Galvan Rush Light, Nautilus FWX, Hardy UltraliteDD

[sndmn11]

I got a Zenith 10' 4wt (old reel seat) a few weeks ago for my 30th birthday as well as a airflow mend line for it. I also have an 8' 2wt tfo, and between the two, a lamson konic 1.5 and velocity 1.5.
The airflow line must be a larger diameter than other brands as on the velocity, I had to go with layer of backing that just covers the spool and cut off about 20' at the rear of the line. It still will only fit if I wind it up evenly. I swapped it to the konic, and it fits much better, but that konic is very beat up.
I have found some stores that will let me trade in the velocity. I am looking at the Galvan Rush Light 4, Nautilus FWX 5/6, and Hardy Ultralite DD 4000/5000. In all likelihood I will not buy a new rod or reel for the next several years.
I am in Denver and love fishing in the winter, and have had a few experiences of drags getting wet and presumably a sheen of ice on them and offering no resistance. Hence why I am looking to avoid exposed drags and why I really liked the lamsons (a speedster is possible, but I dislike the look). I am also fairly hard on my gear, and the reel will get dunked regularly and I tend to always lay it down in places where there is sand or sediment on the reel when I pick it up. I do get regular opportunities to fish some great very private water where 10lb+ trout are the norm, so a quality drag would be great, but the rest of the time I rarely have a trout take any line worth noting.
Weight doesn't matter much to me.
I'd like it to look good/match the zenith's reel seat, or in the case of the Galvan, I would get it in the green to match the blank.
I like the lamsons as they have never failed me, or froze, and a quick rinse gets any sand out. So, I was considering a guru, speedster, or konic in a larger size. However, the 2wt needs new line, and some of the stores offer free line on the three other brands.
Can anybody give feedback on the Hardy, Nautilus, or Galvan? I have gotten mixed thoughts from these shops. Anything at all would be helpful, as I have read everything I could find through search on here and google. Ease of maintenance? Durability? Quality of machining? Element resistant drag? Other quirks/pros/cons?
Thanks!

 

[mcnerney]

I have an old series 1 Lamson Litespeed that has been my main reel, this past winter I was having issues with no drag, probably a bit of water got in there and froze. After a little use each time the drag would start working again, granted this is one of the early Lamson reels, they probably are much better now. I also have an old Galvan OB-5 that I bought used off EBay, about six months later I started having drag issues where the adjustment just wasn't working correctly. I called Galvan, told them I had bought the reel second hand and would gladly pay to have it repaired. They told me that they no longer made that model but would take a look and see if it could be repaired. I sent it in and didn't hear back after three weeks so I called them to make sure they received the reel. Sure enough they had and would give me a call when it was repaired. Another couple weeks go by and the reel shows up on my door step repaired and no invoice, so I called and explained that I didn't intend for them to repair the reel for free, but they said that is the way they do business. So I just wanted to relay that story and how Galvan stands behind their products. Sorry I have no experience with any of the other reels in your list.

Larry

 

[jaybo41]

I've got a pretty good number of Galvan reels and I'm incredibly pleased with each of them. They're very well made, as Larry points out Galvan's customer service is top notch. Although I don't own either of the others, many members have good things to say about Nautilus and the DD. Honestly between those three reels, you're splitting hairs of sorts. They're all solid choices, I don't think you can go wrong with any of them. Pick one that best suits the look you want. As much as I like my Galvans, the natural choice for your Zenith with the funky reel seat is the Hardy DD. At least for me anyway.

 

[sndmn11]

Thanks, I read on at least one other thread where you mentioned the same. I've gotten great service from lamson (loose handle that I cross threaded the screw on after I removed and put a drop of Loctite on), but I feel like they don't offer much for me past the konic.
How has that Galvan compared to other reels? How is it after the repair?

 

[sweetandsalt]

If you will go to page 96 of the "Reel Love" thread above in this Reel section of the Forum, you will help me from not having to repeat myself. I will add though that, capacity and performance criteria being appropriate, I select a new reel by how precisely it will balance my new rod. You are correct that fly shops may have their prejudices and I do too but it is different as I buy reels to fish with rather than sell them. All three of the reels I wrote about are on your list and are superior in drag performance, sealing from the watery elements and aspect ratio to your current reels. To match your new Zenith the U DD 5000 would be the simplest choice but any one of these three in the appropriate weight (disregard mgf. recommended line sizes and go by balance...as I pointed out I use the FWX 7/8 on my light weight #5) would be a reliable, fine tunable and enjoyable reel to fish with.

If you further search this Reel Forum you will also find a thread dedicated to Nautilus and another to Hatch Reels.

 

[bear 007]

I've got a few Galvan's myself, no problems, I slipped last year and slammed my 3wt spoke into the rocks, I thought that would be it, when I looked at it there where no dents dings nothing, maybe I just got lucky but I don't think so.

