Zebco on TV

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clinton_beeler
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Zebco on TV

Post by clinton_beeler »

It's a local show called "Explore Tulsa ". If you go to their website they have posted the program.

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Midway Tommy D
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Midway Tommy D »

Love those Open Face Spinning Reels! (Especially ABU & ABU/Zebco)

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clinton_beeler
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Re: Zebco on TV

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I am disapointed in all of you
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Midway Tommy D
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Midway Tommy D »

clinton_beeler wrote:I am disapointed in all of you
Why?
Love those Open Face Spinning Reels! (Especially ABU & ABU/Zebco)

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john elder
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by john elder »

Very interesting segment. Love all the gadgets used for repetitive actions for testing durability. I must say that I came from a "Johnson family"... fished with Centuries and Citations rather than Zebcos ( we were Chevy folks too...no Fords :D ). However, lots of my friends were armed with Zebco 33s and caught lots of fish. I use Quantum baitcasters now and love 'em!
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Specializing in saltwater reels...and fly reels...and oh, yeah, kentucky style reels.....and those tiny little RP reels.....oh, heck...i collect fishing reels!...and fly rods....and lures
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by oc1 »

I came from a culturally diverse family. Both Ford and Chevy. Diverse, but stubborn. At a certain age, we used "zebco" as a derogatory adjective to describe reels that were not up to the task at hand. I've been chastised for saying that before and accept everyone's rebuke.
-steve
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Jonathan P. Kring »

I still have my Scottie 66 my older brother gave me for Christmas probably in the late 50's. (No not 1850's) After my Montgomery Ward Sport King ( No cast w/o a backlash) I thought I'd died and gone to Heaven. The zebco made fishing fun again. Recently bought a pink rod and reel for one of my Granddaughters.
Cast your cares upon the Lord. Psalm 55:22
Then He said to them, "follow Me and I will Make you fishers of men". Matthew 4:19
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Midway Tommy D
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Midway Tommy D »

I remember my dad getting an early black 33 with the chrome band from my uncle because the front spool cover kept falling off. He, nor I from his influence, have much tolerance for mechanical issues. Zebco replaced the black covers with chrome ones but it didn't see a lot of use resulting from a lack of confidence. BTW, I still have that reel in the display case. Dad then switched to Johnson Citations and a couple years later we progressed to Mitchell 304s. Never went back to spincasts after that. I do think Zebco really knocked it out of the ball park when they took on the ABU Cardinal line. Too bad ABU/Zebco affiliation ceased, it was, and is still, a quality made reel.

Gotta give credit where it is due, though. Zebco did a great service by providing a reel that the "Average Joe" could afford and got a lot of people into fishing. :cool
Love those Open Face Spinning Reels! (Especially ABU & ABU/Zebco)

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clinton_beeler
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by clinton_beeler »

I have a Vom Hoffe reel. I am disapointed in this club which clearly doesn't like US made reels. Our problem at Zebco clearly is both that we made a superior product and that we made too many of them. We changed fishing.Get over it!
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Steve »

Good point, Clinton. Never once have I ever heard "Vom Hofe" in a song.

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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Jonathan P. Kring »

Some of us low budget collectors love american made reels. Most of my 800 plus are american made.
Cast your cares upon the Lord. Psalm 55:22
Then He said to them, "follow Me and I will Make you fishers of men". Matthew 4:19
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by bettybarr »

My Kentucky reels and all of my fly reels are American made. And as a girl I caught lots of fish with my Zebco, the only reels my Dad owned. We are definitely not a club of foreign reels. I am glad you posted that as I hadn’t considered that we might give that impression. We just like reels! Any reels! All reels! They teach us history and craftsmanship and engineering. ORCA has the best members too!
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Dick Braun,that-zebco-guy
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Dick Braun,that-zebco-guy »

Talked to Zebco the other day, and upper mgt. told me that to date Zebco has produced approx. 400 million reels that they have marketed. They must be doing something right. 1949-2019 they will have been in the business of teaching folk a simple way to fish. That's 70 yrs of doing something correctly. Yes there have been some up's and down's with product quality but they are still going strong. By the way I think that Zebco is the only reel company still owned by a single owner not a hugh comglomerate.
That-Zebco-Guy the one who collects the bullet proof closed face reels. Joined ORCA Oct. 2003, Past VP. Need to ask a question: call me 1-941-639-8330 home, 941-661-7187 cell, EST.
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Re: Zebco on TV

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I think that Zebco is the only reel company still owned by a single owner not a hugh comglomerate.
Alas, poor Zebco... :Bawl:

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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Dick Braun,that-zebco-guy »

