Dear All
We often buy reels with the old line still on them. Until now I have been taking the line off and throwing it away and once cleaned and ready the reel is retired to the collection. However I am starting to wonder if the line should be put back on the reel if it is an original old line. I would be interested in some of your thought on this.
Bill T.
Old Reels with Line
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el Lawrence
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All a matter of taste... Unless the line has some noteworthy point I spool it on wood spools and save it off the reel. Being the product of depression era parents I never just toss it out. Might need it for antique tackle tournament fishing...
Personal tastes really are the guide... Maybe a MIB line spooled by the factory I would respool to the reel, but I like to see the condition of the spool itself seeing how I collect reels, not line. Pflueger made some nifty color line that helped you see how much line you had out... when it is fresh it is very pretty and looks nice on the reel.
On fly reels I know good silk is worth something... and maybe best kept too. But I spool that off the reel on a wood textile spool.
Some lines have dirt and stuff that will eat away at brass spools... just not easy for cleaning or preservation.
Personal tastes really are the guide... Maybe a MIB line spooled by the factory I would respool to the reel, but I like to see the condition of the spool itself seeing how I collect reels, not line. Pflueger made some nifty color line that helped you see how much line you had out... when it is fresh it is very pretty and looks nice on the reel.
On fly reels I know good silk is worth something... and maybe best kept too. But I spool that off the reel on a wood textile spool.
Some lines have dirt and stuff that will eat away at brass spools... just not easy for cleaning or preservation.
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Warren Platt
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Line on reels
While I'd never leave mono line on a pre-'40s reel, I might leave a nicely spooled reel full of attractive braided nylon on it. I don't believe there's a better way to display a wonderful old reel than full of line, mounted on a nice bamboo rod with a lure attached to the end of the line. Makes you want to pick it up and go fishing! Other than that, I don't think it makes a hill of beans difference.
Warren Platt
Warren Platt
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Robin Sayler
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I'm going to have to agree with the general consensis here that i take it off, however like brian said if the spool is very discolored or eaten away i like to put some line on it and display it on a pole(usually an old orchrad action rod or heddon). But genrally if its going in a case i take the line off.
old reels with line
Dear All
Thank you all for the great comments. I have always personally liked to see the empty reel. When I get a nice old reel I feel it has served it's time and is ready to be just looked at. Also when I am fishing I have a tendency to trip a lot and I would sooner screw up a cheap reel than risk life and limb trying not to damage a good one. So the nice ones stay well protected. However it has bothered me some what to throw out some of the lines as I to was raised in tough times and I am also Scottish decent so throwing anything away is tough. Saving the good lines on a spool seems like a good Idea. You never know. It seems that in the past when I have thrown something out it is just a matter of time before I am looking for it.
Bill Turnbull
Thank you all for the great comments. I have always personally liked to see the empty reel. When I get a nice old reel I feel it has served it's time and is ready to be just looked at. Also when I am fishing I have a tendency to trip a lot and I would sooner screw up a cheap reel than risk life and limb trying not to damage a good one. So the nice ones stay well protected. However it has bothered me some what to throw out some of the lines as I to was raised in tough times and I am also Scottish decent so throwing anything away is tough. Saving the good lines on a spool seems like a good Idea. You never know. It seems that in the past when I have thrown something out it is just a matter of time before I am looking for it.
Bill Turnbull
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el Lawrence
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Bill,
I have found the large wood spools from textile mills that are easy to find at antique and flea markets to be great for line off the reel. They are wood and will hold a fair amount of line and look nice keeping everything in place. For bait cast size I spool several in a row on the large wood spools. For large Salt or Surf size reels you can usually fit two or three reels worth on a large spool. I just usually toss the mono line and only save line that looks nice. Non rotten line once it is washed and cleaned up would be a good option for a cover to a bad spool on an otherwise nice reel. I strip the line as a courtsey before selling most reels...
Check any line before you commit to save it... don't save stuff that has mildew or rust inbedded in it or that is just rotten.
