantity of liquid soap, then Tech Wash, etc.
GORE-TEX should never be washed with powder soap, it clogs the membrane.
You should wash on Synthetic Mode, at 40 deg C, you figure the F temp out…
Fleeces should be washed cold.Zack – I agree that when you Revive-ex you garment, it can come out patchy, but, if you have been washing in Tech Wash from the beginning, you wont find that at all. Also, the trick is to Revive-ex while the garment is still wet, then tumble dry at low for 60 mins or till it is completely dry. You might need to repeat this if it is still patchy…
Sjoe, I feel quiet OCD about this, but I think if you don’t do it properly then these very expensive, highly technical garments are not going to function like they should, and you should have saved your loot and bought some PVC waders to start with…
Lastly… sorry, just stuff I have learnt…
Before you start any of this, you need to clean your washing machine… take the soap tray out and clean that, also there will be soap build up where the soap goes into the machine. Then run your machine on a full wash on its hottest setting, preferably with “dishwasher” cleaner in it.I wish someone had told me this years ago!!
So back to your question Zack, yes, it should fix all your garments, but this is how I would do it.
1. Clean Machine.
2. 1 or 2 washes with liquid soap, trying to remove the previous soap build up, double rinses and air dry.
3. Tech Wash and follow manufactures guide on drying. REPEAT…It wont be perfect, but at least 50% better…
In future, just Tech Wash the garments from the beginning…Mono only has a 12 month half-life after exposure to UV…
After 12 months mono can have lost as much as 50% of its breaking strain.
If you’re using flouro, not too much of an issue, its half-life is about 100 years…I recommend that leader and tippet is always changed after 3 months.
There not that much out there anymore…
The freek’n Somali pirates have stopped us touring to the outer atolls, and that where the real fishing is…
And yes, it is pricey, and for you Yanks, its a hell of a long way to get to there… For us South Africans, 5 hour flight and an internal hope, skip and a jump. But for you, over the pond, then to Saudi, then down, and only then hoping and skipping…Alphonse Island Lodge is probably going to be your best bet, good for honeymoon and fishing, in other words, it is not just a fishing venue and the wife will also enjoy it…
If you try and do it cheep and stay on Mahe or Snate Anne, you’re going to scratch for fish… You have to get out of the main islands!
In-fact, after asking around the shop, Alphones is going to be your best bet.
If you would like me to square away the booking, send me a pm.
Mike
