Ever seen tailplate bearings like these?

[Jason]

I've got a couple unmarked reels I'm trying to identify. Do you have any idea who did tailplate bearings like these?

Thanks,
Jason

[Ray Hencken]

Pictures of the front and back of.the reels would help.

[john elder]

Jason, a lot (all?) of the early ball handle type reels and other reels of that era were made with closed back plate bearings. Don’t know if he started the trend but the switch to a removable bearing cap on the back end is often used to lean towards Frederick Vom Hofe as maker. I am sure Steve Vernon’s studies of these reels will show exceptions.

[Steve]

With a single exception (an FVH pre-& Son), all the early VHs I've seen have decorative grooves around the tailplate bearings. In contrast, Crook reels have undecorated tailplates, and many have removable oil caps, tho precise dating is tough. But Crook was making reels more than a decade before FVH.

[wrong99]

What kind of reels are they? Fly, casting? Help us out. A similar bearing cap is seen on a Barney & Berry (Winchester) fly reel, seen below. I'm sure there are many others.