BTW to wash line... I use Woolite in a sink of warm water, dry on an old fly line drier then depending you could use fly line dressing or hard wax as you spool the line (if it needs something). Be sure it is DRY before you spool and save on a reel or a spool.
Warren– display of reel on rod ready to go sounds very nice. Do you prop them up or have a way to mount them on the wall horizontally? Wish I had the space to do this with one or two but I am really trying to resist the urge to get into collecting too many rods... and lures... and tackle boxes... and bait buckets... and gaffs... and nets... and bobbers... and...
I have found the large wood spools from textile mills that are easy to find at antique and flea markets to be great for line off the reel. They are wood and will hold a fair amount of line and look nice keeping everything in place. For bait cast size I spool several in a row on the large wood spools. For large Salt or Surf size reels you can usually fit two or three reels worth on a large spool. I just usually toss the mono line and only save line that looks nice. Non rotten line once it is washed and cleaned up would be a good option for a cover to a bad spool on an otherwise nice reel. I strip the line as a courtsey before selling most reels...
Check any line before you commit to save it... don't save stuff that has mildew or rust inbedded in it or that is just rotten.
BTW to wash line... I use Woolite in a sink of warm water, dry on an old fly line drier then depending you could use fly line dressing or hard wax as you spool the line (if it needs something). Be sure it is DRY before you spool and save on a reel or a spool.
Warren– display of reel on rod ready to go sounds very nice. Do you prop them up or have a way to mount them on the wall horizontally? Wish I had the space to do this with one or two but I am really trying to resist the urge to get into collecting too many rods... and lures... and tackle boxes... and bait buckets... and gaffs... and nets... and bobbers... and...
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el Lawrence
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Just a side note on Lillawill's comment about tripping and therefore not using nice old tackle to fish...
You can find nice stuff to fish that will take a whack or two... and be able to enjoy the use of old tackle too (not that you always have to use it, I use both old and new). Don't deprive yourself of this way of enjoying old reels... Ron here is a master at using old equipment as are many other ORCAns.
I don't recomend using your most valuable reel but fine reels can be had for this use and are VERY enjoyable. Even if you do have two left feet and two left hands...
Tell us what you fish and where you are, I bet someone would be willing to advise or help you get a rig going for some reel antique fishing. Almost anyone that has fished an ORCA tournament will tell you it is great fun even if you don't catch anything at all... it's like looking at a bottle of fine old wine or drinking it. Yes you can look at it a whole bunch and only drink it once but... What's it for anyway?
You can find nice stuff to fish that will take a whack or two... and be able to enjoy the use of old tackle too (not that you always have to use it, I use both old and new). Don't deprive yourself of this way of enjoying old reels... Ron here is a master at using old equipment as are many other ORCAns.
I don't recomend using your most valuable reel but fine reels can be had for this use and are VERY enjoyable. Even if you do have two left feet and two left hands...
Tell us what you fish and where you are, I bet someone would be willing to advise or help you get a rig going for some reel antique fishing. Almost anyone that has fished an ORCA tournament will tell you it is great fun even if you don't catch anything at all... it's like looking at a bottle of fine old wine or drinking it. Yes you can look at it a whole bunch and only drink it once but... What's it for anyway?
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Reel Geezer
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I agree with Warren about rods and reels together with line. Especially, if the items were found together. I once wrote an article (that probably cleared everyone's mind in a few seconds) about destroying the integrity of a fisherman's tackle by breaking up the items and selling off individual lures, reels or rods. That's what archeologists complain about all the time.
