Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

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Mike N
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Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

Post by Mike N »

While largely a regional lure show, FATC Fleming Island had several neat reels roll in. Here is ORCA member Butch Carey of Key West, FL with an unusual brass tarpon-size reel.

Butch counted the handle rotations vs. spool rotations in front of me and it’s clearly a 2:1 ratio multiplier. The foot looks undersized for such a large reel.The handle (shown) had a beautiful radius. The grasp is brass as well. The spool resembled a line dryer in design. Butch ventured that perhaps it was of British origin, but I thought New England/New York.




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Re: Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

Post by Mike N »

ORCA incoming president Ron Gast, now of Frostproof (I love that name) FL, had these three tournament casting reels for sale:

Bottom, a Meek #2 with a wide perforated spool; middle, a rare Redifor tournament caster and top, a nice Jack Welch without the level wind.


Last edited by Mike N on Fri Jun 28, 2019 2:38 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

Post by Ron Mc »

Mike N wrote:...
...
Reuben Heaton of Birmingham owned the patent for that spool arbor in 1888.
Image
Last edited by Ron Mc on Fri Jun 21, 2019 4:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

Post by Mike N »

Here are a size 3-1/2 Edward vom Hofe and a size 3 Julius vom Hofe, as well as an 1884 letter signed by Edward which he sent to a line supplier.



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Re: Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

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Here is a rare 1888 73-page Wm. Cornwall price list/catalog which Ron picked up in part because it had a listing of the various types and sizes of Malleson reels for sale at that time:



I mean, really...who drew those beautiful reel depictions. They look like black and white period photographs.

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Last edited by Mike N on Fri Jun 21, 2019 8:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

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Ron Mc wrote:
Mike N wrote:...
...
Reuben Heaton of Birmingham owned the patent for that spool arbor in 1888.
Image
Great research! Thanks.

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Re: Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

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Reuben Heaton of Birmingham owned the patent for that spool arbor in 1888.
How clever of Heaton to wait until Ross's 1869 patent expired.

But he didn't wait for the Matthews & Ostell 1882 patent or the Meisselbach 1886 patent to expire.

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Book: ANTIQUE FISHING REELS, 2nd Ed.
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"Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose."
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Re: Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

Post by Mike N »

As they say in my part of the woods, now we’re cookin’ with peanut oil.

Love to learn about reels.

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Re: Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

Post by reelsmith. »

Thanks for the pictures Mike !

Dean.
Wanted: Kosmic Items, Small Leather Fly Reel Cases, Early Fishing Related Bottles, Fly Reels and Pre-1900 Angling/Casting Medals.

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Re: Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

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Here is a photo of our incoming ORCA president studying some newly located information on Malleson reels.




Ron just moved to one of my favorite places, Frostptoof, FL. In the spring you can literally smell the sweet fragrance of the tens of thousands of orange trees there.

However, as an apparent reminder from God to those who named it “Frostproof” back in the 1880s as to who actually runs the universe, I leave you all with this info:

The name was a marketing ploy to convince potential landowners that the town has never had, and never would have, a frost that could destroy the large citrus-driven economy. However, only a couple of years later, a frost killed most of the citrus in Frostproof.”
Last edited by Mike N on Fri Jun 21, 2019 8:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

Post by Mike N »

One more thing for your reading pleasure. As some of you know, I love fishing license badges and REALLY love dated sportsmen’s club and rod-n-gun badges. How cool then is this collection, where every single badge is dated 1954, the year the FATC collector was born...


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Re: Reel photos FATC Fleming Island

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Mike N wrote:However, only a couple of years later, a frost killed most of the citrus in Frostproof.”
[/i]
They probably should have went with Frost-Resistant instead of proof. :D
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