I saw my first Hardy fly reel years ago while fishing the lower section of Oregon’s Rogue River. The reel was a Hardy Princess and the following year he was the proud owner of a new one. The Princess was introduced in the 1950s and 1960s on a stable of seven fly reels that Hardy called his lightweight series. Included features: a right hand crank that can be changed to a left hand if needed, similar adjustable drag systems with a clicking sound that’s special only to Hardy fly reels, and a machined aluminum “foot” that snaps on on a cast reel frame. Aluminum and riveted for added strength. All models featured unique yet simple chrome line guards, a beautiful gray finish, and a removable aluminum spool.

Hardy reels in the lightweight series no longer in production include Princes (1953-2003), Zenith (1960-2003), St Aidan (1964-2003), and St. Andrew (1961-1964). These models, like many other Hardy reels that are no longer being made, will only increase in value as time goes on. This is one of the reasons why I believe that if bought carefully on the second hand market, these classic fly reels can be a good investment and a fly fishing reel you can use and enjoy. The Zenith, Saint Aidan and Saint Andrew were larger fly reels that included all the features of the light series and were originally designed for European sea trout fishing. They have stronger adjustable drag systems with larger fly spools for heavy fly lines and more fly line backing capacity. Although sometimes hard to find, these reels are very good vintage Steelhead fly reels.

There are three lightweight models that are still in production, the flyweight, featherweight, and LRH lightweight. These updated versions of the classics are now machined from high quality aluminum bars, but still have all the features of the early models. They can be purchased or ordered at most quality fly shops.

One of the most popular trout fly reels in the light weight series has to be the LRH light weight. The “LRH” are the initials of Lawrence Robert Hardy, who undoubtedly had some influence on the lightweight series. I believe the LRH is also the fly reel featured in the Fly Fishermen’s Federation logo. The LRH is just about ideal for most trout fishing applications. It has a nice adjustable click drag system with Hardy’s distinctive “click” sound, and can hold fly lines up to a WF-6 float fly line or a DT-5 fly line and approximately 75 yards of fly line backing. . Additional live reels are also available if the angler needs to make use of different types of fly lines during a fishing trip.

The next fly reel to consider in the lightweight series is the Hardy Princess, only available on the used market. The Princess is slightly larger than the LRH and has a 3-1/8″ diameter spool that can hold a WF-6 or WF-7 fly line and 100 yards of 20 pound fly line backing. This reel also has the same type of adjustable drag system as the LRH and additional spools are also available on the used market.The Princess can handle larger freshwater fish, in rivers and lakes and is also a good fly reel. “all around” that can be used for fishing streamers or other heavy flies.