Selling 400 million reels has to translate into a pocket full of $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ I'll take Zebco any day. Thank You!
That-Zebco-Guy the one who collects the bullet proof closed face reels. Joined ORCA Oct. 2003, Past VP. Need to ask a question: call me 1-941-639-8330 home, 941-661-7187 cell, EST.
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Dick Braun,that-zebco-guy
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Dick Braun,that-zebco-guy »

Great talking to you Steve, hope to make it to the 2018 Nationals and meet a lot of the east coaster folks at the show.
That-Zebco-Guy the one who collects the bullet proof closed face reels. Joined ORCA Oct. 2003, Past VP. Need to ask a question: call me 1-941-639-8330 home, 941-661-7187 cell, EST.
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Bill Sonnett »

Do to the fact that a Shakespeare rep came to our small town and put on a casting demonstration followed by a chance to use their products, I grew up a Shakespeare man. Never owned a reel by another company until around 1960 someone gave my grandfather a Coxe 30C reel. He never fished with anything but a cane pole so he gave the reel to me. Until then I did not know how a great baitcasting reel felt during a cast. Today I fish with vintage reels, Pflueger, Shakespeare, and Coxe. All three have disappeared from the United States. I must say Dick that though I never owned a Zebco (unlike many of my friends) I found the video linked above to be very interesting. You can't argue with success.
I love to get old reels, work on them until they run as smooth as silk and the take them fishing using pre-1960 plugs, mostly surface fishing for Largemouths after dark.
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Jonathan P. Kring »

I've told this story before. When I started fishing, my first store bought rod and reel was a Montgomery Ward Sport King Reel and matching fiberglass rod. It was totally impossible to cast with. A backlash and snarl every time I used it. Thinking back, I don't know why I didn't give up on fishing? I still have that rod and reel in my collection, not for the good memories. The rod is a few inches shorter than when it began from getting in caught in the spokes of my bike when riding to the city park to fish. Probably in the late 1950's, my oldest brother gave me a Zebco Scottie 66 Rod and Reel for Christmas. At the time I thought it was the best thing ever. And it may have been the best Christmas present I ever received. I could not believe something could be that easy to fish with. Over the years I have owned many Zebcos. Started my kids and Grand kids fishing with them. Although I don't use them often anymore, if I wanted something easy to use, I would. I could probably say, that more than anything, they developed my love for fishing and now for collecting. And that's the story!!
Cast your cares upon the Lord. Psalm 55:22
Then He said to them, "follow Me and I will Make you fishers of men". Matthew 4:19
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Steve »

NOT even a little bit funny.
Well, it was sorta cute the first 23 times I heard it. But Dick, if it makes you feel better, my kids, among others, grew up with Zebcos. Zebco was just a spark of an idea :idea: when I started fishing, and I've never fished with a CFSR. And yes, great chat. Hope to see you in HF.

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"Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose."
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Harry Verdurchi »

Out of those 400 Million I wonder how many are in the landfills and how many are still being used .
Last edited by Harry Verdurchi on Sun Jan 07, 2018 12:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Teal »

Zebco has introduced more people to fishing in America than all other reel companies, combined. It has always astounded me the disrespect this company gets from collectors, considering it is so widely beloved (a good friend who owns one of the largest live bait wholesaling companies in the world has named his dogs "Zebco" for decades and you see more Zebco hats, t-shirts, etc. than any other reel company) and historically important. And yes, they did make many millions of reels, but some of the models are far rarer than an Edward vom Hofe Peerless or Philbrook & Paine. It's an American success story and we should all be proud of the company for what they've done for angling in America.

-- Dr. Todd
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Dick Braun,that-zebco-guy
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Dick Braun,that-zebco-guy »

Doctor Todd, Thank You I couldn't have said it any better myself.
That-Zebco-Guy the one who collects the bullet proof closed face reels. Joined ORCA Oct. 2003, Past VP. Need to ask a question: call me 1-941-639-8330 home, 941-661-7187 cell, EST.
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Re: Zebco on TV

Post by Patrick Z »

Growing up in NE Arkansas in the 1970s, everyone fished with Zebcos. I know the catalogs we can see today depict other models, but there were only three that anybody knew of and used: 202, 404, and the pinnacle, the 33. I was fortunate to start with the 404 instead of the 202 and received a coveted 33 as a gift from my great uncle in junior high school. I actually graduated from college thinking there was no better reel than the Zebco 33. While I rarely fish with Zebcos anymore and have more Johnsons in my vintage spincast collection (it's probably due to the green color),looking back, I may have been right all along. Incidentally, I was delighted to see several Zebco references in the 2005 movie, Walk the Line, about the life of Johnny Cash. In the movie, June Carter introduces the Zebco 33 combo to Johnny, who had never seen a spincast reel before, and later Mr. Carter goes on and on about the merits of the Zebco 33 at a dinner table conversation.
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