Keep an eye on this page for announcements and new products.

December 2020

What can we say about 2020, what a year it has been. Deb and I want to thank all of our customers who wished us good health throughout the year. We have truly wonderful customers. Other than grocery shopping we stayed home and worked on reels. Everyone who ordered a 25th Anniversary Rainmaker Custom got it and we received many compliments from happy customers who love their new reel. We are thinking that it might be nice to release a 25th anniversary edition of another of our reel models sometime in the future. This year we announced the new Niagara Drifter multiplier centerpin reel for sale, the first of its kind ever made. The reel is truly unique. We will put up pictures and a video here on the website soon, the info is now on our facebook page. The other big announcement, after 2 years of testing, is the new Mooching Reel, developed for trolling for salmon. You can see pictures and details here on the website and on the Canada Fishing Reels facebook page. This too is a very unique reel and we are hoping that it will have a big impact on the guys out on Lake Ontario, many of whom are also centerpinners. We want to wish everyone all the best for 2021 and please….stay healthy!

November 2019

It was a busy year for us in 2019 and it looks like we’ll be even busier next year having added the Rainmaker Custom 25th Anniversary centerpin reel to our production schedule. Field testing of the Niagara Drifter multiplier centerpin continues and it is going very well. We hope to make a big announcement in 2020 after we get our regular reel orders filled. The reel has been used by some very experienced guys over the past two years who have given great feedback during its development. The first issue will be the clicker version and down the road we will offer an optional drag upgrade. The production model has been improved over the original prototype shown in the video on the facebook page. It is quieter and easier to use with an automatic winding function instead of a lever to activate it. There will be more information available in 2020. Stay tuned!

We thank our reps Natural Sports in Kitchener Ontario for supporting our centerpin reels and Michael & Young Fly Shop in Vancouver for supporting our Spey reels.

March, 2018

We have just today done a complete renewal of the website under a more updated platform that is mobile friendly. 

February, 2016

Lots new! We finally put up our Facebook page so please visit us there and say hi. We've added lots of pics of our reels as well as a video of the new Niagara Drifter Multiplier Centerpin reel in action and we hope to add some more videos of it out on the water soon. The Multiplier is a result of concentrated engineering focus. This reel design as well as our drag reels and our simple clicker reels allows us to offer a full complement of centerpin reel types to our customers. Engineering and quality goes into all our reels, an understanding of bearings and how they work and how to make them perform is what makes our centerpin reels stand out.

Spey Reels: We have added, and will continue to add some info on our Spey reels to the website. We currently have on the drawing board the new-for-this-year Raised Pillar Spey. Photos will be added after the first one (already sold) is built. It has the same proven internals as our S handle reels but with the classic frame style. It will be offered in direct wind, multiplier wind, gear and pawl drag and adjustable disc drag as will the S handle reels. Future plans include delrin and ebonite side plates. Stainless and nickel silver bands will be further down the road but work has begun on those too as preliminary developments.

2016 will be a busy year for us, we will soon be in touch with those who have reels on order for 2016.

December, 2015

Not much new this month. The multiplier reel is still out there on the rivers and continues to work well without trouble. The test model has both the multiplier system as well as the knob adjustable drag feature. I felt that when designing it, it would be best to put all of the features in it that I could and test the full featured reel rather than do it piecemeal. I have now modified the design so that the reel can also be made as a clicker reel which reduces the complexity of the reel a lot. This simplification will also reduce the cost. I want to make several of these in 2016. If anyone is interested in getting one please let me know by email to canadafishingreels@gmail.com

Talk to us. We are always working on new stuff. For example we have three new reels under development at the moment. They are out on the rivers undergoing testing. We have another new reel on the drawing board which will be prototyped in 2016.  We would love to hear from you about ideas and suggestions for future reels or products you want to see. Drop us a line via our contact page (type your email address carefully!) or email us directly.

Deb and I would like to wish you all a merry Christmas and we send our best wishes for a happy, safe, and prosperous new year. We look forward to meeting more of you in 2016 as it is always a pleasure to see our customers in person, enjoy a coffee together, and chat about our favourite subject......reels! 

all the best,

Wayne

November, 2015

We recently attended the Spey Clave in Brantford Ontario and Ontario Out of Doors Magazine dropped by and we did a quick video. Here's the llink to the magazine's website:

http://www.oodmag.com/   just cut and paste it into your browser

October , 2015:

Today is the last batch of anodizing as soon it will be too cold outside to do any more so we'll be shutting down the ano plant soon. Debbie and I got to meet a lot of you this past year and I told everyone what a great job she did doing all the anodizing... a 100% success rate and excellent quality. I'm sure those of you who received a reel this year will agree. 