Old Reels with line
Dear All
I live in British Columbia Canada in a rural area about eighty miles from Vancouver along the Chilliwack River. This is my home river however during the course of a year I fish up to ten different rivers that are within a couple hours driving distance. Ninety percent of my fishing is either fly fishing which I perfer and drift fishing for Salmon and Steelhead. This means lots of walking along the river and bush wacking and sometimes cliff climbing. So due to the terrain it is easy to trip and stumble. About fifteen years ago I wiped out and dented the spool of one of my Hardy reels and after that I decided to go with cheaper reels. The English Morretts Intrepid reels are excellent reels. They have a huge center post and are rim fly and the body and spool are made thick and heavy and they are just excellent fly reels as with big fish you can really clamp down on the spool without worrying about bending the center pin or spool. They are just excellent reels and very underated. I have an old one my father got me when I was eight and it is almost fifty years old and still works like new and belive me it has been used. Spare spools are also easly available which makes it great to carry different heads for different water conditions. These guys can be picked up really cheap on our favorite auction site and in most cases under twenty dollars. I also use old JW Young Seldex reels for both fly reels and drift fishing. These can be picked up for around fifty dollars a lot of times. I like the Seldex for Steelhead on big rivers as the hold lots of backing and with the click of a leaver I can dead drift a fly very nicely. Also because of the bigger size the retrieve is fairly fast. These are great on the Thompson River for those monster Steelhead and the Fraser for whatever is comming up. When a thirty pound Spring decides it is going back the the Ocean you are glad you got a rim controll reel and lots of backing. For drift fishing I just use Abu Garcia Ambassabure's. I don't like them but they are cheap and you can pick them up for thirty dollars and when the paul wares out just throw them away. Once in a while I will take out a JW Young Purist, or an Avon Royal Surpeme, or a Seldex, or one of the JW Youngs to drift fish with but only when I am going some place easy to fish.
There is a beautiful little river up in the Skagit vally in the Skagit Valley Provincial Park that is an excellent trout fishery. This is a protected river and is all catch and release and fly fishing only. I usually fish this little river two or three times in the summer as it is only open form July 1 Sept 30. It also has an excellent Dolly Varden Population along with the trout. The trout average one pound and the dollies average five pounds. When I fish up here it is where I show off a little. I either use a Hardy Greenheart, or a Millward Cane, and one of my little English fly reel. I have a little Slater that is really nice but when I am out with these guys I fish like I am walking on egg shells. I don't fish lakes. I figure I will save these until I can't stomp along the river bank any more. It is just the thrill of seeing what is arond the next bend.
I have a lot of really nice reels that I could fish with but I just want to insure that they stay that way. A dent in a reel spool or a big scratch just costs too much in a nice old reel. However once in a while I do treat myself and take one out for some very gentle fishing for the day.
Bill
I live in British Columbia Canada in a rural area about eighty miles from Vancouver along the Chilliwack River. This is my home river however during the course of a year I fish up to ten different rivers that are within a couple hours driving distance. Ninety percent of my fishing is either fly fishing which I perfer and drift fishing for Salmon and Steelhead. This means lots of walking along the river and bush wacking and sometimes cliff climbing. So due to the terrain it is easy to trip and stumble. About fifteen years ago I wiped out and dented the spool of one of my Hardy reels and after that I decided to go with cheaper reels. The English Morretts Intrepid reels are excellent reels. They have a huge center post and are rim fly and the body and spool are made thick and heavy and they are just excellent fly reels as with big fish you can really clamp down on the spool without worrying about bending the center pin or spool. They are just excellent reels and very underated. I have an old one my father got me when I was eight and it is almost fifty years old and still works like new and belive me it has been used. Spare spools are also easly available which makes it great to carry different heads for different water conditions. These guys can be picked up really cheap on our favorite auction site and in most cases under twenty dollars. I also use old JW Young Seldex reels for both fly reels and drift fishing. These can be picked up for around fifty dollars a lot of times. I like the Seldex for Steelhead on big rivers as the hold lots of backing and with the click of a leaver I can dead drift a fly very nicely. Also because of the bigger size the retrieve is fairly fast. These are great on the Thompson River for those monster Steelhead and the Fraser for whatever is comming up. When a thirty pound Spring decides it is going back the the Ocean you are glad you got a rim controll reel and lots of backing. For drift fishing I just use Abu Garcia Ambassabure's. I don't like them but they are cheap and you can pick them up for thirty dollars and when the paul wares out just throw them away. Once in a while I will take out a JW Young Purist, or an Avon Royal Surpeme, or a Seldex, or one of the JW Youngs to drift fish with but only when I am going some place easy to fish.
