Smokeybones, I agree with you low country fly shop is the best in town when it comes to flY fishing. The Charleston Angler is too busy trying to sell T-shirts and Koozies! I remember when I could go into the angler and get some good info on what flys were hot and areas that are hot…Josh is the only knowledgeable flyfishing guy in that store and now he works at the downtown market street angler.
Wow alot of hostility… First let me say that Scotty is a personal friend of mine and my comment had nothing but factual information in it. It in no way was aimed at degrading the name of his shop, nor do I see how it could be taken that way, but if you did then sorry.
Also, hotsauce, sorry to hear your comment as well. If you come over to the Mt. Pleasant Store i’m usually there and Ive never turned anyone away who had questions about fly-fishing… its kind of my job.
Carry on boys… sorry again if anyone took my reply the wrong way, that happens alot with me…
Mad Mike
"to hell with insane… I’m OUTsane!!! "
Charleston Angler does carry a wider variety of fishing gear (cloths, tackle, etc) but I can promise you that each CA store has very knowledgeable people if you take the time and talk to them. Josh and Mike have both been there for a long time, have fly fished a lot of different areas, and are very knowledgeable and practiced with a fly rod. Either of them can most likely help you with any fly fishing question you have. I promise that Lowcountry Fly Shop and CA have the same prices listed for rods and reels as those items have set msrps just like mike mentioned. Lots of items are like that (fly lines, sunglasses, wading packs…etc) Also…all the guys working in CA and Fly Shop tend to get along very well and even fish together fairly frequently. Not really too much hostility…just sayin
Back to the original topic…
MM and TyOneOn are on the money about rods. Get one that YOU cast well short range and at longer distances (60ft is usually all you need). Don’t worry about the brand they all make good rods. A good line is important too. It will cast better, last longer, and give you less trouble on the water. SA Rio and Airflo all make great fly lines. As far as reels go…nicer reels are made of nicer body materials, bearings, etc… and tend to last a lot longer in the saltwater fishing environments. TyOneOn is right that you definitely dont NEED the most expensive reel to stop a redfish.