Perfect clone has me stumped!

[BCharles]

I have acquired this 3 1/2" Perfect style reel that has duplicated most of the characteristics of the 1905 Hardy design.
Based on the winding plate I don't think it was from Hardy so I'm looking for any ideas as to the maker.

[john elder]

No “D” stamp but money bet is dingley perfect. He didn’t mark a lot of his reels.

John

[reelsmith.]

I have no guess, but don't think Dingley is correct as the styling is unlike any Dingley Perfect-style reel I've seen.

Also, Dingley did not scratch Roman numerals into his reels, he used stamped Arabic numerals.

Dean.

[BCharles]

What gets me is how closely it duplicates a 1905 check Perfect.

If it has no connection at all to Hardy, I'd be surprised if the maker wasn't sued by Hardy.

[reelsmith.]

One difference I see (other than styling) is four pins holding the collar the spindle is inserted in. Hardy used three.

What's the correct term for that collar ?

Dean.

[BCharles]

I assumed that three was the Hardy standard as well, but have found examples where 4 were used.

[Ron Mc]

Dingley and Farlow both in that period were using collared thrust bearings, which look like Hoffmann clutch bearings - might check with Stefan or Andrew Race whether Smith & Wall built a perfect clone - I think they both have catalogs.

This is a marked OS Exchequer before 1925 with a D5 stamp.
On this reel the bushing is attached with screws,

which also shows up on a postwar Dingley perfect I had that used balls in a race for the thrust bearing.

Alex Martin Thistle

Heaton staked a lot of brass in their reels, which the subject reel has in many places where other makers would use machine screws. I don't know whether Heaton made a perfect, but Hardy's patent was expired before WWI -

Farlow patented their perfect design in 1911 - in many ways it looks like this reel, but Farlow's reel has a second (radial) bearing in the middle of the spool.