Mine was a complete rig with flies from Walmart. Things like Orvis are above my pay grade, but I ordered things like the chest pack and stuff separately. And I joined TU. When I was a little kid, my dad bought me a fly-tying vise at a local tackle shop. I took a number 8 snelled hook, some red hackle off one of my mom’s winter coats, some black thread from her sewing kit, and tied a fly with it. My dad took me to the local dam, and I figured out how to toss a fly on a spincasting rig with an open bail and sure enough, I hooked and landed a bluegill. A lot of other trout hookups have been on spinning 6’ 1/2” or 7’ rods with light tackle, but I really want to get good at it if time/health allows. I’ve also got enough other spinning and baitcasting rigs and tackle to last a whole season on the BASS tournament trail. We have a local antiques mall here in town, and I occasionally notice collections from estates occupying booths that have assortments of various rigs. I think I really should scour it and see what sort of goodies there are there. There could be Grampa’s Loomis or LL Bean rig sitting there with a $25 tag on it.
That’s great. Yes, estate sales is where you can find treasure troves of old fly fishing equipment.