Fly Reels
I Collect High-Grade, Vintage Reels, Small In Size And Big On Character. Here Are Some Of My Favorites
~ Click On Pictures To Enlarge ~
Talbot’s “Ben Hur” Fly Reel. This Example Was Sold By Abercrombie & Fitch.
The Talbot “Ben Hur” Fly Reel Was Made In Two Sizes: The Model 100 (2-1/8″) And The Model 101 (2-1/2″). This Example Is A Model 100.
Maker Unknown? I Think So. While Many Attribute These Early William Mills & Son “Fairy” Reels To The Shop Of Julius vom Hofe, Others Disagree.
I Think The Earliest Mills “Fairy” Reels Were Made By William Slote, Of Brooklyn, NY
Early Nickel Silver Fly Reel By Unknown Maker. Note The Elaborately Figured Crank
A Narrow Spool Reel With A Constant Click And Clever Push Button Drag. The Reel Is 2.75″ In Diameter.
Beautifully Turned Pillars
The Redifor Model X is 2-1/4″ In Diameter And Is Aluminum With A German Silver “Handle Disc”
Redifor’s Patent 820,326 Is For A “Protected Handle On A Fly Reel”, Which Kept The Line From Fouling
This 4X Multiplier Was Marketed As “The First And Only Multiplying Fly Reel”
The “Crown” Fly Reel Was Made For William Mills & Son By William Slote Of Brooklyn, NY. The Reel Has A Frame Of Hard Rubber, The Spool And Revolving Plate Are Aluminum And All Other Parts Are German Silver.
Turned Pillars Are A Hallmark Of Slote Fly Reels
This Example Is A Model 543, Which Is Stamped On The Underside Of The Foot. The Reel Is A Bit Under 2.5″ In Diameter (Including The Pillars) And The Serial Number “24″ Is Stamped Between The Foot Pillars.
A 2.25″ Gayle Fly Reel Constructed Of Aluminum And Nickel Silver
George W. Gayle, A Silver Smith And Watch Maker, Apprenticed Under B. F. Meek. There Are Currently Only Eight Known Examples Of This Reel.
My Favorite Kind Of Reel … Small, Beautifully Made And No Idea Who The Maker Is
This Mystery Reel Is Just 1-7/8″ In Diameter, Is Possibly Made From Monel Metal, Has Brass Spool Flanges And A Steel Arbor
An Unusually Artistic Crank And Knob. The Anonymous Maker Had A Wonderful Sense Of Aesthetics.
This Nickle Silver And Hard Rubber Reel Is 2-1/8″ In Diameter
Note The Bearing Cap, Which I Have Not Seen Before. Bessie Was Born In Dallas In 1878 And Died In Los Angeles In 1955.
This Nickel Silver And Hard Rubber Fly Reel Is 2.5″ In Diameter
The Maker Is Unknown
This Nickel Silver Ball Handle Reel Is Just 1-7/8″ In Diameter And Is A Bit Different In Two Respects …First, It Has A Click, Activated By A Rim Switch And …
…It Has An Unusually Narrow Spool At Just 1″ Wide. Fishing Photographs From The Mid To Late 1800s Sometimes Show Tiny Ball Handle Reels Such As This One Mounted On Fly Rods.
The Maker Of This Reel Is Unknown.
This Tiny Irish Spike Foot Reel Is 1-3/4″ In Diameter
The Clinton Side-Mount Fly Reel, Patented In 1889, Was Advertised As Being “Built Like A Watch, Combining Strength, Beauty Of Form And Finish”
This 2.25″ Reel Was Made By Frederick Malleson …
…And Was Sold By Hawks & Ogilvy
This Philbrook & Paine Fly Reel is 2-5/8″ In Diameter, Including The Pillars
Philbrook & Payne’s Reel Making Shop Was Located In Bangor, Maine
Francis J. Philbrook Patented What Is Today Referred To As The Leonard “Bi-Metal Reel”. The Patent Number 191,813 Was Filed On May 10, 1877, And Issued On June 12, 1877. The Patent Covered Two New Ideas: The Use Of Raised Pillars And Recessing A Side Plate To House The Click Mechanism.
This Example Measures 2-5/8″ In Diameter, Including The Pillars And Is Cataloged As A 2-1/2″ Reel. In The Mid-1880s This Reel Cost $8.50 …Which Was Roughly Two Weeks Average Wages At The Time.
The Hardy “Perfect” Seen Here Is The Smallest Cataloged Size: 2.5″. This Example Has The 1905 Check.
This Tiny Reel Is Stamped “Wyers Freres, Redditch & Paris”. In 1900 Wyers Freres Won A Gold Medal At La Grande Exposition Universelle In Paris For Their Exhibit Of Fishing Rods And Tackle.
