Top fishing tackle brands of 2016

Shakespeare's Ugly Stik was the most popular selling rod/reel combination sold in 2016. Photo courtesy Shakespeare

With the fishing season upcoming, angler’s may be interested to know what the top selling fishing tackle brands are. To find out, we went to Southwick Associates, a company who performs a yearly survey of fishing, hunting and firearms top sellers from around the country. 

The following Southwick list was compiled from the internet-based surveys completed in 2016 by AnglerSurvey.com panels.

In 2016, according to Southwick, these were the most frequently purchased tackle brands. 

* Top combo brand: Shakespeare
* Top spinner bait: Strike King
* Top swivel brand: Eagle Claw
* Top leader brand: Seaguar
* Top fly tying material brand: Hareline Dubbin
* Top fish finder brand: Humminbird
* Top clothing brand: Columbia
* Top rain gear brand: Frogg Toggs
* Top fishing net brand: Frabill
* Top knives brand: Rapala

This list, says Southwick, is only a fraction of all fishing products tracked in their bi-monthly consumer panel surveys. Aside from brand purchased, information also includes the percentage of product purchases across different retail channels, total spending and average price paid by product, and demographics for anglers buying specific products. 

FLY FISHING TOUR RETURNS TO STEELSTACKS

If you’re an avid fly fisherman, and dream of fishing some exotic angling destinations, the acclaimed Fly Fishing Film Tour returns to Bethlehem’s Steelstacks on March 28 and 29, for its third year. 

“A sell-out in each of its first two years, the Fly Fishing Film Tour (FFFT) has expanded in 2017 from one to two nights due to popular demand,” said Mark Demko, ArtsQuest spokesperson.

He goes on to say that during each evening, guests will enjoy a variety of beautiful short film focused on amazing angling destinations around the globe. Highlights include anglers chasing monster rainbows and Pacific salmon on the Kamchatka Peninsula of Eastern Russia; battling giant tarpon off the coast of Florida; conservation efforts to protect trout and their habitat in Idaho and Montana; and even the pursuit of the Russian Nelma, a giant predatory fish that’s never been caught on the fly. And ArtsQuest has the only screenings of the film in the region. A list of films and trailers can be seen at www.flyfilmtour.com. 

Prior to the film, guests are invited to see fly tying demonstrations by Trout Unlimited members and enjoy food and beverages. Doors open at 6 p.m. both evenings. The show  concludes with a fundraising raffle featuring float trips, fly fishing gear and more. 
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Tickets to the event are $15 in advance or $20 at the door. They may be purchased by going to www.steelstacks.org or calling 610-332-3378. Proceeds from the two screenings will benefit the Monocacy Chapter of Trout Unlimited and ArtsQuest. 

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