Though I am not a professional fisherman, fishing has always been my passion. There are two different types of fishing – fly-fishing and spin fishing. Both types have their pros and cons.
Last week as I was hanging out with one of my best friends, he asked me – “what I usually do in my leisure periods and holidays? Why don’t I join recreational events with them at weekends?”
So I had to talk about my passion. My friend doesn’t have enough knowledge about fishing and hardly knows the differences between fly fishing and spin fishing.
So I explained to him the major differences. Surprisingly, it is very often happening to me. Most of the people don’t know the details about either fly-fishing or spin fishing.
If you want to know which type of fishing is better then I would say you must ask an avid fisherman. He should give you the perfect answer along with advantages and disadvantages.
Being a passionate fisherman, I have my own choice as well and I prefer fly-fishing.
In this article, I will try to focus on what are fly-fishing and spin fishing along with the key differences between these two.
By the end of this article, you can choose your preferred type of fishing in which you want to practice. Whether it’s fly fishing or spin fishing – this article will help you to decide to pick your desired form of fishing.
In addition, you can take a look at the best time for fishing, if you don’t have any idea about the right fishing timings.
The Focused Difference of Fly Fishing vs. Spin Fishing
Fly Fishing
The main intent of fly-fishing is making a fist fool using an artificial fly, which is made with animal feathers or hair. Most of the fly fishermen like to trial themselves with the difficult form of fishing and they love to catch fish as much as they can.
The fly-fishermen love to challenge themselves while catching fishes. Possibly, this fishing is very peaceful, and it has been recognized as a more impeccable method to catch a fish.
Usually, a trout will favor insect simulations, but most recently, fly fishermen are trying to catch each and everything using a fly rod, and in most cases, they succeed. So these days it is not true to say that fly-fishing is just for trout.
Make sure you wear the right fishing gear for fly fishing to keep a step ahead of others.
Spin Fishing
Spin fishing means catching any type of fish, anywhere possible. It is a quite popular and useful way of fishing if you are planning for different species apart from trout, and guess what, it can bring amazing results.
Ideally, the name spin-fishing came from the gear of a spinning real. For spin fishing, you need to connect your bait to the end of the line. Once your bait is enclosed, you are prepared to cast.
When you cast the lure, you can twitch reeling it in. When you will retrieve your lure, it will depend and the speed and tempo will depend on what type it is and the species of fish you want to catch.
The core similarity of fly-fishing and spin fishing is that both are known as catching fish but using different methods.
The key difference between the two fishing types is the mechanism of the cast.
For fly-fishing, the weight of the fly line produces momentum.
For spin fishing, the weight of the bait normally produces momentum to drive the cast.
The basic differences between fly-fishing and spin fishing are given below:
Comparison Table of Fly Fishing and Spin Fishing
| Basic Differences | Fly Fishing | Spin Fishing |
| Flies and bait | For fly fishing, lures are basically dry flies, streamers or all other forms of fish food | For spin fishing, heavier lures can be used to imitating fish |
| Types of water | For fly fishing, floating water is preferable but still, water is also present and can be done regularly | Equally, spin fishing can be done on still water or floating river |
| Rod Type | The rod for fly fishing is lightweight and it is used to cast the line by fake casting | The rod of spin fishing is quite heavier and the cast is monofilament line with the single cast |
| Line Type | Fly line is everything for fly-fishing. To cast lightweight flies leader and tippet can be used | Monofilament Line is more affordable. Braided Lineis also used for certain fish |
| Performance | Fly fishing works well for an upstream and stealthier performance. Furthermore, you can put your effort in tighter billets when fly-fishing. | Spin fishing performs great for emulating baitfish or crawdads and they are accessible to all water depths and are retrieved or thrown upstream and conveyed to you. |
Main Variances in Intent
To find out the main variances, we need to know about the difference in intent for each type of fishing.
Once you know the intent and the details of each kind of fishing then it’s easier to find the preferable kind for you.
The main technique of fly-fishing is to make a fish fool by using an artificial fly or any other part of fish food. Most of these flies are made of animal sections, for example, hair and feathers. Though, nowadays fly-fishermen are catching all types of fish using their up-to-date method so it is not just for trout anymore.