There is a beautiful little river up in the Skagit vally in the Skagit Valley Provincial Park that is an excellent trout fishery. This is a protected river and is all catch and release and fly fishing only. I usually fish this little river two or three times in the summer as it is only open form July 1 Sept 30. It also has an excellent Dolly Varden Population along with the trout. The trout average one pound and the dollies average five pounds. When I fish up here it is where I show off a little. I either use a Hardy Greenheart, or a Millward Cane, and one of my little English fly reel. I have a little Slater that is really nice but when I am out with these guys I fish like I am walking on egg shells. I don't fish lakes. I figure I will save these until I can't stomp along the river bank any more. It is just the thrill of seeing what is arond the next bend.
I have a lot of really nice reels that I could fish with but I just want to insure that they stay that way. A dent in a reel spool or a big scratch just costs too much in a nice old reel. However once in a while I do treat myself and take one out for some very gentle fishing for the day.
Bill
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john elder
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Warren Platt
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Old line & reels
el,
Display rod/reel/line/lure combos by hanging from a nail in the wall, displaying at an angle on the wall, standing in rod racks, etc. Just make sure that you never lean them against a wall of corner of wall if they are bamboo rods. I've seen you casting and fishing with early equipment, so I know you enjoy using same. Just bring it home and display it just as it's used, it keeps memories fresh and encourages you to take it on the next trip. I really enjoyed last years ORCA Convention and am sorry that I will miss the one in NY this year.
Bill,
Sounds like you do some real fun fishing! About the only thing that I could suggest you might try would be a nice 1950s Heddon Pal solid glass rod with a Pflueger Supreme reel and whatever test braided nylon you would need. This outfit might be fun for your drift fishing in place of the Ambassadeur outfit. No great cost, plus rod and reel could take a beating without letting you down. Sound interesting?
Warren
Display rod/reel/line/lure combos by hanging from a nail in the wall, displaying at an angle on the wall, standing in rod racks, etc. Just make sure that you never lean them against a wall of corner of wall if they are bamboo rods. I've seen you casting and fishing with early equipment, so I know you enjoy using same. Just bring it home and display it just as it's used, it keeps memories fresh and encourages you to take it on the next trip. I really enjoyed last years ORCA Convention and am sorry that I will miss the one in NY this year.
Bill,
Sounds like you do some real fun fishing! About the only thing that I could suggest you might try would be a nice 1950s Heddon Pal solid glass rod with a Pflueger Supreme reel and whatever test braided nylon you would need. This outfit might be fun for your drift fishing in place of the Ambassadeur outfit. No great cost, plus rod and reel could take a beating without letting you down. Sound interesting?
Warren
Old Reels with line
Dear All
Actually Warren it does sound interesting. After a days fishing my fishing buddy stops in and we always pull out a pile of reels and talk about using them. Just haven't done it yet. I do have a pile of old glass rods in the garage and I am sure there is a Heddon in there some place. I know for sure the are Shakespeares and South Bends so I should be able to find something to match up with a Pflueger Surpeme. Normally the rods we use are ten and one half feet. This enables one to keep the line up off the water when making the drift and controll the flow of the float. A short rod in the right water would be interesting. When I get around to it I will let you know how they compare to the level winds we normally use for drift fishing.
John you neetness post was great. It is so me.
Bill Turnbull
Actually Warren it does sound interesting. After a days fishing my fishing buddy stops in and we always pull out a pile of reels and talk about using them. Just haven't done it yet. I do have a pile of old glass rods in the garage and I am sure there is a Heddon in there some place. I know for sure the are Shakespeares and South Bends so I should be able to find something to match up with a Pflueger Surpeme. Normally the rods we use are ten and one half feet. This enables one to keep the line up off the water when making the drift and controll the flow of the float. A short rod in the right water would be interesting. When I get around to it I will let you know how they compare to the level winds we normally use for drift fishing.
John you neetness post was great. It is so me.
Bill Turnbull