Reels

[jimpy0]

Might sound a little strange but what constitutes some reels being worth a fortune and others not worth the box they came in

i refer to s/hand reels some mitchels and abu's go for silly money why

[Peter Waller]

Because some folk have far more money than sense!

 

And some of those old reels, the ABU 505 and 1044, for example, have never been bettered. Mitchells, well, maybe thats more us old gits going through our second childhood, nostalgia for what was the best in its day, rather than their superiority over modern reels. Mind you, I never did really rate the 300s.

[Bonzo]

Mitchels were the best in there day due to the engineering that went into each model, the only difference today is that some modern reels are a tad lighter in weight.and perhaps have finer clutches.

I can remember buying my last 440 new for £26 in 1980, I still sometimes use this reel and the many other mitchels I own mainly 300's, they all still work and look as good as new.

I used my 300's for all my carping and piking from the early 70's and probaly all the ledgering i did in those days.

[Phil Adams]

New deffinately isnt best, I'm hating the new Shimano range with a passion at the moment, especially the GTM series (GRRRRRR! total waste of money that was IMO)

 

Personaly I have a liking for mid to late 90's Shimano's, whilst not "old" I find they are the best built of the major mainstream brands during the past 10 years.

 

I've not used Mitchells or Abu's but they appear to be built like tanks, which is a GOOD thing......Take the hint Shimano!

[gozzer]

As I've said a few times already on here, I still use my Match Ariel centrepin,I bought in '68, never had a problem, despite a number of drenchings, drops and even being buried in sand, just a good clean and oil and I'm off again. I also haven't found a better closed face reel than my ABU 501, bought in early '80s,only thing I've had with that was I lost the drag knob on the handle, but I never used it anyway, so just sealed the spot where it had been,and again no trouble. They are a bit heavier than modern reels, but much sturdier IMO, and that more than makes up for a bit of exta weight.

[Dick Dastardly]

I still use Mitchell 300S's for most of my medium specimen hunting and some of my carp fishing to.Great line lay,reliable,good size and the crap drag dont matter as I back wind.

 

Still got the older 6010 model Shimanos and the origonal 4500 and 6500 Seaspins. Cant see me ever needing to buy any more reels in my life.

 

Match wise I still use my ABU 501's.As Peter said theyve never (IMO) been improved on.

 

Must admit to getting rid of my old centrepins but I can assure you that wasnt because they were no good just needed the money!

[chesters1]

if people are stupid enough to pay £200 for an intrepid seastreak then theres some strange folks about

rarety should be the determining factor but this isnt found in real life,take hardy reels ,quality yes rarety no ,go to tackle fairs and tables are groaning under the weight of them all at silly prices so its not the rarety part that keeps the prices high and as most are not used but grace shelves quality isnt the reason (it could just as well be an empty shell) .

its the collecting bug that determines price ,you could collect bogies but theres always bogies that are hard to find ,and then theres the condition of the bogies and whether their boxed etc .

i have in my collection a morritt reel ,it was his first fixed spool and a dismal failure ,a design flaw showed when it was dropped and it fell apart a chap i am in correspondance with says more were being returned in the morning post than were being sent out in the evening ,they were recalled and he spent 2 weeks smashing them up to be melted down to form the mark 2 version ,i have one its rarerer than any hardy, is it shown in its value ? no ,it was never catalogued (as far as i can acertain) so unless detailed research is done most intrepid collectors wont have heard of it (there is another morritt reel as well his first ever ) and theres lots of intrepid collectors (its not just me) rare as hens teeth but at the moment worth nothing because it isnt known about and hense not wanted

value boils down to just two people ,a thing both desire and the determination/stupidity to get it.

it doesent just apply to scarce or quality things ,strangely even reels bought on ebay can be bought cheaper brand new only that 2 stupid/determined twits just can't bear the thought of being outbid

Edited March 25, 2006 by chesters1

[jimpy0]

i agree with the old engineering bit got quite a few reels but keep returning to my old abu 455gl

 

its getting a bit long in the tooth could poss do with a new bail arm spring??

[Dick Dastardly]

Sorry I misinterpreted the question! Chesters has answered it perfectly.

 

With regard to quality reels Jimpy's last post has raised a very good point.When you buy from the likes of ABU,Mitchell etc you have the piece of mind that you will be able to get spares in the future.For example the Mitchell 300S was discontinued in the late 1980's but I can still get any spare part I need.Admitedly Shimano are a lot better now but it wasnt that long ago when getting a spare spool yet alone a spare part for a current reel was neigh on impossible.

[Guest tigger]

Match wise I still use my ABU 501's.As Peter said theyve never (IMO) been improved on.

 

Must admit to getting rid of my old centrepins but I can assure you that wasnt because they were no good just needed the money!

 

 

I reckon your right there, the abu 501's got to be the best reel ever made.

 

Pity you had to sell your pins, you'll have to save up some pennies and get another one or two or....

 

Tigger.