Hmmm - I've a couple of "purists"
1 - It was good enough...
Proud and insistent on the history of fly fishing - only uses flies, rods, reels, lines and clothing designed, and preferably manufactured, no later than the Great War (he can't bear calling it WW1 because it was GREAT unlike all the minor skirmishes which came later - has similar feelings about the GREAT depression).
Cane rod - but is considering a greenheart gem he's spotted on ebay.
Brass reel - whoops like a distressed helicopter when a fish runs - which is rare - doubles as a door-stop and hammer in emergency.
Silk line - Circa 1920, inherited from his father, who borrowed it from his father, who wants it back.
Flies - winged and hackled tied on hand made hooks - hard to replace, he's down to two.
Wears - tweed, stout tweed jacket and trousers matched with lighter tweed underwear - heavy, started to smell like a particularly strong goats cheese around 1960.
Leaders - difficult since gut and quality horsehair are in short supply. Currently using the last 2ft of gut he liberated from a tennis racquet.
2 - Camo-man
Fish are highly intelligent, eagle eyed and plotting against him. Everything he owns is camo and matt - rod, reel, line, clothing (including undergarments), bag, car, dog, hair, knife, children, ex-wife. That which is not itself camo lives under an ex army net.
3 - Rip-off-averse-man
Fish are his friends but the tackle trade is plotting against him. He owns nothing costing more than £25. His entire collection of fishing gear cost no more than £100. Gets very defensive when anyone suggests his rod should have more rings (would look better with a cork grip, doesn't actually need roller rings) - that his reel really needs a handle - that his line shouldn't have one flat side.
