SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

ORCA Online Forum - Feel free to talk or ask about ALL kinds of old tackle here, with an emphasis on old reels!
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reeltackle
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by reeltackle »

I mainly collect handmade, big game, salt water fishing reels by all makers. I also try and pick-up a few quality fly reels that strike my fancy.

For the big game reels my cut off (though I do make a few exceptions) is WWII. For the fly reels - the earlier the better.
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BAP-62
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by BAP-62 »

I collect a number of reels, mainly early Penn, Cozzone, deep sea Ocean City reels, plus others. Most of my reels are prior to 1948. The earliest about 1894. They say a picture is worth 1,000 words so if you go here http://myfishingreels.weebly.com/ you can seee what I have. Hope you enjoy it.
Bud Chaddock
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by Bud Chaddock »

I guess now Coxe reels . Its a new collection that has peaked my intrest with help of friends on this board. Getting tough in the old flyrod lure collection so branching out.
Richard Lodge
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Haywood, clamp reels, and more

Post by Richard Lodge »

Great thread, John. There's a Reel News story in here somewhere.
These days I collect reels marked Haywood H (star) R and Haywood Maker, which are all from Birmingham, England and date from around 1820 to 1850. I collect old clamp reels (sometimes called "hose clamp reels." And I collect skeleton fly reels, although those I don't have are pretty few and far between. I also own a handful of B.F. Meek reels and a single Milam reel. I love these reels and wish I could afford more, but I'm glad for what I have. I fish with an Ari 't Hart fly reel and a Hardy LRH, mostly. Like many of you, I've bought, sold and traded a lot of different kinds of reels just to learn about them, enjoy them and ... well... sometimes just to admire the darned things.
Richard
www.skeletonflyreels.weebly.com
Fishinintexas
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by Fishinintexas »

I like early fly reels, bogdan and vh. I collect old spinning tackle such as luxor, etc. old fiberglass flyrods and bamboo rods
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scottorock
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by scottorock »

I collect everything! Have been hoarding reels since I was 10, ever since my Grandpa gave me his South Bend 550. That was the beginning of the end. 1000's of reels later, here I am!
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Jonathan P. Kring
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by Jonathan P. Kring »

Welcome aboard to the greatest bunch of folks, ever!
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robert ellis
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by robert ellis »

Well its about time Scott! Welcome, :bow: I have known Scott for sometime now! Have bought many reels from him already and he has supplied us with pictures of his reels and info for our websites! Always has great looking reels on the Bay! Last night he had a boat load of fine ornate reels come due! I bid on everyone and only won one! I bid very high on most! (One very hard to find Brooklure No.20) All the rest were bought by one buyer! Man was I upset :bash: Scott you have joined?
(If you joined, or just signed in so you can write posts! Membership is only $35.00 a year well worth the investment!) the best reel club, live long and reel prosper! :D
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Jonathan P. Kring
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by Jonathan P. Kring »

Scott: You might know Ellis would already have his hooks into you. He searches out the good stuff and leaves the scraps for the rest of us. Hey Ellis, I've got a Brooklure somewhere in the archives, don't know if it's a 20?
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Kelly L
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by Kelly L »

Welcome Scott!
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scottorock
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by scottorock »

Thanks for the welcome! Actually, I first joined ORCA over ten years ago...just toeing the water here online. So much stuff to go through! And yeah, Ellis has his hooks in already...so much that I let him get that Bronson 5000 2 months ago! Lol. After staring at his sites to try and plug holes, and reading page after page of information on here, my head is spinning! Time for me to go back downstairs to my shop and make the Earth right again...lol. Anyways, thanks for the welcome, and Im looking forward to learning and hopefully contributing to our Reel World!
SteveO
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by SteveO »

As a poor musician, my collection is rather small and not very valuable except to me.
I prefer baitcasters, like Pflueger, Shakespeare, and Abu Ambassadeur from the 40's, 50's, and 60's.
As a kid growing up in the 60's/70's I practically lived at our local sporting goods store in Elgin, IL., drooling over the big glass display case, infatuated with the gleaming and complicated-looking "adult" devices that were WAY out of my financial reach back then.
That infatuation is still there!
I like the heft, brass gears and heavy nickel plating.
My favorites are dirty, gunked-up and cheap...cuz I know they're usually built well enough to withstand a good scrubbing, polishing & oiling to bring 'em back to life. Good stuff!
Dan Basore
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by Dan Basore »

1. Most of the reels and other tackle I collect is from field finds resulting from contacts made through exhibits at sports shows, in store promotions, museum special exhibits and events, guesting on outdoor broadcasts, writing in various publications, referrals and personal contacts. So I gather more than I can possibly keep and display.

2. I love classic Kentucky, tournament and unusual reels and early lures, rods and papers.
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jimbofish
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by jimbofish »

FNG here. :bow: I've been collecting all kinds of tackle and fishing-related items since the '70s. My interest waned about 10 years ago when we retired and moved to a more remote area with fewer buying options. Found 3 reels at a local charity fund-raiser recently and re-discovered the passion I had in my collection. :yay If I can figure out an easy way to post pics here, our upstairs bathroom and one bedroom display my collection.

BTW I'm also into vintage audio and records, and... Flamingoes! :oops:

1. What types/brands of reels do you collect?

Seed reels were those used by my dad and me in the '50s and '60s, mostly Pflueger levelwinds and Shakespeare closed-face spincasts. My favorite sport, besides fishing, was browsing older sporting goods shops for discontinued tackle still marked with the original price. Sadly, those stores are mostly gone. Found oddball reels that didn't catch on and were only made for a short time. Eventually decided to concentrate on local or Great Lakes area makers - Shakespeare, Pflueger, Bronson, Langley, South Bend.

