Like many outdoorsmen, I’ve had enough ice fishing, and my yen for chasing hares and calling coyotes has waned. Cabin fever has reduced my desire to tie more flies, reload shells, build rods, carve decoys or even read or watch videos of favorite pastimes.
Thankfully it’s time to prepare, refurbish and refine my stockpile of equipment for open water fishing season when the ice clears.
I seldom throw a fly away. I have some patterns so old and beaten up, they resemble something a cat would cough up. But I’ve seen times when trout would strike some God awful creations. I attempt to restore form and color by steaming them clean.
A pot of boiling water will do, but a tea kettle with a narrow spout of steam is better. Secure the fly by the hook bend with a pair of long-nosed pliers or a hemostat, then move the fly through the steam at various angles.
Make sure all portions of the feather and fur creation are penetrated for at least 30 seconds for dry and wet flies, 45 for streamers and salmon flies and a full minute for tandem and large saltwater flies.
Lay the steamed fly on a paper towel and gently pat with a tissue. Use a hair dryer on low and a toothpick to fluff and dry the material, then hang them overnight on a thread tied between two cabinet handles. Make sure everyone in the house is warned about the drying line to prevent injury.
It’s amazing how a bit of steam cleaning can restore form and flotation to a dry fly and the color and flowing lines to a wet fly.
Spend some time at the fly-tying vise to replace any patterns broken or lost, as well as a few extras of the flies that produced well last summer. Repair any flies that need help. If a head is coming apart, re-cement it. If a tail or hackle was torn loose by an aggressive fish, it’s often a minor repair job to make the fly whole again. If a fly has major damage, you may have to dismantle it and replace portions.
Use a small flat file to sharpen the point and each edge of the barb of any fly used last season. It’s heartbreaking to lose a big fish, and often a dull point or bent barb is the culprit.
Once the flies are refurbished, repaired and replaced, it’s time to go over the lures and plugs. Treble hooks only hold better if they are each sharpened. Make sure the small screw-in eyes are well-seated. If any are loose, unscrew the eye, place a drop of super glue to the threads and reinsert.
Inspect the integrity of the metal split rings that secure treble hooks, using a set of needle-nose pliers. Use steel wool to remove small spots of rust and brush on clear nail polish to prevent further corrosion.
A drop of light oil or a well-directed stream of WD-40 or silicone spray will aid mobility on plugs or lures that have moving parts. Make sure you have plenty of split rings, snap swivels and barrel swivels in your tackle box as well as tools for lure repair on the water.
This is also a good time to replace old fly boxes or lure containers. I’ve switched to see-through, multi compartment plastic cases for storing my plugs and lures. I can identify what I want more quickly and plastic is easier on lure finishes. I use fly boxes with closed cell foam rather than metal clips or springs.
I also practice knots I use for flies and lures, and for watercraft, while I watch TV in the evening. It’s good to be able to tie a knot almost by feel, since a lot of fishing and boating is at dusk and dawn.
Next make sure the inside of each guide on your rods is smooth, not line worn and rough, so that it might ruin the coating on a fly line or cut through monofilament.
Check each guide’s winding to make sure there’s no looseness or unraveling. Perhaps the thread needs a new waterproof coating of preservative. Replace or rewind any faulty guides.
Wipe the rod down with a spray housecleaner, especially the rings and grooves of the reel seat. Spray a cloth with WD-40 and rub down the cork grip to remove grime, and remnants of sunscreen and fly dope.
If the line on your reels is older than two years, you may need to replace it. Fly lines crack, reducing flotation and becoming difficult to cast well. Monofilament weakens, leading to lost fish, and it also retains memory making it difficult to cast.
Clean each fly line thoroughly, going over it at least three times with cleaner and once with floatant if it’s a floating line. Change all leaders and double check all knots.
Take the reels apart and go over the parts with a moist soft cloth, then a dry cloth and finally with a cloth sprayed with silicone. Avoid spraying the entire reel, especially gear mechanisms, with lubricant, as it will only attract and hold dirt and grit in the delicate winding and drag gears.
Apply small drops of lightweight oil only to gear shafts and cogs and wipe off excess. Always release the drag tension when storing a reel for a week or more. Use a quality, fitted screwdriver and check each exterior screw for tightness.
Despite the mild winter conditions, it’s always a mystery when anglers will be able to hit the waterways in their area, but my fishing equipment will be in tip-top shape and I can tie a blood knot at midnight in a thick fog.