Cool looking reel
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Russ
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- Location: British Columbia, Canada
Cool looking reel
Hi is anyone familiar with this reel as I'd like a little history on it. It has the following marked on the hub. NICE PHILA XK4A MADE IN USA . Thanks Russ
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Jim Schottenham
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Hi Russ,
I'm not sure we'll ever know the maker of these Thumb or Indiana style reels, but we keep looking and hoping! The NICE Phila markings you see on the hub are from the ball bearing company that produced ball bearings for quite a few applications, reels included. When I started researching the NICE company (since bought out by another company who's name escapes me - I think I have it home, but I'm in Pigeon Forge right now at the NFLCC show) I learned that they had been in business for 100 years. I have quite a few different Indiana style reels with NICE made bearings and no makers mark or name on the reels themselves. Bill Stuart wrote a great article in the Spring 2000 issue of the Reel News that talked all about Thumb reels that would help you out a lot with your reel.
Neat thing for sure!
Jim
Here's a few more Thumb Reels, no maker name or marks on any of them...
I'm not sure we'll ever know the maker of these Thumb or Indiana style reels, but we keep looking and hoping! The NICE Phila markings you see on the hub are from the ball bearing company that produced ball bearings for quite a few applications, reels included. When I started researching the NICE company (since bought out by another company who's name escapes me - I think I have it home, but I'm in Pigeon Forge right now at the NFLCC show) I learned that they had been in business for 100 years. I have quite a few different Indiana style reels with NICE made bearings and no makers mark or name on the reels themselves. Bill Stuart wrote a great article in the Spring 2000 issue of the Reel News that talked all about Thumb reels that would help you out a lot with your reel.
Neat thing for sure!
Jim
Here's a few more Thumb Reels, no maker name or marks on any of them...
Very similar reels were common in China. People who traveled there from the time of it's opening up to visitors have said these types of reels were still in use into the 90s. These are made with modern materials like nylon, steel, copper and some other plastic but I've seen pictures of them made with bamboo and other types of wood. The man who brought back the metal one told me he had seen very similar reels in the silk factories and guessed that it could have been centuries ago that a fisherman may have adopted the idea for fishing. Notice that these don't have crank knobs either - the true knuckle buster!
