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We’ve seen fly reels and rods, flies and fly boxes in our ongoing vintage tackle contest, but this is the only fly line to hit the email inbox. In fact, it’s the only vintage fishing line we’ve received, period. What intrigued me about this was the condition of the line, which is seemingly brand-new in its original vacuum packaging. The photo was submitted by Biard Gardner, who wrote:

_I picked up this line while cleaning out the family’s old fishing camp here along the South Branch River in West Virginia.
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_ So does old mint-condition fly line fetch as much as old mint-condition bamboo rods? Let’s find out what vintage tackle expert Dr. Todd Larson of The Whitefish Press and “Fishing For History” blog had to say about it: _

_”Vintage fly tackle is always interesting, and fly lines are no exception. You’ve got a classic 1950s fly line from the Newton Line Company, a firm founded in 1909 in Homer, New York by D.D. Newton. Their “Ghost” brand nylon fly line came at the beginning of the nylon revolution, which saw silk and linen fishing lines replaced completely by nylon following World War II. Newton was one of the most impressive advertisers, and they launched their Ghost brand around 1950 with a big splash that included numerous full-page ads in sporting magazines. Your fly line is worth around $10-$20 in the box, and with some care can still be used today (it’s a Size D line which is equivalent to today’s 6 Weight). To view the other two Newton “Ghost” fishing line spools, and a colorful ad, click here.”
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_I think it might be kind of cool to fish with this line, and I’d be really interested to find out how it cast compared to today’s fly lines. Congrats and thanks for sharing, Biard. Your new pliers are on the way.

If you’ve already sent me photos of your vintage tackle, keep checking every Thursday to see if I chose it for an appraisal by Dr. Todd. If you haven’t and want to enter the contest, email photos of your old tackle to fstackle@gmail.com, along with your name, mailing address, and story of how you acquired the gear. If I use it in a Thursday post, you get a pair of Berkley Aluminum Pliers ($50, above).

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