The Niagara Drifter multiplier float reel is now out being tested by Simon. So far he reports that the reel is performing flawlessly and that winding in long drifts is a dream. Keep an eye here for further developments as the weather cools and the fish get thicker.

We have decided to stop making custom handles for reels other than our own. If you have one of our reels we can put custom handles on it when you order the reel or you can order them afterwards if you want to change them out yourself or you can send the reel in for us to do it. Note that the Rainmakers all come with custom matched colour handles as they are not easy to change out yourself.

We will soon be adding some pictures and info on our newest product this year, our S handle Spey reel. These fly reels have been tested in Ontario and British Columbia. Our BC tester landed steelhead last fall and chinook salmon this spring. These are ocean run chinook....big and strong. Ryan said his test reel was the smoothest he's ever used. So we made the first batch this year. We attended the Spey Clave in Brantford Ontario where the reels were well received. Orders are coming in from as far away as Norway and Sweden. We will be testing our "nearly perfect" fly reel this fall. Again, stay tuned.

A new float reel is on the drawing board at the moment and prototyping is underway.

April , 2015:

Its going to be a busy year and we're working on parts for a bunch of Rainmakers, Revolutions, and Canada Drifters. But......product development is what keeps things lively, and here's something for you to see:

This is the Niagara Drifter, a "big water" reel....designed by yours truly and we believe its the first of its kind!

The reel is a 4 1/2" reel, based on the Canada Drifter drag reel platform. It has the same drag system in it but it has a multiplier gear train in it to double spool speed relative to the winding speed. When the drag is off, the reel functions the same as every other float reel with a free spinning spool and handle plate BUT  when you flip the drag lever to "on" then turning the crank handle drives the gears which in turn doubles the spool retrieve speed so when you wind in line, it comes in as though you were winding a 9" spool!  When the line leaves the reel (whether or not the drag is engaged)  the handle plate does not multiply and so the handle plate rotates at the same speed as the spool.

This reel allows fishing in the normal sense and you can palm the reel when fighting a fish and wind line in at normal 1:1 retrieve like every other reel you own OR you can choose to flip the drag lever and fight with a drag and retrieve line at double the speed. Just using the 2:1 retrieve for winding line in at the end of a long drift on big rivers will save your wrist, much appreciated at the end of a long day!

The reel will undergo field testing this year and we'll decide after that if and when we'll offer it as a product.

December , 2014:

2014 was a great year here at Canada Fishing Reels. We met lots of new people as customers and enjoyed helping others with repairs, modifications, and handles. We got our anodizing line up and running with a variety of colours and added a bigger lathe to the machine shop!

Response to the introduction of the Rainmaker has been very good and we now have the product page up for it so please have a look and contact us if you have further questions. As of this writing the Rainmaker is only available in two colours; dark maroon brown and black. We may add a dark green after some colour testing in the ano shop.

In September of this year Natural Sports in Kitchener Ontario started carrying our reels and they will have more in 2015.

We are planning to offer bearing oil by next spring to our reel customers as an option to go with their reel.  This will be the same oil that is in the bearings we use and is of the highest quality.

As the year draws to a close we want to thank all our customers and friends for their support. Deb and I send you all our warmest wishes for a Merry Christmas and wish you all the best in the coming year.

October , 2014

Some pictures of new reels that will be available in 2015.

The float reel is the Rainmaker, a 4.62" diameter beauty!!

Also coming is a 4" diameter "S" handled Spey reel, mutiplier wind, adjustable drag. Stay tuned for more details to come on the product page. Plans include a 3 3/4" diameter also.

August , 2014

The new Tailout Drifter II's are finally ready, all the parts for this new series are done. The reel now has a fully machined foot, doing away with the stainless steel bracket so it now weighs in at 8oz. The triangular badge remains, mounted with flush head screws on the back. This series will be numbered 25 to 50. The reel is available in all the colours listed below including orange and purple. Handles are nested and will be standard black delrin (plastic) unless ordered with custom colour handles.  We will get some info posted on the products page including pics of the various colours. Also available will be a two-tone version with whatever colour you want on the spool with a black back....looks great!

