11wt Fly Reel Reviews
When you're fighting giant tarpon, offshore billfish, or giant trevally, your reel is often the only thing standing between you and a broken leader. An 11-weight reel needs a drag system that can stop explosive, long runs and it needs to do it without overheating or seizing up. These are the most demanding reels in fly fishing, and every ounce of quality in the construction matters.
We tested 20+ 11wt reels with a hard focus on the variables that matter at this weight class: maximum drag capacity, backing volume, corrosion resistance after saltwater exposure, and drag performance under sustained pressure. Detailed results are below.
Seigler BFN Fly Reel Review
The BFN (Big Fly Narrow) fly reel from Seigler is the latest iteration of the...
Hardy Fortuna Regent 10000 Fly Reel Review
The Regent is the latest to bare the Fortuna name, but it’s been completely r...
Shilton SR10 Fly Reel Review
For our 2023 11wt Big Game Reel Shootout, we had the opportunity to test Shil...
Shilton SL7 Fly Reel Review
You may or may not be aware of Shilton Fly Reels. Although the South African ...
Orvis Mirage V Fly Reel Review
The Mirage USA has been out for quite some time, and the 8wt placed highly in...
Galvan Grip 10 Fly Reel Review
We have always been impressed by the quality of reels offered by the Californ...
Sage Thermo 10/12 Fly Reel Review
When Sage released the Thermo last year, we couldn’t help but roll our eyes a...
Orvis Hydros V Fly Reel Review
The Orvis Hydros is a reel we’re very familiar with, especially in lighter si...
Nautilus Silver King Fly Reel Review
The Silver King is Nautilus' big game version of the CCF-X2, which won our 20...
Hatch Iconic 9 Plus Fly Reel Review
I'll admit it. Of all the reels in this shootout, I've fished the Hatch the m...
Mako 9600B Fly Reel Review
Mako is new to Trident and new to our shootouts, but they've been making top-...
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