Quartermaster #002
An uber-rare J. Ryall reel, a limited run blue lining rod from LL Bean, and an original Ross Colorado in A++ condition.
Haven’t you heard? Fly fishing is officially mainstream. Finally, you can sip on your favorite light beer with a matching reel, or keep pace with Drake at your favorite honey hole. What’s next, a beloved Montana fly rod company expanding into luxury eyewear? Oh wait...
Yet all this fame and fashion doesn’t seem to be making a dent where it counts. Orvis recently announced downsizing measures and Simms has been tentatively sold — again — to another multinational conglomerate. I guess it’s too late to get my waders repaired. Le sigh.
But don’t fret, compadres. Whenever you feel like fly fishing has passed you by, just open up Hookswain and remember simpler times, when fly fishing was more grit than gloss, more tackle box than TikTok.
Ross Colorado No. 2
Ross Reels is perhaps best known for its commitment to developing disc drag systems and large arbors which were made popular by the Gunnison and Cimarron series reels produced in the 1980s and 1990s.
But by the 1990s, the Lightweight Revolution had begun and the push was on to make lighter and faster outfits spurred on by the refinement of graphite, the introduction of multi-modulus blank technology, and the growing appeal of fast action rods. Ross responded by developing the Colorado series, a simplified reel that eschewed the heavy drag systems and enlarged arbors for a simple click and pawl setup that would pair well with lighter, faster graphite rods.
The Colorado series was produced between 1997 and 2004 in four sizes: the 0, for 0-4 weight rods; the 1, for 3-5 weight rods; the 2 for 4-6 weight rods; and the 3, for 5-7 weight rods. The 0 was marked by porting on both the frame and the spool, whereas the others sported a solid frame.
This No. 2 is an extremely clean example of this short-lived minimalist movement at Ross, a design aesthetic which has aged surprisingly well and makes the modern reincarnation of the Colorado seem wildly overcooked.
At the time of publishing, this immaculate Colorado No. 2 had not received the opening bid of $145 with about two days left on the auction; BIN for $190 plus $15 shipping from Illinois.
LL Bean Pocket Water 6’ 10” 4WT
LL Bean originally released the Pocket Water series in 2012 as a hat tip to enthusiasts of blue lining for wild brook trout. Its overall look and feel was meant to conjure that of bamboo; the tawny graphite and reddish-brown wraps, reverse half Wells grip, nickel uplocking hardware, and burled reel seat.
The Pocket Water rods were designed for fishing in small, tight waters, making them ideal for anglers targeting native trout and other small freshwater species. The short length and medium-fast action make them well-suited for accurate, punchy presentations, the kind you want on small streams. These rods are situated in a unique place in the current rod market, attracting anglers who favor firing dry fly laser beams over high sticking euro-trash rigs. And at only 6’ 10”, this 4-piece rod breaks down into sections less than two feet long, making it a really fun travel or backpacking rod.
The Pocket Water was never mass produced by LL Bean, making them little-known among most practitioners. That is until 2021, when LL Bean reintroduced the Pocket Water series in three configurations of fiberglass, with the same tan and brown aesthetic. As with most remakes, the newer model has only driven more enthusiasm toward the original.
This example is in like-new unused condition and comes with its original rod tube and gray cloth rod bag. It’s being offered on classicflyfisherman.com for $225. The site doesn’t have e-commerce capabilities, so you’ll need to email or call to purchase.
Classicflyfishermanrrs@gmail.com
Toll Free 1-866-930-3667 or 215-412-3667
J. Ryall Julianne No. 2
The Julianne is an exceedingly hard to find model from the little-known reel maker J. Ryall. This example is in pristine condition with no wear marks to speak of, a sign that would give us pause if it weren’t being sold by a very reputable eBay seller who specializes in fly reels. The Julianne was one of J. Ryall’s smaller models — suitable for 2-4wt outfits — and arguably one of its most charming.
Perhaps the most compelling thing about these stunning reels is that it was hand machined by its namesake, Jim Ryall, a self-taught expert machinist who made a living machining custom aircraft parts for the U.S. Air Force and the Apollo Space Program. When demand waned in the 1980s, Ryall started machining reels from T6061 aircraft quality aluminum, applying his experience with military-spec machining tolerances and type 3 anodizing coatings to his favorite hobby.
For his reels he developed a center-line axis drag system that used a large knob on the cage to tighten the spool, a design that was leaps and bounds ahead of the click-and-pawl drags that Orvis and others were still using at the time.
All J. Ryall reels feature a lovely teardrop porting on the cage, a headscratchingly sweet detail when you consider the time it must have taken to hand machine. Combined with dark anodized finish set off by the chromed accents, the Julianne No 2 is so good looking that it makes one want to invest in a lightweight rod just to fish it.
This one has the model number etched inside the frame — #154 — which is consistent with J. Ryall reels of this era. The seller has it marked at $375 BIN, a reasonable price given the condition and rarity of this hand-machined beaut.