2. How old are the reels you collect?...is that something that's a factor in your collecting?

Mostly from the '40s to the '70s until they were mainly imported from Asia. Age isn't really a factor if it fits in my brand preferences or is too good to pass up. My biggest factor is price. Never having a lot of money to spend on this, or several other hobbies I have, I find more satisfaction in the hunt and finding a treasure at low cost than just buying it to have it.
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OCauto
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by OCauto »

1. What types/brands of reels do you collect?
Mostly Ocean City Reels. I was focused on the fly reels but have expanded to some spinning and baitcasting reels.

2. How old are the reels you collect?...is that something that's a factor in your collecting?
age would/could be late 30's and up. Lack of information is why I chose Ocean City. There is a lot of research to be done on OC reels and history. I believe I have about 50% of their patents located so far.
spinyeel
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by spinyeel »

Mainly Ocean City surf casting reels,plus a few Pfluegers,Penn's and Australian Surfmaster's ,Seascapes and various other reels in similar sizes.
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by Chuck Gano »

my collecting changed to primarily early spinning reels about 2 yrs. ago,since then i have been concentrating on early european models,i find them to be almost works of art in design,which lets me aquire them in all forms of cond. they dont have to be ex.w.box,to be in my collection tho i do have some very nice examples cond. wise most are used and box's for most of these are hard to find & paperwork even harder,ben wright is my hero for all this and his knowledge & books are my main source of info.,it all started with an english illingsworth reel an antique dealer sold to me for 10.00 since it was missing the "cover" proably my most prized reel and certainly my least expensive aqusition, researching these reels is really the reason i collect, my grandson's first reel is a quick jr. i bought off ebay for 5.00 in ex. cond.he liked it so i put it on a rod and its his go to combo,hes 6yrs.old and a future orcan for sure
TurnTheCrank
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by TurnTheCrank »

I like the goofy stuff. If it looks like it could never work, or was a bad idea, THAT is what I like. I really like the stuff just after WWII where the reel manufacturers were converting to reel manufacturing after making equipment for the war. Colorado reels, side casters, swivel reels, those types of things. I also like the all-in-ones (rod reel combos).

I also like ice fishing devices outside of the "regular" tip ups and rods. One could fill a garage with all the different manufacturers and sellers of the "standard" tip up designs.

I also collect goofy bobbers and add-ons. The odder the better.

I don't collect fly reels or spinning reels (unless very odd).

My Dad started collecting the Pflueger "family" and has since started collecting bait casters in general. Some of the most fun is going through the books and web trying to find who the manufacturer of your "trade" reel really was. We spend lots of time together doing that.
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by JPandSon »

I like Meisselbach reels the best. Especially if they have a box. I also like pretty much anything with an old box, I think those old boxes have a lot more character and find it fascinating they survived this long. Growing up I never saved the box to anything. I also like Kentucky reels quite a bit too as well as the James Heddon's Sons reels of the 3-35 or 3-15 variety. Also, anything really old, the older the better.
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by Drew03cmc »

I am a new guy here and I look forward to learning all I can. I have owned, sold and traded everything from 1919 JW Young trade reels to Made in England Orvis Battenkills. I just bought three Garcia Mitchell 300/1 on Saturday and am anxious to learn all I can about them while cleaning them for use. I also collect older Daiwa Millionaires and want to get into early Ambassadeurs.
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by Canefly »

Hello, I'm a new guy here (obviously). I am looking forward to gleaning whatever knowledge I can from all you veteran collectors out there! I love collecting fly reels!

I collect fly reels from the 1880's to 1950's. Age is a big determining factor in what I look for or purchase. The older, the better. I like turn of the century reels the most. All of the big named makers are desired... JVH, Monty, and Pflueger rubber side plate reels really get me excited.
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by big hoss »

Curious how few fess up to collecting Swedish made reels. I love them. Nordic, Record, Arjon, Radius, Victory (and the Heddon Heritages made by Victory) Tebe, Morner (fantastic engineering hidden inside) Ambassadeur.
Age - mostly pre 1980 but a few modern ones are starting to slip into my cabinets. If my inyterests and your interests coincide lets talk. I have very few contacts with the same interests available in New Zealand.

ps - I have "Yankee" reel I want to get rid of - my first Ebay purchase made many years ago. Has some soldering around foot but would, I believe, be very restorable. Left end plate about 85mm diameter. Body 75 mm wide.
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by creekman »

I collect primarily Zebco closed face spinning reels from the 60's and 70's, with some Mitchell spinning, and others. My two favorite iconic reels are the Zebco 33 and the Mitchell 408, which I "cut my teeth" fishing with. Fishing has been a pleasure of mine since I was a boy. I'm so glad Daddy took me fishing.
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by Deepfins791 »

Oh boy! Been collecting since I was 16. Started fishing with Mitchells, so those are what I began collecting. I still have the two 410's me and my dad fished with. Branched out to collecting other assorted baitcasting and spinning reels. Most ended up in boxes and put away due to lack of space. 6 months ago I decided to sell all of them, and put the money into trying to get a complete set of EVH 621's, 721's, etc., that I could display in my man-cave. But then a nice 14/0 Kov' came along I just had to have, and I'm sure others will follow. Hard to stay disciplined, but my love for the ocean and big game spearfishing has me leaning towards the big saltwater stuff. Can't afford 100's of reels, and don't have the space to display them, so trying to focus on 15-20 exceptional hand-crafted big game saltwater reels.
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Re: SURVEY! LET US HEAR FROM YOU!

Post by canyon »

I collect fresh water spinning reels, different makes. Just for fun, clean em up and oil them then use them.
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