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Why handmade centrepins are expensive


tincatinca

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Guest bbamboo
The biggest problem is having the equipent that is accurate enough to be able to make the parts. Fortunayely I now have the turning and milling capability, just need to be able to index accurately on a rotary table then I can have a go at making one. Good project for the winter methinks.

 

 

Be sure to show your progress

 

Gary

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I'm still in regular - ie daily (!!) contact with Glenn through the IAC. His offices were wiped out by the Buncefield Oil Terminal blast - would have been killed if it hadn't happened on a Sunday morning. Will point this thread at him and see if he'll pop in to say hello!

C.

 

 

Sound's like a very lucky escape :o

 

It would be nice if he started to post again as he had such a passion for CP's and with there being a nucleous of pin enthusiasts on AN :)

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Afternoon all

 

Yeh, still about, just other things taking up my time now. Still love pins and fishing but don't fish nearly as much as I used to. Life gets in the way sometimes. Nice to see some old names on here that I recognise. Hope you are all well.

 

Perhaps these may be of interest to you all:

 

http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=JohnMilnerReels

 

via a link off his main website:

 

http://www.johnmilnerreels.com/

 

 

In addition, there is an American forum somewhere on t'net where guys make their own fly fishing reels, and some of those are just incredible. S-shaped handles (like the old Cascopedia), custom-designed/cut, things like that. Just incredible engineering. I so wish I had that talent.

 

Glenn

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perhaps the short length of line (comparatively compared to fixed spools) is harking back to the days when after every outing you took the line off and dried it ,i suppose also (in braided lines) there was less chance of the line bedding in using a shorter length ?

not a pin user! i got a semi sexual thrill taking a two LB hammer to mine in my youth when i was given a fixed spool hated it immensely i even had a turncast version which was just expectable :D

although i was just about ten years out from the tweed and pipe smoking pin user angler i really couldn't see any use a pin had after i encountered a fixed spool.

Not saying its obsolete the ppond has a fair number being used but fishing close in (as its best to there) theres little lost to a fixed spool ,different when you want to chuck a feeder out though ,those branches look very inviting for all those nice waiting loops :D

are pins not all hand made is there a machine that can produce a complete finished one even production models are under human guidance somewhere ,is using a lathe cheating compared to some old geezer fettling one out of a lump of wood or grinding down a lump of metal with a file ;)

a lathe is just a "long hand" vertical mill :D

 

rather than faulting the modern mill is it really the software that makes it not hand made ? throw in a lump press a button and come back later ,blimey is using a micrometer detracting from hand made? what is the line?

 

some old geezer ,"electricity!! ,bloody modern crap ,mines hand made ya know" :D

much older geezer " bloody string and bendy stick lathe ,modern crap ,mines hand made ya know"

 

they are expensive only because someone (some fool IMHO) pays the price asked (applies to everything) refuse and rather than having a ever increasing stock the price will fall or the maker will starve ;)

 

what makes an expensive reel? rarety well hardy is a very expensive make but rare they are not every tackle fest has tables groaning under them ,quality ? perhaps but i'v used a couple of their altexes and they're far cruder than even the cheapest modern reel.Workmanship perhaps but its still pretty crude stuff or merely the desire to own a reel puts its price up ,many desires means competition that makes things expensive but even crap if enough people want it will have its price rise.

"expensive" doesnt exist if you dont want it to, "worth" is what makes you hand over your money ..hopefully

Edited by chesters1

Believe NOTHING anyones says or writes unless you witness it yourself and even then your eyes can deceive you

None of this "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" crap it just means i have at least two enemies!

 

There is only one opinion i listen to ,its mine and its ALWAYS right even when its wrong

 

Its far easier to curse the darkness than light one candle

 

Mathew 4:19

Grangers law : anything i say will  turn out the opposite or not happen at all!

Life insurance? you wont enjoy a penny!