This year also marks, for us, a return to making fly reels. This year sees a new "S" Handle Spey Reel in the lineup. It is not yet ready for sale but #001 is out for field testing in Peter's very capable hands! It is a multiplier reel with an adjustable drag and its a monster at 4" diameter and 2" wide inside the end caps. Pictures to follow. We hope to release this reel for sale next april. They will only be made to order.  Its smaller brother, a 3 3/4" diameter will also be available....and a 3 1/2" is on the drawing board. 

April 21, 2014

Lots of news this month.

First....we have added more colours to the lineup! You can order your reels in the bronze and black you currently see on the website but in addition to that you can order Red, Green, Blue, Pewter, Dark Bronze or Brown. We have hot pink, gold, orange and purple waiting in the wings!

Next....we have just received a new order of bearings. These are German ABEC 7 bearings and they are very nice indeed. If you want these bearings in your reel instead of the ABEC 5's we've been using just tell us and add $20 to the price of the reel.

We are sold out of the Tailout Drifters numbers 2 to 25 (#1 is still in the box waiting for a special occasion!). We will soon be making another batch with a few revisions to the look. The 2014 reel will have a fully machined foot fitted to the back doing away with the stainless steel bracket. This will lighten the reel slightly. The Tailout Drifter logo nameplate will still be on the back.

February 4, 2014

We have our new logo for Canada Fishing Reels and its been added to the banner at the top of the page. Many of our customers have other talents and our logo was designed by an avid and very experienced steelheader. Thankyou Roy!

While the shop is closed for the winter I get a chance to work on new designs and concepts. I have two on the drawing board (aka computer screen) this winter and will prototype them in the coming months once our backorders are filled. If/when they test out successfully they will be announced here and on the forums so keep an eye open!

Once the weather warms up I will also work on new and more colours to offer from the anodizing shop.

The Canada Drifter float reel has been a great success as it is offered in both drag and non- drag versions to suit the users' preferences. A new batch will be started in April so please let me know if you want one in either style. 

September 10, 2013

Whew! Its been a busy summer. We have relocated our shop to larger premises and now have room to hopefully add the anodizing system! As a reel builder, sending our carefully made parts to an outside company for anodizing can often be a heartbreaking affair.

We have added our newest reel to the Product page. Go there to see the Canada Drifter. A truly beautiful reel (if we do say so ourselves) that is the culmination of a lot of work here in the shop and out on the river. Our field tester was busy with the prototype all last season. Thankyou Simon!!

The reel was originally designed with the adjustable drag but a careful review of the design layout on the computer showed that a clicker drag was also quite possible and with fewer parts and work so this version can be made to order if requested. As always, orders will be filled "first come first served".

October 30, 2012

We have added handles for Frogwater reels to the lineup. The pins can be a bit tricky to take off for handle replacement so we recommend you send the reel in if you want custom handles made for these reels.

September 18, 2012

Check out the Handles section of Products to see the new colours and types available. We can do handles for most reels if you send the reel to the shop. If you own an Islander, Mykiss, Milner, Kingpin or Angling Specialties we can send you the handles if you want to mount them yourself. Before doing so, you might want to see if you can get the old ones off as sometimes the pin screws can be problematic.

August 22,2012

We have revised the bearing designation on the 5" Revolution Float Reel to ABEC 5. Some new inventory of very good ABEC 5 bearings have arrived that seem to run very well in this reel and so we've switched for now.

May 14, 2012

Parts are finally back from anodizing and so a glamour shot of the new Revolution Float Reel has been loaded onto the page. Click here to see it.

May 4, 2012

Parts are almost ready for the new 5" Revolution Float Reel. The reel was tested last fall and all winter in several parts of Ontario. We know that some of you have spotted them along the rivers and reaction has been very positive. The testing staff loved them. Pictures will go up on the site as soon as they are available. 

April 20, 2012

A new reel project is underway here at CFR. The design work has been completed on a new 4 1/2" float reel. This reel will have an adjustable drag system that is lever engaged from the rim. The reel will be nearly silent with quiet reverse clutches. The styling will be reminiscent of  float reels from years ago.

November, 2011

An upgrade is available for the Tailout Drifter reel. The clicker mechanism has been revised. This was done in response for requests from users that wanted a more positive engagement and a tighter clicker. Anyone who wants this upgrade should contact us for further details.