On the reel seat is stamped the model number (#1263) and date code (FGF=May 1954) . The 1263 was a 'value buy' (Shakespeare company's own words) spinning rod. This one had been well used, evidenced by the tip-top guide being badly grooved. The guides appear to have been replaced at some point too as the yellow wraps on this rod, now frayed and unraveling, are not as described in the available ’53 and ’56 catalogs.
I could not repair the smashed female ferrule, nor remove it, so I cut it off clean, the blank losing an inch-plus in the process. I then measured and purchased the closest sized ferrule I could find. This required some additional parts, and some luck, to make for a proper fit. A piece of brass tubing made up for the play under the new female ferrule. And the lucky part was that the new male ferrule fit tightly over the old one. Some final measuring and a bit of epoxy and this old Wonderod is back to functional at 6’4-1/2” instead of 6’6”.
To finish refurbishment, the guides would need re-wrapping, the tip-top replaced and the ferrule bases could be wrapped as well, covering the repairs. But these would be jobs for a future owner. It now sits on a shelf with a Luxor A attached, looking pretty. It’s not going to be a fishing tool for me being too rubbery and the reel too ‘grindy’ sounding due to worn gears. I could lop some of that rubbery tip section off to add some rigidity but I have enough spinning rods to work with. It appears that both rod and reel were well loved in their day. And, I guess I've extended that love, or respect for an old fishing rod, to the present.
One possibly interesting thing: Upon severing the blank, the cross section revealed that the glass was not even in thickness around the balsa core. In fact one side was very thin! It looked like a potential weak spot. Either this was common, or it would have qualified as a cull for higher end deluxe models? Regardless, it has apparently held up to a substantial amount of fishing.
