HOW MANY FLY LINES DOES IT TAKE? If you were asked how many different fly lines are being manufactured and sold what would be your guess? How about 100 or so? Wrong by a factor or 10! According to Fly Tackle Dealer magazine, Scientific Anglers alone produces around 450 separate lines. Cortland has another 400 lines, with lessor companies (like Royal Wulff, Teeny, McKenzie, RIO and Airflo) adding at least another 50-100. Kinda reminds us of the what has happened to brands and models of automobiles or cigarettes over the last 25 years. Just how many sport utility vehicles does General Motors now sell? Is this explosion of available lines just for marketing purposes or is a service being provided? The answer is probably both.

Obviously the technology for making lines has advanced to the point where all kinds of special purpose variations are possible. The marketing wisdom seems to be that if a new gadget comes along that might help them fly fishers catch more fish, they will buy it. The line specialization is amazing. There is a line for every fish, every water, every weather condition, perhaps for every kind of fly and more. The names of the lines sort of tell the story; Ultra3, Bass, Mastery, QD (Quick Desent), Windmaster, Bugtaper, Windcutter, Clear Creek, Still Water, Depth Charge, Accelerator, Pike, Bluewater, Versitip, Bonefish, Spey Taper, Uniform Sink, etc.

But there is another way of looking at the bewildering number of fly lines. Compare fly fishing to golf for a moment. Would a golfer just take a putter and a driver to play a round of serious golf? Why then would a fly fisher think that only one line would be sufficient for a day's fishing? Likewise, who would limit themselves to just one fly pattern. Obviously, with more fly lines, fly rods and fly reels available, each of us will need to expand our inventory to remain on the cutting edge. Sound expensive and certainly not keeping with the minimalist philosophy that appeals to many fly fishers.

But finally the most critical question. What feature is the most important factor in buying a new fly line? The answer tells us that anglers are still pretty basic - the number one feature is line color! A lot of money could be saved if we adopted Henry FordÆs color choices in making the Model T. But those days are past and we have been spoiled by the chartreuse, the blaze oranges and the other out-of-this world colors. There is no going back.

This article was provided by the Federation of Fly Fishers. Visit their site for more articles and information about fly fishing. The Federation of Fly Fishers is a unique non-profit organization concerned with sport fishing and fisheries.