"To compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of opinions which he disbelieves and abhors, is sinful and tyrannical." Thomas Jefferson

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Weird things going on - one minute I can see my reply, the next I can't. Anyway, cleared my browser cache and now I'm back again.

 

Yeh the CL1915 is definitely one that gets used (if only occasionally, like my fishing!). Out of all the pins I own or have owned, the 1915 and an old narrow-drum Speedia have given me the least problems. The 1915 is a beautifully made reel, ideal for everything from legering for barbel to trotting for smaller stuff. In my opinion you won't find a better made reel than Chris Lythe's.

 

I've had others that haven't been so good. The one really disappointing one for me was the BJ2080 by Youngs. Such a lovely looking reel, nice build quality, but on numerous occasions it got pieces of grit under the mechanism and just ground to a halt! Maybe I was just unlucky with it.

 

These days my money goes on the kids, the new puppy (!!), and photography - you thought fishing was expensive? I could have had three Chris Lythes for the amount I've spent of stuff for my photography this year. And even that isn't on the 'expensive' stuff!

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Weird things going on - one minute I can see my reply, the next I can't. Anyway, cleared my browser cache and now I'm back again.

 

Yeh the CL1915 is definitely one that gets used (if only occasionally, like my fishing!). Out of all the pins I own or have owned, the 1915 and an old narrow-drum Speedia have given me the least problems. The 1915 is a beautifully made reel, ideal for everything from legering for barbel to trotting for smaller stuff. In my opinion you won't find a better made reel than Chris Lythe's.

 

I've had others that haven't been so good. The one really disappointing one for me was the BJ2080 by Youngs. Such a lovely looking reel, nice build quality, but on numerous occasions it got pieces of grit under the mechanism and just ground to a halt! Maybe I was just unlucky with it.

 

These days my money goes on the kids, the new puppy (!!), and photography - you thought fishing was expensive? I could have had three Chris Lythes for the amount I've spent of stuff for my photography this year. And even that isn't on the 'expensive' stuff!

 

 

Good to hear you like your Lythe :) . Strange about your BJ2080 as mine all perform perfect (fingers crossed now :lol: ).

 

What kind of dog did you opt for for your kids, I hope it was a bully ?

 

I can imagine the photography thing could get quite addictive and also very expensive, as you say it will blow away the price of even the top end pins !

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Interestingly enough, the BJ2080 is the least favoured of my centrepins although I cannot pinpoint why apart from the Ray Walton which does not get used at all these days. I have always been a big fan of the Adcock Stanton after buying one many years ago but the recently aquired 4" version with check and adjustable drag is fast becoming my favourite user as apart from not having a lever check, it has everything I look for i.e. free running, sits well on the rod under the hand, handles well set back from the rim, large holes for finger winding, knurled rim for batting, adjustable drag which works well now I have sorted the drag washer and a strong check for keeping the line tight when roaming. Having said that though, I am really looking forward to the CL 1915 with a lever check instead of a button.

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I think Chesters makes a good point, when does something stop being hand made and become mass produced (relatively speaking)?

 

Both Chris Lythe and Paul Witcher's site explain that all of the reel components are made to order on a lathe, Garry Mills has a CNC machine which churns out JW Youngs backplates and drums time after time once it's programmed (not sure how he manufactures his own reels). That would account for the significant cost difference but in terms of value to the customer how much does it influence their choice? Impossible to answer, some see a centrepin as a functional tool and take advantage of the many great reels available for £100 or so. Others see it as a desirable thing to have and put a value on the 'bloke and a lathe' aspect.

 

The cost isn't a mystery but there's no logic to the value, those who don't choose to buy expensive centrepins may well have other hobbies which swallow up funds but provide them with great enjoyment.

 

For what it's worth I think Lythe reels are an absolute steal at £425.00 and I really wish I'd bought more than one but I'm into my seventh month and don't want to start off the two year wait again.

Edited by Rusty

It's never a 'six', let's put it back

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