Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

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Deepfins791
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Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by Deepfins791 »

I just purchased a nice collection of tackle from the East Coast. What made it significant was the guy who purchased these reels from Arthur saved all his correspondence between him and Arthur. The letters refer to this very Esquire cradle reel and C-type reel. The collection also included the original Kovalovsky rod tip and butt that goes with the cradle reel, also referred to in Arthur's letters. Below are a few pictures of the reels. I uploaded all the letters to my website, https://www.kovalovskyreels.com. They can be viewed in the Fishing Reels section on pages 14 and 15. Pretty cool from an historical perspective.

Cheers,
John



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john elder
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by john elder »

Oh, my! that's just an incredible reel, John....good for you and so glad it got into good hands. The letters are an interesting foray into the process of selling/marketing these great reels. Issues are not so much different than with any other product, then or now! Thanks much for this great Kovalovsky site!
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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
oc1
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by oc1 »

That's beautiful. Is there a label on that spool of line?
-steve
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54bullseye
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by 54bullseye »

Beautiful reels John and your site is getting better all the time that was a great
idea / project !!! Keep it going !! John Taylor
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1badf350
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by 1badf350 »

Good God, Man! Its beautiful!!
I love the fact that these nice Kovs are ending up where they belong.
-Chris R.
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by Jay White »

Wow! Great find John. Man ,I love that cradle reel. Might consider a trade on your favorite reel for that one.
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Deepfins791
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by Deepfins791 »

Thanks, guys! Steve, here are a few pictures of the labels on the spool of line. Interesting, but this guy kept a diary of when he changed his line. I guess back in the day, instead of stripping all the old line off and tossing it, some guys would strip it off and reverse it. In other words, they would respool it with the bottom on the top and the top on the bottom.

Cheers,
John

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Brian F.
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by Brian F. »

Great looking reels, John! Fantastic!
Interesting the the first reel looks like it has an Ocean City knob.
Aloha
Brian F.
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Got a spare reel stamped "Pflueger" or a Montague Imperial?
"Caution, objects in reel view mirror are older than they appear."
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Deepfins791
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by Deepfins791 »

Yes, Brian, I noticed that. If you look on page 3 at reel #27 on my website, this reel also has a crank handle knob like an OC. I think when you were dealing with companies that made custom fishing gear back in the day, the makers would accommodate a customer who asked for a particular brand of guides, or a crank handle knob they favored. Or an angler would customize a piece of tackle to their own liking soon after purchase. This style OC knob was available in the late 30's when this reel was purchased. Although not a Kov' knob, it still might be original to this reel. Whether the owner swapped it out or whether Arthur did it at the buyer's request is anyone's guess. But from what little I know about Arthur, I am guessing he wasn't the one who swapped it out. His knob would have been perfect, and swapping it out for another brand would have been blasphemous! This reel actually came with a spare crank handle knob identical to this one, only black in color.
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54bullseye
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by 54bullseye »

That's a cushy way of saying the old knob got busted and the guy threw on a OC knob !!!!! Lol !!!!
John Taylor
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john elder
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by john elder »

Note that the one on the website has the Kov label on the handle and this one doesn't as far as I can see. It's not a trivial matter to put a grasp on the handle and make it run properly, so I wouldn't immediately assume that Arthur didn't do that...his handle, labeled or not.
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54bullseye
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by 54bullseye »

I was just teasing him it's a beautiful reel handle and all !!!
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by Deepfins791 »

I just added a page to my website showing the insides of the 16/0 C-type reel. It is a very simple star drag design, but on steroids! Forgive my reel nomenclature. I can take them apart and put them back together, but I'll be darned if I can correctly name the parts!

BTW, there are 4 holes inside the reel that were drilled in the wrong locations. I think in machinist terms, one of these is referred to as a "butch". Can you find the 4 butches? Maybe Lewis got carried away with dad's drill!! Couldn't have possibly been Oscar! Fortunately, all of them are hid when the reel is assembled.

http://www.kovalovskyreels.com/inside-a-c-type-kov

Cheers,
John
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54bullseye
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by 54bullseye »

Now that is one rugged drag ! I will bet you could use that reel today and she would work fine. JT
Reeltyme

Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by Reeltyme »

John, The 4 holes you refer to are not (in my book) goof ups, they were intentionally put in to make the reel lighter! :D Ask John, I’m sure he would agree!
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m3040c
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Re: Kovalovsky Reels and Letters

Post by m3040c »

Love the Kovalovsky stuff, although being able to purchase it escapes me and the older I get, the more I tell myself that it should be owned by someone younger than me. I have one Kov reel, a 9/0 Standard.

When I saw the talk about letters I figured I would put my two cents in. I own a letter high lighted in the Handmade in Hollywood book. It is a centerpiece of my collection. I guess selling it is kind of out of the question at this time because I feel it is worth more than others feel it is worth. Maybe my over pricing enables me to keep and that is more than likely my personal criteria. The letter is written by Zane Grey to Authur in Zanes purple ink on the letterhead of Zane's personal little boat.

Thought this would be a nice place to show it. I have provenance as to where it came from and how I got it. Enjoy.......

mike cass,,, if you can't collect it, it must be food
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