Just 2″ In Diameter, Including The Pillars, This Reel Is Constructed Of Brass With Iron Screws
Tackle Historians Hypothesize That Tiny Kentucky Reels, Such As This Narrow Spool Meek & Milam, Were Likely Used As Fly Reels By Some Anglers
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Talbot’s “Ben Hur” Fly Reel. This Example Was Sold By Abercrombie & Fitch.
The Talbot “Ben Hur” Fly Reel Was Made In Two Sizes: The Model 100 (2-1/8″) And The Model 101 (2-1/2″). This Example Is A Model 100.
Maker Unknown? I Think So. While Many Attribute These Early William Mills & Son “Fairy” Reels To The Shop Of Julius vom Hofe, Others Disagree.
I Think The Earliest Mills “Fairy” Reels Were Made By William Slote, Of Brooklyn, NY
Early Nickel Silver Fly Reel By Unknown Maker. Note The Elaborately Figured Crank
A Narrow Spool Reel With A Constant Click And Clever Push Button Drag. The Reel Is 2.75″ In Diameter.
Beautifully Turned Pillars
The Redifor Model X is 2-1/4″ In Diameter And Is Aluminum With A German Silver “Handle Disc”
Redifor’s Patent 820,326 Is For A “Protected Handle On A Fly Reel”, Which Kept The Line From Fouling
This 4X Multiplier Was Marketed As “The First And Only Multiplying Fly Reel”
The “Crown” Fly Reel Was Made For William Mills & Son By William Slote Of Brooklyn, NY. The Reel Has A Frame Of Hard Rubber, The Spool And Revolving Plate Are Aluminum And All Other Parts Are German Silver.
Turned Pillars Are A Hallmark Of Slote Fly Reels
This Example Is A Model 543, Which Is Stamped On The Underside Of The Foot. The Reel Is A Bit Under 2.5″ In Diameter (Including The Pillars) And The Serial Number “24″ Is Stamped Between The Foot Pillars.
A 2.25″ Gayle Fly Reel Constructed Of Aluminum And Nickel Silver
George W. Gayle, A Silver Smith And Watch Maker, Apprenticed Under B. F. Meek. There Are Currently Only Eight Known Examples Of This Reel.
My Favorite Kind Of Reel … Small, Beautifully Made And No Idea Who The Maker Is
This Mystery Reel Is Just 1-7/8″ In Diameter, Is Possibly Made From Monel Metal, Has Brass Spool Flanges And A Steel Arbor
An Unusually Artistic Crank And Knob. The Anonymous Maker Had A Wonderful Sense Of Aesthetics.
This Nickle Silver And Hard Rubber Reel Is 2-1/8″ In Diameter
Note The Bearing Cap, Which I Have Not Seen Before. Bessie Was Born In Dallas In 1878 And Died In Los Angeles In 1955.
This Nickel Silver And Hard Rubber Fly Reel Is 2.5″ In Diameter
The Maker Is Unknown
This Nickel Silver Ball Handle Reel Is Just 1-7/8″ In Diameter And Is A Bit Different In Two Respects …First, It Has A Click, Activated By A Rim Switch And …
…It Has An Unusually Narrow Spool At Just 1″ Wide. Fishing Photographs From The Mid To Late 1800s Sometimes Show Tiny Ball Handle Reels Such As This One Mounted On Fly Rods.
The Maker Of This Reel Is Unknown.
This Tiny Irish Spike Foot Reel Is 1-3/4″ In Diameter
The Clinton Side-Mount Fly Reel, Patented In 1889, Was Advertised As Being “Built Like A Watch, Combining Strength, Beauty Of Form And Finish”
This 2.25″ Reel Was Made By Frederick Malleson …
…And Was Sold By Hawks & Ogilvy
This Philbrook & Paine Fly Reel is 2-5/8″ In Diameter, Including The Pillars
Philbrook & Payne’s Reel Making Shop Was Located In Bangor, Maine
Francis J. Philbrook Patented What Is Today Referred To As The Leonard “Bi-Metal Reel”. The Patent Number 191,813 Was Filed On May 10, 1877, And Issued On June 12, 1877. The Patent Covered Two New Ideas: The Use Of Raised Pillars And Recessing A Side Plate To House The Click Mechanism.
This Example Measures 2-5/8″ In Diameter, Including The Pillars And Is Cataloged As A 2-1/2″ Reel. In The Mid-1880s This Reel Cost $8.50 …Which Was Roughly Two Weeks Average Wages At The Time.
The Hardy “Perfect” Seen Here Is The Smallest Cataloged Size: 2.5″. This Example Has The 1905 Check.
This Tiny Reel Is Stamped “Wyers Freres, Redditch & Paris”. In 1900 Wyers Freres Won A Gold Medal At La Grande Exposition Universelle In Paris For Their Exhibit Of Fishing Rods And Tackle.
Just 2″ In Diameter, Including The Pillars, This Reel Is Constructed Of Brass With Iron Screws
Tackle Historians Hypothesize That Tiny Kentucky Reels, Such As This Narrow Spool Meek & Milam, Were Likely Used As Fly Reels By Some Anglers