For spin fishing, the main purpose is just catching tons of fish with lesser efforts. If you don’t focus on any specific type of fish then you can catch a large variety of fishes by spin fishing. Spin fishing has its advantages over fly-fishing by using crankbaits and lures. The prime benefit of spin fishing is the maximum outcome and less effort compared to fly-fishing. Usually, for spin fishing, less skill is needed than fly-fishing.
Now move to other differences using gears that will help you understand the differences in intent easily.
Casting Techniques
For the casting techniques, lesser skill is needed for spin fishing than fly-fishing. The forms of casting are not the same for both types of fishing.
While you go for spin fishing, you must use a solo caste, which means you need to raise the rod up and hold down the button that discharges the pressure off the line. Next, you can flip the rod onward so that the line comes out.
If any lure and bobber hit the water, then the line won’t come out. You must allow the hook set where it supposed to land until you get a bite from the fish. Occasionally you can wiggle it a little or reel the line, but make sure you are not moving a complete lot of the line.
When you go for fly-fishing, you just do the opposite. For fly-fishing, there are lots of movements of the line. At the end of the line, there will be a fake fly, which looks like a real one.
When the fly-fishing time comes, you may use a special double-cast method. The fly-fishing casting is also known as the false cast. While you are doing fly-fishing you need to create a backward cast, which is followed by a forward one.
Then you should move the rod backward and next snap it forward to bend with the rod midair. Now you can repeat this to figure out the line. The fishermen use this method repeatedly, and the rod and the line hardly stop moving.
To be good at casting a fly rod you might need a lot of practices and this is why it is known as the harder one. The more movement, the more possibilities to mistake as the fisher. If you are continually casting that means you are more energetic. It is not like spin fishing you just let the rod sit quietly until you get a bite
Baiting Differences
We already know that the fly-fishing uses flies and those are made with feathers, hair, and other body parts. Flies placed on the surface of the water do not sink in the water.
There are two types of flies – wet flies and dry flies. Both types are used for catching different types of fish. You can also use small flies that emulate elves and other small insects that fish eats.
The idea of the fly and the reason for continually moving it is just to fool the fish, so it thinks maybe it is a small bug flying on the surface of the water.
For spin fishing, the bait can differ from one person to another. While you are going for spin fishing, you can use fake bait or living bait.
No matter what type of bait you are using, it will sink under the water or below the water surface. The live baits are mainly live worms and the traps are reflective metal pieces.
On the other hand, artificial baits are just plastic worms and bugs. You can use different types of baits to catch different types of fish as different fish respond differently to bait depending on the variety of it.
If you want to increase your fishing skills then you need to research which type of fish responds to what type of bugs and what type of water is the best for such fishing. These techniques will help you to a great extent with spin fishing.
Gear Differences
Except for the variety of baits, there are other gear differences as well.
A special fly rod is used for fly-fishing, which is quite expensive than a usual spin rod. A fly rod comes with a special reel, which doesn’t lock, and it allows the line going out. So you need to continuously reel it back to adjust it with the cast. Besides, the fly rods are light and the line is easy to use so you don’t need to drain lots of energy for random repeated casting motion.
On the other hand, the rods for spin fishing are less expensive compared to fly-fishing but these are a bit heavier. For spin fishing, you need to lock the line of the reel and you have to press a button to a reel or caste. The line used for spin fishing is quite heavier.
At the same time, you should also take a look at the appropriate ways of tying a fishing knot. This is surely one of the most important parts of fishing – according to my own experience.
Nature of Water
Last but not least, we need to know the nature of water for both types of fishing. For spin fishing, you can try on still water like ponds, lakes, etc., but for fly-fishing, you must try on floating water like a river. Though recently it is not a big deal. You can go for both types of fishing on any type of water and use a boat or walk out in the water for either type of fishing. As long as you choose the right method using the right gears it hardly matters where you are fishing.
I hope at this point you already figured out which fishing is your type. Spin fishing is known as the easier kind of fishing as for spin fishing you don’t need to be an expert. All you need to do is cast once and wait. As for fly-fishing, you need to cast quite frequently. Both types of fishing are enjoyable and you can catch lots of fish. Now, you know all the basic differences between fly-fishing vs. spin fishing. So you can easily figure out the perfect method that you would prefer from spin fishing vs. fly-fishing.