 

[comeonavs]

My first thought was they are all fantastic and will do what you want.

What stood out to me is you said you are fairly rough on gear. Assuming all things being equal from quality of the internal features and functionality. Is it worth paying for "pretty" if you are going to beat it up.

Per SweetAndSalt above what you will see in the reel threads mentioned Lamson (except speedster) got a few negative remarks due to spool ratio. I sold a Guru and Velocity because of it. I pinched and ruined two new lines when they barreled.


I dont own any Galvans unfortunately, I love my FWX but it is to "pretty" to beat up. So for value in my mind Hardy might be the best bet.

Go to Front Range Anglers in Boulder tomorrow if you can. They are having customer appreciation day. See their twitter feed for a coupon. They had all 3 reels you are asking about just the other day. Go try them all on for size. SA is also doing a line trade in deal their tomorrow too.

I was going to go get a new FWX 5/6 tomorrow but I was lucky enough to have to buy a brand spanking new Dyson vacuum today so no dice for me.

 

[fireroad]

The Airflo mend line is fantastic but it is a fat line and longer then 90 ft so it takes up quite a bit of space on any 4 wt reel. Since you are familiar with and like the Velocity 1.5 I would grab the same thing in 2.0 as they are currently discontinued and heavily discounted. The Velocity spool ratio is closer to what's considered traditional and thus line pinching should not be a problem.

 

[sndmn11]

Yes, I kind of thought before starting this thread from what I read that they would all be good choices. I was hoping someone would throw out a stop sign on one of them to make the choice easier. While I would like it to match nice with the rod, ultimately it is a tool first, and functionality is the main goal. I suppose I could get another Lamson, but with some of the trade up programs I have found, the cost of the three in question would be cut in half, and I would get free line. Or I could trade straight across for another konic.
comeoneavs, I am thinking about going today if my plans in Castle Rock go quicker than expected.
S&S thanks for your info on the other thread.

 

[mysticm]

I have the Ross Evo LTs, Galvan Torque and also the Nautilus FWX reels on my other rods, but for my Zenith the older Orvis Battenkill II in the gold finish suits my eye fine. The balance on the 10' 3wt rod is right below the index finger...Have used the combo this past winter on a local tailwater and despite my guides freezing, the drag was unaffected.

 

[sndmn11]

I was able to get my hands on the galvan and the hardy yesterday, and loved the both for different reasons....
Galvan:
pros; "seemed" to be beefier, the drag would stop the spool, the green and silver looked great, the stories of galvan service are great
cons; the drag knob had a little wiggle at lighter settings and the drag knob detents weren't as firm as expected...all in all not big, or even mild issues
Hardy:
pros; the drag was pretty sweet and very fine tuned, everything fit great whether the drag was tight or loose, I liked the look of the machining, overall very smooth and impressive
cons; the silver is very shiny!, there are exposed detents on the spindle/drag that I worry about with ice and silt, the amount of machining makes me worry if it is dropped, I don't know anything of their service being that this is made in korea and the company is owned by a larger group?, 5yr warranty
So, I may have to take another look at them, and maybe see what their manuals say about maintenance

 

[comeonavs]

Sounds like you eliminated the Hardy for valid reasons, quite canidly the warranty issue question on the reel and the Grey's streamflex rod is the only thing that kept me from going 10' 4wt with that set up. I went with Allen for the rod and put a Ross Evolution 2 on it.

Just my $.02 I love galvan reels but if I were choosing between a FWX and a the Rush Light I would go for the FWX. Why would I do that ?

I have the FWX 3/4 in silver and absolutely love it. The silver is not so blingy as to be distracting or reflective. The craftsmanship is awesome, the thing is silky smooth. The drag is very crisp and fine. It is on a trout rig so I've never tested it against anything bigger than a 14" Rainbow.
I didn't fish it this year in the winter so I cant comment to how it functions in frigid conditions. I fished my Ross Evolution LT 2 a fair amount over the winter and had no issues.

Sounds like you are like me and prefer to upsize your reel by one size since you are looking at the FWX 5/6 for a 4wt. I use a Ross Evo LT 2 on both 4wts. The FWX 3/4 is very comparable in size to the Evolution LT2

 

[sndmn11]

Gosh, the Hardy is leading the pack right now, if it weren't for the lack of warranty, the decision would be made...
Looks like I will have to get my hands on a Nautilus, but I am not sure it would blow my socks off enough to warrant an extra $50+.
I'm looking at up-sized reels to balance the 10' rod, and I am used to a bottom balanced setup coming from an 8' 2wt with the konic on it.
This will probably come down to writing them all on a piece of paper and drawing from a hat.

 

[comeonavs]

Sorry I misread you then, I assumed you ruled out the Hardy due to the shine factor and the detents for icing up plus the warranty question.

I think the Hardy is a beautiful reel and for the price is an excellent value. For me I am at a spot in life that if it isn't broke, it will be soon. I must have broke a mirror as I am on a run of really bad luck. I am now the guy buying the extended warranty on everything and saving receipts for everything down to coffee grinders. My mother in law bought us a coffee pot 3 years ago, I saved the box/warranty. Glad I did, I am on the 4th replacement in 3 years.....my luck sucks.

Example I bought a new Allen ICON, fished it, never fell never hit a tree branch ...nothing, only fished a size 18 mysis shrimp and sz22 blood midge so no beads hitting the blank. It literally on a cast I thought two sections came apart....nope just random break. To the guys at Allen' credit within 5 minutes of emailing them I had return instructions and had it back inside of two weeks for nothing. With my luck I need that kind of warranty.

 

[nickel]

I ended up putting a Sage 4230 reel on my zenith 9' 4wt. Have been very happy with fit, function, and the overall look. I purchased the reel in platinum for my setup but the bronze would look good as well.

 

[sndmn11]

Mysticm and Nickel- you guys hit it on the head. Took MY rod with me to get another look. While I was fiddling, the gentleman helping me let out some remark of surprise and pulled out an Abel in one of the three DeYoung trout schemes, all of which have copper/brown/bronze/tan whatever. Looked really cool. I asked to see a bronze torque, and by far, that is the absolute best looking color on the skeletal Zenith.
All that being said, Galvan Rush LT 5 in the clear is what I will be getting.
I pointed out the things from my "cons" list to the gentleman, and he set me straight.... Coming from the lamsons, no drag detents, and playing with the hardy first, "little" rotation between detents, I wasn't rotating the knob on the Galvan enough to get from one detent to the other. So every three or four "little" (false) rotations, each I was expecting to feel but didn't, id hit a real detent and feel it. The gentleman today kindly pointed out to me that I wasn't turning the knob enough (WITHOUT making me feel stupid). He then pointed out how many full turns were between locked down and baby light, and translated that to being more fine tunable. I bought that speech. I then realized the "wiggle" in the drag knob I was feeling before was due to being between detents.....whoops
I swapped between the Rush 4/5 and Ultralite 4000/5000 and the balance point moved around maybe 1/2"max with all being where the blank and cork meet or more towards the butt. The heaviest of them being the Rush 5 seemed to be my preference. Franly though, one could mount the four and hand me the rod blindfolded and I wouldn't be able to tell a difference. My thoughts with going to the 5 size are that if anytime in the future I have a legitimate need for a reel with a good drag, it will be on a heavier weight rod, and I have a reel for my 2wt already.
Thanks for helping out, sharing your thoughts, and listening to mine.

 

[sweetandsalt]

The Galvan Torque is a very fine reel and fun to fish. Well done deliberation, congratulations.

 

[irons]

Personally i dont think there is much difference in the galvan rush or the rush lt. Sometimes you need a little more weight in your reel to balance out the rod.

 

[sndmn11]

Out of due diligence, I was able to get my hand on Nautilus this weekend at Trouts in Denver. I was shown a black 3/4 reel and was not impressed. The spool had quite a bit of resistance reeling in, there were no drag detents, and there was quite a bit of play in the spool to frame fit. I then saw a size one, I had forgotten they produced a smaller size as well, and asked to see it just for fun. It was the complete opposite! Spun freely, great detents, great fit and no wobble. I then asked if they had a 5/6 and was told that there may be on in their stock room, but that I did not want that size as it was too large for my application. After some further insisting by me, the gentleman returned with a black 5/6. Just like the size 1, it was great. I asked the gentleman if there was something wrong with the 3/4 reel, and he played with it some and said that there must be, but returned it to the display case. He did not have anything positive to say about Ross or Galvan. I did look at some Hatch reels, which were very cool, but well out of my price range.
I talked further with a different gentleman and he told me that he felt the FWX series was great for CO, but that he had used it for redfish and it failed him the first trip out. He did point out that these were 20-40lb redfish, but I do not know if that is a great feat. He did say that he used the FWX for carp, and has no issues so far.
Overall, I felt that the Nautilus FWX was a very nice reel, but to light in actual weight for my liking. The reel I handled that I believe had an issue was a little concerning to me in that it was only a display model and had never been fished. I am guessing that it was dropped at some point.
Can't wait for my Galvan RushLT to arrive, as I think that I made a solid choice.

 

[comeonavs]

I have never fished the Glavans but have fondled them so much it could be considered a misdemeanor

Wierd on that 3/4 being like that, sad the sales person shoved it in the display and some one will end up buying it and then have to take action. I hear you on the overall weight of the 3/4. I didn't even try to put it on my 10 footer.

Post reviews of the galvan when you can, and a little rod/reel porn never hurts around here